Learning_Styles

Learning Styles and Personality Styles: How They Work Together Linda Kilmer Gen/200 July 10, 2010 Joyce Nielsen Learning Styles and Personality Styles: How They Work Together. My assignment was to identify at least three different learning styles and at least three different personality types then develop a strategy for effective communication and collaboration among my selected styles. The learning styles according to the textbook – Keys to College Studying: Becoming an Active Thinker is: “Verbal-Linguistic, Logical - Mathematical, Bodily - Kinesthetic, Visual - Spatial, Interpersonal, Intrapersonal, Musical, and Naturalistic. The four personality types are Organizers, Givers, Thinkers, and Adventurers.” (Carter, Bishop, & Kravits, 2007) For this paper I chose to focus on the three strongest learning styles as well as the three strongest personality types. The learning styles are Interpersonal, Intrapersonal and Verbal – Linguistic. The three strongest personality types are Thinker, Giver, and Organizer. When one looks at my three strongest learning styles they may wonder about how I can be both interpersonal as well as intrapersonal. I think that they are just two sides of the same coin, as they are the abilities to understand both yourself and the others around you. The Verbal –Linguistic style is what I would refer to as the style that binds the two together. It can bring out the strengths in the other learning types which would make both collaboration and communication more effective thus easier to accomplish. Effective communication begins by using our learning strategies as tools. I will start with the learning styles. When one imagines what an intrapersonal or solitary person might be, the picture might be that of a quiet or shy person. They are not seen as someone possessing an effective communication style, but the intrapersonal learning style is not that much from that of the interpersonal or social person. Influence comes from the same area of the brain. They are dependent on each other to bring out their individual strengths. I believe that in me the only difference between these two styles is that the solitary person is one who hasn’t found their voice yet. I see that as I mature I am finding how to use this area to find my voice. One way to help someone who uses more of an intrapersonal style is to show how developing and incorporating an interpersonal learning style will bring about a more effective person. When picturing the other side of the coin, the interpersonal style, the picture that comes to mind is more of someone who is more outgoing. However this is not the only strategy for this learning strategy. Strong communication abilities in both the verbal and nonverbal areas are present. There is also the ability to listen. I find that I tend to be stronger in the listening area. In the past I have been told that I am a good listener with an ability to understand many different points of view. One who shows a tendency to be able to listen and understand not only their own point of view but that of the other person has the ability to solve conflicts more quickly and effectively. A communication and collaboration strategy that would be useful for this type of learning strategy would be to show how to better use his or her skills in conflict management as well as ones listening skills to help the team grow while helping to understand that there are more people in the room that also can be strong voices. An effective team has to be composed of more than one learning strategy however; because if all persons involved are strong in any one area, the results can be a team that does not work together and nothing gets done. Now where the musical style is concerned, one might envision a singer or one who plays a musical instrument. However there is more to this style .I envision a person who is creative, and can express his or her own thoughts in a more artistic way. One strategy for effective communications and collaborations for the musically inclined person is to create outlets for creative expression. Musically inclined persons can also be someone who is a solitary or a social learner. Where a persons strengths lie in is the ability to have more than one learning style. This is the bridge that can be effectively used to bridge communication gaps in any team, thus making the team grow and become more effective in their endeavors. Now when concerning the personality types, the thinker is the one that I am strongest in. The thinker tends to be a person who likes to use their mental abilities rather than his or her physical ones. Mental abilities are constantly being improved with the use of logic problems, puzzles or by reading. I love to read and if I could I would do it all of the time. One problem that can occur with thinkers is being overly analytical or critical. I found myself tending to be overly analytical or critical when it came to writing this paper. There were times that I could see myself thinking way too hard about what I was going to say next. Being a thinker is not all bad though, one can also bring a useful element to the communication and collaboration of a team. The best way to use a thinker is in solving problems or working out conflicts in assignments. Thinkers can bring inspiration and clarity to the table. Because thinkers are more of the quiet type, they can be good listeners, which is always an essential element for effective communication. For an effective communication and collaboration strategy one will want to help a thinker be less critical or analytical, since not every problem has a solution. Sometimes an answer might come from the least likely person and thinkers need to realize that not all of their ideas have to be correct. There are times when a person needs to make a mistake to learn something. The next personality type that I am strong in is the giver. This personality type can be known for being caring, understanding, and having a selfless attitude. I am a people person who loves to help others. This can be somewhat atypical for a person who is interpersonal. One downfall for the giving type is the lack of scheduling personal time by spending the entire day caring for others. There have been times that I find myself in that category. Even though it can be difficult I am learning that it is acceptable to say no when asked to take on a new project or job. For effective collaboration and communication in the team, the best area to put the giver is in the role of serving. Because a giver has the habit of always trying to please others, he or she might not always speak up. For a team leader to be effective with givers is to encourage him or her to speak out and participate more. Now for the organizer personality type, when I first saw the results of the personality test I laughed. I thought that the results were totally wrong. I do not consider myself to be organized in any way shape or form. As I have considered what the test was really saying, I realize that it is not just about being physically organized. This personality is also about being sensible, responsible, and committed to the betterment of the team. Unfortunately, organizer can have the bad habit of being anal about their organization. He or she will want everything to go according to their specific plan, and if something doesn’t quite fit into that plan, they might react badly. To keep effective collaboration and communication going a good team leader will want to make sure that this personality type knows that everything does not have to be organized and sometimes a little disorder might be a good thing. In conclusion, to have effective team communication and collaboration, you need to combine all of the different learning styles as well as personality types. What essentially makes a team effective is what they do with that individual diversity and how they handle the conflicts that can eventually arise. Reference Carter, C., Bishop, J., & Kravits, S. (2007). Keys to College Studying: Beccoming an active thinker (2nd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.