How Do I Learn Best?

This questionnaire aims to find out something about your preferences for the way you work with information. You will have a preferred learning style and one part of that learning style is your preference for the intake and output of ideas and information. 

Choose the answer which best explains your preference and click on the box next to the letter. Please select more than one response if a single answer does not match your perception. 

Leave blank any question which does not apply.

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If your teacher/lecturer has asked you to fill out this questionnaire, please fill in your student ID and class code so that your results can be included in the results for your class. Otherwise, you can leave the student ID and class code boxes blank. 
Student ID: Subject Code:
  • You are about to give directions to a person who is standing with you.
    She is staying in a hotel in town and wants to visit your house later.
    She has a rental car. I would:
draw a map on paper.
tell her the directions.
write down the directions (without a map)
collect her from the hotel in a car.
  • You are not sure whether a word should be spelled 'dependent' or 'dependant'. I would:
look it up in the dictionary.
see the word in my mind and choose by the way it looks
sound it out in my mind.
write both versions down on paper and choose one.

  • You have just received a copy of your itinerary for a world trip. This is of interest to a friend. I would:

phone her immediately and tell her about it.
send her a copy of the printed itinerary.
show her on a map of the world.
share what I plan to do at each place I visit.

  • You are going to cook something as a special treat for your family. I would:

cook something familiar without the need for instructions.
thumb through the cookbook looking for ideas from the pictures.
refer to a specific cookbook where there is a good recipe.

  • A group of tourists has been assigned to you to find out about wildlife reserves or parks. I would:

drive them to a wildlife reserve or park.
show them slides and photographs
give them pamphlets or a book on wildlife reserves or parks.
give them a talk on wildlife reserves or parks.

  • You are about to purchase a new CD player. Other than price, what would most influence your decision?

the salesperson telling you what you want to know.
reading the details about it.
playing with the controls and listening to it.
it looks really smart and fashionable.

  • Recall a time in your life when you learned how to do something like playing a new board game. Try to avoid choosing a very physical skill, e.g. riding a bike. I learnt best by:

visual clues -- pictures, diagrams, charts
written instructions.
listening to somebody explaining it.
doing it or trying it.

  • You have an eye problem. I would prefer that the doctor:

told me what was wrong.
showed me a diagram of what was wrong.
used a model to show me what was wrong.

  • You are about to learn to use a new program on a computer. I would:

sit down at the keyboard and begin to experiment with the program's features.
read the manual which comes with the program.
telephone a friend and ask questions about it.

  • You are staying in a hotel and have a rental car. You would like to visit friends whose address/location you do not know. I would like them to:

draw me a map on paper.
tell me the directions.
write down the directions (without a map).
collect me from the hotel in their car.

  • Apart from the price, what would most influence your decision to buy a particular textbook:?:

you have used a copy before.
a friend talking about it.
quickly reading parts of it.
the way it looks is appealing.

  • A new movie has arrived in town. What would most influence your decision to go (or not go)?

I heard a radio review about it
I read a review about it.
I saw a preview of it.

  • Do you prefer a lecturer or teacher who likes to use:

a textbook, handouts, readings
flow diagrams, charts, graphs.
field trips, labs, practical sessions.
discussion, guest speakers.

Copyright © 2001 Neil Fleming