[SENco-forum] learning styles

I am not critiquing multi sensory approaches, I use them on a daily basis,

> I am not critiquing multi sensory approaches, I use them on a daily basis,
> what I am critiquing is yet another educational 'diagnosis' that at
> present
> does not stand up to empirical scrutiny and probably never will.   Why are
> we always looking for the fault to lie within the child or the learner, we
> should bend our practice to take into account the learner's needs and that
> could be little to do with 'learning styles' but more to do with teaching
> styles.   The problem with learning styles is that the bulk of the data is
> correlational and experimental controls are notable by their absence.
> Correlation is not necessarily causation. Educational research has a
> predilection for qualitative correlational approaches, it shys away from
> the
> causal.  If you doubt me then read the report of the National Reading
> Panel
> (2000) and the Brooks report (2002).  Education is full of fads and quick
> fixes that do not work once they are removed from the context in which
> they
> were developed.  How many school cupboards are full of unused whiz bang
> programmes or worse still programmes that did work but did not fit in with
> the 'pedagogical' philosophy of  practitioners and so learners were denied
> access to what the research says works.  If a medical practitioner ignored
> 'best practice' he would soon be up before the GMC.  Education, and that
> includes LEA's HMG, academics and teachers, needs to get its house in
> order
> and start to take a more rigourous approach to what they do to other
> peoples
> children with other peoples money.
>
> A case in point, the Government recently trumpeted a £10 million grant
> spread over many LEA's to once again trial Reading Recovery.  This despite
> a
> whole slew of reports that questioned the effects of reading recovery and
> the fact that it faded so that 3 years later the 'recovered' children were
> no further forward than similar children who had not been recovered, see
> Shanahan & Barr (1995). Other research has questioned the ways in which
> progress was measured. which basically was that it taught to the test,
> those
> who failed or were unlikely to progress were dropped from the statistics,
> all very ethical I am sure.  I do not know what the cost per 'recovered'
> child is in the UK, in the US a cost of $10,000 per child was given.  The
> approach used in RR has been refuted by the Rose Report (paid for by the
> government = the taxpayer) and yet the same department that paid for and
> responded to the Rose Report by altering the early literacy curriculum is
> spending £10M on RR which uses a curriculum and approaches that go against
> their own advice, as the say in the US - go figure.
>
> As to the chalk face, well I am there too with children and adults on a
> regular basis.  With the adults I am working with those who have, to some
> extent or another, been through the education system and still cannot read
> and write to a level that will allow them to function adequately in our
> present society.  If we assume a cost of say £3,000 per year for education
> and 10 years in it then £30,000 has been spent with little return.  Try
> that
> in a business setting and see how long you last.
>
> You say you have some difficult pupils, well get your school to pay my
> travel and living expenses for a week (B&B is fine) and I will do you a
> demo
> for your poorest readers at no additional cost. I taught in Herts many
> years
> ago.   If I get results then you can buy me in at local EP rates and I
> will
> train up 4 of your staff to deliver the programme.   It is awfully simple
> to
> learn and deliver, nothing very high tech involved although I am working
> on
> porting it to a PC as all schools have them in abundance.
>
> As to typical EP, well I am not your typical EP as several of my ex
> employers will no doubt confirm.  I left school at 15 with no
> qualifications
> but a good grounding in literacy and numeracy and no I am not sunken
> middle
> class, I was born and bred in the less salubrious parts of Glasgow -
> Anderston (the docks) and the Gorbals.   I thank my teachers for what they
> gave me, basic skills and the fact that I was made to work whether I liked
> it or not,  If I was not learning the way they wanted they did something
> for
> and to me, they did not look for a learning disability or other label to
> explain my failure to learn as they expected.  ust look at theenormous
> expansion of 'Special Education' over the years.  We now have more and
> more
> 'diagnoses'  based on identifying the problem within the child (child
> centred) and the number and variety of diagnoses is increasing.
> Accomodations and amendments are made to provide for these 'conditiions'
> and
> yet the problems remain. It really is time to dump the medical model.
>
> Until the education system starts to involve rigorous emprical research
> we
> are going to go round in circles to the detriment of the population we are
> paid to serve.
>
> There that feels much better.
>
> Philip EP
>
> Shanahan, T. & Barr, R. (1995) "Reading recovery: An independent
> evaluation
> of the effects of an early instructional intervention for at risk
> learners".
> Reading Research Quarterly, 30,  p. 958-996.
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Jane Scaysbrook" <j.scaysbrook at ntlworld.com>
> To: "Philip MacMillan" <P.Macmillan at exeter.ac.uk>
> Sent: Friday, December 14, 2007 5:59 PM
> Subject: Re: [SENco-forum] learning styles
>
>
>> Typical of an ed psych to pooh pooh the learning styles. I have been
>> teaching struggling pupils for over 33 years  and have hundreds, nay
>> thousands, of experiences of pupils with strengths in visual,
>> kinaesthetic
>> areas. Perhaps you should get back to the chalk face, or come and work
>> with some of our children .
>> Jane
>> SENCo Herts.
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: "Philip MacMillan" <P.Macmillan at exeter.ac.uk>
>> To: "WrayJanice Wray" <jwwray14 at hotmail.com>; <sen at tringham.net>; "Becta
>> Senco" <senco-forum at lists.becta.org.uk>
>> Sent: Friday, December 14, 2007 11:06 AM
>> Subject: Re: [SENco-forum] learning styles
>>
>>
>>>I agree that using concrete materials can help with learning but is it
>>> the
>>>materials or the one to one mediation of the learning that is causal
>>> Philip EP
>>> ----- Original Message -----
>>> From: "WrayJanice Wray" <jwwray14 at hotmail.com>
>>> To: <sen at tringham.net>; "Becta Senco" <senco-forum at lists.becta.org.uk>
>>> Sent: Friday, December 14, 2007 3:07 AM
>>> Subject: RE: [SENco-forum] learning styles
>>>
>>>
>>> do you know, I wish secondary schools (and primary for that matter)
>>> kept
>>> out the  'concrete' maths equipment a lot longer - you know, the
>>> centicubes, the multi-link, the base 10 blocks etc - dyslexia schools
>>> keep this sort of thing in the classroom for a long time.
>>> It's like using the wooden letters, the squidgy plastic letters,
>>> plasticine to make letters etc that we use  - I can only really use
>>> these
>>> things in my 1:1 lessons with struggling readers in the privacy of my
>>> teaching room if I am to spare these children's embarrassment when they
>>> get to secondary schoo. PityJanice Wray Secondary SENCO, Herts
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>> From: SEN at tringham.net> To: senco-forum at lists.becta.org.uk> Subject:
>>>> RE:
>>>> [SENco-forum] learning styles> Date: Thu, 13 Dec 2007 11:49:51 +0000>
>>>> >
>>>> It is easy to mix cognitive & learning styles. Whether they are
>>>> actually> 'learning styles' they are definitely the persons preferred
>>>> way of learning.> For example you have heard that those with APD ( or
>>>> other Speech and> communication issues) have great difficulty
>>>> listening
>>>> to and understanding> what has been said. As do those with dyslexia
>>>> whose visual processing or> understanding of text has been disrupted.
>>>> These students will definitely> have a preferred way of learning and
>>>> it
>>>> will not be the more usual classroom> auditory or text based lessons
>>>> if
>>>> they are to do it efficiently.> > It may be better to sort sheep from
>>>> goats based on VAK than by SEN so that> the students can learn in the
>>>> way that best suits them. Schools are> becoming more multi-sensory but
>>>> it still helps to know predominate learning> preferences. Beyond the
>>>> VAK
>>>> you have those who want to work alone or in> groups, with or without
>>>> peripheral noise or music playing or those who need> to move or fiddle
>>>> in order to learn.> > It would be impossible to accommodate everything
>>>> all the time, but knowing> why you have success more easily when
>>>> learning in a particular way can help> students work on their weaker
>>>> areas in a positive way as opposed to> attributing their failure
>>>> solely
>>>> to themselves rather than a serious clash> of 'learning style'. Nobody
>>>> minds working hard if there is something to gain> at the end -but who
>>>> wants to work hard for nothing?> > 'Learning style' makes it sound as
>>>> if
>>>> there is a choice when for some it is> impossible to get input in &
>>>> sticking in any other way without a huge amount> of effort. A quick
>>>> survey of teachers and EP's would probably find they are> auditory
>>>> learner with good access to text. No wonder it is so hard to> change
>>>> perceptions or ways of working. Many teachers do not take me>
>>>> seriously
>>>> until they try a few kinaesthetic based strategies be it for> writing,
>>>> reading or spelling etc.,(or other visual or auditory ones) and> find
>>>> the children can suddenly understand the information when presented
>>>> in>
>>>> a different way. Like smokers, those converted make the best advocates
>>>> for> multisensory teaching or acknowledging that children need
>>>> different
>>>> forms of> input whether you call that 'learning styles' or not.> > I
>>>> am
>>>> kinaesthetic. I like visual input, but cannot visualise. I have good>
>>>> auditory skills, but I find it hard to drive if music is playing and
>>>> I>
>>>> cannot 'hear' the car. I learn instantly by seeing & doing, like real
>>>> life> case studies to make sense of things and rely on tactile
>>>> feedback
>>>> for touch> typing and particularly cooking. There are no recipes that
>>>> say 'add milk> until the mixture resists in a certain way!'> > Sharon
>>>> Tringham> > PS The local secondary enjoyed spending a day looking at
>>>> this area, sorting> the children into VAK, teaching each group
>>>> appropriately and getting better> attention & responses. Teachers were
>>>> unsure though where to place a child> with severe dyslexia wearing all
>>>> three badges!> As a learning experience it was good for staff &
>>>> students
>>>> and even if they> couldn't keep it up all the time it made them all
>>>> more
>>>> aware.> > -----Original Message-----> From:
>>>> senco-forum-bounces at lists.becta.org.uk>
>>>> [mailto:senco-forum-bounces at lists.becta.org.uk]On Behalf Of Philip>
>>>> MacMillan> Sent: 13 December 2007 10:32> To: Paul and Philippa Bodien;
>>>> senco forum> Subject: Re: [senco-forum] learning styles> > > Before
>>>> spending your money on learning style inventories you might want to>
>>>> look at the work of thise who have critiqued the idea of 'learning
>>>> styles'.> There is really very little in the literature to show that
>>>> they exist and> have a significant effect on learning outcomes.> >
>>>> Philip EP> > > No virus found in this outgoing message.> Checked by
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>>>> Free Edition.> Version: 7.5.503 / Virus Database: 269.17.1/1182 -
>>>> Release Date: 12/12/2007> 11:29> >
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