Learning styles are infinite

Let me repeat myself for a moment. Learning styles reflect differences in how people learn. If there is any variability at all, then learning styles must exist in some form.


The shallow approach to learning styles is to embrace one-word gimmicky concepts. After a list of words, frequently as little as two words, has been established, teachers try to figure out which word to apply to each student. As soon as a label has been applied, they insist that they know how a student learns.

There is actually a lot of variability and a lot of nuances to how each student learns. You will never find two students who learn in identical manners. The simple reality here is that there is an infinite number of possible learning styles, and each student's learning style is unique.

Teachers need to stop embracing corny shortcuts. Labeling is no replacement for getting to know a child. Better yet, why don't we encourage the students to become the biggest experts on their own learning styles. Teachers can't match what kids are capable of knowing about themselves. After all, a lifetime is far more substantial than the amount of time teachers have to develop an understanding of each and every student. In many cases, teachers know their students for a total of less than a year, and they generally don't wait until the end of the year to start lessons.