CASANAS - Dunn and DunnMAED-303

UNIVERSITY OF CALOOCAN CITY
Graduate School
Discussant: CASAÑAS, ERIC D.

Course: MAED
Subject: PSYCHO – PHILOSOPHICAL FOUNDATION OF EDUCATION
Course Code: MAED 303
Date: DECEMBER 05, 2020
Professor: DR. ARNOLD M. ARENAS
LEARNING STYLES AND PREFERENCES

by DUNN and DUNN of KOLB
I.OBJECTIVES:
a.) Understand how school-based learning style may be applied in the teaching-learning
situation
b.) Appreciate the learning styles and preferences by Dunn and Dunn of Kolb
II. CONTENT OF THE REPORT

Dunn and Dunn: School-Based Learning Styles
During the 1970s, the

New York State Department of
Education began an initiative
with the help of Kenneth and
Rita Dunn to discover methods
of improvements in student
learning. Dunn and Dunn actively
researched and developed their
learning style based on over
twenty years of research.
Dr. Rita Dunn is a professor in
the Division of Administration and Instructional Leadership and Director of the Center for the
study of Learning and Teaching Styles, St. John's University, New York. and her husband, Dr.
Kenneth J. Dunn, a Superintendent of Schools at Hewlett-Woodmere, New York received
Education Press of America national recognition for their seven part Instructor Magazine
articles described as"...the best series...published in an educational journal..." . Their
contributions to education have been described by authors of many books and in popular
publications such as Redbook (November, 1982) and Reader's Digest (1985).
Among honors, and awards bestowed on Dr. Rita Dunn have been: New York University
Research Scholarship Award (1967); National Academy of education Research Management
Scholarship (1979); "College Teacher of the Year" (1980); Ohio State University's Research
Professorship (1982); ASCD's "Outstanding Consultant of the Year" (1982); American
Association of School Administrators' "Distinquished Lecturer" (1985); St. John's University's
Outstanding Faculty Achievement Gold Medal (1985); Hunter College Hall of Fame (1988); St.
John's University's Merit Award (1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1994); and the Mensa Education and
Research Foundation Award for Excellence in Research (1992).
One of the oldest and most widely used approaches to learning styles is that proposed
by Rita and Kenneth Dunn (1978, 1992a, 1992b, and Dunn, 1986). Through their work in
schools, they observed distinct differences in the ways students responded to instructional
materials. Some liked to learn alone, while others preferred learning in groups or from a
teacher.
Out of
this
preliminary work, they identified five key dimensions on which student learning styles differed:
1) environmental, 2) emotional support, 3) sociological composition, 4) physiological, and 5)
psychological elements. The separate elements within each dimension are found in Table 1 and
summarized below.
Table 1 Dunn and Dunn’s Learning Style Dimensions
Dimension Elements Key Questions
Environment Sound Light  Do students prefer a noisy, busy, well lit,

Temperature Seating warm environment or a quiet, subdued,
Design cooler environment?
 Should the learning environment be formal
(e.g. desks and chairs) or informal (e.g.
pillows)?
Emotional Motivational support  Do students need a lot of emotional support?
Persistence Individual Will they persist on learning tasks?
Responsibility  Can they assume individual responsibility? Do
Structure they need lots of structure?
Sociological Individual Pairs or  Do students learn best alone or working with
Teams Adult Varied someone?
 How much guidance from adults do they
want or need?
Physiological Perceptual Intake  Is the student an auditory, visual, tactual, or
Time Mobility kinesthetic learner?
 Does the student like to snack while learning?
When is the optimal time for learning?
 Does the student require freedom to move
during learning?
Psychological Global Analytical  How does the learner attack problem,

Impulsive Reflective globally or analytically?
 Does the student jump into problems or
pause to reflect before starting?
In terms of the environment, the Dunns noted that students differed in terms of their
definition of an ideal place to learn. Some wanted a warm, brightly lit place with desks, many
people, and much verbal interaction, while others preferred cooler, more subdued lighting with
a quieter, more informal environment. Though many teachers believe that they have little
control over these elements, Dunn and Dunn describe how the standard square box of a
classroom can be partitioned into separate areas with different environmental climates.
The emotional dimension centers around the extent to which students are self-directed
learners. At one end of the continuum are self-starters who can be given a long term project
and who monitor and pace themselves until finishing the job. At the other end are students
who need considerable support and have to have their assignments in small chunks with
periodic due dates. Semester-long projects without periodic checks would be disastrous with
these students. Understanding your students’ apparent needs for support allows you to design
learning experiences that help students succeed and learn more effectively. Students also differ
in how they react to peer interaction. Some dislike group projects, preferring instead to learn
by themselves; others thrive on the companionship and support provided by group work. Still
others prefer the more traditional approach of learning from an adult. You can capitalize on
these preferences by varying your teaching techniques based on different learning
configurations.
Another important dimension identified by the Dunns relates to individual differences in

terms of physiological preferences. Probably the most important element here is learning
modality; some of us are visual; others prefer auditory channels. Mobility, or the ability to
periodically move around, is another element here. Another important element in this
dimension is time. Some of us are morning people, while others don’t function fully until later
in the day. Teachers accommodate this dimension when they set up learning centers that allow
student movement. This dimension may be one of the hardest for teachers to accommodate.
What do you do if you teach a class of afternoon people at 7:45 in the morning? A fifth, and
final learning style dimension is psychological. This dimension refers to the general strategies
students use when attacking learning problems. Some attack them globally, looking at the big
picture, while others prefer to address individual elements of a problem separately. In a similar
way, some students jump into problems, figuring things out as they go along, while others are
more reflective, planning before beginning.
Developmental research suggests the following trends in terms of learning styles.
• When children come to school they are basically parent/adult motivated.
• Thirty years ago students became more peer motivated by the seventh grade. Studies
show that students today move toward being peer motivated by third or fourth grade.
By ninth or tenth grade students move toward being self-motivated.
• Under achievers tend to remain peer motivated even into their late teens.
• Most young children are kinesthetic and become more tactual in or about the first
grade.
• Auditory and visual skills develop during the early elementary years.
• Significant portions of children in grades K-12 have trouble with a conventional, row-
based classroom design.
• Younger children (K-6) need more structure than older students.
• Time of day preference changes over time: 28% of K-2 are morning learners in
comparison to 30% of middle grade students, 40% of high school students, and 55% of
adults.
One reason for the popularity of Dunn and Dunn’s categorization system is that it was
generated by classroom experience and therefore has considerable ecological validity. As
mentioned in the text, a major question around learning styles is how the teacher should use
them. Should the teacher attempt to match instructional learning environments to each
individual student, or teach students to adapt their learning styles to match different learning
situations? These are difficult questions for teachers.
III. REFLECTION:
The Dunn and Dunn model is a model whose logic runs systematically. They have
described the effectiveness of this mode in their voluminous writings. It is further proven
through this study that children do learn in a variety of different ways. Our individual
differences are necessary to acknowledge for the purpose of education. Instructors should thus
utilize these individual differences during their teachings and not artificially inflate such
differences. This model was developed to show how learner’s motivational level and reading
comprehension scores would promise success is taught within the child’s preferred mode of
learning. It is hoped that this learning styles would encourage educators to promote motivation
and achievement for their students.
School paves the way for students in hopes of preparing them for the world. However,
disappoint instead of motivation seems to become a more familiar feeling to the student due to
the repetitive methods of teaching that the student is exposed to in every grade level. This
motivation seems to diminish more and more as the material being taught becomes more
difficult, boredom takes place and the classroom environment becomes dull. This decline of
motivation and the lack of academic achievement defeat the whole purpose of academic
institutions. Understanding the elements that trigger student’s motivation and student
academic success is essential in the classroom regardless of the grade level.
Teachers are responsible for molding their students into academically successful and
motivated learners that keep them excited to learn. Therefore, it is crucial that teachers
recognize the most effective channels of communicating academic information to students.
Feeling at ease in classrooms can produce highly motivated and capable learners. It is then that
the learner’s real potential will bloom. The findings of this study supported the research
literature that students would show a more positive attitude show towards learning if
instruction was accommodated or took into consideration their learning style preferences.
Further, the students’ academic achievement would improve if the student’s learning style was
accounted for.
IV.References:
Dunn, R. (2000). Learning styles: Theory, research, and practice. National Forum of Applied
Educational Research Journal, 13 (1), 3-22.
Dunn, R., & Dunn, K. (1992a). Teaching elementary student through their individual learning
styles. Boston: Allyn & Bacon.
Dunn, R., & Dunn, K. (1992b). Teaching secondary students through their individual learning
styles. Boston: Allyn & Bacon.
Dunn, R., & Dunn, K. (1978). Teaching students through their individual learning styles. Reston,
VA: Reston.
Dunn, R., & Griggs, S. (1998). Learning styles: Link between teaching and learning. In Dunn, R.,
& Griggs (Eds.), Learning styles and the nursing profession (pp. 11-23). New York: NLN Press.
ERIC D. CASAÑAS

CASANAS - Dunn and DunnMAED-303

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

CASANAS - Dunn and DunnMAED-303

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

CASANAS - Dunn and DunnMAED-303

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

UNIVERSITY OF CALOOCAN CITY

Discussant: CASAÑAS, ERIC D.

LEARNING STYLES AND PREFERENCES

II. CONTENT OF THE REPORT

During the 1970s, the

Table 1 Dunn and Dunn’s Learning Style Dimensions

Dimension Elements Key Questions

Environment Sound Light  Do students prefer a noisy, busy, well lit,

Psychological Global Analytical  How does the learner attack problem,

Another important dimension identified by the Dunns relates to individual differences in

Developmental research suggests the following trends in terms of learning styles.

• When children come to school they are basically parent/adult motivated.

You might also like