Unit 1 M3

I am going to product a short evaluation/report on how different learning styles (VAK) aid personal development. I am also going to use examples from my own experience how different learning styles complete my personal development training. Three main learning styles are

• Visual
• Auditory
• Kinesthetic

Visual- Visual learning style, is also referred to as the spatial learning style. This style is a way of learning and getting knowledge by associating information with images. This learning style means that learners must see it first before being expected to know. People with visual learning style are often called visual-spatial learners. Visual learners have specific characteristics that makes their learning easier and more unique. Typically they rather remember what they read than what they hear, are good at spelling, taking notes during presentations, need to have quiet when studying and many other characteristics. Visual learning style also reflects on someones personality and habits. These learners are known to make plans for the future, quiet and sometimes shy; and be organized.

Auditory- Auditory learning is a style in which a person learns through listening, just like visual learning is by looking at images. People like this depend on hearing and speaking as it is their main way of learning. Auditory learners might have problem with instructions when they are drawn rather than said to them, but if the writing is structured well they should not have a problem understanding it. Auditory learners are good at speeches, lectures and any other oral sessions. When reading, auditory learners have a difficult to understand anything without sound in the background. This is why they prefer to read something with TV on, music, people talking etc.

Kinesthetic- People that prefer to do physical activities than listening to a lecture or watching a demonstrations are called Kinesthetic learners or “do-ers”. According to some research, kinesthetic learners are discovery learners as they realize and learn things by doing rather than thinking before any action. Kinesthetic learners succeed more in chemistry experiments, sports activities and acting than in english or maths lessons. In kinesthetic learning, learning happens when the learner is using their body to express a thought.

From the three learning styles (VAK) that I have wrote about, I am probably a visual learner as I learn the fastest by seeing something than by hearing it, or doing it. I do have some habits such as making plans for the future, being a quiet person and being organized which are the habits of a visual learner. I also have some of the characteristics such as making notes, need quiet when studying and I am decent at spelling. I also learn stuff by doing it (Kinesthetic learner) but I have more characteristics and habits from Visual learning style than Kinesthetic learning style.

Unti 1 D1

• Verbal Communication- Talking to others improves relationship between them and it can sort any conflict, this is why talking to other people is so important. Of course too much talking can lead to not doing work on time or not doing it at all which will have a big effect on grades. I find it hard to concentrate on work when I have people around me as I prefer to talk to someone than to do an hour of writing.

• Teacher broadcasting demonstration- It is very helpful when a teacher is showing how to do something on a big screen as the tasks are being even more easier as it is shown on screen how is specific task completed than by talking about it. I prefer to have something shown to me than someone explaining in words as I might misunderstand the words and when someone is showing me what to do, I see it clearly step by step.

• Using Blogger- Blogger is on of the best things that Google Chrome has as it makes marking the work much easier. Most of the teachers want their students to print the copy of the work, give it to them and wait for the corrections. But when using Blogger, a student can just upload his work and wait for the teacher to give feedback with the corrections. By using blogger, it saves teachers and students time as marking can be done faster than usual. I use Blogger to upload my work so my teachers can mark it straight away and tell me what corrections I should do which saves me time.

• Using Gmail- Gmail is like any other email, which means there is nothing unique about it. The only good thing about Gmail is that it is connected to the google account, so it is easier and faster to go on Gmail than on another email. The main reason why there is more people every day using Gmail is because it is connected to the Google account, and Google account includes many different things which are pretty useful on a daily basis. I use Gmail on a daily basis as I use it for everything. I have also completed tasks while using Gmail as some bits just required to use email.

• Publishing images (prints screens)- Prints Screens was one of the styles that I have used a lot when doing my ICT work as they presented specific information that maybe I couldn’t describe in words or I just had to show an evidence of me doing something. In my opinion screenshots save a lot of hustle as with just one button, a task can be completed in five minutes instead of describing it just in words for about fifteen minutes. Sometimes a screenshot is placed somewhere else than we want it, which destroys the whole document completely as it is not structured well.

• Using PowerPoint- PowerPoint is second most used Microsoft document program. It has a lot of options to chose from in order to create a good presentation. Personally, I do not like to use PowerPoint as it is mostly used to present something and I am not a big fan of presenting my work to a group of people. But like written above, PowerPoint is a very solid program that many people use as it has literally every option available. I used PowerPoint once when doing ICT this year when I had to write about many topics with little but key information. In this case it was better to use slides than A4 sheets (Microsoft Word/Blogger).

• Using Publisher- I didn’t have a lot of experience with publisher but I used it couple of times and I have to say that I am not a big fan of it. Publisher is designed to create leaflets, posters etc. I prefer to just write information on a blank page then designing it and making it look entertaining. When I was using this program I did not know where is half of the stuff or how to use some options. I would prefer to create a leaflet on ‘Word’ than on ‘Publisher’.

• Using Google Calendar- I had to use Google Calendar recently and it was the first time me using it. I have to say that although it is just a calendar, when creating an event there are many different options to chose. Some of the option is that a description can be added, where is the even going to be, when does the event start and when does it finish. These are options that every calendar has but for me everything is structured much better and easier to use.

Unit 1 P6/M2

Overall the document is pretty good and effective as it has all the information required in order to create a basic presentation in Microsoft PowerPoint 2010. It also has a lot of screenshots which shows what to do step by step. Spelling and grammar is on point, but there could be some changes added to the guide. Change all the little bits in order to create a perfect guide. Things I would need to change are the colour, size and the font of writing.