One thing that I know for certain is that we each learn differently. My husband only needs to hear something and he remembers it forever. I have to not only see things on paper but I must also be able to manipulate what is written down by highlighting, underlining and circling important ideas. In other words I am not only a visual learner but also one who has to include some kinesthetics to completely understand a concept.
When I was a student I adopted a personal way of learning. I literally paced back and forth in my bedroom repeating ideas over and over again while tying them to visual experiences that I had. I worked magnificently but it was also a somewhat strange way of doing things. I was never able to sit quietly at a table in a library while learning new concepts. I literally had to use the methods that I invented for myself that seemed to work.
I was never tested for any kind of learning disability nor did anyone attempt to find out what my learning style actually was. I somehow bumbled into knowing what I needed. Maybe it began with my first grade teacher who realized that I was having trouble differentiating between certain letters of the alphabet like the difference between a d and a b. With her encouragement I learned how to decode the written word with a number of tricks that included a large number of circles, underlining, arrows and color coding. I also used lined paper to the hilt so that I might properly sequence ideas. Just seeing something on a page and instantly comprehending it did not work for me.
I greatly enjoy the power of computers but when it comes to testing my knowledge I find that computerized questions are more difficult than when the same query is made on a piece of paper that I can touch and decode with my ways of highlighting important ideas. Sadly computers are being used more and more in classrooms in lieu of actual textbooks and paper assessments.
I tutor a number of students who are very bright but struggling with the online information. I suspect that it does not jibe well with their innate learning styles. I find that even I sometimes miss critical information when I attempt to help them. Our eyes fly over the words and without the ability to recode the question to fit the way we think it is more difficult than it should be.
Many times I have printed countless pages from computerized lessons because I needed to show my students how to decode the information beyond just seeing it with their eyes. I literally teach them to read the problem and then write down essential information including exactly what kind of answer the question is seeking. This takes time and effort and in a world where they are expected to quickly move from one question to another they sometimes fall short.
Another problem with having everything online is that parents have little or no idea what the teachers are trying to explain. They often complain to me that without a textbook with lots of examples they become unable to answer the questions that their children ask them. To them it feels as though the needed information is being hidden from them.
As a mathematics teacher I always wanted to see my students’ work because that was the only way that I knew what they were missing when an answer was wrong. Seeing their actual calculations also insured that they were not just guessing from a list of multiple choice answers. I encouraged them to show me every step of their work by giving partial credit for answers that were only wrong because of a slight calculation error rather than total ignorance about how to perform the needed problem solving steps.
As I tutor of today’s computer bound students I find that the best teachers provide them with written information on paper that they are able to keep in notebooks that sequentially lead them from one concept to another. Such teachers also require written copies of solutions that are then used to choose the correct answer on the computer. Then these great educators actually take the time to look at each student’s work even if they get everything correct. Such attention to details makes learning more comfortable for the students, provides parents with documentation of what is right and what is wrong, and allows students to use the learning style that works best for them.
Computers have been a godsend for me in creating written documents. I am able to instantly repair typos and misspellings. In that regard they are wonderful but doing all of the practice and testing of certain subjects like mathematics with total reliance on a computer belies the hallmark of education which should always involve teaching that uses all of the learning styles.
I find it remarkable that it was a first grade teacher who noticed my bit of dyslexia. She did not name it or indicate that is was a kind of disability. She simply understood that I was seeing things differently and she knew how to help me unravel the jumble of reversals with techniques that I have used to this very day.
Perhaps what we need when we test our students is a combination of methods that might even include written copies of the questions and answers on paper that students may use to jot down what they are seeing and then transfer their answers to the screen. It will cost more and take more time but in the long run it will make life so much easier for students whose eyes almost cross when staring at a screen.
All It Takes Is A Little Love 