What is Your Learning Style?

   

     Today I want to talk about autonomous learning and what that means for you.

    You might have read on this blog before, or somewhere else for that matter, that all adults learn differently - or at least that every adult has a different framework around what learning means, how it should occur, and which conditions are needed in order for it to happen. This is because we've all had a certain school career, where teachers and administrators structured everything for us, for the most part.  (This, of course, depends on where you live. My experience is of American public school.) 

    I remember hearing about learning styles in school. I got to experience it first hand as well. Some of my teachers would have us move around the room, do things with our left and right arms, legs, and experiment with games and try out other teaching methods. I'm grateful to have those memories to draw on.

    We learn every day as a part of our growing up, but when we become adults, we can go for long periods where we are not learning, we are only maintaining. Then when we get back into learning, for a job or a new hobby, we might not remember what to do. Many people struggle with being able to do it on their own without a guide. That is very discouraging. We may not get very far because of this set-back.

    Often, as adults we don't think about how we learn. We can forget to question the method and instead, question our ability. We might not take a moment to think about whether or not we've explored all the different ways to learn the material. 

    Another thing about adult learners is that we usually mix up our self esteem in there, too. We often equate our intelligence with our worth, and the success rate with which we learn with our intelligence.

    So I ask you, does this sound familiar?

    Do you get discouraged easily when learning?

    Do you try new things? 

    Do you know where to look?

    Are you curious?

    Do you find your own way to the answer?

    

    Autonomous learning is not just knowing what your learning style is, but it's also being able to gauge how your learning is going, whether you need to mix it up a little, knowing where to go to find ideas on how to mix it up a little, and later, gauging the results after trying them.

    In a nutshell, autonomous learning is indulging your curiosities.

    In order for learning to be the most successful, you need to have fun with it, follow what pulls you, try new things, solve the puzzle, and invest in the process.

And with that, I leave you for today.

Good luck on all your learning journeys. 

Stick with it. Stay curious. And keep learning.

Xx,

Alison