Learning Blog

Parents who have a child struggling in school may suspect a learning disability, but they may just have a unique learning style. Recent research on learning styles has determined that we are all born with a preferred learning style. We can learn to use different styles but we will always learn best with the style that is inherent.

There are three basic learning styles

Visual learners learn best when information is presented in pictures, charts, maps or diagrams. When they read or listen to new concepts, they form pictures in their mind. Some benefit from doodling in class while they listen to a lecture. Later they recall specific information by looking at specific doodles. To understand a new concept, visual learners may write detailed notes with step–by–step instructions. If they need to recall information, they will “see” the information the way they wrote it.

Auditory learners absorb information by listening not only to words, but also to nuances from the voice of the speaker like a rise in pitch for emphasis or differences in tone to indicate levels of importance. When they recall information, they will remember the way they heard it. Auditory learners often do not absorb information from a textbook until it is read aloud. Participating in group discussions and talking things out work best for auditory learners.

Tactile/Kinesthetic learners learn by doing. They understand new concepts when they can physically work with new information. They learn best by participating in science experiments, learning activities and field trips. They quickly loose interest during lectures and often fidget in their seats because they are anxious to do something.

In the past, teachers taught in one style: Lecture, writing on the blackboard, memorization and repetition. Learning styles weren’t really understood until the 1980’s. Today, a good teacher will try to include teaching methods from all three learning styles while introducing a new concept such as using pictures or diagrams for visual learners, lectures for auditory learners and class activities for tactile/kinesthetic learners.

Children aren’t conscious of their learning styles; they just know when they “get it.” Teachers who expose children to all the styles will teach them to adapt to other methods of learning. For example, if a child doesn’t understand a new concept until it is taught in their learning style, they can make comparisons and connections between the three styles and start adapting. After enough exposure, they can absorb new information from different learning methods.

Before you start to worry if your child has a learning disability, find out if he/she simply learns differently. To determine which learning style works best, talk with your child about their classroom experiences with various teaching methods and consider free online learning style tests that will help you determine what style works best for your child.

In the past three decades, there has been a growing movement to reinvent the way citizens learn and how young people are introduced into society. Homeschooling, charter schools, cyberschools, unschooling, life-long learning, Waldorf schools, and Sudbury schools are just a few of the elements of this movement. The movement has been growing exponentially each decade since 1980. It has become a challenge to the traditional school/teach/educate system. Life-long learning has been promoted by management guru Peter Drucker in “Post Capitalist Society” on one end of the spectrum and, on the other end, by Elise Boulding in “Building Global Civic Culture,” and by many scholars in between.

The bottom line in this movement is to provide the freedom, opportunity and resources for self-learners of all ages, with their families and in community, have the right, the freedom the resources and the opportunities to choose to learn what they want, when they want and how they want — to self-learn.

Recognition

In spite of the rapid growth of this movement, it has drawn little positive attention from governments. Professional educators and their unions have shown concern that the proliferation of homeschooling will draw funds away from the public school system. A few public school systems have accepted the challenge and established special programs to provide would-be homeschoolers and other self-learners more autonomy within the public school system. Some have established parent-teacher programs that depend on parental involvement and give parents greater autonomy in the learning process. But, as parents are increasingly recognizing that personal liberty and private protection from control by majority rule applies to their children’s learning, none of the existing systems have completely incorporated that concept. Nor do they fully meet the needs of our information society which requires a life-long learning system to provide for each individual’s continual learning processes, as detailed in the work of writers and thinkers from John Holt and Alfie Kohn to Daniel Pink and Howard Gardner, among so many others.

Foundations, likewise, have been slow to rise to the challenge and opportunity that is unfolding. The millions of dollars for public schools, coming from all levels of government, is followed by millions more coming from private foundations. But little, if any, of this private funding is available for the many non-public school experiments being undertaken. A search of the philanthropy databases with words like “homeschooling” comes up with no program in any foundation. Whereas a search under “schools” or “education” comes up with many thousands. Individual appeals to hundreds of foundations by “homeschool support groups,” “learning co-ops” and other forms of nonschool learning communities are regularly returned with the words “this proposal does not fit into our current program of support.”

Motivation

Motivations for moving toward self-learning and abandonment of traditional public schooling are many. Perhaps the most prevalent is parental concern about the loss of control of the learning of young children. Many families want to take direct responsibility for their curriculum, approach to learning, and the principles and values upon which these are based. Some parents believe that the public school system instills values which run contrary to those of their family. Some are explicitly guided by their religious beliefs to direct the education of their children. Others have had disturbing experiences with schoolyard bullies, unfeeling teachers, or misdirected bureaucracies. A few hold that government support is inherently controlling, and that their tax dollars are binding families to a failing system.

Self-learners are also influenced by education critics, philosophers and religious leaders. Some, like Ivan Illich, believe our current life, including school, is based on the principle of work now for future rewards. They urge that schooling, and life, be convivial and vernacular. That is, that learning and work should be carried out in joyful collaboration with family, friends and neighbors. And that it should be embedded in the local culture, ecology, and friendships.

With Paulo Friere, some see schools as perpetuating the socioeconomic rich/poor status quo and preventing the natural social evolution that would occur if future citizens were given more freedom to self-learn in their own families, communities, and nature.

Following John Holt and others, many believe that every brain, that is every student, is unique and no two are prepared to learn the same thing at the same time in the same way. They believe that schooling is not an efficient way to learn, nor for future citizens to be introduced into society.

Most great philosophical traditions, including those embodied in Gandhi, Tagore, Aurobindo and Krishnamurti, recognize a spiritual component to learning, teaching that knowledge is more than a way to get a job or score well on a standardized test; that it is the purpose for living, it is being human. Rabindrnath Tagore started his learning community, Santiniketan, to transform the human mindset from self-interest, competition and materialism to mutual aid, cooperation, and the love of learning. Growing out of a variety of personal, philosophical, educational, or religious motivations, the life-long self-learning movement continues to expand.

Proofs of Effectiveness

It is impossible to measure the success of self-learning with tests, grades, and scores. Perhaps the most interesting successes are found among those learners who do not flourish in a traditional setting with standard measurements of success. These individuals are free to blossom in their own ways and do — anecdotal evidence abounds about happy and successful learners who have traveled a nontraditional path to their own personal success.

Self-learners are equally honored among our greatest leaders. Thomas Edison, George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Abigail Adams, Benjamin Franklin, the Wright Brothers, Helen Keller, Albert Einstein, and Margaret Mead are only a few of those who have learned without school. The newspapers are filled with stories of less well-known successes. Ryan Abradi, of Maine, showed an interest in numbers at an early age, so his parents let him stay home and self-learn; by age 10 he was working his way through second-year college calculus. Caitlin Stern of Haines, Alaska, stayed out of school and became a recognized expert by studying bald eagles in the wild. Jedediah Purdy, a self-learner from West Virginia, graduated summa cum laude from Harvard University; in 1996 he was selected as a Truman Scholar and as West Virginia’s nominee for the Rhodes Scholarship. He then went on to Yale Law School and, in the meantime, wrote a best selling book.

The growth rate of self-learning is a partial measure of its success. From a few scattered homeschoolers in 1980, perhaps 20,000, the number has grown, according to Newsweek Magazine, to over 200,000 in 1990, and into a broad integrated network of an estimated 2,000,000 today.

Considerable research has shown that students learn much more easily when they self-learn. As long ago as 1930, the “8 Year Study” of 30 special schools demonstrated that: “The most effective schools used a different approach to learning. Instead of organizing learning by subjects, they organized it around themes of significance to their students.” There seemed to be an inverse relationship between success in college and formalized education as opposed to student selected learning.

A recent Cornell University study confirmed this and showed that schooled children become “peer dependent” while those who learned with their parents have more self-confidence, optimism, and courage to explore. A Moore Foundation study of children of parents who had been arrested for truancy found that their homeschooled children ranked 30 percent higher on standard tests than the average classroom child.

Providing possible insight into the reasons behind these successes, a UCLA project showed that the average schooled student receives 7 minutes of personal attention a day but the self-learner receives from 100 to 300 minutes of attention daily. Following this, a Smithsonian Report on genius concluded that high achievement was a result of time with responsive parents, little time with peers, and considerable time for free exploration. Standardized tests reflect self-learner success as well. Time Magazine reported that “the average home schooler’s SAT score is 1100, 80 points higher than the average score for the general population.”

Dr. Lawrence M. Rudner, conducted a study in 1998 that included 20,760 students in 11,930 families. He found that in every subject and at every grade level (K-12), homeschool students scored significantly higher than their public and private school counterparts. Some 25 percent of all homeschool students at that time were enrolled at a grade level or more beyond that indicated by their age. According to the study, the average eighth-grade homeschooler was performing four grade levels above the national average. The average ACT score was 21 out of a possible 36 for public schooled children. It averaged 23 for self-learners. This qualifies the average college-bound self-learner for the most prestigious universities

Vision

This movement is not only addressing the why, how, when and what all citizens learn, but is also rebuilding the foundation for the society in which we all live. How we learn determines the kind of society we build. Authoritarian, hierarchal, undemocratic schools prepare future citizens for an authoritarian, hierarchal, undemocratic society. A life-long learning system based in family, community, society and nature could be the foundation for new democracies of freedom, equity and justice.

The movement continues to promote the concepts of life-long self-learning, in all its complexities, to a

Cover letters can be supporting in order to allow its personality to shine on thoroughly. Actually, there are no exactly rules in regards of writing the cover letter as long it positively presents its real skills, educational career credentials that been posses, and some accomplishments that will entirely encourage its readers be able to determine about the qualification condition upon a certain job employment position. So it’s suggested for several job applicants to give prime focus towards the in depths of types of resume standards that will be using, and scope of its resume content. So here are some aspects that most career jobs experts been suggested about writing a cover letter.

• Ensuring about stating its owned intention. Be able to put into consideration about the kind or type of job employment that been applying and ensure that it’s been clearly stated well. Don’t allow the readers to put some guessing marks over their mind or do some speculation since it will somehow to a wrong notion already. So be able to clearly state about intention well.

• Upon writing the achievements that been done. It’s very much important not to rewrite what been written in the resume but rather just summarize it.

• Also state its own essential skills that are quite related to the qualifications of the job that been applying. Since, it will allow the hiring manager be able to determine about its capabilities of handling the job function. With that, it’s a good venue to deal on some extra credentials or trainings that are quite related to the job position.

• Writing towards the job position that been applying. Upon preparing the cover letter, always keep in mind about required elements of the position and its qualification if you can see to your self that you can deal on it.

• Telling about the reasons why they eventually like its company. Be reminded to be honest of it.

• Be reminded that you are not writing an autobiography. As a result, formal cover letter must just be simple, short and very much factual to refer on. Since, it’s not a life story or personal experience so the job applicants must be able to constraint of writing unnecessary personal information or facts that are not quite related to its function career development.

• Must be able to go through and even double check about the entire documents in order to have some accuracy, syntax or determine if there are some errors on it that been missed along in order to easily correct it.

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We would like to start with a series of interviews to distinguished personalities and ask them about their resumes.

And who would be better to start than Bernardo Hernández? Bernardo is the Global Director for Product Marketing at Google and has kindly shared with us some of his scarce time to answer our questions. We take this opportunity to thank him for the Interview:

One thing that has always surprised me is that, despite your International relevance (at the moment you are Global Director for Product Marketing at Google) is that you still publishing your resume in your personal site… Do you believe that it is always necessary or it is just a habit?
-My first boss told me: “You should always keep on hand a copy of your updated resume”. I think that is not wrong to do it, you never know…

-Another thing that you find by reading your resume is that despite your experience you have managed to summarize everything in just one page. Do you think that shortness is a key aspect for your resume?
-I have seen resumes of people with much more experience than me summarized in just one page. A good thing if short is twice better, they say. I believe that if you make efforts, it is possible to do it.

-Which other aspect do you consider fundamental for a good resume?
-To emphasize on your abilities, your know-how.

-You have studied and worked abroad so you have seen the differences between our labour market and other countries. What do you think that can be improved in the resumes and education of the Spanish people? What advice would you give to the young people that are preparing to write their first resume?
-They should look for the best education and their first job in a big company with relevant international projection. First jobs are like first loves, they mark you forever.

-Have you ever needed to do a recruitment process? What do you look for in a candidate?
- Many I pay most of my attention on the energy of the people. Another very important aspect is the existence of a good chemistry; this is why I prefer live interviews to phone interviews.

-That is all Bernardo, thank you very much for answering our questions and good luck with everything!

It’s been considered that cover letter entirely provide a mere introduction about the job applicants and be able to determine if they entirely fitted to the employment that been available in the company. Through the cover letter, it support both the employer and job applicants find there place of fitting and accessing their needs. Although, several individuals focus primarily on the resume content but the cover letter entirely provides opportunity and even chances to showcase its background, skills, having its unique qualifications, and even experiences. Indeed, cover letter is very much important for several reasons especially that it entails towards career building.

In general setting, cover letter was entirely been use for three aspects and these are the following:

• Letter of Application- This is the type of cover letter that been use upon applying towards a current job opening.

• For job inquiry-Its used when the job applicant entirely inquire about some possible openings or for more information.

• For networking purposes. This kind of cover letter is usually been sent upon seeking an assistance or any guidance that will lead of having a job employment and be able to land on to its designated career development preference.

It’s been noted that most of this cover letters are quite short and even direct to the point. As a result, it must be customize for specificity that includes the title, introduction, body and to its closing. Aside of that, cover letter must have a layout and even design that are quite easy to read on. Since, the cover letter must be able to provide compliment towards the resume and not to duplicate it. So, its must be customize in order to incorporate some basic information about the company that been applying. Aside of that, it’s also been suggested to highlight some personal skills, attributes and some significant experiences that will entirely benefit the entire organization. Upon writing the cover letter, it’s very much important to address the letter to its CEO, HR head or to the human resource personnel’s. Be reminded not to include the salary or some wage information unless it’s been entirely instructed to do so and at the end always recheck the cover letter that been written through the usage of grammar and spelling tools before sending it out.

It’s very important to have well written cover letter that specifically focuses on its strength or potentials. Since, it serves as an overview for the hiring manager be able to determine if the job applicants are able to meet that qualification that been set by the company for each employment vacancy that been opened. As a result, the cover letter must be able to compliment towards the resume and not to duplicate for over the things that already been written. With these aspects, it does not only allow the hiring manager able to get the qualified employee but as well support the job applicants to be able to get the career jobs that well suited to their interests and potentials. Since, this are the aspects that will support the company towards progression and also support the employees be successful on their chosen career field.

For an instance, if the job applicants is applying for being a Web Developer in the website ensure to write the job experiences and education program that already been venture that is in line in that field. Aside of that, its very important to include writing its phone number, e-mail address, and address so that its already easy for the hiring manager be able to contact the job applicant especially upon conducting a job interview. Then, be able to list down in bulleted form about 4-6 point in regards to the skills that been possess that is entirely in line with the job employment that been applying. Lastly, end the content of the cover letter with willingness to have an interview and some further evaluation that includes examination.

Ensure that cover letter or resume that been created must be able to be save in the PDF file and rather than in Word document. Since, most individuals got the ability to be able to read it through the PDF file on any computer that been available and not everyone is running over this Microsoft Word on each respective PC. With these aspects that been mention above, it really provides a great support for several job applicants attain the career job that they like or best suited to their interests and as well support the company towards progression.

Although, its been thought and consider by several individuals that cover letter is not typically important by several employer especially the HR representatives who will be seeing it but if its been written in not a presentable way or not following the standard of writing it so its entirely expected that employers tend to ignore its application letter. Since, the primary function of this cover letter serve as introduction to itself and allow the employer or hiring manager be able to determine if you are qualified for a certain position and the skills that been interested to apply. Most of the time cover letter got several categories that follows:

• Specificity- This kind of cover letter is typically used in order to respond several hiring advertisement or a certain company entirely provided their hiring interests towards selected job applicants.

• General-This kind of cover letter is generally used in order to introduce itself towards several employers or hiring managers. It’s usually been used for several individuals who are not applying for a certain specific job employment but got some interest working in the company.

With that the jobs applicants must be able to decide of what kind of cover letter that been preferred and that get along to the right standards of writing a cover letter that includes its grammar, spelling, right information, and the order of writing it. Since, it does not only introduces oneself towards to the employers but as well allow the employers be able to determine if the job applicants are capable enough to do the job function that been applying. There are several resources that can be found in the books or in the internet in order to serve as a guide for several job applicants in order to successfully gain the right career jobs that well suited to their selves and sustainable. In which, it goes along with their interest and career educational course expertise. As a result, it supports a lot of providing the job applicants a function that totally fitted to them that can entirely lead to towards career development and progress of the company.