Ayo sat on the stairway leading to his house, looking petrified. He had scored 2 out
of 15 in the day’s math test and knew exactly what awaited him in the house. The
last time this happened, he received the beating of his life. He shuddered when he
remembered that he scored 4 out of 15 on that day. ‘I don die today,’ Ayo thought
to himself.
Ayo’s story is similar to that of many young people today: the fright that comes
with failure in education. For some, it is the fear of being beaten; for others, it is
the fear of not being promoted, or being denied entry into institutions to further
their education. Little wonder why it has become a cliché that ‘School sweet, but
exam spoil am.’
Now, the question is: do students want to fail? Of course not! Students fail
because they do not learn adequately. Don’t get me wrong. Sure, some students put
more effort into their education than the others, and these students end up
performing better than their peers. However, we must know that we can make
education pleasing to the average learner. Just like children can be forced to
swallow bitter pills by masking the taste and scent of the pills in sweet foods like
eba, chocolate, or ice cream, teachers can get learners to enjoy studying by
delivering the content to them in a manner that appears tailor-made for them.
You see, there are 4 major types of learners and each of them can be made to love
learning. Keep reading to learn how you can help the different types of learners.
a. Visual learners: These learners learn by sight. What they see, they tend to
remember. While teaching these learners, teachers should make use of
pictures, charts, tables, diagrams, and videos to reinforce the statements
that they make. Where these pictures and videos are absent, teachers can
use facial expressions and hand movements to drive home concepts that they
teach.
b. Auditory learners: These learners learn by hearing. What they have heard,
they tend to remember. While teaching these learners, teachers should use
interesting stories, fun analogies, songs, poems, and sound effects where
necessary. These sounds register in the minds of auditory learners and help
them recall the content easily.
c. Readers: Readers are mostly self learners. They like to learn by reading or
writing on their own. These learners should be encouraged to read textbooks
and novels that contain the content of interest. They can be made to
further master concepts by encouraging them to write down what they have
read.
d. Kinesthetic learners: These learners learn by doing; what they have done,
they never forget. While teaching these learners, teachers should encourage
the carrying out of practicals and experiments. Get these students’ hands
dirty; they’ll thank you for it.
Some other learners are the logical learners, who love to learn things that make
sense to them; the social learners, who like to learn by working together with
groups; and solitary learners, who prefer to learn alone.
Whatever the learner’s preferred learning style is, what is clear is that they have
to be taught in a manner that best suits them. Teachers have the responsibility to
meet every student at the point of their need, and this is a responsibility that they
must begin to take more seriously, as students like Ayo are in dire need of them.
What type of learner are you? Do you feel like you were taught in the manner that
best suited you?
Let us know in the comment section, or write to us by shooting us
an email via this address: [email protected]
