Doug Gray on sat 27 oct 01
Ivor,
You bring up an interesting point. During my first year of college
teaching I participated in a teaching methodology workshop. One of our
first exercises was to take a hemispheric indicator test, a short test
to determine whether the left or right side of my brain was dominant.
By establishing this distinction, the workshop coordinators began to
make assumptions and to extrapolate as to the circumstances under which
I learned best. As I tested with a dominant right hemisphere, they
concluded that I would learn better if I could see the entire process
first thus making each individual step a more logical progression to the
end goal. And I'd have to admit, for the most part they were correct.
But the next session dealt with the issue that all students learn
differently. If I am a extreme right brained learner, and teach with
only those methods that work for me, then some of the students
(particularly those who are extreme left brained learners) will get lost
in the process. They suggested that the ideal teacher would teach with
methods in the middle of that spectrum, neither extremely right or left
brained. One could argue that certain disciplines attract certain
students with specific learning styles, but that isn't always the case.
So as a teacher I have an obligation to address all learning styles.
Some students will need to read descriptions of techniques, some need to
see it, some need to be quizzed over it, some need to hear it, some
(all, actually) need to do it. I can't say that this workshop really
told me anything that I didn't already know, but it did force me to look
closely at my teaching methods and course structure and make appropriate
accommodations.
Doug, SC
I'm still amazed that after the scoring was complied, I and one of the
math instructors scored the most right brained out of the group. And
people say art and math have nothing to do with one another.
iandol on sun 28 oct 01
Dear Doug Gray,
Thank you for sharing those experiences with us. Having undergone that =
test and reached those conclusions, what are your feelings about =
teaching being instinctive? Do you think it is instinctive? And if it =
is, are we pre-programmed to respond to the feedback from our students? =
Can we make a qualitative assessment immediately we have a response from =
our students as to the nature of their natural learning styles. Can =
these things be related to learning to throw pots
The psychology of learning is certainly an interesting field.
Best regards.
Ivor Lewis. Redhill, South Australia.
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