Learning and Individual Differences

8/7/2019 Learning and Individual Differences

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Learning and Individual

Differences


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The psychology of individual differences is concernedwith the systematic study of intelligence and abilitiesassociated with personality of learner, learning styles

and needs and interests of learner.

Learning is most effective when differences in learnerslanguage, cultural, and social behavior are taken intoaccount.

Although basic principles of learning, motivation andeffective instructions may apply to all learners, it isnecessary to pay attention to

language,

intelligence,

ethnic group, race,

belief and

socioeconomic status

of the students which can influence learning.


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When learners see that their individual

differences in abilities, background, and

cultures are valued and respected, thenthe motivation for learning enhances.

A teacher should be sensitive to

individual differences keep in mind multipleintelligences and different cultures,

be sensitive to students cultural attitudes,

respond to them in a sensitive way, and

view students positively regardless of their

cultural backgrounds


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Activity One

Think of the an incident that made yourealize that a student having problem

in class is due to his background

Group Activity

langua

ge,

intelligence,

ethnic

group,

race,

Belief


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Nature of Individual Differences

Inter-personal differences

differences among the people

Intra-personal differences differences within an individual

Inter-group differences

differences among the groups Intra-group differences

differences within a group


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Factors Effecting Individual

DifferencesIndividual differences in learning are the function of

heredity and environment.

Heredity (What occurs naturally as a function of the

genes) involves intelligence, physical traits, mentaltraits and abilities.

Environment (What is learned and communicated indifferent cultures or other social groups) includes:

Family (Parenting style, sibling rivalry, Joint/Nuclear family), Socio-economic status (Family income, Parents education,Parents occupation, Social status),

Culture (Nationality, Ethnicity, Race),

Previous knowledge, experience, and gender differences.


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1. Demonstrate their knowledge of the following individualdifferences in their teaching: Multiple Intelligence

Learning styles Personality differences

2. Know the concept of individual differences

3. Know the concept of multiple intelligences.

4. Apply their knowledge of multiple intelligences to

involving students in projects which would be accordingto students abilities.

5. Prepare students for different professions following themultiple intelligence theory

6. Know the importance of learning styles in teaching

7. Assign work to their students according to their learningstyles

8. Know Jungs and Myer and Briggs personality types


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Multiple Intelligences


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Sternbergs Theory of

Intelligence (2000)According to him, intelligence comes into threeforms that are analytical, creative, and practical.

Analytical ability: The ability to analyze,

evaluate, judge, compare, and contrast conventional schooling

Creative ability: The ability to create, design,invent, and originate

not on the top in class

Practical ability: the ability to use, apply,manipulate, and implement

social skills


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Gardeners Theory of Multiple

Intelligence1. Verbal skills--------authors, journalists, speaker2. Mathematical skills------scientists, engineers, accountants

3. Spatial ability---------three dimensional thinking, architects,sailors

4. Bodily-kinesthetic skills----manipulate objects, surgeons,dancers, athletes

5. Musical skills------sensitivity to pitch, melody, composers,sensitive listeners

6. Intrapersonal-------understand oneself, psychologists,

theologians7. Interpersonal-------interact with others

8. Naturalistic skills-----understand nature and human madesystems, farmers, ecologists, landscapers


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Intelligence is often defined as our intellectual potential; something we areborn with, something that can be measured and a capacity that is difficult tochange. In recent years, however, other views of intelligence haveemerged. One such conception is the theory of multiple intelligences

proposed by Harvard psychologist Howard Gardner. This theory suggests that traditional psychometric views of intelligence aretoo limited. Gardner first outlined his theory in his 1983 book Frames ofMind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences, where he suggested that allpeople have different kinds of "intelligences."1 Gardner proposed that thereare eight intelligences, and has suggested the possible addition of a ninthknown as existentialist intelligence2.

In order to capture the full range of abilities and talents that people possess,Gardner suggests that people do not have just one intellectual capacity, buthave many different intelligences including musical, interpersonal, spatial-visual and linguistic intelligences3

Gardners theory has come under criticism from both psychologists andeducators. These critics argue that Gardners definition of intelligence is toobroad, and that his eight different "intelligences" simply represent talents,personality traits and abilities. Gardners theory also suffers from a lack of

supporting empirical research4. Despite this, the theory of multiple intelligences enjoys considerable

popularity with educators. Many teachers utilize multiple intelligences intheir teaching philosophy and work to integrate Gardners theory into theclassroom.


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Visual-Spatial Intelligence


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Strengths: Visual and Spatial Judgment

People who are strong in visual-spatial intelligence aregood a visualizing things. These individuals are often

good with directions as well as maps, charts, videos andpictures.

Characteristics ofVisual-Spatial Intelligence

Enjoys reading and writing

Good at putting puzzles together Good at interpreting pictures, graphs and charts

Enjoys drawing, painting and the visual arts

Recognizes patterns easily

Potential Career Choices Architect

Artist

Engineer


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Linguistic-

Verbal Intelligence


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Strengths: Words, Language and Writing

People who are strong in linguistic-verbal intelligence are able touse words well, both when writing and speaking. These individualsare typically very good at writing stories, memorizing information andreading.

Characteristics of Linguistic-Verbal Intelligence

Good at remembering written and spoken information

Enjoys reading and writing

Good at debating or giving persuasive speeches Able to explain things well

Often uses humor when telling stories

Potential Career Choices

Writer / Journalist

Lawyer Teacher


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Logical - Mathematical

Intelligence


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Strengths: Analyzing Problems and Mathematical Operations

People who are strong in logical-mathematical intelligence are goodat reasoning, recognizing patterns and logically analyze problems.These individuals tend to think conceptually about numbers,relationships and patterns.

Characteristics of Logical-Mathematical Intelligence

Excellent problem-solving skills

Enjoys thinking about abstract ideas

Likes conducting scientific experiments Good and solving complex computations


Scientist

Mathematician

Computer programmer Engineer

Accountant


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Bodily-

Kinesthetic Intelligence


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Strengths: Physical Movement, Motor Control

Those who have high bodily-kinesthetic intelligence aresaid to be good at body movement, performing actions

and physical control. People who are strong in this areatend to have excellent hand-eye coordination anddexterity.

Characteristics ofBodily-Kinesthetic Intelligence

Good at dancing and sports

Enjoy creating things with their hands Excellent physical coordination

Tends to remember by doing, rather than hearing orseeing


Dancer Builder

Sculptor

Actor


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Musical Intelligence


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Strengths: Rhythm and Music

People who have strong musical intelligence are goodand thinking in patterns, rhythms and sounds. They have

a strong appreciation for music and are often good atmusical composition and performance.

Characteristics of Musical Intelligence

Enjoy singing and playing musical instruments

Recognizes musical patterns and tones easily

Good at remembering songs and melodies Rich understanding of musical structure, rhythm and

notes


Musician

Composer Singer

Music Teacher

Conductor


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Interpersonal Intelligence


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Strengths: Understanding and Relating to OtherPeople

Those who have strong interpersonal intelligence are goodunderstanding and interacting with other people. These individualsare skilled at assessing the emotions, motivations, desires and

intentions of those around them.

Characteristics of Interpersonal Intelligence

Good at communicating verbally

Skilled nonverbal communicators

See situations from different perspectives

Create positive relationships with others

Good at resolving conflict in groups


Psychologist

Philosopher Counselor

Sales person

Politician


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Intrapersonal Intelligence


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Strengths: Introspection and Self-Reflection

Individuals who are strong in intrapersonal intelligenceare good at being aware of their own emotional states,

feelings and motivations. They tend to enjoy self-reflection and analysis, including day-dreaming,exploring relationships with others and assessing theirpersonal strengths.

Characteristics of Intrapersonal Intelligence

Good at analyzing their strengths and weaknesses

Enjoys analyzing theories and ideas

Excellent self-awareness

Clearly understands the basis for their own motivationsand feelings

Potential Career Choices Philosopher

Writer

Theorist

Scientist


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Naturalistic Intelligence


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Strengths: Finding Patters and Relationships to Nature

Naturalistic is the most recent addition to Gardners theory 5 andhas been met with more resistance than his original sevenintelligences. According to Gardner, individuals who are high in this

type of intelligence are more in tune with nature and are ofteninteresting in nurturing, exploring the environment and learningabout other species. These individuals are said to be highly awareof even subtle changes to their environments.

Characteristics ofNaturalistic Intelligence

Interested in subjects such as botany, biology and zoology

Good at categorizing and cataloguing information easily May enjoy camping, gardening, hiking and exploring the outdoors

Doesnt enjoy learning unfamiliar topics that have no connection tonature

Potential Career Choices Biologist

Conservationist Gardener

Farmer


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Activity

Group activity

Handouts related to assessmentof self on MI


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Learning styles

are various approaches or ways of

learning


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The concept of learning style is importantin education because it incorporates all

those human attributes which help todetermine and characterize a personspreferred approaches to learning.

Style is the manner of doing some thing.

Cognitive styles involve thosecharacteristic patterns of perceiving andthinking which an individual exhibits in

problem solving. These patterns are sometimes referred to

as learning or thinking styles.


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Activity

http://www.engr.ncsu.edu/learningstyles/ils

web.html

http://www4.ncsu.edu/unity/lockers/users/f/felder/public/ILSdir/styles.htm


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1-3, you are fairly well balanced on the two dimensions of that scale.

5-7, you have a moderate preference for one dimension of the scale and will learn more easily in a

teaching environment which favors that dimension.

9-11, you have a very strong preference for one dimension of the scale. You may have real difficultylearning in an environment which does not support that preference.

Active learner


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Witkin (1977)

Field Dependent

tend to perceive a pattern as awhole, not separating oneelement from the total visualfield.

They have difficulty focusingon one aspect of situation,picking out important detail,analyzing a pattern intodifferent parts, or monitoringtheir use of strategies to solveproblems.

They tend to work well ingroups, have a good memoryfor social information, andprefer subjects such asliterature and history.

Field Independent

are more likely to monitor their

information processing.

They perceive a separate partof a total pattern and able to

analyze a pattern according toits components.

They are not as attuned tosocial relationship

They do well in mathematicsand science, where their

analytical abilities pay off. Have self-sufficiency, areassertive, and encourageimpendence of thoughts.


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Kagan (1994)

Impulsive

Students work very

quickly but make many

mistakes Decision making is

based on hunches

Trial and error method

gets them through

Success rate is 50%

Reflective

Work slowly but make

fewer errors.

Pause and reflect on The nature of a question

and the accuracy of the

answer.

They have an analyticalstyle of problem solving

and make few error

Students can learn to be more reflective if they are taught specific strategies,

such as self-instruction and scanning strategies.


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Surface Styles

approach focus on

memorizing the learningmaterial without

understanding them.

These students tend to

be motivated by rewards

and grades, externalstandards and the desire

to be evaluated positively

by others.

Individuals havetendencies to approach

learning situations in

characteristic ways.

Deep Processing

see learning material or

activities as a means forunderstanding some

underlying concept or

meanings.

These students tend to

learn for the sake of

learning and less

concerned about how

their performance is

evaluated motivation plays a role


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Concrete Experience - CE (feeling) ---V---Abstract Conceptualization - AC (thinking)Active Experimentation - AE (doing)-----V----- Reflective Observation - RO (watching)


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Personality

To be discussed in next session

Documents

Learning and Individual Differences