Learning Styles of Medical Students - Essay Example

At a personal level, I hold the perspective that a combination of different modalities (auditory, visual and kinesthetic) are used to learn and retain information. Auditory learning involves picking up new ideas and concepts through listening (e.g., verbal lectures and role-playing exercises), while visual learning involves understanding and retaining information through seeing or watching demonstrations (e.g., diagrams, PowerPoint presentations, and videos).  The modality of kinesthetic learning entails the accumulation and retention of information through hands-on exercises that involve moving and touching (Busan, 2014).

 The type of information that is being learned is a critical factor in determining the modality of learning used. While some information can be easily learned through verbal lectures and discussions (auditory), other forms of knowledge require individuals to see how to do things rather than just talk about them. For example, auditory learning can be used to teach simple oral health behaviors such as the importance of brushing. However, visual learning may be important in demonstrating how proper brushing is done and the areas that should be targeted in the brushing process.

Students who wish to gain information from field trips and real-life examples should consider using the kinesthetic approach. Various factors are known to interfere with the learning process, leading to minimal retention of information (Bishop, 2011).At a personal level, it is justifiable to say that my learning is negatively affected by factors such as ineffective communication strategies, cultural and age-inappropriate learning materials, exposure to materials written using complex vocabulary, and lack of motivation due to poor layout and structure of reading materials.

Online resources should accommodate diverse learning styles to improve readership and also ensure increased understanding and retention of information. Online resources can use environmental components (e.g., sound, light, and design) as well as emotional elements (e.g., structure, motivation, and persistence) to stimulate readers to learn through auditory and visual means (Yassin & Almasri, 2015). For example, online resources can incorporate audio clips for use by auditory learners as well as well-elaborated pictures, diagrams, charts, and graphs for use by visual learners.

Online resources can also accommodate diverse learning styles by using simulations to supply learning experiences in audio, visual, and kinesthetic formats (Muir, 2001). Here, it is important for online resources to have meaningful interactive components that are responsive to the needs of learners who use different learning styles. For example, online resources can use visualization and modeling tools that help users to “learn by doing”, hence deepening their understanding in a kinesthetic context.

  Such simulations should be culturally specific and age-appropriate to spur the learning process and increase the motivation of learners. This paper has discussed the different modalities of learning from a personal perspective and ways that can be used to ensure online resources accommodate these modalities.  Overall, it is clear that professionals should consider different learning styles to ensure insightful understanding and retention of information.