Have you ever assigned a task to be completed and it seemed each student had a different way of accomplishing it? Have you watched groups in the kitchen lab completing an assignment and noticed how one student will take charge of a step, such as mise en place?

This has to do with a student’s learning style, or the characteristics, strengths and preferences of the way he or she receives and processes information. It is a student’s preferred method of gaining knowledge.

Now, consider yourself for a minute. Do you know how you learn best? Do you find yourself gravitating toward one type of teaching methodology? Even instructors have different ways to learn.

We work in a very hands-on, kinesthetic and tactile profession, but students still need to grasp materials forming the culinary education foundation, no matter their learning style.

My dissertation, “The Effects of Brain Dominance on Pastry and Culinary Students’ Learning Styles,” focused on identifying different learning styles and how to use that information to teach more effectively. I am going to present this information in a two-part series that focuses on how students learn best and why. I will demonstrate the information by using the subject of food safety and sanitation, a class that is required in all culinary programs.

But first, here is an excerpt from my dissertation that speaks to why it’s important to understand your students’ learning styles.

How much students learn depends on the compatibility of their learning style.

A learning-style model classifies students according to where they fit on a number of scales belonging to the ways in which they receive and process information. There have been proposed several models and frameworks for learning styles. Induction is a reasoning progression that proceeds from particulars to generalities. Deduction proceeds in the opposite direction. Induction is the natural human learning style. Experiments have proved that most [engineering] students are inductive learners. The VARK Questionnaire is a well-known reliable instrument developed by Neil Fleming, from New Zealand, in 1987. This survey is for people to figure out how they learn best. 

The acronym VARK stands for Visual, Aural, Read/write, and Kinesthetic sensory modalities. Kinesthetic is sometimes referred to as Physical. Learning style inventories or questionnaires are used to help a student determine their own learning style. The survey is a communication questionnaire about how students like to receive information that is presented to them by their instructors.

The trends in the food service industry have now put pressure on the students in Culinary Schools to have an academic background as well (Frei, 2008). Since the increase of non-traditional students in the classroom, learning styles have tended to shift to the visual (V) and/or kinesthetic (K) learning styles (Hedges, 2008). When adults deem what they are learning valuable, they tend to invest a substantial amount of time and effort into their learning” (Forrest III & Peterson as quoted by Gonzolaz, 2016).

Focusing on learning styles will help instructors tailor their lessons so students can best be engaged in the learning process. Many researchers agree that matching student learning styles to teaching strategies is an acceptable plan for educators to help them teach all the students in the classroom (Denkler, 1994). 

Denkler (1994) wanted to show that matching student learning styles to teaching strategies could be a viable plan for educators to help them teach all the students in the classroom. He wanted to determine if learning style preferences would predict student performance in two types of vocational education instruction: 1) the traditional lecture method and 2) manipulative instruction focused on education in the field of culinary arts.

Pedagogical instructional strategies to drive learning objectives and outcome evaluation that are aligned with the student’s background knowledge, experience, and environment don’t seem to exist. The environment as an urban setting, or work setting, equally receives no consideration as a learning situation, thus physical, social, and cultural settings where externships occur receive no acknowledgment either (Thibodeaux, W. R., 2012).

Teaching methods also vary. Some teachers lecture, others discuss or demonstrate; some emphasize memory, while others emphasize understanding. How much a given student learns depends on the student’s ability and prior preparation and on the compatibility of his/her learning style and the teacher’s teaching style(s).

(See references below.)

Part One – Determine how students learn best using a modified VARK assessment. 

I ask my students to take a modified learning style assessment based on the VARK assessment. Questions on this activity were slightly adapted to be in the context of a food safety and sanitation class.

Students are asked to pick one of four assignment options based on the curriculum. These assignments cover the same material given during an instructor lecture. Each activity presented has the same value and an appropriate amount of time allowed for it. I tell my students there are no right or wrong answers, only to select the assignment they prefer. If they are tied between two answers, I suggest choosing their first immediate choice. After they take the seven-question assessment, they are asked to determine their learning style. The assessment and scoring techniques can be found in the VARK worksheet. (See below for the worksheet and PowerPoint presentation for a more detailed explanation of the assessment and learning styles.)

Once students determine their learning styles, I give them research-based techniques for good habits and things to avoid for each learning style. I encourage students to embrace suggestions that make better studying techniques. Later in the semester, I ask them to reflect on whether they tried the suggested techniques and if they found any useful.

Since students have already been trained to learn by the time they get to you, these techniques might fall on deaf ears. But learning their preferred learning style increases their awareness of how they learn and it helps educators understand the different student styles occurring in their class. Maybe, if you see a trending learning style among your students, then you can amend your delivery style.

Attachments
PowerPoint
Worksheet

References
Frei, B. (2008). Preparing the next generation of culinary artists. Techniques. Retrieved from https://www.questia.com/read/1G1-186320620/preparing-the-next-generation-of-culinary-artists

Gonzalez, J. J. (2016). From chef to educator: An exploration of the experiences of new culinary arts instructors (Order No. 10018930). Available from ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global. (1768050802). Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/1768050802?accountid=28844

Hedges, M. (2008). Learning styles and introductory economics: a matter of translation. Australian Journal of Economics Education. 1&2 (5).

Denkler, G. M. (1994). Manipulative learning style preferences of students in a secondary culinary arts programs (Order No. 1360738). Available from ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global. (304178173). Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/304178173?accountid=28844

Thibodeaux, W. R. (2012). The practical side of culinary arts education: The role of social ability and durable knowledge in culinary arts externships (Order No. 3536269). Available from ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global. (1315000954). Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/1315000954?accountid=28844

Chef Jennifer M. Denlinger, PhD., CCC, CHEP, is the Culinary Management Program Department Chair at the Poinciana Campus of Valencia College. She is also the vice president of ACF’s Central Florida Chapter. Additionally, Chef Denlinger earned the 2020 Innovation Award, sponsored by CAFÉ and the Idaho Potato Commission, for a creative escape room based on safe food handling procedures. She also earned the 2021 Green Award sponsored by the United Soybean Board and was runner-up in 2021 for the Postsecondary Education of the Year sponsored by Sysco Corporation.