Rhetoric Analysis

Rhetoric is an invaluable tool that writers can use to enhance their work. With this in mind, it is important when conducting research to be aware of the rhetorical devices an author may be using and how they effect a person’s research. Recent research on learning styles has turned out a wide range of facts, figures, and statistics. By studying rhetoric, a researcher can better identify a biased source. Over the past several decades, awareness of the three learning styles has grown significantly. As a result, many educators have endeavored to spread understanding of the importance of learning styles in the classroom to the public. Two articles that exemplify this are “Kinaesthetic, Auditory, and Visual Learning Styles for Children” by Jane

Tyne claims that fifty percent of students are kinesthetic learners, ten percent are auditory learners, and forty percent are visual learners (Tyne). This is very different from Lake Superior State University’s statistics of five percent kinesthetic learners, thirty percent auditory learners, and sixty five percent visual learners (“Parents”). While LSSU’s article focuses on identifying which style a person uses, Tyne takes it a step further in claiming that traditional teaching methods are not effective because of the high concentration of kinesthetic learners (Tyne). Both agree on the defining traits and strengths of each learning

Tyne’s article starts out broad and then narrows in on each learning style. Also, she gives examples of the strengths and weaknesses of people with each of the three learning styles and encourages parents to identify their own child’s learning style (Tyne). LSSU’s article is half as long as Tyne’s and is formatted into bullet points rather than paragraphs. The respective length of each article can be explained by the fact that Tyne’s article has more persuasive elements than LSSU’s article. Again, Tyne seems to have ulterior agenda to her article that LSSU’s article lacks. Tyne uses statistics to prove her point that traditional teaching methods are ineffective (Tyne). Whereas LSSU’s article is a short and simple introduction to the three learning styles without any additional commentary on the effectiveness of any particular teaching method. Different formatting accomplishes different goals when writing to an audience and can be analyzed to determine what those goals