DOMAINS OF TEACHER LEARNING

• Learner (strengths, interests, preconceptions)

• Knowledge (skills and attitudes to be acquired and transferred)
• Assessment of learning
• Community within which learning occurs

A. THE LEARNER: Understanding development

• Understand emotional, moral, linguistic and cognitive development of learners

• Understand diversity (cultural, language, racial/ethnic backgrounds, prior
experiences, interests
• Understand general development and individual differences in development

ü Use of non-verbal
communication, crying,
mama and dada (7-10mos)
ü Repeat words and observe
others, verbal and NV are
used
ü Turn-taking style,
conversational structure in
communicating
ü Fluent in connecting
sounds, syllables, and
linking words, participate
in short conversations
ü Much language
development, vocabulary
expands through reading,
metalinguistic awareness
ü Participate fully and
understand the purposes
of their conversations
• Sensorimotor stage: birth through about 2 years. During this stage, children
learn about the world through their senses and the manipulation of objects.
• Preoperational stage: ages 2 through 7. During this stage, children develop
memory and imagination. They are also able to understand things symbolically,
and to understand the ideas of past and future.
• Concrete operational stage: ages 7 through 11. During this stage, children
become more aware of external events, as well as feelings other than their own.
They become less egocentric, and begin to understand that not everyone shares
their thoughts, beliefs, or feelings.
• Formal operational stage: ages 11 and older. During this stage, children are able
to use logic to solve problems, view the world around them, and plan for the
future.
THE LEARNER: Development and Use of Language

• A learner’s development involve language

• The way students speak should be respected

How to present to different types of learners

• Have I mastered the skill of identifying different types of learners in my class?

• Do I know the composition of learner types in my class?
• Do I teach based only on my own type of learning?
• What is the effect of using only one approach?
• Am I comfortable in adapting other ways of presenting lessons that cater to all
learner types?
THE LEARNER: Different types of learners

• Students generally have a preference for a particular learning style (Kolb, 1984;
Collin, 2007; Hawk & Shah, 2007; Cekiso, 2011; Gilakjani, 2012; Rau, 2012). The
preferred learning style portrays the student’s capabilities, environment and
past learning experiences (Nulty & Barrett, 1996; Gilakjani, 2012; Rau, 2014).
• Student learning is enhanced when their learning styles match the lecturers’
teaching style (Healey & Jenkins, 2000; Peacock, 2001; De Vita, 2001).
• The lecturer does not need to adjust the teaching style to the individual
student’s learning style, nor that the lecturer should use an all-encompassing
teaching style for all students (Mkonto, 2010; Gilakjani, 2012). Rather, a more
balanced teaching strategy, one that accommodates the different learning styles
in the class, is appropriate (Reid, 1987; Felder & Brent, 2005; Gilakjani, 2012).
• The learning styles of students depend on several factors, including their environment
and other cognitive and emotional factors. Because every student is different, it’s a
good idea for teachers to develop classroom strategies that incorporate different
learning styles for different types of learners.

VARK
• Visual (V)
• Aural
• Read/write
• Kinaesthetic

VISUAL (V)
• Process information using charts and graphs
• Need images to explain concepts and ideas
• Prefer graphic elements over words

INPUT
OUTPUT

AURAL (A)
• Learn best when information is spoken
• Prefer lectures and discussions
• Process information by talking through things

INPUT

 attend classes attend discussions and tutorials

 discuss topics with others use a tape recorder
 discuss topics with your teachers explain new ideas to other people
 remember the interesting examples, stories, jokes...
 describe the overheads, pictures and other visuals to somebody who
was not there
 leave spaces in your notes for later recall and 'filling'

OUTPUT

 imagine talking with the examiner.

 listen to your voices and write them down.
 spend time in quiet places recalling the ideas.
 practice writing answers to old exam questions.
 speak your answers aloud or inside your head.
 READING/WRITING (R)
• Prefer to receive written words
• Enjoy reading and writing assignments
• Process information by writing notes

INPUT
 lists headings
 dictionaries glossaries
 definitions handouts
 textbooks readings - library
 notes (often verbatim) essays
 manuals (computing, technical and laboratory)

OUTPUT
 write exam answers.
 practice with multiple choice questions.
 write paragraphs, beginnings and endings.
 write your information into lists (a, b, c, d or 1, 2, 3, 4).
 arrange your words into hierarchies and points.

KINEASTHETIC (K)
• Learn best through tactile processes
• Prefer to create concrete personal experiences
• Process information by recreating and practicing

INTAKE:
 all your senses - sight, touch, taste, smell, hearing ... laboratories
 lecturers who give real-life examples applications
 hands-on approaches (computing) trial and error
 collections of rock types, plants, shells, grasses... field trips/tours
 recipes - solutions to problems exhibits, samples...

OUTPUT:
 demonstrations
 simulations
 videos and movies of "real" things
 case studies
 practice and applications
• Those who do not have a standout mode with one preference score well above
other scores, are defined as multimodal.
• I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand. - Confucius