Did you know that a staggering 73% of us have a preferred learning style? The remaining 27% either use a blend of two styles or, like a rare 5%, are adept at leveraging all learning methods.
These statistics come from an intriguing study of medical students. They highlight the necessity for a deeper understanding of how we consume, process, and retain information.
Understanding ways of learning isn’t just an academic exercise; it carries real-world significance. In vocational education and workplace skills training, understanding how people learn is key. It enhances comprehension, improves retention, and leads to better outcomes.
In this article, we explore:
- A learning styles definition and examples
- What the 7 different learning styles are
- Additional learning styles that have become popular
- How to identify your own learning and teaching styles
- How to accommodate different learning modalities in workplace training
- Recent opposition to learning style theories
- Answers to commonly asked questions about types of learning styles
What are Learning Styles?
Learning styles categorise the unique ways in which we prefer to perceive and process information. These theoretical frameworks signify people’s preferred learning methods and techniques. They explain how individuals understand, interpret, and remember learnings and experiences. Essentially, these forms of learning represent diverse preferences, behaviours, and tactics. Individuals use these styles when interacting with new knowledge or skills.
The concept of learning types has roots dating back to ancient Greece. However, there was a surge of interest in individualised learning in the 1970s. This saw them gaining mainstream recognition. Psychologists, educators and researchers developed theoriese about how learning styles impact training effectiveness. They explained that tailoring training to meet preferred styles could enhance its effectiveness.
Over the decades, multiple models of learning styles have emerged. Each highlights different aspects of how people learn. These models include David Kolb’s experiential learning theory and Honey and Mumford learning styles.
Recognising and understanding these learning styles is crucial. They help educators take personalised and engaging approaches to education and professional training.
The Fundamental 7 Learning Styles
What are the 7 types of learning styles that are most popular among students and educators alike? While different learning styles have gained traction over the past decades, these 7 ways of learning remain the most popular.
1. Visual Learning Style
Visual learners absorb information best through images, videos, diagrams, charts, and visual aids. These graphic representations improve knowledge retention by presenting information in memorable formats. These are easier to recall.
Visual Learning Example: An employee who excels at interpreting and creating presentations. They create impactful charts and graphs. They interpret information best when it’s visually displayed. This gives them exceptional data analysis skills and a knack for making data-driven decisions.
2. Auditory Learning Style
Auditory learners thrive on sound and rhythm. It’s easy for them to remember details from conversations, lectures and podcasts. These learners are also often gifted at picking up subtle changes in tone and pitch. This enhances their emotional intelligence.
Auditory Learning Example: An employee who thrives in environments where communication is key. They have strong active listening skills, helping them understand complex subjects quickly. They are also great at explaining topics in a way others can easily understand. This makes them an asset for negotiations, presentations and customer service roles.
3. Verbal Learning Style
Verbal learners prefer to absorb written information. They’re also known as reading and writing learners. They appreciate resources like subtitles on videos or detailed documentation. These allow them to read and process information at their own pace.
Verbal Learning Example: An employee who’s great at research and note-taking. They can also easily break down complex information into actionable lists. They have strong writing skills, which help them communicate well over email and instant messaging. They also thrive at reporting, drafting Standard Operating Procedures, and preparing training manuals.
4. Logical Learning Style
Logical learners thrive on systematic learning and breaking complex problems into smaller components. This helps them form a complete understanding. They’re often intrigued by puzzles and problem-solving. This is because they take pride in coordinating multiple elements to achieve successful outcomes.
Logical Learning Example: An employee who thrives at problem-solving and analysis. They can easily identify patterns and correlations in complex data sets. Their methodical approach makes them an asset in project management roles. These are positions where optimising workflows and processes is key.
5. Kinaesthetic Learning Style
Kinaesthetic people are physical learners who grasp concepts best through active engagement. They learn by touching, moving, and manipulating objects. This helps them turn abstract ideas into tactile experiences. They excel in environments where they can physically interact with their training materials. This makes on-the-job training particularly effective.
Kinaesthetic Learning Example: An employee who quickly masters tasks that require physical coordination. Kinaesthetic learners are well-suited to hands-on roles like technicians, engineers and software developers. They also make excellent trainers and mentors in these fields. This is because they can demonstrate complex tasks through practical, real-world examples.
6. Social Learning Style
Social learners absorb information best when collaborating and engaging in meaningful discussions. Their understanding deepens through shared learning experiences, brainstorming and group discussions. This active interpersonal exchange forms the crux of their learning journey.
Social Learning Example: An employee who does well in an office environment where they can bounce ideas off the people around them. Social learners make great leaders. They foster cross-functional collaboration, communication and innovation in their teams. They also work well in sales and customer service roles. Here, they get to interact with clients and prospects, helping them find effective solutions for their needs.
7. Solitary Learning Style
Solitary learners absorb information best when they aren’t faced with social pressures. They like to take the time to understand concepts independently. This makes self-paced learning and eLearning courses ideal for their needs. Once they have a thorough understanding of concepts, they will more easily engage with others in group discussions.
Solitary Learning Example: A self-motivated employee who prefers to work remotely. They thrive when they’re away from office distractions. They excel at conducting research, writing technical reports, and developing well-thought-out strategies. They also shine when presenting their findings and incorporating feedback. This helps them refine their processes.
Other Learning Styles to Consider
While the seven learning styles above are the most common and popular, there are others that you may also want to accommodate. Let’s look at what the other learning styles are that have evolved over the years.
Musical Learning Style
Musical learners connect well to rhythm, melody and sound patterns. While this may sound similar to auditory learners, there is a clear distinction. Auditory learners grasp spoken concepts more easily. Musical learners specifically identify with rhythmic patterns. They often use mnemonic devices to make information more memorable. They may also prefer listening to background music when learning or working.
Musical Learning Example: An employee who enjoys adding music and sound to training materials. These may include working on podcasts and videos. They excel in creative roles and often use their musicality in workshops and team-building exercises. Their connection to rhythm often means that they’re energetic and enthusiastic. This makes them an asset in boosting morale and improving employee engagement.
Natural Learning Style
Natural learners process information best when in an outdoor setting or natural environment. They are especially good at noticing patterns and trends in the living world. This helps them easily turn abstract ideas into tangible examples.
Natural Learning Example: An employee who enjoys hands-on and onsite work. They’re well-suited to deskless work and roles that involve time spent outdoors. These may include positions in mining, agriculture or environmental science. Natural learners are also skilled researchers and can excel as teachers. This is because they use real-world examples to demonstrate complex concepts.
Linguistic Learning Style
Linguistic learners have a natural talent for understanding the structure of words. This helps them explain complex ideas in simple terms. It also makes them skilled communicators and great storytellers. Many people group verbal and linguistic learning styles together, but they’re quite different. Verbal learners focus on reading and writing in general. Linguistic learners learn by developing stories and connections between concepts.
Linguistic Learning Example: An employee who uses linguistics to further marketing efforts. They excel at creative writing and have a talent for creating engaging presentations. They’re also great teachers, as they are able to use language and rhetoric in a way that makes complex topics easy to understand.
Importance of Identifying Learning Styles
By now, you should have a good understanding of what the learning styles are. However, it’s important to also understand the impact that your preferred ways of learning can have. It can affect your own training and employee training in general.
For Personal Development
Understanding your preferred type of learning can help you transform the training experience. It can also enhance your engagement with learning materials. Recognising your own learning style will make training more enjoyable. Your knowledge retention will improve and you’ll transfer learning into everyday tasks. This will help you feel more confident in your work.
For instance, visual learners often struggle with large blocks of text. They can gain a better understanding by creating more relatable videos, graphics and images. Podcasts and lectures can enhance the way auditory learners learn. And solitary learners could take time away from their colleagues to focus on training.
For Employee Training
Understanding various learning styles can help you develop targeted training plans. These will better meet employee needs. Different teaching strategies and employee training methods suit distinct types of learners.
For example, a kinaesthetic learner may connect well with on-the-job training examples. These help them learn practical methods that directly impact their work. A solitary learner may prefer to take an online course that they can complete at their own pace.
Accommodating different learning styles across your training will help you to cater to all employees. This will ultimately boost training effectiveness. Sometimes this is as easy as adding subtitles to videos to meet the needs of both visual and verbal learners. Other times it may mean adopting a blended learning approach. This is where you provide both eLearning and in-person training opportunities.
How to Identify Your Personal Learning Style?
To identify one’s own style of learning (and teaching), start by reflecting on past learning experiences.
- When did you find learning most comfortable and most difficult?
- What were the circumstances?
- Do you find it easier to remember information from a video or a podcast?
- Do you prefer group study sessions or learning alone?
- Does hands-on practice make understanding easier for you?
There are also various online quizzes that can help you identify your learning preference. These are based on your answers to specific questions. They may not always offer definitive answers. But they can provide a starting point for understanding your individual learning styles.
How to Identify Types of Learning Styles for Employee Training
1. Use Technology
An interactive training software solution like Cloud Assess can help. These learning platforms deliver training across diverse learning styles. They also provide details like how many people viewed a video compared to how many downloaded an infographic. This will help you identify which employees prefer each training method. It will also make it easier to provide the right training materials to meet their preferences.
2. Collect Training Feedback
Gather feedback after training sessions and courses. This can help you easily identify which employees connected with the materials and where improvement could be made. There are various methods that you can use to collect training feedback. These include surveys, focus groups and suggestion boxes.
Take the Guesswork Out of Feedback!
Download our list of feedback questions to start collecting insights.3. Analyse Training Metrics
Statistics can highlight employees who may be struggling with a particular training format. These may include completion rates, evaluation scores, and time spent on specific modules. Monitoring these training metrics can help you provide personalised learning paths. It can also help you accommodate unique learning styles in specific subjects or courses.
4. Conduct Performance Reviews
Reviews are a performance management technique that offers opportunities to discuss learning preferences. You can gather input from employees on their training experience. You’ll also gain insight into knowledge retention and how they’ve applied learning within their roles..
Opposition to the 7 Learning Styles Theory
In recent years, researchers have questioned the validity of the ‘7 types of learning styles’ theory. They see little scientific evidence to suggest that accommodating learning styles improves outcomes.
Studies suggest that adapting training to preferences doesn’t consistently enhance retention or understanding. People may have preferences for how they learn, but that doesn’t impact effectiveness. Effective learning depends more on material critical thinking rather. Simply catering to preferred styles doesn’t have a measurable impact.
This research has led some educators to focus on universally effective teaching strategies. This has reduced their attempts to tailor instruction to specific styles of learning.
Looking for an in-depth review? A widely cited study by Pashler, McDaniel, Rohrer, and Bjork (2008) explores this topic. It also challenges the efficacy of learning styles as a basis for instructional design.
Other Learning Theories to Understand
We’ve already mentioned David Kolb’s experiential learning theory and Honey and Mumford’s Learning Styles. But here are some more learning theories that can help improve your training and development.
- Dreyfus’ Model of Skill Acquisition
- Ebbinghaus’ Forgetting Curve
- Conscious Competence Learning Model
- Information Processing Theory
- Cognitive Learning Theory
- Malcolm Knowles Adult Learning Theory
- Vgotsky Scaffolding Theory
FAQs About Forms of Learning
Define the term learning styles and name two types of learning styles.
Learning styles refer to the preferred ways individuals perceive, process, and retain information. They reflect unique behaviours and methods people use to engage with the learning process. Two common types are visual learning and auditory learning. Visual learners absorb information best through visual aids like images and diagrams. Auditory learners prefer listening to spoken words, sounds, and rhythms.
Can an individual have more than one preferred learning method?
Yes! Many people use a combination of learning styles depending on the situation or the type of content they’re learning. Some learning styles also naturally work well together, like verbal and linguistic learning.
Can learning styles change over time?
Yes. A learning method that works well in childhood can evolve to become less effective. In the same way, as individuals gain life experiences, they may become better equipped to adapt to different types of training.
How do learning styles impact the effectiveness of training programs?
When you accommodate different learning methods, employees will engage better with the materials. This can improve employees’ knowledge retention. This, in turn, will translate into better productivity and efficiency in their roles.
Can one piece of training content accommodate multiple learning styles?
Absolutely. Videos, for example, engage auditory learners and visual learners. Including music and subtitles accommodates musical learners and verbal learners. Incorporating storytelling elements can engage linguistic learners.
How many learning styles are there?
There are seven widely recognised learning styles. These are visual, auditory, verbal, logical, kinaesthetic, social, and solitary. In addition, other styles such as musical, natural, and linguistic have emerged. This brings the total to around ten distinct styles.
What are the learning styles that are most effective in workplace training?
Effective learning styles depend on the learning environment and subject matter. However, auditory, visual, and social styles are especially valuable. These support strong communication, visual comprehension, and collaborative learning. These are key elements of workplace success. Blended approaches that accommodate many different learning styles often deliver the best outcomes.
