Learning experiences are like journeys. The journey starts where the learner is now, and ends when the learner is successful (however that is defined). The end of the journey isn’t just knowing more, it’s doing more. So, if that journey isn’t just about knowing more, then what else is involved? What else needs to be different in order for someone to succeed? Where’s The Gap? (Dirksen, 2012)

The term learning styles refers to the concept  that individuals differ in regard to what mode of instruction or study is most effective for them. Proponents of learning-style assessment contend that optimal instruction requires diagnosing individuals’ learning style and tailoring instruction accordingly. Assessments or Surveys of learning style typically ask people to evaluate what sort of information presentation they prefer (e.g., words versus pictures versus speech) and/or what kind of mental activity they find most engaging or congenial (e.g., analysis versus listening), although assessment instruments are extremely diverse (Fleming & Baume, 2006).

The term learning styles is frequently used in businesses, schools, universities and colleges and there are a variety of books about them. A learning style refers to an individual’s preferred ways of gathering, organizing, and thinking about information. There are various authors who have written about different types or categories within the field of learning styles.

There are many learning-style or intelligence inventories (e.g. Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences, Kolb’s Learning Styles Inventory, etc.), but Neil Fleming's VARK model is one of the most popular. Fleming introduced an inventory in 1987 that was designed to help students and others learn more about their individual learning preferences. The acronym VARK stands for Visual, Aural, Read/Write, and Kinesthetic. These are the sensory modalities that are used for learning any information. When we are training, teaching, coaching, or mentoring these four categories seem to reflect the experiences of our learners. You should also keep in mind that there will be combinations of styles. In that a learner may have a preference for using Visual and Read/Write (V and R), or Aural and Kinesthetic (A and K) or all four (V, A, R and K), and Multimodal  (Fleming, N., & Baume, 2006). Multimodal learners have a shared preference among two or more types of the learning styles. All the possible combinations of V, A, R and K are part of having Multimodal preferences. Multimodal learners have a near-equal preference for different learning modes and can receive input from any of these styles or  modes.