Definition: A visual learning style requires that you see what you want to learn.

Visual Language Style

Those who would rather read than listen:

• Remembers what is read better than what is heard
• Learns better by reading than by listening
• Does will in classes where most of the information must be read
• Prefers reading a story to listening to a story being read
• Understands concepts best if shown visually

Visual Numerical Style

Understands numbers best if written, graphed, or charted.

• Understands numbers better if graphed or charted than if merely spoken
• Finds that seeing a number makes more sense than hearing a number
• Understands math problems better if written down than if heard
• Finds written math problems easier to do than oral ones

Study Strategies

Textbooks

• Reading textbooks is essential to your success
• Note important ideas by highlighting, making marginal notes, and/or taking notes

Lectures

• Develop good note taking ability to help you process what you hear
• Borrow lecture notes from friends for comparison so you don’t miss important information
• Use your textbook to help you understand confusing points
• Choose professors who use lots of visuals in their lectures
• Choose professors who give assignments in writing.

Review

• Develop cognitive maps, charts, and other visuals to aid your memory

Math Concepts

• Draw visuals of problems so you can see how to solve them
• Use a graphing calculator
• If possible, choose professors who illustrate all math visually
• Seeing how a problem is solved may be sufficient to grasp the underlying concepts

Confounding Factor

Slow Reading Speed

What if you are a visual learner but your reading speed is slow? This makes it difficult for you to get all your information from textbooks.  You may not have time to read and digest every word of your assignments.  If this describes you, you will have to supplement the above strategies with compensating techniques