Learning styles in education and training: problems, politicisation and potential (original) (raw)

The application of learning styles theory and research has long held great promise for practitioners in both education and training as a potentially powerful mechanism for enabling pupils, students and trainees to better manage their own learning throughout their educational and working lives. The selection of papers from the 10 th Annual Learning Styles Conference (held in July 2005 at the School of Management, University of Surrey) presented here raise a number of pertinent issues significant in the ongoing debate regarding the value of models of cognitive and learning styles to education and training practice. Central to debate is the question: how do practitioners (teachers and trainers) "gain a working vocabulary around the concept of learning" (DEMOS, 2005:2) in order that they may incorporate the notion of stylistic differences into their day-today practice in order to enhance the learning process? For cognitive and learning styles models to be able to play a significant role within the personalised, student-centred, lifelong and organisational learning agenda, practitioners need to be able to: cut through the swathe of terminology; hone in on those constructs and measures that are theoretically sound, reliable and valid; be critically aware of the benefits and limitations of the available models for their practice; use evidence-based practice which is scientifically robust; and work with researchers to be in a position to disseminate 'what works' effectively to a wider audience.