Auditory learning or auditory modality is one of three
learning modalities
Learning styles refer to a range of theories that aim to account for differences in individuals' learning. Although there is ample evidence that individuals express personal preferences on how they prefer to receive information, few studies have fo ...
originally proposed by Walter Burke Barbe and colleagues that characterizes a learner as depending on listening and speaking as a main way of processing and/or retaining information.
[Kostelnik, M.J., Soderman, A.K., Whiren, AP. (2004). Developmentally Appropriate Curriculum: Best Practices in Early Childhood Education (3rd ed.). Columbus: Pearson, Merrill Prentice Hall.]
According to the theory, auditory learners must be able to hear what is being said to understand, and may have difficulty with instructions that are written or drawn. They also use their listening and repeating skills to sort through the information presented to them.
Although learning styles have "enormous popularity", and both children and adults express personal preferences, there is no evidence that identifying a student's learning style produces better outcomes. There is significant evidence that the widely touted "meshing hypothesis" (that a student will learn best if taught in a method deemed appropriate for the student's learning style) is invalid.
Well-designed studies "flatly contradict the popular meshing hypothesis".
Characteristics
Auditory learners may have a propensity for using audible signals like changes in
tone
Tone may refer to:
Visual arts and color-related
* Tone (color theory), a mix of tint and shade, in painting and color theory
* Tone (color), the lightness or brightness (as well as darkness) of a color
* Toning (coin), color change in coins
* ...
to aid in recollection. For example, when memorizing a phone number, an auditory learner might say it out loud and then remember how it sounded to recall it.
Auditory learners may solve problems by talking them through.
Speech
Speech is the use of the human voice as a medium for language. Spoken language combines vowel and consonant sounds to form units of meaning like words, which belong to a language's lexicon. There are many different intentional speech acts, suc ...
patterns include phrases such as "I hear you; That clicks; It's ringing a bell", and other sound or voice-oriented information. These learners may move their lips or talk to themselves to help accomplish tasks.
Recommended techniques
Proponents say that teachers should use these techniques to instruct auditory learners: verbal direction, group discussions, verbal reinforcement, group activities, reading aloud, and putting information into a rhythmic pattern such as a
rap,
poem
Poetry (from the Greek language, Greek word ''poiesis'', "making") is a form of literature, literary art that uses aesthetics, aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language to evoke meaning (linguistics), meanings in addition to, or in ...
, or
song
A song is a musical composition performed by the human voice. The voice often carries the melody (a series of distinct and fixed pitches) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs have a structure, such as the common ABA form, and are usu ...
.
Lack of evidence
Although learning styles have "enormous popularity", and both children and adults express personal preferences, there is no evidence that identifying a student's learning style produces better outcomes. There is significant evidence that the widely touted "meshing hypothesis" (that a student will learn best if taught in a method deemed appropriate for the student's learning style) is invalid.
Well-designed studies "flatly contradict the popular meshing hypothesis".
Rather than targeting instruction to the "right" learning style, students appear to benefit most from mixed modality presentations, for instance using both auditory and visual techniques for all students.
[Coffield, F., Moseley, D., Hall, E., Ecclestone, K. (2004)]
''Learning styles and pedagogy in post-16 learning. A systematic and critical review''
. London: Learning and Skills Research Centre.
Few studies have found validity in using learning styles in education.
See also
*
Auditory memory
*
Kinesthetic learning
*
Learning styles
Learning styles refer to a range of theories that aim to account for differences in individuals' learning. Although there is ample evidence that individuals express personal preferences on how they prefer to receive information, few studies have fo ...
*
Visual learning
Visual learning is a learning style among the learning styles of Neil Fleming's VARK model in which information is presented to a learner in a visual format. Visual learners can utilize graphs, charts, maps, diagrams, and other forms of visual s ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Auditory Learning
Pedagogy
Neuro-linguistic programming concepts and methods
Learning methods