Prevailing ideas about the nature of learning and knowledge imply that the relationship between teaching and learning is a complex one. Teaching strategies AND learner characteristics and effort determine how well a student learns in a course of study. In college courses, learner characteristics are not self-evident and access to students' thinking is often constrained by course size and the availability of teaching support. We do, however, have access to a body of literature that reveals much that is important and useful about learners at the college level. For more information, click on links in the sidebar.