Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsVARK Learning StylesFind Your StyleVisualAuditoryTextKinestheticCriticismsWhy It Matters
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Table of Contents
VARK Learning Styles
Find Your Style
Visual
Auditory
Text
Kinesthetic
Criticisms
Why It Matters
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Do you ever feel like you struggle to learn things one way but have an easier time if you try a different approach? Like, you’ve listened to lectures and read the textbook, but things only start to make sense once you get some actual, hands-on experience. According to some experts, using your preferred learning style is the key.
Not everyone’s brain is wired the same, and that’s why some people may find different strategies work better for them. The idea behind VARK learning styles is that there are four main types of learners: visual, auditory, reading/writing, and kinesthetic.
The idea that students learn best when teaching methods and school activities match their learning styles, strengths, and preferences grew in popularity in the 1970s and 1980s. However, there isn’t much research supporting the use of such styles. Most evidence indicates that personal learning preferences have little to no influence on learning outcomes.
There are many different ways of categorizinglearning styles, but Neil Fleming’s VARK model is one of the most popular. Fleming introduced an inventory in 1987 that was designed to help students and others learn more about their individual learning preferences.
What are the four VARK learning styles?The four VARK learning styles are visual learners, aural learners, reading and writing learners, and kinesthetic learners.
What are the four VARK learning styles?
The four VARK learning styles are visual learners, aural learners, reading and writing learners, and kinesthetic learners.
The VARK model refers to the four sensory modalities that describe different learning preferences. The model suggests that these modalities reflect how students learn best.
Knowing your preferred style can give you some insight into the learning strategies that might appeal most to you, but that doesn’t mean that learning that way is actually superior to learning things in other ways.
What Are the Kolb Learning Styles?
What Type of Learner Are You?
In order to identify which type of learner people are, Fleming developed aself-report inventorythat posed a series of situations. Respondents select the answers that best match their preferred approach to learning.
ExampleImagine that you are learning how to perform a new physical skill such as riding a bike or dancing a certain style of dance. In which way would you learn this skill the best?Look at pictures of people performing the skill. (Visual)Listen to an expert explain how to do the task. (Auditory)Read about how to perform the task in a book. (Reading/Writing)Watch someone else perform the skill and then trying it yourself. (Kinesthetic)
Example
Imagine that you are learning how to perform a new physical skill such as riding a bike or dancing a certain style of dance. In which way would you learn this skill the best?Look at pictures of people performing the skill. (Visual)Listen to an expert explain how to do the task. (Auditory)Read about how to perform the task in a book. (Reading/Writing)Watch someone else perform the skill and then trying it yourself. (Kinesthetic)
Imagine that you are learning how to perform a new physical skill such as riding a bike or dancing a certain style of dance. In which way would you learn this skill the best?
Visual Learners
Visual learners prefer this type of learning would rather see information presented in a visual rather than in written form.
Do you think you might be a visual learner? Then consider the following questions:
If you can answer yes to most of these questions, chances are good that you have a visual learning style. You may find it helpful to incorporate things like pictures and graphs when you are learning new information.
Aural Learners
Are you an auditory learner? Consider the following questions:
If you answered yes to most of these questions, then you are probably an auditory learner. You might find things like audiobooks and podcasts helpful for learning new things.
Reading and Writing Learners
Reading and writing learners prefer to take in information that is displayed as words and text. Could you be a reading and writing learner? Read through the following questions and think about whether they might apply to you.
If you answered yes to these questions, you likely have a strong preference for reading and writing as your learning style.
You might find it helpful to write down information in order to help you learn and remember it.
Kinesthetic Learners
Not sure if you’re a kinesthetic learner? Answer these questions to find out:
If you responded yes to these questions, then you are most likely a kinesthetic learner. Taking classes that give you practical, hands-on experience may be helpful when you want to acquire a new skill.
What’s the most common VARK learning style?
According to some data, the most common is a multimodal learning style referred to as VARK Type Two, which involves exhibiting a range of learning preferences. People with this learning style tend to collect information more slowly and take time to make decisions.
What Is the Kinesthetic Learning Style?
Criticisms of the VARK Learning Styles
Thevalidityof the VARK model as well as other learning style theories has been questioned and criticized extensively. While the idea behind the VARK model is that knowing your style can make learning easier and more effective, some critics have suggested that labeling students as having one specific learning style can hinder learning.
Research on learning style models suggests that the instruments designed to assess individual learning styles are questionable.Another study found no connection between learning styles and academic achievement.
The VARK model remains fairly popular among both students and educators despite these criticisms. Students may feel drawn to a particular learning style. Others may find that their learning preferences lie somewhere in the middle, such as finding both visual and auditory learning equally appealing.
Some people might find that understanding their own learning preferences can be helpful for various reasons. If you know that visual learning appeals to you most, using visual study strategies in conjunction with other learning methods might help you find studying more enjoyable or motivating.
If no single learning preference calls out to you or you change preferences based on the situation or the type of information you are learning, you probably have what is known as amultimodal style.
For example, you might rely on your reading and writing preferences when you are dealing with a class that requires a great deal of book reading and note-taking, such as ahistory of psychologycourse. During an art class, you might depend more on your visual and kinesthetic preferences as you take in pictorial information and learn new techniques.
Takeaways
While the idea of learning styles is still very popular with students and teachers alike, the research suggests matching teaching methods to learning preferences doesn’t really have any effect on learning outcomes. In other words, just because you might prefer visual information, that doesn’t mean you’ll automatically learn better with it.
However, knowing your own learning preferences can still be valuable. It can be a great way to tailor your study habits, stay engaged while learning, and feel more confident about approaching new material.
How to Learn More Effectively
5 SourcesVerywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Prithishkumar IJ, Michael SA.Understanding your student: using the VARK model.J Postgrad Med. 2014;60(2):183-186. doi:10.4103/0022-3859.132337VARK Learn Limited.VARK research - what do we know about VARK?Kirschner PA.Stop propagating the learning styles myth.Computers & Education. 2017;106:166-171. doi:10.1016/j.compedu.2016.12.006Mozaffari HR, Janatolmakan M, Sharifi R, Ghandinejad F, Andayeshgar B, Khatony A.The relationship between the VARK learning styles and academic achievement in dental students.Adv Med Educ Pract. 2020;11:15-19. doi:10.2147/AMEP.S235002Ward N, Paul E, Watson P, et al.Enhanced learning through multimodal training: Evidence from a comprehensive cognitive, physical fitness, and neuroscience intervention.Sci Rep. 2017;7(1):5808. doi:10.1038/s41598-017-06237-5Additional ReadingFleming N.Introduction to Vark.
5 Sources
Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Prithishkumar IJ, Michael SA.Understanding your student: using the VARK model.J Postgrad Med. 2014;60(2):183-186. doi:10.4103/0022-3859.132337VARK Learn Limited.VARK research - what do we know about VARK?Kirschner PA.Stop propagating the learning styles myth.Computers & Education. 2017;106:166-171. doi:10.1016/j.compedu.2016.12.006Mozaffari HR, Janatolmakan M, Sharifi R, Ghandinejad F, Andayeshgar B, Khatony A.The relationship between the VARK learning styles and academic achievement in dental students.Adv Med Educ Pract. 2020;11:15-19. doi:10.2147/AMEP.S235002Ward N, Paul E, Watson P, et al.Enhanced learning through multimodal training: Evidence from a comprehensive cognitive, physical fitness, and neuroscience intervention.Sci Rep. 2017;7(1):5808. doi:10.1038/s41598-017-06237-5Additional ReadingFleming N.Introduction to Vark.
Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Prithishkumar IJ, Michael SA.Understanding your student: using the VARK model.J Postgrad Med. 2014;60(2):183-186. doi:10.4103/0022-3859.132337VARK Learn Limited.VARK research - what do we know about VARK?Kirschner PA.Stop propagating the learning styles myth.Computers & Education. 2017;106:166-171. doi:10.1016/j.compedu.2016.12.006Mozaffari HR, Janatolmakan M, Sharifi R, Ghandinejad F, Andayeshgar B, Khatony A.The relationship between the VARK learning styles and academic achievement in dental students.Adv Med Educ Pract. 2020;11:15-19. doi:10.2147/AMEP.S235002Ward N, Paul E, Watson P, et al.Enhanced learning through multimodal training: Evidence from a comprehensive cognitive, physical fitness, and neuroscience intervention.Sci Rep. 2017;7(1):5808. doi:10.1038/s41598-017-06237-5
Prithishkumar IJ, Michael SA.Understanding your student: using the VARK model.J Postgrad Med. 2014;60(2):183-186. doi:10.4103/0022-3859.132337
VARK Learn Limited.VARK research - what do we know about VARK?
Kirschner PA.Stop propagating the learning styles myth.Computers & Education. 2017;106:166-171. doi:10.1016/j.compedu.2016.12.006
Mozaffari HR, Janatolmakan M, Sharifi R, Ghandinejad F, Andayeshgar B, Khatony A.The relationship between the VARK learning styles and academic achievement in dental students.Adv Med Educ Pract. 2020;11:15-19. doi:10.2147/AMEP.S235002
Ward N, Paul E, Watson P, et al.Enhanced learning through multimodal training: Evidence from a comprehensive cognitive, physical fitness, and neuroscience intervention.Sci Rep. 2017;7(1):5808. doi:10.1038/s41598-017-06237-5
Fleming N.Introduction to Vark.
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