Many different theories explaining how people learn have been proposed over the years. This page summarises a few of the most significant.
Broadly we can divide current ideas into two general areas:
- cognitive theories, about how people process information
- learning theories, about strategies people adopt to learn
Cognitive theories include:
Learning theories include:
However, it must be pointed out that although these concepts for looking at how people learn do work well in explaining the process of learning, there is little strong evidence to show that designing training around a particular target group's preferred learning style does actually lead to better results.
There are two characteristics to consider:
Individuals can therefore be classified as being of four different types, as shown here. |
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The characterstics are as shown here.
| Wholists | Analytics |
| Process information as a whole | Process information in parts |
| See the big picture | See the detail |
| Appreciate the overall context of information | Break down information to get at the heart of the problem |
| Find it difficult to break a situation down into parts | Spot diferences rather than similarities |
| Blur the distinction between parts | Attach greater importance to some parts |
And on the other axis:
| Verbalisers | Imagers |
| Memorise as words | Memorise as images |
| Easily describe situations | Easily visualise situations |
This considers how well a learner can restructure information based on its structure and presentation. It divides people into those whose cognitive processes are:
- field dependent: they prefer the big picture, working cooperatively and are rewarded by what learning brings
- field independent: they prefer detail, working individually and are rewarded by the learning itself
This identifies three main ways in which people think:
- Visual people think in terms of images such as graphics and text on a page
- Auditory people prefer sound and the spoken voice
- Kinaesthetic people think in terms of touch and feel
In practice most people think in both ways, but have a preference for one, and find it easier to assimilate information presented in this way.
Research shows that learning is more effective when people are presented with information in various modes. Learning materials that incorporates both visual information and an audio explanation is therefore usually more effective than a non-audio presentation.
Remember also that visual information includes both text and graphics. You can improve the effectiveness of your visual information by presenting it using both text and graphics.
The best-known model is probably that of Kolb, who proposed that learning takes place by moving through a cycle of experiencing something, reflecting on it, developing a concept of what it means and finally experimenting with this new idea. In practice we favour each stage to different degrees, with experience and conceptualisation and reflection and experimentation being opposites. We can therefore classify people in four different ways. For example, Divergers prefer experience and reflection. |
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Activist - theorist - pragmatist - reflectivist
Honey and Mumford's reflectivist-activist-theorist-pragmatist concept builds on Kolb’s learning cycle theory to propose four types of learner.
| Style | Which means: |
| Activist | Gets up and does it straightaway |
| Reflectivist | Thinks about it, gathers more information, then approaches it carefully |
| Theorist | Works out a theoretical justification for it before starting |
| Pragmatist | Considers the value of it, then does it once satisfied that it is useful |
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(C) Bryan Hopkins, 2005