In every classroom setting or learning space, each student is unique in their particular way. Each student has a special way through which they learn and master information. Therefore, every student should be understood, and the one shoe fits all ideology should be ignored. There are different modalities of learning that every person uses. The modalities represent a way through which each individual intakes information. It has been found that various individuals use several modalities to learn and that the stereotype of an individual having a specific modality of learning is wrong (Joyce & Feez, 2020). In the movie Kung Fu Panda, individual characters use a multimodal learning approach in taking in information. It is evident from the protagonist (Po) that learning does not just need one modality but several modalities.
At the beginning of the movie, Po has a dream about a great Kung Fu warrior in the whole world. Po is obsessed with Kung Fu and is determined to learn the skill. He uses the visual modality of learning to try and master some of the skills of Kung Fu. He has carvings of the furious five, a group of skilled Kung Fu warriors who are his idols. Po has been looking and studying them in his quest of one day becoming a Kung Fu warrior as well. However, Po is afraid of letting people know about his dreams and especially his father. He makes his father think that he is interested in cooking, but this is a great lie. Po believes that he is not fit enough to become a Kung Fu warrior and thinks very little of himself.
The protagonist character may appear dumb and clumsy at the movie’s beginning; however, he is the contrary. It is striking that Po uses his auditory mode of learning to gain life-changing information from his father. The auditory mode of learning is the process where an individual listens to and records information through the process of hearing. The auditory mode of learning is usually the primary and most common form of education (Snowman & McCown, 2011). Most students take in information through hearing and comprehend the information. On their way to the grand Kung Fu Festival, Po’s father finally decides to let him know about the secret ingredient to his soup. His father tells him that the secret ingredient to his special soup is nothing. The information hits Po, and he quickly realizes and learns that to be special does not require any unique secret. Po realizes that to be a Kung Fu warrior, he only needs to be himself and believe that he can achieve greatness.
The other standard modality of learning is through the kinesthetic mode. Through this model, students learn through physical activities, either hands-on or by experience (Borzello, 2018). To learn and master a physical skill, the kinesthetic modality is quite helpful. In learning a physical skill like Kung Fu, the students need to apply the kinesthetic learning modality. The modality will help them acquire the necessary skills and tactics to be employed while carrying out the physical activity (Parashar et al., 2019). The furious five (Tigress, Monkey, Crane, Viper, and Mantis) use the Kinesthetic learning modality to be the greatest Kung Fu warriors. Together with Tai Lung, the Furious five are all students of the great master Shifu who teach them all they know in Kung Fu. Later on in the movie, it is Po’s turn to learn Kung Fu, and even though it is difficult at the beginning, he also uses the kinesthetic modality to learn the skill of Kung Fu and masters it.
Since it is impossible for an individual only to use one learning modality, teachers should also use a multimodal approach when teaching. The difference in the nature of Master Shifu’s students represents the student diversity that is seen in schools today (Joyce & Feez, 2020). Student diversity is not a negative aspect but a beautiful and natural one. Tai Lung was a good student, but his ambitions got the best of him. The furious five were also good obedient students but were not as ambitious as Tai Lung. Po, on the other hand, was a poor student who was enthusiastic about Kung Fu. The diversity shown in this movie represents the same in the classrooms. Therefore, teachers should apply the multimodal aspect of teaching with regard to the students.
The perception of each individual towards a particular ideology may differ significantly. For instance, Tai Lung wanted to be a Kung Fu master to acquire control and power. His selfish agenda was an evil one, and Master Oogway did not agree to it. However, Po wanted to learn Kung Fu and be a Kung Fu Master since he adored and loved the skill. He wanted a chance to join the furious five and fight like them. The furious five were good students, and they wanted to be good at Kung Fu to please Master Shifu and get his approval. The differing perceptions also occur in a classroom setting, and different students have different standpoints.
References
Borzello, K. (2018). The Benefits of a Multimodality Approach to Teaching and Learning. In K. Borzello, Conference Proceedings. New Perspectives in Science Education (7th ed., p. 142). Libraria Universitaria.
Joyce, H., & Feez, S. (2020). Multimodality across Classrooms: Learning about and through different Modalities (3rd ed., p. 214). Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group.
Parashar, R., Hulke, S., & Pakhare, A. (2019). Learning Styles for Medical Students: Role of VARK Modality. Advances in Medical Education and Practice, 10, 401-402. Web.
Snowman, J., & McCown, R. (2011). Psychology applied to teaching (13th ed., p. 679). Cengage Learning.