Pashler et al. (2009) Learning Styles

What are the key concepts of the research paper — Pashler et al. (2009) Learning Styles?

• Learning styles

• Meshing hypothesis

• Cross-over effect

• Matching instruction to learner preference

Pashler et al. (2009) Learning Styles — what is the research question of this study?

Is there scientific evidence that matching teaching style to a student’s learning style improves learning?

Pashler et al. (2009) Learning Styles — what did they do in this study?

• Literature review (no experiment)

• Looked for studies that met strict criteria:

  • categorize learners

  • assign different teaching methods

  • test everyone the same

  • look for cross-over interaction

Pashler et al. (2009) Learning Styles — what did they find?

• Almost no valid evidence supporting learning styles

• Very few studies used proper design

• Some actually contradicted the meshing hypothesis

Pashler et al. (2009) Learning Styles — why should we care about what they found?

• Learning styles are widely used but not evidence-based

• Resources should go toward methods that actually work

What is the meshing hypothesis?

Learning improves when instruction matches a learner’s preferred style

What is a cross-over effect?

Different groups learn best with different instructional methods

Did Pashler find support for learning styles?

 No, little to no valid evidence

What method did Pashler use?

Literature review

Why is the study important?

Learning styles are popular but not evidence-based