The Nexus Explored: a Generalised Model of Learning Styles

The controversy over learning style (the unique way of thinking and reasoning that characterizes an individual learner) as to whether or not it is a stable cognitive factor is one which has raged on for a number of years, and has been reinvigorated recently with the advent of easy-to-use courseware development tools and the consequent development of virtual learning environments. This paper surveys a number of different learning styles models and it concludes there is a large degree of commonality between the different theories, which allows us to distill key or core learning style characteristics which point the way to a number of styles of teaching which should be addressed in every learning environment. A model of this core set of dimensions is presented which unifies the various learner styles presented by others.