UNIT 13: LEARNER CHARACTERISTICS

As every single teacher in the world should know, learners are the base of the teaching-learning process. However what characteristics do they have that make them the main part of education? Well, what I learned on this unit was basically that. Learners’ characteristics differ from learners which influence their attitude to learn a language and the way they do it. Those differences include many factors like motivation, personality, language level, learning styles and strategies, even age and the way they learned English in the past. Also they have to do with the way of learners’ respond to different teaching styles, methods and approaches used by the teacher and how successful they are on learning a language.

Furthermore, the ways in which a learner likes to learn, how he have learnt in the past and his age influence a lot on how he prefers to learn a language, but how it occurs?. We all know that learning styles are the ways a leaner picks up, processes and remembers information and skills. On the one hand, each one of us has a different learning style and it influences on how we like to learn and how we learn best. That’s why experts have suggested several kinds of learning styles such as visual, auditory, kinesthetic, etc. (See the link below for more learning styles information).

On the other hand, learning strategies are the ways chosen and used by the learner in order to learn language. They help a learner identify what he needs to learn, process new language and also join others to learn. This can help us learn a language better and make us more autonomous learners. Paraphrasing (Using other language to say what you want to say) is an example of it. Different learners use different strategies and most of experts think that it mostly depends on their personalities and learning styles. It means that there are not good or bad strategies. Something that also has influence on it is maturity, which has to do with growing up physically, mentally and emotionally. Children, teenagers and adults have different levels of maturity and then learn in different ways.

There are several ways in which I can apply this on future teachings, but personally I will be aware that learners are all different and also are in different levels. I will find out my learners’ characteristics by observing them, giving them questionnaires, asking them whether they like the class methodology and activities or not and why. I will also implement different learning strategies and train them to use as much as they can handle because as a teacher I shouldn’t and won’t limit my students to think they can only learn in a particular way. I will also try to vary my teaching method so that learners can match their own learning style and choose the learning strategy they are going to use.

For more information visit these links:

• Felder, M, R. (2012) Learning styles and strategies. Retrieved from:  http://www4.ncsu.edu/unity/lockers/users/f/felder/public/ILSdir/styles.htm

• Oxford, L, Rebecca. (2003) Language learning and strategies: An overview. Oxford. Retrieved from: http://web.ntpu.edu.tw/~language/workshop/read2.pdf

• Sabramowicz, A. [Anna Sabramowicz]. (2011, August 29). Learners characteristics: Emulated Socrates to Enrich a Lifelong learner [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nQdMxq1FHps