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Chapter 3 - Individual Characteristics that Influence Learning
Accounting faculty need to know about their students as well as about their subject and how to teach it. In this chapter we review a number of individual characteristics that influence a student's learning. While not an exhaustive survey, the chapter presents what we consider to be the salient characteristics that influence the attributes of questioning, organizing, connecting reflecting, and adapting knowledge.We begin by describing personal characteristics, some of which (age, gender, and socioeconomic background) cannot be changed. We then discuss some developmental characteristics that have been shown to be important in moral and intellectual maturity. We also discuss learning styles and how they can be improved. Finally, we discuss how motivation and goals can influence that quality and outcomes of learning experience. We include information about the characteristics of accounting students that should be considered as we seek to help them become effective learners.