Frequently Asked Questions

VARK is a questionnaire that provides users with a profile of their learning preferences. These preferences are about the ways that they want to take-in and give-out information.

Technically No! A learning style has 18+ dimensions (preferences for temperature, light, food intake, biorhythms, working with others, deep and surface approaches§). VARK is about one preference -our preference for taking in, and putting out information in a learning context. Although it is a part of learning style we consider it an important part because people can do something about it. Some other dimensions are not open to change.

After each person completes the questionnaire they are asked to provide information about themselves. Most do. One question asks whether their VARK profile matches their perception of their preferences for learning. The other options are "Don't Know" and "No Match". The percentages for those aged 19 or older are:

Match = 58%
Don't Know = 38%
No match = 4%

Although self perceptions are not always reliable these figures support the value of the VARK questionnaire. Teachers, those who have used VARK before and older respondents have a higher figure for the "match" statistic.

This book uses the VARK questionnaire to understand how athletes and players learn. Of course they are quite kinesthetic when they perform but they may not learn in that mode. That is why some athletes do well with some coaches and others do not? Buy the book and find out.

Experience suggests that if there are too many questions (25+) some people take the questionnaire less seriously and some may become bored with it or provide spurious answers because of questionnaire fatigue.

We won't know until somebody does some longitudinal research on a group but you will not switch from a Read/write preference to a Visual preference overnight! Typically, scores on a particular mode may rise or fall by 1 or 2 if you do the questionnaire again after some time. There is, however, an increase in single preferences with age. The database for January-March 2007 shows that for those under 18 years of age there were 36.2% with a single preference and 63.8% with some form of multimodality. For those aged 55+ there were 43.2% with a single preference and 56.8% who had multimodal preferences. We also know that, with age, the proportion with a Read/Write single preference increases as the proportion with a K single preference decreases. V decreases from 3.6% to 2.9% and A decreases from 9% (0-18 year olds) to 6.6% (55+ year olds). For under 18-year-olds those with a single preference K profile are 13.6% of their total and those with single preference R make up 9.8%. For those aged 55+ the proportions are 11.1% and 22.6%! Some have suggested that this merely reflects the way that the older age group were taught!

Probably! Some students report that when they were younger their VARK profile would have been different and that it is their exposure to different life experiences (travel, recreation, work, and relationships§) that would have made a change in how they prefer to learn. Sufficient longitudinal studies have not been done to be sure about that.

Yes and No. Yes! Multimodal learners and teachers can be more flexible about how they take in and give out information than those with a profile that emphasizes a single preference. They tend to be able to match their preferences with whatever mode(s) are being used. That is the "Yes" answer. But because multimodal learners need to have at least two, three or four modes involved in learning before they are satisfied that is a disadvantage. For example, someone with an AR profile would want to read about it and talk about it with others before they would "trust" the incoming information. A single preference learner would "get it" from just their preferred mode - if it was available in that form.

Yes! The strength of the VARK questionnaire is that it provides strategies that can lead to success in a learning environment. It treats people as different, not dumb and suggests that some strategies may be helpful and some harmful. The answer is to use those you prefer and avoid those that you do not like.

Yes! Although there are a great variety of learning styles and VARK profiles, high schools, colleges and universities still insist that their students present evidence of their learning in written form and they also emphasise reading. VARK provides you with strategies to learn and suggests that you use your strengths even though they may not be Read/Write ones. Your learning may still have to be presented in written form (tests, assignments, examinations) but your learning for these events should be in a format that suits your preferences.

Yes! Our database now shows significant differences (Chi square analysis) between males and females. Men have more Kinesthetic responses and women more Read/write responses.

Yes. Significant differences are shown in the R dimension of VARK. The figures are 15.6% for Read/Write single preferences for students and 20.9% for teachers. The K figures are 11.7% and 12.4% respectivley. There is also a difference between the proportion of single modes and multimodes. Students have 37% of their profiles in single modes and teachers 43%. Correspondingly, students are more multimodal - 63% to 57%. This data is from January-March 2007.

Yes. When we use VARK with small groups from a particular discipline there are differences. For example, law students and faculty usually have larger proportions of R than, say, nursing, where students are more likely to have kinesthetic preferences. Graphic designers, performing arts and computer systems students are stronger on V.

Maybe! Performing arts and applied science students have more single preference Visual profiles than other disciplines. Understandably, students in the humanities choose more Read/write options in the VARK questionnaire. Science students are more multimodal.

We expect that there would be differences but have no research evidence. Polynesian cultures had no written language but had a strong set of traditions based on storytelling and genealogy handed down from elders to novices. This may indicate a stronger Aural preference. Aboriginals (Australian) and Native Americans had strong symbolic representations and drawings to depict their views on reality and history that might indicate a stronger set of preferences for the V mode.

Yes. Asking some students to engage in a role-play will appeal to those who have a kinesthetic preference while discussion in lectures will be more attuned to those who have a stronger component of A in their profile. This is only two examples of many that exist. The VARK book helps with many other examples.

No. Motivation is a separate and significant part of learning. However if learners are using modes that are a strong part of their preferences they are more likely to be motivated than if they have to use modes where their preference is weak.

No! It is not the media that determine the acceptability of content for learning but the ways in which these media depict that content. Television commercials often appeal to all modalities. Videos and photographs appeal to K modalities because they often show real situations. Most of these media do not use the diagrams, charts and symbolism that Visual learners prefer. Some media use a strong auditory component and many computer-based learning programmes appeal only to those with a Read/write preference with words dominating the screen. Marketers understand and use VARK principles!

VARK is about preferences which are a part of the Myers-Briggs Personality Type Indicator and VARK is structured specifically to improve learning and teaching. David Kolb's Experiential Cycle is a model of cognitive processing - how we process learning in the brain whereas VARK is about our preferences for taking information into the brain and communicating them "outside". Gardner's Multiple Intelligences Theory is another cognitive model and it includes some of the VARK modalities as "intelligences" and extends that list to at least five other dimensions. Sometimes the link between VARK and these theories appears to be quite strong but VARK has its own focus, rationale and strategies.

Yes! We have learned that many people have used VARK to untangle differences in "styles" of communication at work and at home. VARK can be a powerful tool to understand how to relate to others and, any understanding of ourselves can be beneficial. We would expect that those working in the world of design will have strong V profiles and those in text editing and authoring will be strong on R. Similar differences will exist in other career choices. We have seen conflict in workplaces that is attributable to major mis-matches in VARK profiles. For example an employee with a very strong A preference had some difficulty working with an employer who had a zero score for that preference.

Some people report that their understanding of people in their lives is improved with knowledge of their own VARK profile and the VARK profile of "significant" others.

No. The database suggests that there are more people who have single preferences in older age groups. 19-25 year-olds had 36% with single preferences and those aged 55+ had 43% in that group.

Yes. Prior to age 25 the database indicates that more people come to the VARK website with a Kinesthetic preference. After age 25 our database shows Read/write ahead of Kinesthetic.

Yes. So it is not just an artefact of teachers being older than students.

The database for January 2009 has 36579 respondents who provided us with their questionnaire results and additional demographic details. Many more used the questionnaire (81994) but left no other informaton about themselves. Many more complete the questionnaire in the months when high schools, universities and colleges are in session.

Some psychologists suggest that women are more interested in online information about themselves.

Probably not. The VARK questionnaire indicates how teachers learn so we don't know how they teach. Many teachers use their empathy to recognise that students are struggling and they use VARK modes other than their own preferred ones to "reach" them. That is why it is important for teachers to complete the questionnaire as learners not teachers!

Not much. Those who visit the VARK site have self-selected and skewed the results towards those who like completing questionnaires online. They may not be representative of the "general" population. Most are students and teachers or those "in education". The data from the small sample of those "not in education" indicates similar patterns to the remainder - low V and A and high R and K. A research project for somebody could help our knowledge about this question.

The VARK questionnaire is difficult to use with current statistical methods of validation because of its structure. VARK replicates how decisions are made using many preferences and the multiple answers for each question make statistical analysis very difficult. There are no "right" answers! VARK may remain an instructional tool rather than a research tool. From Dr Leite's research, the reliability estimates for the scores of the VARK subscales were 0.85, 0.82, 0.84 and 0.77 for the Visual, Aural, Read/write and Kinesthetic subscales, respectively. These are considered adequate. Please check our Research page for the latest on VARK research.

We await somebody to test VARK's reliability by following a group of users through several months or years. Any offers?

That is true, in the same way that knowing you have a disease does not cure the disease or weighing yourself does not fix obesity. It is the next step that is important - When students make changes to their study methods based on their VARK preferences, their learning will be enhanced, that is, when they use strategies that align with their preferences. It is what you do after you learn your preferences that has the potential to make a difference.