Active learners tend to retain and understand new information by doing something with it, such as discussing it with others. Reflective learners prefer to think about something quietly before attempting to apply the information to a problem or task.
Sitting through a lecture with nothing to do other than listen or take notes would be difficult for both types of learners, but particularly difficult for active learners. Felder and Solomon recommend trying to create opportunities to socialize within the class, such as studying in groups. For reflective learners, create time to process information by reviewing class notes and rewriting them in your own words. Doing these kinds of activities will help both active and reflective learners retain new information more effectively in a class that is lecture-based.
Sensing learners like to deal with concrete information, such as facts and figures. They deal in scientific processes and careful experimentation. Intuitive learners prefer to think about abstract relationships or theoretical possibilities. Intuitive students dislike having to memorize a lot of things and repeat processes, working faster and relying on instinct more than their sensory-learning peers.
Sensing learners can sometimes have problems understanding abstract concepts. By asking the professor for real-world applications and examples of these ideas, the sensory learner can stay grounded and keep processing information. Lecture-style classes are fine for intuitive learners, but they may become bored if the information being presented deals with a lot of memorization of formulas, theories, etc. Intuitive learners can keep from succumbing to boredom by asking for other interpretations of these theories.
Visual learners remember what they see, while verbal learners get more out of written and spoken explanations. Visual learners should try to find diagrams, sketches, photographs, videos or charts that relate to the information they want to retain. To help with studying, visual learners can also create their own concept maps or color code their class notes to indicate the relationships between facts. Verbal learners are also helped by working in groups and talking things out, especially when the verbal learner explains something to another person.
Sequential learners need to see the logical progression of one step to another as they learn. Global learners tend to absorb information in large chunks without quite being able to explain how they did it. Essentially, sequential learners look at each tree before acknowledging the forest, while global learners see the forest without taking the trees into account.
Sequential learners may have trouble following a lesson that is random, or skips around in focus. It can help a sequential learner to make lists of steps between one point and another so that he can remember the information. Global learners find it difficult to follow a lesson that is presented by someone who plunges into new material without explaining how it relates to what they already know. It can help a global learner to take in information like a sponge soaking up water; when reading new information, skim over the entire text without stopping to consider individual facts. Then, reread to pick up the details. Having an overview of the material before they begin studying helps the global learner to learn without having to reread the material over and over.