Wit and Wisdom
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In my book The Ultimate Guide to Homeschooling
I tag our final learner as the "Hey, everybody, look at me!" kid. For
the purposes of our discussion here, let’s call her the global learner – and
if you’ve been most curious to discover what kind of learner you are then you
may very well fit into this category.
Here are her indicators:
In contrast with the focused learner, the global learner has a wide breadth of
interests, often finding it difficult to narrow her pursuits to a manageable
number of directions. This learner has the longest entry in the yearbook and
keeps her parents hopping as they try to keep track of all the social
engagements she has scheduled. She is visionary and thinks about the future; but
unlike the focused learner who thinks about the possibilities of principles
applied to, say, problem-solving, the global learner focuses on the
possibilities in people. She is fascinated by others’ beliefs and attitudes:
what they think, what they want, how they feel, how they respond.
She enjoys learning about ideas and values and tends to look at herself more
subjectively than objectively. She is the student most interested in searching
for the significance of things and personalizing their meaning. She is motivated
to make a difference in the world, to search for her unique contribution in
history.
The global learner is creative and flexible, but not detail-oriented or
technical. Rather, this learner will act on hunches and impressions to form
broad conclusions. This is the kid who takes a quick look at his math homework
and says, "Oh, I know how to do this," then proceeds to fill out the
whole thing incorrectly.
While this learner often reads and talks early, she is typically a poor speller
and quite disorganized.
Global learners in general are high-achievers and do well academically. But
often they set high standards for themselves. Their creations and work are an
extension of themselves and are strongly tied to their sense of self-worth.
Therefore, failure or rejection of their work is often interpreted as failure or
rejection of themselves.
The global learner loves functioning in a group, especially when that group is
her audience. She is a communicator and performer. She needs to be known,
recognized and acknowledged by others, especially her teacher. Yet she demands
individuality and autonomy and the opportunity to act and express herself
creatively. My daughter Kayte, for instance, has a tendency to turn everything
into a creative project. Now that she takes co-op classes, she’s had to learn
to follow the teachers’ directions – especially in science where she has
learned the hard way that creativity is not a substitute for correct answers.
The global learner does not show the competitive nature of the active learner in
a group. Friendship and cooperation are important to her. She empathizes
strongly with others and does not do well in a competitive environment where
ruthlessness and conflict are uncontrolled. She is usually well liked and sought
after by her peers and enjoyed by adults.
The global learner typically gravitates toward the language arts, performing
arts such as music and drama, psychology, counseling, the ministry or social
services.
Program Suggestions
This type of learner does best with an individualized and personalized approach
to her education. She will be interactive and enthusiastic as long as there are
opportunities for her input and creative responses. Thus a discussion group will
be more motivating than a lecture, and a project more than a test.
Because of her interest in people, choose resources that focus on how
individuals or people groups have been impacted by the areas of study. Read
about the scientists behind the theories or how inventions changed people’s
lives. In history, biographies and historical fiction will have great appeal.
The Guides to Famous Men Of... (Greece, Rome, etc) from Greenleaf Press are a
good example of what works well.
Because she thinks globally, a unit study approach that integrates subjects such
as science, history and literature around a common theme (Japanese culture for
instance), will appeal to her interest in understanding how events, ideas and
inventions affect the people of that time and place.
Think groups. Co-ops and field trips will become the focal point for most of the
global learners studies. Our home school program has always included lots of
co-operative activities because I and two of my children share many of the
characteristics of a global learner. My son Gabe in particular likes to have
lots of people around. His first response to any suggested activity is "who
else can we invite along?
My typical strategy for tackling a tough subject or one that holds little
interest is to organize a group. In the past, we’ve been a part of writing
clubs, science classes, geography bees and math competitions – all to get my
kids motivated to study subjects they weren’t necessarily motivated to learn.
This learner will need your help in learning to pay attention to details. She is
often forgetful and careless in her errors. I know I have this flaw—I was a
horrible speller in school. In fact, even when I taught English in public school
my colleagues would often come in and correct my misspellings on the blackboard!
I’ve taken steps to minimize my errors by always using a spell checker and a
personal organizers to keep track of my commitments and appointments. Though my
husband has pretty much given up on getting me to balance the checkbook.
I’ve helped my kids to overcome these tendencies as well with organizational
tools, responsibility charts and editing programs on the computer.
Next time, I will be answering frequently asked questions about learning styles,
i.e. What should I do if my kid doesn’t fit neatly into one category? How do
you make this work with a passel of kids? Send me your questions via e-mail at dbell@debrabell.com.
In His Sovereign Grace,
Debra
Recommended Resources:
The Ultimate Guide to Homeschooling, Debra
Bell. An entire section on learning styles is included in my book.
The Christian Home
Educators’ Curriculum Manual, Elementary, Cathy Duffy.
The Christian Home
Educators’ Curriculum Manual, Junior/Senior High, Cathy Duffy
Shepherding a
Child’s Heart, by Tedd Tripp
| Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 |