A report for the Learning & Skills Research Centre in the UK by Frank Coffield, David Moseley, Elaine Hall and Kathryn Ecclestone. ISBN 1853389145.
This research project examines 13 models of learning style and concludes that it matters fundamentally which model is chosen. Probably there is not great deal in this report that directly relates to my project, yet I include some comments and quotes from the report here as they relate to learning design as a whole. The context in which the report is situated is the post-16 learning sector which includes community colleges, A levels and Further Education (FE) colleges which equate more or less to the VET sector in Australia.
On page 11 commonalities between the Australian and UK situations emerge in the discussion of workplace learning: “weaknesses in the initial assessment of training needs, in the preparation of individual learning plans, progress reviews, assessment and verification of achievements and career guidance”.
While “a knowledge of learning styles can be used to increase the self-awareness of students and tutors about their strengths and weaknesses as learners” the authors argue that the way learning styles questionnaires are commonly administered does nothing to promote learners actually making use of that information. (p37)