Owning the learning process

The seventh annual conference organised by the European Learning Styles Information Network (ELSIN) was held this year at Ghent University, Belgium. I attended this conference through funds received from the European Commission's Socrates programme.

ELSIN provides a forum for discussion, knowledge sharing and collaboration with researchers and practitioners in the fields of Education, Psychology, Human Resource Development and Business.

Besides participants with a variety of research interests, this annual event brings together people from different European countries, each with its characteristic approach and emphasis. But for this year's conference, a number of participants and presenters came from Canada, Australia and the US.

This exposure to diverse approaches, research instruments and models gave participants a richer experience based on an extensive overview of the field.

The main theme of this year's conference was "Learning Styles: Reliability and Validity". The three-day conference programme included special sessions addressed by keynote speakers, together with paper presentations and follow-up discussions on a number of research cases. Presentation sessions were organised around four themes: "Educational implications of style research"; "Psychometrics, theory and measurement of style", "Style and the design of learning environments" and "Managerial and Organisation Cognition and Human Resource Development".

Most of the presentations were case studies regarding investigations carried out by the presenter. During the discussion at the end of each presentation, the audience provided criticism and feedback on the research design, the sample used, the reliability and validity of the instrument utilised and the results obtained. Such opening to peer criticism and exposure to diverse possibilities served to challenge personal and national research biases, while contesting parochial positions.

An underlying learner-oriented philosophy and a genuine effort to develop teaching strategies that integrate and promote stylistic tendencies were the two aspects that unified the diverse research activity. Many presenters, being themselves teachers or lecturers, were convinced that the way ahead in education lies in providing more personalised approaches to learning.

The situation here is quite paradoxical. While many educational theorists advise against models for mass education, social forces are compelling many post-secondary and tertiary institutions in adopting programmes aimed towards widening participation.

These institutions are being faced with increasing numbers of 'non-traditional' students to University courses. Increasing social demands are gradually being translated into an ever-broadening course curriculum and extensive on-job training programs. The situation can only be mitigated if learners take more control of their own learning process, becoming less dependent on formal institutions while exploiting efficiently available learning resources.

Applying learning styles not only to institutionalised learning situations but also to informal out-of-school contexts was another important aspect developed during the conference. The globalisation of higher education is increasingly becoming a reality as universities seek to achieve a competitive edge through the provision of their courses on the Internet.

The 'digital revolution' is enabling students to enrol in undergraduate and postgraduate degree programs offered by a university of their choice irrespective of the location of the student or the institution. In this context, the introduction of Web-based instruction offers opportunities for research on university teaching and learning and the development of learning environments that are personalised to adapt to the unique characteristics of individual learners.

Thus, educators and researchers are now able to investigate aspects of the teaching/learning process in a manner not afforded in conventional classroom settings. At the same time, teachers and students can be empowered to take full advantage of these new technologies to construct unimagined learning experiences.

Science for individual learners

My paper was included within the theme of educational implications of style research. Merging my experience in Science education with research interests in the field of Individual Differences in Learning, the paper dwelt on how to develop a science curriculum that responds to diverse student stylistic needs.

Using the context of the proposed reform in Science education for the local secondary sector, a number of suggestions have been purposely introduced to develop Science experiences that are truly learner-oriented. The Science curriculum is not only seen as a set of activities promoting domain knowledge and skills, but more important, as the context for promoting reflection about one's learning capabilities and tendencies.

The dilemma "Science for Students versus Students for Science" is considered as a challenge energising the process of developing a science curriculum that responds to the diverse student needs involved in constructing very personal experiences and forms of knowledge within the domain of science.

Traditional science curricula, based on a transmissionist methodology that manifests itself in the adoption of the 'Sage on the Stage' approach, promote science as a 'created' subject. Experts create knowledge and skills that have to be transmitted to the 'empty' vessels. So the emphasis would be on the syllabus, the scheme of work, the topics, the worksheets and the recall-oriented tests.

These are the conduits to transfer the knowledge into the students' heads. Adopting a reductionist philosophy, this knowledge is broken down into subjects, subjects into topics. These attempt to build a knowledge structure based on an understanding of various discrete concepts, rules and problems often requiring learners to formulate very specific hypothesis.

Field experts with analytic tendencies develop syllabi, which are then transformed into lecture notes by science teachers having similar tendencies. They adopt teaching strategies based on a very local approach, focusing on specific topics in Chemistry, Biology or Physics. Adopting a bottom-up processing strategy, they tend to concentrate on imparting details that discriminate accurately between one piece of information and another.

Lectures, textbooks, laboratory manuals and handouts are all characterised by a linear, sequential presentation of ideas requiring learners to work step-by-step through the various sections. The process of doing science in schools is also characterised by the separation of theoretical from practical aspects.

The 'thinking' is done in the lecture room while the 'doing' in laboratory science is characterised by analytic tendencies manifested through knowledge specialisation, compartmentalisation and a certain level of fragmentation especially during the initial stages of the educational process.

The overemphasis on task-oriented strategies contrasts with the importance given to the development of personal relationships. Personal satisfaction and intellectual stimulation are derived from the relationship established with natural things or technological artefacts.

But would it be prudent to promote science only from such an analytic perspective? Would a single, stylistically biased approach satisfy the various cognitive demands and learning styles of students? A truly learner-oriented philosophy considers such an analytic approach just as one of the available possibilities.

Many scholars in Science education emphasise the importance of scientific literacy for all citizens. The challenge is therefore to develop a Science curriculum that is stylistically inclusive, providing various routes according to students' needs. This levers more responsibility on to science educators to develop curricula and experiences that cater for different learning needs.

A review of research works related to stylistic tendencies in how people process information, build knowledge structures, approach learning situations and communicate ideas indicate a number of consistent propensities. Students with holistic inclinations tend to emphasise the 'wood' rather than the individual 'trees'. They prefer to consider global issues, finding themselves more at ease with thematic approaches and tend to use a top-to-bottom strategy, establishing the principle then going down to specific examples. Unconsciously they tend to adopt a random approach in solving problems. Being more people-oriented, they prefer working in groups rather then engaging themselves in solitary activities.

Others, having a more analytic approach, emphasise the 'trees' at the expense of the wood. Science specialising people tend to be of the latter type. Our knowledge about individual differences in learning challenges the adoption of such an analytic approach in science as the sole curricular option. Would students taking humanities options feel compatible and comfortable with this way of experience science? Would holists, having a global approach to learning, feel at ease when being approached by such analytic experiences? And if not, how can one impose a curriculum that is stylistically conflicting with a large number of students having different inclinations?

Besides the influence of the holist-analytic dimension on information processing and learning, one should also consider the effect of the verbal-imagery dimension. It is common experience that humanities students tend to be more verbose, expressing themselves fluently using elaborate language. There are gender-related tendencies associated with this dimension. A number of research works point to female propensity in the use of verbalising strategies while thinking, learning and communicating their ideas.

On the other hand, males tend to employ visuo-spatial ones. These researchers consider traditional school practices, based on linguistic competence and verbalising strategies, as more conducive to female stylistic tendencies. Is it by chance that the female population is significantly higher than that for males in post-secondary and tertiary science courses?

This can be contrasted with the opposite tendency for courses in maths and computer studies that researchers contend require a higher level of logical and visuo-spatial capabilities! This is yet another aspect where innovative approaches should be employed, providing various strategies to satisfy such gender tendencies.

But how can the science curriculum respond to these different stylistic demands? Which actions should be considered? At a macro level, the curriculum should be designed to offer options that respond to the different needs of students. At a micro level, class activities should be designed to promote reflection on students' thinking and learning style. These are manifested during different learning situations or whenever students need to communicate their ideas. Comparing and contrasting personal tendencies with those of colleagues can prove to be a source of information for personal growth.

Creating a learner-oriented science curriculum involves providing options for diverse students. Some students have a natural propensity towards the arts and humanities as a direct consequence of their stylistic tendencies. Yet they still need to be equipped with a basic level of scientific literacy for efficient performance in today's society. The problem lies with the curricular approach to be adopted! Having predominantly holistic and verbalising tendencies, would they cherish traditional analytic approaches?

Other students orient themselves toward careers needing a higher component of scientific and technological knowhow but still do not intend to specialise in any particular field (though one should keep this possibility available). These also have their own particular needs and should be provided with a curriculum that respects their needs and inclinations.

A considerable number of students are attracted to the analytic culture prevailing in scientific circles, and perceiving their stylistic compatible, opt for courses that lead them to specialised scientific or technological careers.

These diverse needs demand a system that is flexible and capable to respond to these different learner exigencies. A three-track system is being proposed in Malta based on different curricular orientations. Track 1 will adopt an interdisciplinary, thematic approach intended for students having holistic tendencies. Track 2 and 3 will be based on a more analytical approach. But while proposing a curriculum that is sensitive to stylistic tendencies, it should also provide students with experiences that challenge these natural propensities.

All tracks will include stylistically challenging activities. Track 1 will have specific learning experiences designed to focus on analytic approaches complementary to the general themes. Track 2 and 3 will include activities targeted to promote core organising themes that serve to integrate the specialised and detailed nature of the syllabus, what contemporary reports about science education call the 'big questions" that science tries to answer.

The other aspect of the reform intended to promote curricular relevance focuses on developing reflection in students about the process of learning itself. While many countries are opening their curricula to such personally relevant experiences, I feel that in Malta we are giving this aspect cursory importance. Science can provide students with ample experiences that help them discover themselves more as learners. Activities will be designed to raise awareness about specific learner attributes and inclinations as manifested during learning. For example, comparing the format, content and stylistic expressions of ideas in science essays can prove to be revealing to most students.

One other possibility is to create an awareness of the holistic-analytic and verbalising-imaging tendencies when communicating ideas through writing or during seminar presentations. Concept maps can serve as excellent tools to analyse stylistic organisation of knowledge structures.

Other situations to be considered include approach or withdrawal tendencies during collaborative learning, stylistic aspects in computer use and possible gender related behaviours during learning. Situations involving compatibility of style, or even incompatibility, between teacher and student should also be explored. While style compatibility promotes learning and personal motivation, style conflict jeopardises learning, demotivates students by developing negative attitudes and beliefs about the subject.

These metacognitive activities should be embedded in individual or collaborative instructional experiences within the existing curriculum. Through personal reflection about the diverse stylistic tendencies, students should be trained to develop and implement effective strategies when involved in particular tasks. During collaborative learning, students become exposed to alternative strategies or tactics used by their colleagues to execute a task or arrive at a particular result.

This first hand peer-modelling experience will help students identify monitoring and regulating criteria that can be employed when they are doing similar activities. In time, self-assessing benchmarks will be developed. If the required performance is not achieved, revision and refinement of strategy will be done. Refinement is achieved through discussion and negotiations with peer students or teacher. Thus, these transformed curricular activities will serve to develop in students a process of reflection, monitoring, assessing and refinement of their personal learning attributes.

Such personalised approaches to learning demand a shift in the way we view learning. Surely chunking subject content is not the sole criterion on which to design learning experiences. We need to start considering school subjects as contexts that can be utilised to stimulate personal exploration and growth. The objective would be to empower learners in taking control of their own learning.

The challenge for educators is to develop relevant curricula that are stylistically attractive and at the same time challenge learners' natural propensities. We have to expand our view of the process of learning beyond school boundaries. Learning by teaching is just one way to learn. We must go beyond this and start discovering our natural learning capabilities. Developing our learner identity is the first step to take control of our continual personal development using a whole range of available tools and contexts.

The experience of conferences like ELSIN 2002 provides the necessary insight to actualise such goals. The contacts and networks established provide the stimulus necessary to put such goals in practice. Getting to know people embarked on similar endeavour, with all their successes and failures, reassures one's position and provides the necessary impetus to keep moving on.

Philip Bonanno, B.Ed. (Hons), M.Phil., is assistant lecturer at the Junior College, University of Malta, and co-ordinator, Focus Group for Science in Secondary Schools.