Learner Variability
Good design in education is only possible when we understand variability.
Since there is no average learner – or airplane pilot – as Moore and Rose describe, it stands to reason that there is no average brain.
“UDL & the Learning Brain” (Word Count: 1,100).
Advances in neuroscience have confirmed this. Contrary to popular belief, our brain is not fully preprogrammed at birth. Instead, it is shaped into a complex interconnected web by interacting with the world. As we grow, we constantly rewrite our brain’s circuitry to tackle challenges, leverage opportunities, and understand the social structures around us. Variability is not just an important consideration when thinking about differences between learners. It is also helpful when considering how individual learners learn differently in different contexts.
This brief video, entitled Learner Variability, reviews how every learner, including ourselves, is unique.
Learner Variability
>> Learner variability. Neuroscience tells us that learner variability is the rule not the exception. Take something as simple as learning to bake a cake. How would you approach this task? Would you reach for a recipe book or watch a YouTube video? Start from scratch or use a box mix? Buy a sheet cake or opt for pie instead? The choice you make depends on many factors, such as your experience with baking, your level of comfort following recipes and your personal preference for sweet treats. When learning something new, we bring to the task the complex web of our individual needs, skills, talents, interests, background, and culture. Based on our unique attributes, each of us will choose to bake a cake in the way that suits us best. Traditional educational practice attempts to address diversity by using curriculum designed for the average learner. It relies on singular strategies such as one textbook per grade level, paper and pencil tests, and lecture that presume to suit most learners. Yet, we know the result of such a onesize-fits-all approach doesn't work for everyone. Some learners succeed, but many fail. Such a system disregards what we know from neuroscience and educational research; that all of us learn best when we can choose from options that best meet our preferences and needs. Curriculum must be flexible to address differences in how we learn, the pace at which we learn, how we demonstrate our knowledge, and what motivates and sustains us. When we don't recognize, honour, and design for learner variability, when we teach to the average, many students get left behind. When learning new things, we bring to the task the sum of our life experience. All learners are skilled in some areas, while struggling in others. Being good at one thing doesn't presume a deficit or a strength in another. For example, a student who is good at recalling facts may not have an affinity for grammar. He might flourish in small groups while feeling daunted by reading aloud. Like the singularity of a fingerprint, each student has a unique way of learning. Variability in and among learners should not be viewed as undesirable, but rather celebrated as virtue. Diversity, after all, is a strength that contributes to the common good. Universal Design for Learning offers a framework for designing curriculum that addresses the predictable, complex, and varied needs of learners. It is the key to unlocking the wealth of talent inherent in all learners.
Learner Variability - Runtime 3:02 min
https://youtu.be/5pEnhMFM5Ow
Learner variability is the rule, not the exception. Acknowledging learner variability can help us avoid inadvertently creating barriers to learning.
Variability is the dominant feature of the nervous system. Like fingerprints, no two brains are alike. Each brain is a complex interconnected web that is sculpted and influenced by genetics and interactions with the environment.