I am a doctoral student in IT at the University of Virginia. I have been interested in the cognitive impact of learning styles for quite a while, and have just finished reading the book that you and Barbara Grabowski have collaborated on together. Since I find myself strongly identifying with certain of the classifications of some of the learning style models (presumably because for me they are accurately descriptive of the way I find most comfortable when learning), I am interested in what the instructional technology community has to say about the bridges between those learning styles and the way in which cognitive tools (in the constructivist paradigm) are or can be situated to promote construction of knowledge structures. More briefly, if learning styles have any validity, where does this construct intersect with an environment of cognitive tools?
Are there any discussions or research that you are familiar with that you could point me to? What are your thoughts on this?