At least four different models can describe learning styles. According to O'Connor, one involves preferences related to the learning environment, including sensory and instructional preferences. Some students prefer visual, auditory or tactile input to learn. Another model focuses on methods of social interaction, which may differ by sex or age. A third approach, information processing, may refer to right brain/left brain abilities or to theories of multiple intelligence factors. The Myers-Briggs approach, a popular theory, emphasizes personality types to explain learning styles.
If instructors offer alternative methods of learning, they can appeal to more learning styles. For example, PowerPoint presentations can appeal to visual learners as the instructor orally explains the concepts. If these presentations become permanently available online, they allow self-paced students to review the material. Instructors can also allow students to engage in learning through alternative formats, such as creating poems or making oral presentations. According to Dr. Richard Felder of North Carolina State University, instructors need a balanced approach, one that appeals to a variety of learning styles, rather than one that reflects only their own preferences.
Instructors can organize their lessons to appeal to students' learning styles. Rather than just focusing on content in a lecture format, instructors may present problem-solving activities or in-class simulations of political or social events to encourage students to find their own solutions, according to O'Connor. Instructors may also consider the Myers-Briggs model in class organization. For example, if instructors note that "sensing" learners have difficulty with abstract concepts, they may create lessons emphasizing concrete facts and observations, rather than relying on students' intuition to understand concepts. As Felder points out, however, a student may have strong to weak skills in both abstract and concrete thinking.
If an instructor introduces a complex assignment, such as a service-learning project connected to community concerns, students will need to draw on multiple learning styles. For example, an instructor might ask students to explore the local causes of homelessness, drug problems or unemployment. Such projects may last an entire semester and require students to collaborate, drawing upon their individual learning strengths, according to O'Connor. Using this approach, instructors can engage students, drawing upon a variety of learning styles and generating creative solutions.