According to the survey I just took I am a visual/non-verbal learner! Hooray! I would not be at CCA if this were not true. After reflecting on the reasons why I was deemed as this kind of learner, I have come up with my own list of ways that I enjoy learning (and not all of them are non-verbal):
1. Information graphics. My favorite magazine to read is GOOD Magazine. Why? Well, because it has tons of information graphics. With every article there is some sort of graph, chart, illustration, or map that goes along with it. I enjoy being able to look at what I just read and seeing it mapped out in front of my eyes. It helps me really understand what the point of the article was about and what the main information was.
2. Watching documentaries. I love to watch documentaries. In high school, I really enjoyed watching the History Channel and Discovery Channel with my dad. For me, I really enjoy watching the composed video including music, numerous scholars and people giving commentary, narration, and of course the visuals such as pictures and videos that accompany it. I learn a lot from documentaries because it gives me the full experience. Another reason I like to watch documentaries is because I get excited when I get to see which university each of the professors and scholars who give the commentary are from.
3. Smart People. I learn better when I am around people who are much more intelligent than I am. All of my friends in high school were all liberal arts, university bound students. I loved to hang out with them because we all had intellectual conversations. They always knew something that I didn't and I learned a lot about different things through these conversations. I like to surround myself with intelligent people because they motivate me to be like them. They make me want to achieve their level and know what they know. I also like to pick up vocabulary from these friends of mine, since they had such proficient vocabularies! This is also a reason why I love my professors and educated adults in general. They have a lot to offer me and have a lot to teach me.
There are many other ways that I enjoy learning, but these are the top ones. All of these things contribute to who I am as a learner. As I mentioned in class, I am a learner who gets all excited about something new, learn it in its entirety, and then stores it in long-term memory. I am not very good at having information at the top of my head, but I am pretty good at storing information for the long haul. I think this helps me to understand broad concepts (at least I think I do). Give me something interesting and I get all excited about it and have to learn as much as I can about it. For instance, my latest craving for information has been in mathematics. I recently read a book about the history of mathematics and even now that I am in a class about mathematical ideas, I still am craving this information so I am reading the books recommended to me about math. It is something that I want to really learn and understand, so I am doing what I can to learn it. However, this information is being stored in my long-term memory and will by no means be on the top of my mind. This is why I am not good at trivia!
So in terms of learning, I like to learn. That is all life is about is learning! It is very exciting to be in school to learn! The beauty of learning is that you don't have to be an expert at something to learn it. How else do experts become experts! By learning!
Anyone can learn anything that they want with the right motivation and focus.
