- Provide a summary of your learning style according the VARK questionnaire
Considering the information collected from the VARK questionnaire, the scores obtained were: Visual 10, Aural 6, Kinesthetic 4, and Read/Write 2. This implies that the highest score of visual is my preferred learning style with the rating of 10. From the results obtained using the VARK personal learning profile, my next preferred learning style is the auditory with the score of 6. This then means that visual and auditory are in the same balance, implying I really desire a big picture or demonstrations and listening in the process of learning. Unfortunately, the multimodal did not score.
- Describe your preferred learning strategies. Compare your current preferred learning strategies to the identified strategies for your preferred learning style
Preferred learning style
Despite that, his implies that I am a visual and auditory learner that is a person who learns best through actively taking part in demonstrations and other visual aided means in the learning process. In most cases, I do learn easily through engaging my hands in experimentations and other associated activities. Attending classroom sessions, listening to speeches is one of my interesting means of arousing my mind (Prithishkumar & Michael, 2014). I have to dedicate my time so as to stay motivated and actively involved so as to grasp and remember all that could have been taught during that session. Taking notes and highlighting is not my area of expertise as far as my learning process is concerned (Khanal et al., 2014).
Strategy comparison
Comparing the identified VARK learning strategies, my current learning strategies are similar. Taking part in class demonstrations and actively participating in lectures are some of the definite comparison (Khanal et al., 2014). In the process of using all my senses that is hearing, touch, taste, sight, and smell to experiment with, is what has the potential of improving my learning process. In the act of executing things once, for instance dedicating my time in listening to class lectures and demonstrations, gives me the opportunity of memorizing the information given (Prithishkumar & Michael, 2014).
- Describe how individual learning styles affect the degree to which a learner can understand or perform educational activities. Discuss the importance of an educator identifying individual learning styles and preferences when working with learners
Each individual learning technique has its own advantages and disadvantages. The reason for that is because each student or learner has his or her own means of learning. Typically, this also has the potential of affecting how learners grasp and process information. Providing students with tools will enable them to be actively engaged in their studies as well as assisting them to be better learners (Peyman et al., 2014). The provision of tools, for example, learning styles, have the potential of guiding the educator to utilize various teaching methods based on the various learning styles of the learner. Such learning styles are used for the purpose of pointing out the various styles to use to collect, convert, interpret, coordinate, and think about the information provided.
In most cases, a student has the ability of using different ways to learn which in return assist him or her to increase their learning process more quickly. That will only happen in case he or she has the ability of making use of some of the preferred learning styles. Basically, the main value of establishing the learners’ knowledge on his or her learning style is the one which guides a learner in understanding their weaknesses and strengths (Khanal et al., 2014). Although there are various means of categorizing learning styles, the VARK model is considered to be the ultimate means of doing so. Usually, it has been realized that visual students always gather information through seeing: handouts, diagrams, videos, and charts while auditory students gather information through hearing.
- Discuss why understanding the learning styles of individuals participating in health promotion is important to achieving the desired outcome. How do learning styles ultimately affect the possibility for a behavioral change? How would different learning styles be accommodated in health promotion?
For a person taking part in health promotion with the objective realizing the desired outcomes, the use of the VARK feature is the one which will assist the learners to decisively reflect on what they are likely to learn on their fieldwork familiarities as well as enhancing their upcoming learning process. Furthermore, VARK research indicates that an assessment made using this tool is the one which has the capacity of developing effective teaching as well as learning strategies for the learners, both clinically and academically (Peyman et al., 2014).
Due to the fact that the VARK online learning questionnaire is perceived to be one of the multimodal learning strategy or preference, about 60% of the entire population is the one which have the chances of fitting into the multimodal learning preferences. The reason for that is because for any behavioral change, the learning style of each student ends up varying taking into consideration the scores obtained as several combinations always exist. From VARK outcomes, some of the learning styles used by learners are what end up making them be more flexible on their learning processes as compared to those has one VARK learning preference (Prithishkumar & Michael, 2014).
In order to accommodate different learning styles in health promotion, it is important for learners to ensure that they have utilized multimodal learning strategies other than limiting themselves to one or two strategies. The reason for that is because it is the one which will assist them to be contented that they have grasped enough on a certain topic (Balasubramaniam & Indhu, 2016). Moreover, in order to accommodate all that, it important to believe that the information gathered is sufficient in enhancing professional learning experiences.
References
PEYMAN, H., SADEGHIFAR, J., KHAJAVIKHAN, J., YASEMI, M., RASOOL, M., YAGHOUBI, Y. M., … KARIM, H. (2014). Using VARK Approach for Assessing Preferred Learning Styles of First Year Medical Sciences Students: A Survey from Iran. Journal of Clinical & Diagnostic Research, 8(8), 1. Retrieved from: http://165.193.178.96/login?url=http%3a%2f%2fsearch.ebscohost.com%2flogin.aspx%3fdirect%3dtrue%26db%3dedb%26AN%3d101624688%26site%3deds-live
Khanal, L., Shah, S., & Koirala, S. (2014). Exploration of preferred learning styles in medical education using VARK modal. Russian Open Medical Journal, 3(3), 1–8. https://doi.org/10.15275/rusomj.2014.0305
Prithishkumar, I. J., & Michael, S. A. (2014). Understanding your student: Using the VARK model. Journal of Postgraduate Medicine, 60(2), 183–186. https://doi.org/10.4103/0022-3859.132337
Balasubramaniam, G., & Indhu, K. (2016). A Study of Learning Style Preferences among First Year Undergraduate Medical Students Using VARK Model. Education in Medicine Journal, 8(4), 15–21. https://doi.org/10.5959/eimj.v8i4.440
