BRAIN-DOMINANCE QUESTIONNAIRE

This questionnaire will give you an indication of your tendency to be a left-brain learner, a right-brain learner, or a bilateral learner (using both about equally).

DIRECTIONS: Answer the questions carefully, checking the answer that is correct for you. Select the one that most closely represents your attitude or behaviour. When you have finished, refer to the scoring instructions.

1. I prefer to learn
a. details and specific facts
b. from a general overview of things, and by looking at the whole picture
c. both ways about equally

2. I prefer the jobs
a. which consist of one task at a time, and I can complete it before beginning the next one
b. in which I work on many things at once
c. I like both kinds of jobs equally

3. I prefer to solve problems with
a. logic
b. my "gut feelings"
c. both logic and "gut feelings"

4. I like my work to be
a. planned so that I know exactly what to do
b. open with opportunities for change as I go along
c. both planned and open to change

5. I like to learn a movement in sports or a dance step better by
a. hearing a verbal explanation and repeating the action or step mentally
b. watching and then trying to do it
c. watching and then imitating and talking about it

6. I remember faces easily
a. No
b. Yes
c. Sometimes

7. If I have to decide if an issue is right or correct
a. I decide on the basis of information
b. I instinctively feel it is right or correct
c. I tend to use a combination of both

8. I prefer
a. multiple-choice tests
b. essay tests
c. I like both kinds of tests equally

9. If I had to assemble a bicycle, I would most likely
a. lay out all the parts, count them, gather the necessary tools, and follow the directions
b. glance at the diagram and begin with whatever tools were there, sensing how the parts fit
c. recall past experiences in similar situations

10. At school, I preferred
a. algebra
b. geometry
c. I had no real preference of one over the other

11. It is more exciting to
a. improve something
b. invent something
c. both are exciting to me

12. I generally
a. use time to organise work and personal activities
b. have difficulty in pacing personal activities to time limits
c. am able to pace personal activities to time limits with ease

13. Daydreaming is
a. a waste of time
b. a usable tool for planning my future
c. amusing and relaxing

14. I can tell fairly accurately how much time has passed without looking at a clock
a. Yes
b. No
c. Sometimes

15. When reading or studying, I
a. prefer total quiet
b. prefer music
c. listen to background music only when reading for enjoyment, not while studying
 
 

SCORING INSTRUCTIONS

1. Calculate the number of your "A" and "B" answers. Do not consider your "C" answers.

2. Put a - (minus) sign in front of your "A" score and a + (plus) sign in front of your "B" score.

3. Do the algebrical sum of your "A" and "B" scores.
 
 

SCORES

-15 to -13 = left-brain dominant (very strong)

-12 to -9 = left-brain dominant

-8 to -5 = moderate preference for the left

-4 to -1 = slight preference toward the left

0 = whole-brain dominance (bilateral)

+1 to +4 = slight preference toward the right dominance (bilateral)

+5 to +8 = moderate preference for the right

+9 to +12 = right-brain dominant

+13 to +15 = right-brain dominant (very strong)
 
 

FOLLOW-UP

1. Look at the descriptions below. Which sound like you? Which don't?

2. If one of the two columns seems to describe you a bit better than the other, can you think, offhand, of any ways that this might be influencing your approach to teaching?
 

3. Now consider other descriptions of learning styles.

  (Sources: Questionnaire: Author unknown, Revisions by E.C. Davis, English Teaching Forum, Vol. 32, No. 3, 1994.; revised by Luciano Mariani, 1996; Styles descriptions: Luciano Mariani, 1996)

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