Reading primary research literature is an essential skill for scientists. However, the high complexity of research papers may pose a barrier to the development of scientific literacy. In semi-structured interviews, we explore how 33 biologists including undergraduates, postgraduates and researchers approach reading an unfamiliar scientific paper.…

During his long and distinguished career as scholar and teacher, Howard Gardner has made vast contributions to our understanding of learning and how to create environments that support growth in all learners across their lifespans. In this compelling collection of his writings, Gardner lays out his principal ideas about education. While known…

When a researcher encounters the term "learning styles," its meaning, rather than being explicitly obvious, is dependent on the tradition and therefore the context from which the term has originated. For a new researcher, in particular, it can be a confusing and potentially time consuming process to correctly identify the differences in…

Identifying a suitable supervisor for a new research student is vitally important for his or her academic career. Current information overload and information disorientation have posed significant challenges for new students. Existing research for supervisor identification focuses on quality assessment of candidates, but ignores indirect relevance…

Why is the gender gap so large in researchers' career progression? Do men and women have different priorities in their academic careers? This study explores men's and women's academic work to shed light on the strategies of male and female researchers. The online survey collected data on Andalusian researchers to determine possible differences in…

This report outlines the findings from a Delphi study designed to establish consensus on the definitions of cognitive style and learning style amongst an international style researcher community. The study yields long-needed definitions for each construct that reflect high levels of agreement. In a field that has been criticised for a bewildering…

This paper reviews eight articles on the implications of styles research contained in this special issue of "Learning and Individual Differences". Three of the papers present original research on topics such as the nature of visualizer cognitive style and intuitive cognitive style. Five of the papers offer reviews or analyses of styles research,…

Universal design in education is a framework of instruction that aims to be inclusive of different learning preferences and learners, and helps to reduce barriers for students with disabilities. The principles of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and Universal Design for Instruction (UDI) were used as the framework for this study. The purposes…

As someone who has dabbled in biography and autobiography, the author knows how difficult it is to determine what really happened and why. Even people who agree on the sequence of events, and describe them similarly, may end up creating quite different narratives of a given life. Intellectual autobiography may be somewhat less problematic, because…

In the spring semester of 2010, a materials process course was selected as a means to perform a preferred learning style research study. This course was selected because it contained three groups of students: technology education, engineering technology, and industrial technology. The researchers believed that the differences in the students'…

Exciting developments in the field of neuroscience are leading to a new understanding of how the brain works that is beginning to transform teaching in the classroom. "Neuroscience & the Classroom: Making Connections" brings together researchers and educators in a dialog about how insights into brain function can be harnessed by teachers for use…

The introduction of the glass cockpit, as well as a whole new generation of high performance general aviation aircraft, highlights the need for a comprehensive overhaul of the traditional approach to training pilots. Collegiate aviation institutions that are interested in upgrading their training aircraft fleets will need to design new curricula…

This study examined the effects of learning styles on learner perceptions of the use of interactive online tutorials. Learners were categorised into five learning style categories and four learning modalities. The responses to a questionnaire with four survey dimensions were analysed in order to ascertain differences based on learning styles,…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the differences in the teaching anxiety of pre-service teachers in mathematics according to their learning style preferences. There were a total of 506 pre-service teachers involved in this study. Of the total, 205 were pre-service elementary school teachers, 173 were pre-service elementary mathematics…

As part of their journey of learning to research, doctoral candidates need to become members of their research community. In part, this involves coming to be aware of their field in ways that are shared amongst longer-term members of the research community. One aspect of candidates' experience we need to understand, therefore, involves how they…