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=Interested in Learning More about Learning Profile?=

A Self-Guided Tour

 * You are here because you have self-identified a learning preference to read and think alone before joining a group discussion. You might be an "intrapersonal learner," one that Howard Gardner describes as " one who has deep understanding one's own interests, goals. These learners might shy away from others or group work. They're in tune with their inner feelings; they have wisdom, intuition and motivation, as well as a strong will, confidence and opinions. They can be taught through independent study and introspection. Tools include books, creative materials, diaries, privacy and time. They are the most independent of the learners." Sound like you?
 * ==Preview this page! Get a sense of all that is here before you jump in. Which resources do you most want to explore in the time you have? You might choose to work with information you have background knowledge with, or you might jump into something new.==
 * Keep in mind that you have 45 minutes for this task. Please return to the large group after 45 minutes. If you're one who gets absorbed in work, maybe set an alarm for yourself.
 * This wiki will be available to you long after today...bookmark the page so that you can return at your leisure.

Overview of Learning Profile

 * "Learning profile has to do with how we learn. It may be shaped by intelligence preferences, gender, culture, or learning style." -- Carol A. Tomlinson.
 * For a video overview of the importance of responding to students' learning profiles, see the Ken Robinson video: Ken Robinson: Multiple Intelligences
 * For an expanded overview of learning profile, see this chapter in __How to Differentiate Instruction in Mixed Ability Classrooms__, by Tomlinson, available online from ASCD: Tomlinson: Learning Profile

The Multiple Intelligences
His theory has emerged from cognitive research and "documents the extent to which students possess different kinds of minds and therefore learn, remember, perform, and understand in different ways," according to Gardner (1991). According to this theory, "we are all able to know the world through language, logical-mathematical analysis, spatial representation, musical thinking, the use of the body to solve problems or to make things, an understanding of other individuals, an understanding of ourselves, an understanding of the natural world, and a deep capacity to tackle big questions about human existence. Where individuals differ is in the strength of these intelligences - the so-called profile of intelligences -and in the ways in which such intelligences are invoked and combined to carry out different tasks, solve diverse problems, and progress in various domains."
 * Howard Gardner of Harvard has identified **nine** distinct intelligences (two recent additions are naturalist intelligence and existential intelligence).
 * For a much deeper look at Gardner, his work, and possibilities for his work in the classroom, a well-balanced article is available here: Gardner's Intelligences
 * There is also a video of Gardner himself reflecting on his theories here (the video is quite long...don't forget your timeline!) [|Multiple Intelligences: First 25 Years]

Robert Sternberg: Thinking Styles

 * Born in 1949, American psychologist Robert Sternberg says that he was considered a ‘dummy’ in his first years at school. At university he dropped out of psychology because of his poor grades and switched to maths. This is hardly the background one would expect of the man who is now IBM professor of psychology and education at Yale, but Sternberg’s research has been driven by his personal problems. His failure at IQ tests as a child sparked an interest in intelligence testing which led to his proposing an alternative theory of intelligence and his poor grades at university led to his developing new ways of educating students.
 * Sternberg overcame his early setbacks partly by luck. At elementary school in New Jersey he was classified as a low achiever because of his poor IQ scores. His teachers, he says, didn’t expect anything of him, and he obliged them by underachieving. It was only when a new teacher demonstrated higher expectations that he responded positively. She demanded more and he gave more. At university, after dropping out of psychology, it was only the discovery that he was even more unsuited to maths that led him back to the subject at which he subsequently excelled. Sternberg feels he is lucky not to have switched to subject he would have found more congenial, such as English.
 * **Successful intellingence** Sternberg’s educational theories aim to bring out the best in all students by catering for different forms of intelligence and thinking styles. They have evolved through reflection on his own problems. Why did the IQ test classify him as stupid? Because it tested only a certain kind of intelligence – the ability to memorise and analyse. In response he formulated his ‘triarchic’ theory of intelligence and its practical application, ‘successful intelligence’ – ‘the ability to achieve success in life, given one’s personal standards within one’s personal sociocultural context."

> **Analytical Intelligence** > **Creative intelligence** > **Contextual / practical intelligence** > **Practical applications** > Sternberg does not advocate teaching everything three times, but varying teaching styles in order to practice different skills and cater for different learning styles: > **Analytical skills**: for example, getting students to analyse a character from a novel, compare and contrast two paintings or rate the performance of someone who has won a tennis match. Assessment is based on the extent to which the work is informed, logical, organised and balanced. > **Creative skills**: asking students questions to which there is no 'right' answer: imagining alternative endings to a novel; creating an advertisement for a product based on something studied in a science class; writing a dialogue in French in which a tourist asks for directions in Paris. Assessment is based on the extent to which the work is informed, novel, compelling and task oriented. > **Practical skills**: enabling students to apply something they have learned in a real world context: using a lesson learned from a literary character in their own lives; applying a mathematical lesson in the supermarket; predicting how they would have to change their lifestyle in a different region of the globe. Assessment is based on the extent to which the product is informed and feasible.
 * **Sternberg's triarchtic theory**
 * Traditional notion of intelligence
 * Abstract thinking and logical reasoning
 * Verbal and mathematical skills
 * Divergent thinking (generating new ideas)
 * Ability and preference for dealing with novel situations
 * 'Street smarts'
 * Ability to apply knowledge to the real world
 * Ability to shape one's environment; choose an environment
 * For a much deeper look at Sternberg's work, a well-balanced article is available here: Successful Intelligence in the Classroom

Visual Auditory Kinesthetic

 * Learners use all three modalities to receive and learn new information and experiences. However, according to the VAK or modality theory, one or two of these receiving styles is normally dominant. This dominant style defines the best way for a person to learn new information by filtering what is to be learned. This style may not always to be the same for some tasks. The learner may prefer one style of learning for one task, and a combination of others for a different task.

> **Visual learners** have two sub-channels—//linguistic// and //spatial//. Learners who are //visual-linguistic// like to learn through written language, such as reading and writing tasks. They remember what has been written down, even if they do not read it more than once. They like to write down directions and pay better attention to lectures if they watch them. Learners who are //visual-spatial//usually have difficulty with the written language and do better with charts, demonstrations, videos, and other visual materials. They easily visualize faces and places by using their imagination and seldom get lost in new surroundings. To integrate this style into the learning environment: > **Kinesthetic learners**do best while touching and moving. It also has two sub-channels: kinesthetic (movement) and tactile (touch). They tend to lose concentration if there is little or no external stimulation or movement. When listening to lectures they may want to take notes for the sake of moving their hands. When reading, they like to scan the material first, and then focus in on the details (get the big picture first). They typically use color high lighters and take notes by drawing pictures, diagrams, or doodling. To integrate this style into the learning environment:
 * **Auditory learners**often talk to themselves. They also may move their lips and read out loud. They may have difficulty with reading and writing tasks. They often do better talking to a colleague or a tape recorder and hearing what was said. To integrate this style into the learning environment:
 * Begin new material with a brief explanation of what is coming. Conclude with a summary of what has been covered. This is the old adage of “tell them what they are going to lean, teach them, and tell them what they have learned.”
 * Use the Socratic method of lecturing by questioning learners to draw as much information from them as possible and then fill in the gaps with you own expertise.
 * Include auditory activities, such as brainstorming, buzz groups, or Jeopardy. Leave plenty of time to debrief activities. This allows them to make connections of what they leaned and how it applies to their situation.
 * Have the learners verbalize the questions.
 * Develop an internal dialogue between yourself and the learners.
 * Use graphs, charts, illustrations, or other visual aids.
 * Include outlines, concept maps, agendas, handouts, etc. for reading and taking notes.
 * Include plenty of content in handouts to reread after the learning session.
 * Leave white space in handouts for note-taking.
 * Invite questions to help them stay alert in auditory environments.
 * Post flip charts to show what will come and what has been presented.
 * Emphasize key points to cue when to takes notes.
 * Eliminate potential distractions.
 * Supplement textual information with illustrations whenever possible.
 * Have them draw pictures in the margins.
 * Have the learners envision the topic or have them act out the subject matter.
 * Use activities that get the learners up and moving.
 * Play music, when appropriate, during activities.
 * Use colored markers to emphasize key points on flip charts or white boards.
 * Give frequent stretch breaks (brain breaks).
 * Provide toys such as Koosh balls and Play-Dough to give them something to do with their hands.
 * To highlight a point, provide gum, candy, scents, etc. which provides a cross link of scent (aroma) to the topic at hand (scent can be a powerful cue).
 * Provide high lighters, colored pens and/or pencils.
 * Guide learners through a visualization of complex tasks.
 * Have them transfer information from the text to another medium such as a keyboard or a tablet.
 * Here's a website that explains more about these preferences and includes an assessment that will help you discover/confirm your preference: Visual Auditory Kinesthetic

Assessing Learning Profiles

 * Here is a link to another wiki with an AMAZING collection of learning profile tools/surveys/tools:
 * Dare to Differentiate