Auditory learning style
The researchers learning style is auditory. The auditory learner often talks to themselves and have a habit of moving their lips and reading out loudly. Auditory learners learn better when they are listening to people, a colleague or tape recorder. To maximize the potential of an auditory learner, a lecturer must remember to create the capable learning environment. He or she must begin with an explanation of what is to be covered. Finally, after the lesson reminds them of what they covered. A lecture should use the Socratic Method, whereby he or she questions learners as much as possible and fills the gaps using his or her expertise.
The lecturer should use auditory activities, such as brainstorming, jeopardy and buzz groups. Plenty of time should be left to debrief activities. It allows learners adequate time to connect their situation with what they learn. The learners should be allowed to verbalize the questions. The lecturer should have an internal dialogue with the learners (Vak, 2000).
Auditory learners like listening to audible signals in tone. For example, when listening to a phone number, they memorize it later to remember it. The learners are good at writing responses they heard. The proponents of the auditory learners' theory envisioned that sounds in the background boosts their learning capacity. The auditory learners are usually good at story telling as they solve problems by talking through them. The learners move their lips as they talk to themselves to accomplish a given task or assignment (Hatami, 2013).
The auditory learners have conspicuous behavior. They are seen to have excellent memories of past jokes or conversation. They enjoy getting into arguments, discussions, debates and talking to others. They like listening to music and whistling to themselves. Depending on the level of confidence, auditory learners prefer to give an oral presentation. They are known to be slow readers. Auditory learners have difficulty in interpreting diagrams, graphs, and maps.
The strengths of an auditory learner are that they remember what they hear and say. They enjoy group discussion, debates, and classroom lecture. They understand and comprehend information better when they hear it (Hatami, 2013).
Research supporting auditory learning style
The essence of understanding students learning style increases the education experience. Teachers can adjust their teaching style to the learning style of students involved. The students learning potential is at the peak if they can derive the value of the information being delivered. Teachers find out that students have three different types of learning which are, visual, audio and kinesthetic. Auditory learners are interested in listening to the lectures and reading. The individuals learn through listening and interpreting information by using pitch, speed, and emphasis. The importance of learning styles is for individuals to take responsibilities for their learning. According to the research, 20-30% of school age children are auditory learners while the remaining percentage represents other styles. It was also found that good readers learn through visual and auditory senses. On the other hand, poor readers have a strong preference for tactile and kinesthetic learning (Gilakjani, 2011).
The incorporation of teaching style to students learning style has seen students achieve academic success. In fact, failure and success are influenced by how teachers present materials and how the students process it. It was also discovered that there was a gradual development of visual strengths in the elementary grades. Most youngsters can retain information in fifth and sixth grade. The lecturer uses the preferred mechanism to ensure that the student achieves success upon discovering that a student learning style is auditory. It also involves creating environment that is friendly to the style. It leads to improvement of students’ attitude and also increasing motivation and efficiency. Consequently success is achieved if both the teacher and the students are using the right technique (Gilakijan, 2011).
References
Visual, Auditory, and Kinesthetic Learning Styles (VAK). (2000, May 29). Retrieved February
27, 2016, from http://www.nwlink.com/~donclark/hrd/styles/vakt.html
Hatami, S. (2013). Learning styles. ELT Journal, 67(4), 488-490.
Gilakjani, A. P. (2011). Visual, auditory, kinaesthetic learning styles and their impacts on
the English language teaching. Journal of Studies in Education, 2(1), 104-113.
