Visual learning, active learning, and learning of the future (and something about video games)

I have read a lot over the years about visual vs auditory vs kinesthetic learning (kinesthetic learning is learning through body movement, I think). There are also those that seem to be great at book learning – just reading something and remembering it.

I always thought I was a visual learner- after all, I depend on my vision perhaps a bit too much, I paint, I revel in imagery. I never really had any proof, though.

Lately, I have been playing the game “Brian Age” a lot – for those of you that don’t know, this is a “game” for the Nintendo DS portable game system that has little brain games and tests. You do the tests, and over time, you can see how your brain is performing. If you have several people doing it (on the same system), you can compete against them to get a better score. Otherwise, you can just compete against yourself. One of the “games” is a test where you see a list of words- maybe 30 or so- for two minutes, and then you have three minutes to remember as many words as you can. The first time I tried this test, I just tried to memorize them by reading them over and over. I only remembered about 8. Next, I tried saying them out loud. I got 9 and 10 several times, until I hit upon the idea of visualizing the words. Some words lend themselves better to visualizations than others (nouns) but this method worked the best- I was consistently remembering 12-14. Yesterday I tried also adding actions- I look silly- but if the word was a verb I could act out, I did, and that upped my score to 16.

I imagine others who have played have gotten much better scores that I have but my point is that even at the age of 27, I still have no clear idea of how I learn. This seems like it’s a failing of the educational system more than anything. If we want students to live up to their best potential, we need to evaluate this kind of thing- students will learn more, and feel as if they are accomplishing more- if they have learning that is catered to them. Failing that, if the student is at least aware of how they best learn, and is armed with techniques to make the most of that knowledge, they will have a greater chance for success.

As video games progress, I hope that so called educational games will come out of the niche market and become mainstream. It’s already starting to happen – Brain Age #2 was the number 1 seller in Japan last year on the #1 selling system – the DS. (Reference- Kotaku.com) It’s doing quite well in America as well. However, most “educational” games for kids are hokey, poorly made, and look rushed. (Please correct me if I’m wrong, I have not seen too many of them.) I also keep expecting to see computer peripherals aimed towards a younger audience – not just brightly colored keyboards, but truly different things, like a USB powered pad for toddlers that would learn and react with the movements of the child (via sounds, lights, whatever.) Now that more and more computers are finding their way into the living room, I keep expecting things like this, but nothing yet.

I think one of the reasons I love the Wii so much is that it’s made a giant leap into making gaming a whole body rather than a hand coordination thing. Maybe the reason I’m so clumsy is because I have spent so many years working on my hand eye coordination through video games that my body coordination is lacking. (ok, that’s a stretch. I’m really just clumsy) The PS3 has the potential to become just as body interactive as the Wii- it just needs the right peripherals and the right games. Learning through experience is almost always the best method, and video games have the potential to not only provide a visual and auditory experience, but a active one as well. Imagine the possibilities! All we need is companies to figure out how to tap into this market, and to hire truly talented gaming programmers rather than just rushing something to market. Make it good, and kids (and adults) will want to play it.

As the success of Brain Age shows – learning *is* fun, if you make it fun.