PERCEPTUAL LEARNING PREFERENCES SURVEY Directions: This survey has been designed to help you and your teachers

better understand the ways you prefer to learn. Think about your most recent school experiences while you read each of the following statements, then place a check mark () on the response line which most accurately describes how you learn. SOMETIMES _____

USUALLY NEVER 1. I can remember most of the information I have heard in a lecture or class discussion without taking notes. _____ _____ 2. I learn more by reading about a topic than by listening to a lecture or a class discussion _____ 3. I learn more about a subject when I can use my hands to make or draw something. _____ 4. When I study new material, I learn more easily by looking over visual aids in a chapter such as charts and illustrations than by reading the assigned pages. _____ 5. Talking about a subject with someone else helps me better understand my own ideas. _____ 6. I take notes during class lectures and discussions and read them carefully several times before a test. _____ 7. When I read a textbook, newspaper, or novel, I picture the ideas or story in my mind. _____ 8. I am skilled with my hands and can easily repair things or put things together. _____ 9. I remember information that I have discussed in class with a partner or a small group better than information that I have read or written about. _____ 10.I get confused when I try to figure out graphs and charts that do not come with a written explanation. _____ 11.When I read, I underline or highlight ideas to make the main ideas stand out and to not get distracted. _____ _____

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12. I remember information well by listening to tapes. _____ 13. I am physically coordinated and do well at sports. _____ 14. To remember a new word, I must hear it and say it. _____ 15. I would rather see a film on a subject than listen to a lecture or read a book or magazine article. _____ 16. I prefer reading a newspaper or magazine as a source of news rather than listening to the radio or watching TV. _____ USUALLY NEVER 17. I make drawings in my study notes or on study cards to remember new vocabulary and important material. _____ 18. I read assigned material and notes aloud to myself to concentrate and understand better. _____ 19. When I listen to an explanation or lecture, I form mental images or pictures to understand better. _____ 20. When I am not sure how to spell a word, I write it different ways to see what looks most correct. _____ _____

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SOMETIMES

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21. I best understand homework or test instructions by reading them on the board or a handout rather than by just listening. _____ _____ 22. It is easier for me to remember illustrations and charts in textbooks if they are done in bright colours. _____ 23. I prefer to watch TV or listen to the radio for news rather than to read a newspaper or a magazine. _____ 24. I understand and remember more about a subject from a field trip than from a lecture or a textbook. _____ 25. To remember a new word, I must see it several times. _____ 26.Before making or drawing something, I first picture in my _____ _____

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mind what my completed project will look like. _____ 27.I find it difficult to figure out what to do on homework assignments when the teacher just gives us a handout without discussing it in class. _____

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28. I write or draw while listening to a lecture or a class

discussion in order to concentrate and not get restless. _____ 29.I have difficulty remembering a new term if I have only a definition with no examples or illustrations. _____

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30. I regularly read newspapers, magazines, or books for

pleasure and information. _____ _____ _____

31. When I am learning about a new subject, I get more

interested and remember much more if I can have hands-on experience such as drawing, building a model, or doing a lab experiment. _____ _____ _____

32. When I have homework reading assignments, I take notes

or summarize the main ideas in writing. _____ Last name ________________________________ _____ _____

First name _________________________________

PERCEPTUAL LEARNING PREFERENCES SURVEY: SCORING GUIDE Directions: Each of the checks you entered on the survey has a point value: USUALLY = 3 points; SOMETIMES = 2 points; RARELY = 1 point For each column, find the item number on the survey and enter the point value on the line to the right. Then add the total number of points in each column.

VISUAL/VERBAL
QUESTION # POINTS

VISUAL/NONVERBAL
QUESTION # POINTS

AUDITORY
QUESTION # POINTS

VISUAL/TACTILE KINESTHETIC
QUESTION # POINTS

2 6 10 16 21 25 30 32 TOTAL

4 7 14 17 19 22 26 29 TOTAL

1 5 9 12 15 18 23 27 TOTAL

3 8 11 13 20 24 28 31 TOTAL

In the space below, list your perceptual learning preferences from your highest score to your lowest score. Your highest total indicates your perceptual learning preference(s). Your next highest total indicates another strong preference, especially if the two numbers are close. PERCEPTUAL LEARNING PREFERENCES 1. ____________________________________ 2. ____________________________________ 3. ____________________________________ 4. ____________________________________

PERCEPTUAL LEARNING STRENGTHS People learn through their different senses. The senses through which each person takes in and retains new and difficult information are called perceptual learning channels:

1993 Kate Kinsella

1. Visual Learning: viewing, examining, reading a. Visual-Verbal b. Visual-Nonverbal

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2. Auditory Learning: listening, discussing a. Auditory-Listening b. Auditory-Verbalizing 3. Tactile Learning: handling, touching 4. Kinesthetic Learning: moving, doing, experiencing Most people rely heavily on one or two of these perceptual learning channels for information, but that does not mean that they can not learn effectively using other senses. They simply indicate a learners perceptual preferences and generally a learners strength. Educational research has shown that when teachers introduce knowledge or skills to students through their strongest perceptual preferences and then reinforce it through secondary preferences, students learn more easily and retain far more. To learn as effectively and efficiently as possible, students should therefore identify their perceptual learning preferences, then select study strategies which will help them master new information using their preferences and strengths. After having identified their perceptual learning strengths and instructional needs, students will then also be better equipped to inform their teachers of any reasonable accommodations they can make in their instruction to help all students have easier and more equal access to the curriculum.

VISUAL / VERBAL LEARNERS Characteristics: Relate to such words as: see, look, observe, read Like to read books and magazines for both information and pleasure Enjoy watching TV documentaries and films in which both visual and verbal information are presented simultaneously.
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Read a newspaper or magazine regularly as a source of news. Prefer to read what an expert has written on a subject than to listen to a lecture or discussion. Prefer to look over written directions and diagrams to assemble or use something rather than to hear someone explain how to do it. Feel frustrated when teachers simply give oral instructions for assignments and tests instead of also writing the instructions on the board or on a handout. Take extensive notes during class lectures and discussions to review later. Regularly make lists of daily goals and activities.

Teaching Strategies to Help You Learn: Written instructions for all assignments and tests. Visual/verbal aids: handouts, outlines, or summary notes of lectures, written definitions of new terms, written and oral explanations for charts, graphs, and diagrams. Follow-up reading for any class lectures and discussions.

Study Strategies to Help You Remember: Take careful notes to concentrate during class lectures and discussions, then study them several times for a visual review before a test. Write summaries or notes in your own words of material you have read or discussed in class. Ask your teacher or tutor for written explanations of new words, concepts, and assignments. Write down any oral instructions for assignments to have a visual aid to refer to later. Read your textbooks and other assigned material silently instead of aloud to gain maximum meaning. Highlight important ideas in your assigned reading with coloured markers and make summary comments in the margins in your own words. Write down any oral explanations your teacher provides for charts, diagrams, and graphs. Make flashcards with definitions, dictionary examples, and your own example sentences for new vocabulary. Make lists and other written reminders of anything you need to remember to do.

VISUAL / NONVERBAL LEARNERS Characteristics:

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Relate to such words as: look, picture, observe, show, imagine. Understand and retain information well by looking at pictures, diagrams, charts, maps, films. Like to browse through books and magazines focusing primarily on the pictures. Learn how to do things through observation and modeling rather than verbal explanations. Prefer demonstrated tasks and visual models to oral and written instructions. Would rather see a film on a subject than listen to a lecture or panel discussion. Prefer TV as a source of news rather than a newspaper or radio. Have a strong visual memory: remember faces, locations, directions, where they put things. Often doodle or draw while taking notes during a class lecture or discussion.

Teaching Strategies to Help You Learn: Demonstrations and modeling of assigned tasks. Models of successfully completed assignments that you can emulate. Visual aids: lists, diagrams, charts, pictures, films, concept maps, real objects. Opportunities to draw pictures, diagrams, or other graphic representations of problems, ideas, or concepts. Guided visualization exercises which help you imagine a situation. To have new concepts and vocabulary introduced first through examples you can relate to, imagery, metaphor, and fantasy.

Study Strategies to Help You Remember: Draw pictures, diagrams, charts, graphs, or concept maps of vocabulary, concepts, or problems. Use a variety of bright colours to highlight important information in your lecture notes and assigned readings. Try to get a mental picture of what you are reading or listening about in a lecture to keep mentally alert and to better retain this verbal information. Summarize the main points of what you have read in the form of a chart or concept map. Ask your teacher or tutor to provide examples and anecdotes to help you imagine and understand difficult new terms. Ask your teacher or tutor to provide models of successfully completed problems, exam responses, and written work to better understand procedures and grading expectations. Translate written explanations and concepts into symbols e.g. in math, cost per square foot becomes $/ft2.

AUDITORY LEARNERS Characteristics: Relate to such words as: hear, listen, sound, ring, tune. Master new information by listening, then repeating or discussing with others. Like to socialize, talk, discuss, share ideas. Enjoy working collaboratively with a partner or a small group. Prefer to have someone explain how to assemble or use something rather than look over written instructions or diagrams. Feel frustrated when teachers write assignment and test instructions on a board or handout but do not go over them orally. Volunteer answers in class, relate relevant anecdotes and examples, and process what you are learning orally. Would rather listen to an expert lecture on a subject than read an article or textbook. May not read assigned chapters, articles, or stories thoroughly, in hopes of having the main ideas clarified by a class lecture or discussion. Remember names and lyrics to popular songs after hearing them once or only a few times.

Teaching Strategies to Help You Learn: Information presented through lectures, class discussions, small-group activities, films, tapes. Oral instructions for all classroom tasks, tests, and homework assignments. Oral explanations for all charts, graphs, diagrams, time lines, pictures. Brainstorming ideas aloud with classmates before beginning a reading or writing assignment. Small-group discussions and problem-solving activities. Opportunities to ask questions and share ideas during class lectures. Oral summaries by the teacher of the main points in lectures or assigned readings. Opportunities to give oral reports on subjects and to listen to oral reports by classmates.

Study Strategies to Help You Remember: Make tape recordings of any information your want to learn; play them in your car, while doing household chores, and before going to sleep. Teach someone else what you have learned. Summarize the content you want to master aloud or to someone else.

Make your own flashcards to study new vocabulary, including definitions, dictionary examples, and your own original sentences; quiz yourself out loud or ask someone else. Try a solution to a problem verbally before doing it on paper. Ask your teacher or tutor to give you verbal explanations for diagrams, charts, graphs. Ask your teacher to go over any written assignment or test instructions orally. Find a study buddy with whom you can discuss class material and prepare for tests. TACTILE / KINESTHETIC LEARNERS

Characteristics: Relate to such words as: feel, touch, grasp, do, move. Enjoy working with their hands; want to feel and touch everything. Tend to be skilled at repairing and assembling things, even without instructions. Tend to be coordinated at sports. Like to explore their environment. Focus well during hands-on projects and activities. Are frequently in motion: may fidget, get up regularly, doodle, tap pencil. May get restless and distracted during lengthy class lectures, reports, or discussions. Like variety in classroom activities. Enjoy opportunities to work collaboratively with a partner or a small group on a task.

Teaching Strategies to Help You Learn: Activities that encourage learning by doing and interacting with others. Participating in role plays and simulations. Manipulating and assembling objects, materials, models. Taking notes during class lectures and discussions, as the act of writing aids concentration. Drawing, underlining, and highlighting in class notes as well as in assigned readings. Going on field trips. Completing classroom assignments with a partner or small group.

Study Strategies to Help You Remember: Do your thinking on paper: make lists, outlines, graphs, concept maps.

Take good notes during lengthy class lectures and discussions even if you think you understand the material, as the act of writing and highlighting important points aids a great deal in learning. Make your own graphs, charts, time lines, diagrams, and concept maps to better understand new concepts and important material. Highlight ideas in your assigned chapters and other reading selections after you have already done an initial reading, then copy the most important information in your own words in a notebook in whatever form seems helpful to you e.g. chart, graph, diagram. Make and use your own flashcards to quiz yourself on new vocabulary and material. Write your brainstorming for papers and projects or problem-solving for math first on a large piece of paper, then copy this onto a smaller piece of paper. Schedule your study sessions so that you can take breaks to stretch and move around. Break up your homework into manageable time blocks; vary the activities you work on to concentrate better rather than spend a large amount of time on one activity. Try not to register for classes that meet only once or twice a week which will require you to sit and listen to a lecture/discussion for a long period of time.

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