Teaching Methods Educational Research Exploring

Teaching Methods

Educational research exploring the issue of academic achievement extends beyond the simple issues of intelligence and prior academic achievement. There are a number of learning related concepts, such as perception of academic control and achievement motivation which have been a focus of attention when attempting to identify factors affecting learning related performance. Cassidy (2004) notes the concept of learning style has provided valuable insights into both learning and other settings. There is general acceptance that the manner in which individuals choose to or are inclined to approach a learning situation has an impact on performance and achievement of learning outcomes. Because learning style has been the focus of a vast number of research and practitioner-based studies there exists a wide variety of definitions, theoretical positions, models interpretations and measures of the construct. This may be considered a natural consequence of the continually developing concept which proves useful in gaining an understanding of how learning takes place. Currently the level of ambiguity and debate over this issue is such that a variety of theories exist into how to best integrate learning style into educational programs. Yerxa (2003) contends that simply being aware that there can be different ways to approach teaching and learning can make a difference.

Discussion

Sadler-Smith and Riding (1999) note learning and cognitive styles may be classified in terms of a three-layered onion with each layer of the onion representing a particular construct. The outermost layer represented instructional preferences, the middle layer 'information processing style' or learning style, and the inner layer consisted of cognitive personality elements such as field dependence/field independence overlying a central personality dimension. The author's contend that the innermost layer, cognitive style, is relatively fixed and affects the outer layer, instructional preferences.

Three broad categories of learning style have been identified: 1) instructional preferences, the learner's comfort and fit with a particular instructional method such as independent study, lecture, discussion and so forth, 2) instructional processing style, such as converger, diverger, accommodator, assimilator, or related learning styles such as activist style, reflector style, theorist style and pragmatist style, and 3) cognitive personality elements such as field dependence and independence. One may add to this the intuitive-analytical dimension and the analytical and verbaliser-imager dimensions of cognitive style. The latter is a model of the ways in which individuals respectively process and represent information during thinking (Sadler-Smith & Riding, (1999).

The relationship between ability and performance is relatively straightforward such that performance improves with increased ability. However the effects of style on performance are contingent on the nature of the task. For example visual learners are likely to perform better on pictorially-based tasks than on verbal-based tasks. There is no significant correlation between intelligence and learning style. However reach indicates that academic achievement was positively correlated with a strategic approach to addressing learning styles and negatively correlated to an apathetic approach. Learning style was also found to correlate significantly with other academic performance related factors such as self-efficacy and academic locus of control (Cassidy, 1999).

Conclusion