"When learners leave home to go to school, college or university, they don’t leave as visual, auditory or kinaesthetic learners. They leave as unique individuals with a bundle of different preferences."
Chris Dickinson in Barbara Prashnig’s Learning Styles in Action.
"What can you do about adolescence? You might think you can't do anything about it, except go to sleep for four years and wake up when it's all over. Actually - there's a lot you can do - not to stop it happening but to deal with it and look at it differently."
Nicola Morgan, Author
Blame my Brain, and Know your Brain
"The simple act of listening to music seems to have a positive emotional and intellectual impact on the teenage brain. Research points to active music involvement improving memory, visual spatial relations (maths and science) and self esteem."
Sheryl G Feinstein
Associate Professor in Education and author of several works on the teenage brain.
Training and
Support Services for Schools
Contact Frances Green for more information about her education and learning services for the pupils at your school...
Individual Pupil Assessments
Group Assessments and Group Profiles
Improving Revision Techniques
Workshops for small groups
Learning Styles Workshops for Teachers
Find out how to use learning styles as the starting point of a conversation with pupils for effective learning.
In School Talks for Parents
The common causes of conflict over schoolwork and homework
Teacher's page
Do you want better grades for your pupils?
Would you like to see increased levels of concentration or more effective revision skills?
Of course you do...
Revision is on everyone’s mind from now until the end of exams in June/July but how can you get ALL you pupils to revise thoroughly? Some don’t know where to start and some pretend it isn’t happening till the last moment... and then panic sets in.
A learning styles assessment gives an overview of how pupils learn best and can help give each pupil some specific pointers toward effective revision.
Having worked for a number of years with pupils who are able, but unable to tackle revision effectively, I know how valuable such assessments can be. Use them with those who are struggling to make the grade and see if it makes a difference.
Revision tips
My tips for revision cover broader strategies ranging from time management and organisation, to using techniques which help you engage with your revision rather than falling asleep. There is often a lot of emphasis on effective teaching but not so much on effective learning.
In the class room
Are all the pupils in your class working to the best of their ability?
Is there room for improvement perhaps? Do you have any classes where you just don’t know what it is, but they aren’t absorbing the information as fast as usual? Your first thought might be ‘Yes, but I haven’t got time to do anything about it. I need to get to the end of the syllabus.’ Often there isn’t enough time in school to give attention to all the details but if you thought grades might go up would you take time then?
Learning styles for low achievers
You can achieve better results, especially with some of your lower achievers, if you know how they learn and what will work for them. Lower achievers are often holistic learners. Unlike many teachers, some teenagers do not work in a sequential manner but need the big picture, an overview of a topic, before they can start learning.
A random approach to answering questions is also common. Low achievers often struggle with reading chunks of text and are instantly turned off if they have to read a chapter, or God forbid, make notes from a chapter for homework. They won’t have a clue where to start.
You might also note a random approach to answering questions. One pupil cherry picked questions on an IT paper because she didn't know she had to answer them in order and got rather confused in the process. Working in sequential order does not come naturally to these teenagers.
How do you recognise these traits?
A detailed Learning Styles Analysis (not just VAK) will give you an overview of whether your pupils are holistic or sequential learners, whether they read for meaning, listen or enjoy hands on work, among other preferences. A Learning Style Analysis will tell you about their physical needs: do they need quiet or not, do they need to move about more frequently and even which time of day they function best. It will tell you about the working environment they prefer, who they like to work with in terms of on their own or in a group. Most importantly it will tell you about their motivation, whether they finish work or not and how they respond to rules and regulations.
What can you do to help and support your students?
Once we have the information we need work can start with your students enabling them to get the best out of their learning experience. Grades, more often than not, improve and motivation to learn increases.
Assessments for individual pupils
Group profiles for a class, tutor group or year group are useful as they give you an overview of the trends within a group. Assessments for individual pupils are invaluable in improving learning outcomes, behaviour and the overall enjoyment of learning. Frances can help you to help your pupils achieve more this term.
Summary of benefits for teachers and students
Frances Green has used these assessments for over a decade and has helped many pupils to engage with their learning. The assessments are invaluable in planning study and revision skills, improving motivation and self-esteem and helping both teachers and pupils to understand the learning process.
