We are all different.

Know yourself and be aware of your own abilities & preferences. Educators will naturally be more comfortable teaching in a way that they would want to be taught and in a way that is easiest for them to learn.  DO NOT ASSUME EVERYONE IS LIKE YOU.  If you are to be a successful educator, it is essential to develop the skills to appeal to as many perspectives as possible and as many different ways of learning as possible.

The following are some different perspectives on ways of learning that have evolved over the years. This is just a small sample of work that has been done in an effort to understand and facilitate learning. The purpose of this work is not to put people into a learning box and run the risk of a label becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy, but to provide opportunities for exploration and deeper understanding. There is a very extensive body of work on this subject and in the spirit of difference; some of these approaches will work better for you than others. The more options you have to draw on, the greater the odds are that there will be something that you might be able to use to help a student overcome an obstacle. Learners are actively involved if the method that works best for them is made accessible.

In this section, you will find summaries of theories and perspectives that will help you to consider the diversity of students in your clinical learning courses.

  1. Visual/Auditory/Kinesthetic Method
  2. Multiple Intelligences
  3. Scaffold Learning
  4. Meyers-Briggs Type Indicator

 

The most essential theme behind each of these theories is the admonition to:

Be aware of your own learning preferences. Educators will naturally be more comfortable teaching in their own preferred learning style. It is essential to develop the skills to appeal to learning styles that may differ from your own.

There is no one right or universal road to learning.