Personality Tests, Learning Styles, and Improved Learning

Labels

Labels are categories or classifications assigned to individuals by others, often from family and friends. These labels can originate in childhood and persist throughout life, based on factors like race, gender, appearance, or perceived abilities.

• Impact of Labels: Labels shape self-perception and how others perceive us. For example, being labeled "the shy one" can lead to expectations of quietness and impact self-esteem and opportunities.
• Nature of Labels: Labels can be positive, negative, or neutral, depending on the context. It's important to be cautious about labeling others due to potential negative impacts.
• Social Constructs: Labels are based on social constructs and may not fully represent an individual's identity (e.g., athlete, nerd, leader, outcast).
• Internalization: Labels can be internalized, influencing self-perception, abilities, and potential. For instance, if siblings are labeled as athletic, others may feel they cannot participate in sports.
• Changing Labels: Individuals can change their self-perception and outgrow labels through retraining the brain and shifting perspectives.
• Example: The speaker's son was labeled as shy at home but became outgoing and assertive at school.
• Positive Reinforcement: Positive labels can boost confidence and lead to adopting new, empowering attitudes.
• Negative Impact: Negative labels can be detrimental and alter one's self-belief.

Nature vs. Nurture

This section explores whether personality traits are innate (nature) or developed over time (nurture).

• Environmental Factors:
  • Childhood Experiences: Supportive homes can foster high self-esteem, while unsupportive or abusive environments may hinder it.
  • Cultural Norms: Different cultures have varying social expectations and values that shape individuals.
  • Peers: Peer groups can significantly influence development, leading to positive or negative changes in personality and choices.
  • Socioeconomic Status: Low-income backgrounds and limited resources impact development.
  • Life Events: Tragic events can lead to anxiety or a lack of trust.
  • Geographical Location: Location can also play a pivotal role.
• Combination of Nature and Nurture: Personality is generally a combination of innate abilities and environmental influences.
• Intelligence and Personality: Intelligence and personality are not fixed and can evolve.

Learning Styles

The transcript discusses different learning styles and emphasizes that individuals are usually a combination of these, not just one.

1. Visual Learners (40% of the population):
   • Remember what they read or see.
   • Think in pictures and have vivid imaginations.
   • Associate with color and remember faces but not names.
   • Prefer written reports over verbal ones.
   • Techniques:
     • Write everything out for visual reviews.
     • Use color coding.
     • Create outlines of reading assignments.
     • Review textbooks and lecture components.
     • Make lists and take notes.
     • Visualize data to recall knowledge and details.
2. Auditory Learners (30% of the population):
   • Remember what they hear.
   • Prefer sitting at the front of lectures to hear everything.
   • Talk out loud, teach others, and read aloud.
   • Often good public speakers.
   • Rely on listening rather than writing.
   • Assign meanings to concepts.
   • Techniques:
     • Sit where they can hear the lecturer properly.
     • Listen to narrated PowerPoints.
     • Read material aloud and restate it in their own words.
     • Verbally review spelling words and lectures with others.
     • Record lectures (with permission).
3. Tactile Learners (30% of the population):
   • Hands-on learners who are busy and well-coordinated.
   • Prefer doing rather than talking.
   • Like to take things apart and put them back together.
   • Prefer concrete, hands-on experiences.
   • Apply knowledge through projects and labs.
   • Techniques:
     • Study in short blocks with movement breaks.
     • Engage in physical activities.
     • Use flashcards, build models, and create flowcharts.
     • Job shadowing and experiential learning.
4. Reading/Writing Learners:
   • Focus on written information.
   • Succeed with written worksheets and presentations.
   • Read aloud to themselves.
   • Prefer traditional teaching styles, essays, and in-depth research.
   • Rewrite notes and make lists.
   • Use flashcards with explanations.

Multiple Intelligences (Howard Gardner)

There are eight distinct intelligences that all people possess in a unique blend. These can develop and recede based on life changes.

1. Intrapersonal (Self Smart):

   • Good sense of self, enjoys solitude, and works on projects alone.
   • Learns by trial and error.
   • Sets goals, plans, and is self-motivated.
   • Aware of strengths and weaknesses.
   • Strategies: Keep a journal, use guided imagery, work on a computer, practice breathing/relaxation, brainstorming, and listen to audiobooks.

2. Interpersonal (People Smart):

   • Good with people, enjoys other's perspectives, and is a good problem solver.
   • Great at making and keeping friends.
   • Reads people well and respects different perspectives.
   • Strategies: Study in groups, discuss information, teach others, mentor, and take on leadership roles.

3. Linguistic (Word Smart):

   • Likes sayings, hearing, and seeing words.

   • Tells stories with humor.

   • Motivated by books and records.

   • Likes to write and enjoys dramas.

   • Convinces others and is skilled at teaching.

   • Strategies: Read aloud, keep journals, use tape recorders, read in groups, explain information, tell stories, and use mnemonics.

   • Mnemonics: Memory aids with rhythms and poems.

     • Example: "My very educated mother just served us…" (planets: Mercury, Venus, Earth, etc.)
       (\%) PEMDAS/BODMAS: Order of math equations (Parentheses/Brackets, Exponents/Orders, Multiplication and Division, Addition and Subtraction).
     • Example: "Elephants and donkeys grow big ears." (musical notes).
     • Example: “Never Eat Shredded Wheat” (cardinal directions).

4. Spatial (Picture Smart):

   • Perceives objects accurately and represents them graphically.
   • Good with directions and recognizes patterns.
   • Strategies: Use graphs, draw mind maps, and create charts.

5. Logical/Mathematical (Logic Smart):

   • Good with abstract patterns and complex calculations.
   • Enjoys scientific reasoning and experiments.
   • Likes numbers, being organized, and solving complex equations.
   • Strategies: Organize material logically, explain it sequentially, develop systems and patterns, write outlines, create charts/graphs, set goals, investigate, and use visual materials.

6. Bodily-Kinesthetic (Body Smart):

   • Likes to move, dance, walk, and swim.
   • Good at sports and has great fine motor skills.
   • Remembers by doing things and enjoys taking things apart.
   • Needs fidgety breaks.
   • Strategies: Change study locations, use different tools, go outside, take walks, practice by doing, exercise, role play, use flashcards, and consider simulations.

7. Musical (Music Smart):

   • Senses tonal qualities and enjoys melody and rhythm.
   • Mood changes with songs and understands musical structure.
   • Strategies: Create rhythms out of words, put material to a song, take music breaks, and listen to music while studying.

8. Naturalist (Nature Smart):

   • Appreciates nature and understands its balance.
   • Interested in exploring.
   • Strategies: Connect with nature, study outside, form study groups with similar interests, and pick nature-related topics.

Myers-Briggs Personality Assessment

This assessment evaluates responses to internal and external situations and is used by employers for team building.

• Key Dimensions:

  • E/I: Extroversion vs. Introversion
  • S/N: Sensing vs. Intuition
  • T/F: Thinking vs. Feeling
  • J/P: Judging vs. Perceiving

• Note: The transcript then briefly describes various personality types based on the Myers-Briggs assessment, such as ISTJ, ISFJ, INFJ, INTJ, ISFP, INFP, INTP, ESTP, ESFP, ENFP, ENTP, ESTJ, ESFJ, ENFJ, and ENTJ. It is suggested to spend time reading these after determining your own type using the official quiz to see if some of the personalized strategies work for you.