How do you learn? It might seem like a simple question, but actually it’s quite complex. And if you don’t know, you could be severely shortchanging yourself and your clients.
Learning techniques are often divided into three categories by educators: visual, auditory and tactile. The visual learners are those who have the greatest learning experience by using visual aides that they can see. An auditory learner is a person who processes information most effectively by hearing the instruction, most often through lectures. The tactile learners are the hands-on learning, obtaining information most effectively through physical touch and demonstrations.
Before embarking on a home-study course journey, do yourself a favor and get a basic understanding of how you learn information most efficiently and effectively. Remember, your ultimate goal is to learn how to best serve your clients.
When you understand your learning personality, you can use your learning techniques to choose what home-study course works best for you. Read about visual learners here. Read about auditory learners here.
Tactile learners
Tactile learners are students who learn best through hands-on experiences. Sometimes referred to as kinesthetic learners, the students gain and process their knowledge through exercises that involve touch and feeling.
Remember, in a home-study course, your home or office is your classroom and you have the ability to adjust your surroundings as you see fit to maximize your learning experience. For studying purposes, here are a few tips you might want to follow.
- Study in short blocks of time–and make sure to take frequent breaks between sessions.
- Role playing and acting out situations can also help your learning process. Remember, tactile learning is about physical experiences.
- When browsing home-study courses, be sure to choose classes with hands-on work and labs.
- Ask friends or family members to be your testing subjects for massage techniques. You can practice on them to see and feel what you are doing correctly.
- Memory games can be included into your studying to enhance memorization and comprehension.
- Classes that require hands-on exams will benefit you more.
- When reading, write down important passages and concepts in a way you can understand.
- Use objects, such as flashcards or visual props, to aid in studying.
As always, make sure to check with your national and state licensing bodies to make sure the courses you select are acceptable for continuing education credits.
–Jeremy Maready