Learning Styles: Recognition and Accommodation
The recognition and accommodation of the diverse learning styles exhibited by team members can lead to improved interaction and greater synergy online or face-to-face. The most commonly recognized learning styles are derived from the main sense used for sensory input. Commonly, the three most pertinent and all-encompassing learning styles are visual, auditory, and kinesthetic. If the learning styles can be properly identified and accommodated in both the face-to-face and online environments, the result will be greatly empowered people and more effective teams.
Listening or speaking to facilitate the learning process characterizes the auditory learning style. It can be divided into two sub-categories: the listening learner who learns by hearing and the verbal learner who learns by discussion (Lamarche-Bisson, 2002). This individual thrives in environments primarily of lecture and discussion. A person of this style can demonstrate a profound listening ability or a talkative spirit, needing to repeat information in his/her own words for better understanding.
A visual learning style involves thinking in terms of picture or words; this style is divided into two sub-categories: the visual/verbal learner who learns best when information is presented visually and in a written language format and the visual/non-verbal learner who learns best when information is presented visually and in a picture or design format. "It's as if he has a movie camera in his mind" (Lamarche-Bisson, 2002). The visual learning style naturally focuses his/her perception on the external qualities of visible objects, relating images to reasoning. Cognition is image-based and note-taking serves as a common mnemonic device, as conclusions are drawn based on imagined pictorial representations.
Fleming writes kinesthetic learners require "concrete, multi-sensory experiences in their learning. Although learning by doing matches their needs they can easily learn conceptual and abstract
Listening or speaking to facilitate the learning process characterizes the auditory learning style. It can be divided into two sub-categories: the listening learner who learns by hearing and the verbal learner who learns by discussion (Lamarche-Bisson, 2002). This individual thrives in environments primarily of lecture and discussion. A person of this style can demonstrate a profound listening ability or a talkative spirit, needing to repeat information in his/her own words for better understanding.
A visual learning style involves thinking in terms of picture or words; this style is divided into two sub-categories: the visual/verbal learner who learns best when information is presented visually and in a written language format and the visual/non-verbal learner who learns best when information is presented visually and in a picture or design format. "It's as if he has a movie camera in his mind" (Lamarche-Bisson, 2002). The visual learning style naturally focuses his/her perception on the external qualities of visible objects, relating images to reasoning. Cognition is image-based and note-taking serves as a common mnemonic device, as conclusions are drawn based on imagined pictorial representations.
Fleming writes kinesthetic learners require "concrete, multi-sensory experiences in their learning. Although learning by doing matches their needs they can easily learn conceptual and abstract