“Thinking Critically” and “A Metacurriculum on Metacognition” presentations,

Module 3 presents an opportunity to think critically about learning styles. There is a debate about the validity of learning styles. There are two camps in this debate—those who support their existence and use, and those who argue that they do not exist or that they are misused. Read the Pashler et al, Felder, Weimer, and Strauss articles. Using what you learned from the “Thinking Critically” and “A Metacurriculum on Metacognition” presentations, debate the merits of learning styles. Do learning styles exist? Why or why not? Take a position and defend it using course materials. If they do exist, what should we do with this knowledge? For example, what if some people prefer to learn by reading and writing, but they are studying a visual topic like geography? What light, if any, does the “Andragogy” presentation shed on this discussion?

Conclude with personal application. What have you learned about yourself as a learner? Do you believe that you have a particular learning preference? If you have never completed a learning style assessment, you can complete one, such as the VARK Questionnaire, free online. Which of Gardner’s eight bits of intelligence fit you? Did anything from the presentation on “Andragogy” resonate with you? How about Wirth and Perkins’ article Learning to learn? How will you apply that knowledge to your present and future coursework especially in light of the debate referenced in the previous paragraph? You do not have to address every question in this paragraph.

For this and all discussions this term, to earn full credit submit an initial reply to the prompt by Thursday, provide a substantive response to a minimum of three classmates by Sunday, and post on at least three of seven days.  Be thoughtful in your discourse, and make sure to integrate concrete examples from the course readings and presentations using APA style in-text citations and a list of references. ONE PAGE AND NO PLAGIARISM. THE LINK FOR THE VARK QUESTIONNAIRE (vark-learn.com/the-vark-questionnaire/). THE LINK TO METACURRICULUM ON METACOGNITION (serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/metacognition/wirth.html)