Learning Style Instruments: Review

L. Krieg, Washtenaw Community College

October, 1999

"Learning style instruments" are questionnaires that assist an individual to evaluate their best way of learning. There is a wide range of theories on what, exactly, a "learning style" is. Each of the instruments reviewed has a theoretical basis, though many do not specifically acknowledge their foundational theory or who is responsible for it. I have included in the reviews the aspects of learning which each instrument tries to measure.

The instruments are divided into two broad categories:

On-line, self scoring instruments
Instruments intended for paper-and-pencil use, available on the Web to be printed.

On Line Instruments: Self-Scoring

On-line self-scoring instruments allow the user to work completely on the computer, and return a score electronically. These have been the primary goal of my search, because self-scoring instruments generally eliminate one potential source of error: scoring errors by the user or other human scorer. Most of the instruments reviewed in this section provide feedback to the user electronically, but unfortunately do not store scores in a database or send them directly to an instructor.

ATLAS: Learning Strategies (Learning Style)

Assessing The Learning Strategies of AdultS:
Gary J. Conti, Professor of Adult Education, Oklahoma State University.
Developed by Gary J. Conti and Rita C. Kolody. © 1998
"The following pages have questions on them related to learning in real-life situations in which you control the learning situation. These are situations that are not in a formal school. For each one, select the answer that best fits you. Continue this process until you learn your group name and the description of your group." This on-line instrument is intended to analyze learning styles into:

Engagers
Navigators
Problem solvers

Each type is further analyzed into two subtypes, discussed in linked pages with description, characteristics, and hints for instructors. The instrument presents the individual with four or six preferences, depending on their response to the first pair. I found the questions somewhat confusing, but the concept is very interesting and easy to implement.

Results are given to the individual on a Web page, but not processed or stored in any way.
[18 Oct 1999]

ILS page

"The Index of Learning Styles is an instrument used to assess preferences on four dimensions (active/reflective, sensing/intuitive, visual/verbal, and sequential/global) of a learning style model formulated by Richard M. Felder and Linda K. Silverman. (The model also contains a fifth dimension, inductive/deductive, that is not assessed by the ILS.) The instrument is being developed by Barbara A. Soloman and Richard M. Felder of North Carolina State University." "Anyone who wishes to use the ILS is welcome to do so." The authors caution that the instrument is still under development, and that a student's results should not be "over-analyzed". They also request that results be sent to the author for inclusion in an on-going efficacy study.

"The following items are available for viewing and downloading:

ILS questionnaire--Web version. A 44-item questionnaire that can be submitted and automatically scored on the Web.
ILS questionnaire--Paper and Pencil version. A 44-item questionnaire that can be downloaded and given to students, who enter their responses on the next form.
ILS questionnaire response sheet. A self-scoring form for students to enter their responses to the ILS and calculate their preference scores.
Descriptions of the learning styles. A four-page handout to be given to students after they have completed either version of the instrument.
"Reaching the Second Tier: Learning and Teaching Styles in College Science Education," J. College Science Teaching, 23(5), 286-290 (1993). An article that explains the learning style preferences and their implications for teaching."

More information about the Felder and Silverman learning styles model is available at http://www2.ncsu.edu/unity/lockers/users/f/felder/public/Learning_Styles.html
and on Felder's Web site, http://www2.ncsu.edu/unity/lockers/users/f/felder/public/RMF.html
Felder's email address is felder@eos.ncsu.edu.

Customer E-Centric Culture Learning Style Inventory

This inventory is from Vantage Point Management, and is intended for their clients only. "This brief inventory will help you discern what kind of learner you are and how you prefer to receive information. The results will indicate your preferences in four categories:

Involved / Thoughtful
Concrete / Abstract
Seeing / Hearing
Linear / Lateral"

The on-line inventory requires users to enter name and email address, together with Sex, Mentor, Department, Team Leader or Manager, Location, Years with Company, and Years in Industry. The instrument consists of 44 statements, each offering the user two choices which are made by clicking on radio buttons.

After taking the inventory, the information page simply says, "Thank you for completing this inventory! You will receive the results during Module 2." Staff at Vantage Point Management review each individual's scores and prepare a report combining boilerplate with personalized information.

Contact: Tony Gibbs, Vantage Point Management, 110 Williams St., Greenville, SC 29601. <tgibbs@vantagep.com>

Continuous Learning - Learning Style

"This exercise will identify what type of learner you tend to be - enthusiastic, imaginative, practical or logical. Read carefully the explanation of these four learning styles." The learning styles are also referred to as Feeling-Thinking, and Observing-Doing. The 27 questions are answered on-line and evaluated using CGI scripting. The site has a brief general guide to setting up a continuous learning plan at the end."Adapted with permission from A Learning Organization Tool Kit For Employees, Tool Kit #2, Education, Training and Development, Human Resources Branch, Ontario Ministry of Health, 1993. All course contents copyright(C) 1996, Training and Development Canada."

Evaluating Your Learning Style

This on-line inventory is from the Career Development & Placement Center at Capital Community-Technical College, Hartford, Connecticut. It presents 35 first-person sentence completion questions in the form,
" I would prefer to
A. attend a lecture given by a famous psychologist
B. read an article written by the psychologist"
giving the student a radio button for each of two options.

The instrument consists of five sections, analyzing five binary dimensions:

Auditory - Visual
Applied - Conceptual
Spatial - Nonspatial
Social - Independent
Creative - Pragmatic

Scoring is done by having the student count up the number of A and B answers in each of five groups of seven questions. The student enters these counts in a second frame, but no actual processing is done, and the student does not receive a score. There is a section on "Interpreting Your Scores" intended to help people use the information to learn more effectively.

DVC Learning Style Survey for College

A Learning Style Survey for College, by Catherine Jester, Learning Disability Specialist, Diablo Valley College. © Copyright 1999 For Educational Uses Only. Adapted for the Web by Suzanne Miller, Instructor, Math and Multimedia.

Thirty-two questions are given in this on-line automatically graded instrument. The user reads a statement such as, "When trying to remember how to spell a word, I say the letters or sounds out loud until I think I've got the spelling right" and responds by clicking one of a set of three radio buttons labelled "Often - Sometimes - Seldom".

Results are returned in the form of a score on four styles:

"The results of Larry Krieg's learning inventory are: Visual/Nonverbal 20 Visual/Verbal 28 Auditory 23 Kinesthetic 20. Your primary learning style is: The Visual/ Verbal Learning Style." This is followed by a page of explanation with learning tips appropriate to the learners style. There is also a page describing all four Learning Styles and Strategies.

Learning Profile Test

A service of the New Brunswick provincial distance education organization, TeleEducationNB.
Author: Greg Hann; Created: March 16, 1998; Editor:Greg Hann/Pamela Burchill.

The instrument consists of 20 choices between contrasting pairs of self description words, such as "Cognitive, Rational, Analytical" vs. "Imaginative, Reflective, Sensitive". These are divided into four categories, "Your Personality," "Your Outlook," "Your Temperament," "Your Lifestyle." The user selects radio buttons to make the choice. The automatic result is returned in the familiar MBTI format of 16 personality types, ESTJ...INTP. For each of the 16 types, a screen of tips for learning is given. All 16 can be accessed via a link page at http://teleeducation.nb.ca/home/learning/profiles.html

Brain Works

"A self-assessment presented by Synergistic Learning Incorporated"

This instrument runs under Windows in stand-alone mode rather than on the Web. The 22 questions ask the user to choose between three options. Questions do not ask the user to do self-analysis of learning, but rather present the user with seemingly unrelated choices involving words, numbers, and graphics. Some examples of each are illustrated; note that the questions vary randomly each time the instrument is used.

Brain question 1

Brain question 4

Brain question 8

Brain question 16

The results are presented first as a diagram, then as a two-screen analysis with learning suggestions:

Brain Profile

Brain evaluation 1

Brain evaluation 2

Instruments on the Web for Printing

Though on the Web, these instruments are intended for users to print and fill in on paper. If none of the existing on-line instruments fulfills an instructor's specific needs, permission could be sought to put one on line, but of course this would be quite time-consuming.

It is instructive to see the dimensions of learning measured by these instruments, which are often better documented than their on-line cousins.

What is Your Learning Style?

AT&T Learning Network Virtual Academy: "What is your learning style? A self-quiz"
8 simple questions covering 4 categories related to success in on-line learning:

Dependence on classroom interaction
Dependence on hearing and interacting with an instructor
Work patterns, personal motivation, and responsibility
Level of competence with computers

"This self-evaluation is easily scored by the test taker." - but it actually requires assigning numerical values to letters and summing the results.

Assess Your Learning Style

Muskingum College Center for Advancement of Learning, Muskingum, Ohio
First Year Seminar "Becoming a More Intentional Learner" Assignment.
Though online, this instrument is currently set up to be answered on paper.
The inventory's 70 questions are arranged in three categories:
(1) Modality strength

Visual
Auditory
Kinesthetic

(2) Brain hemisphericity

Left
Right

(3) Perceiving and ordering information

Concrete sequential
Concrete random
Abstract sequential
Abstract random

REFERENCES

Matte, N. L. and Green Henderson, S. H. (1995). Success, your style! Right- and left- brain techniques for learning. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Publishing Company.
O'Brien, L. (1985). Learning channel preference. Rockville, MD: Specific Diagnostics, Inc.
Tobias, C. U. (1994). The way they learn. Colorado Springs: Focus on the Family Publishing.

Learning-Style Inventory

The University of Vermont, Burlington: Wendy Sue Harper, Ph.D., for Plant And Soil Science 162 - Soil Fertility And Management. Designed to be printed out and filled in on paper, this consists of a brief but comprehensive introduction to David A. Kolb's theory of multiple intelligences, followed by 70 statements, ten in each of the seven categories of intelligence outlined by Kolb's theories. Students simply check each statement they feel is true of themselves; apparently by counting the number of checkmarks in each section, they gain insight into their strongest types of intelligence. This would work best with interactive instructor participation.

"David A. Kolb's Learning Style Inventory describes the way you learn and how you deal with ideas and day-to-day situations in your life. As this instrument is copyrighted please contact Jinny Flynn at (617) 425-4577 for licensing information."

"Multiple Intelligence (MI) theory states that there are at least seven different ways of learning anything, and therefore there are 'seven intelligences': body/kinesthetic, interpersonal, intra-personal, logical/mathematical, musical/rhythmic, verbal/linguistic and visual/spatial."

REFERENCES

Kolb, David A. 1984. Experiential Learning: Experience as the Source of Learning and Development. Prentice-Hall, Inc., Englewood Cliffs, N.J.
Smith, Donna M., and David A. Kolb. 1986. The User's Guide for the Learning-Style Inventory: A Manual for Teachers and Trainers. McBer & Company. Boston, MA.

LEARNING STYLE INVENTORY

"Adapted from Barsch Learning Style Inventory by Jeffrey Barsch, Ed.D. and Sensory Modality Checklist by Nancy A. Haynie."

"All publication rights pertaining to this adaptation of the Barsch/Haynie Learning Style Inventory are reserved by Honolulu Community College. No republication is permitted. This includes both hardcopy republications and Internet postings whether password protected or not. Copying for one-time, loose sheet, classroom use is permitted. Linking to this page from your Internet site is perfectly permissible -- and appreciated."

Designed to be taken on paper and scored by each student individually, this inventory contains 24 questions written in the first person. The individual is given three choices: Often, Sometimes, and Seldom. Here are two example questions:

I am skillful with and enjoy developing and making graphs and charts.
I can tell if sounds match when presented with pairs of sounds.

Three learning styles are tested for: Visual, Auditory, and Tactile. For each style, a brief paragraph of advice is given to the student.

Perceptual Learning-Style Preference Questionnaire

This paper-and-pencil instrument consists of 30 questions such as "When someone tells me how to do something in class, I learn it better." The user marks agreement or disagreement on a scale of 5 to 1, and uses a key at the end of the test to compute a score. There follows an explanation of each of the learning styles, which are Visual, Tactile, Auditory, Group, Kinesthetic, and Individual.