LEARNING STYLE PREFERENCES AMONG UNDERGRADUATES IN AN ENGLISH LANGUAGE COURSE CONDUCTED VIA ONLINE DISTANCE LEARNING (ODL)

Abstract

Knowledge about students’ learning styles helps educators in planning and delivering effective teaching. This study looks at the learning style preferences among undergraduates in UiTM Melaka, Jasin Campus. Data was collected through a questionnaire on a sample of 104 semester three bachelor degree students in Computer Science and in Plantation and Agrotechnology. However, only 76 students answered the online questionnaire within the two weeks’ time given (response rate =73.08). It was found that ASVS (active-sensing-visual-sequential) and RSVS (reflective-sensing-visual-sequential) are the top two most preferred learning styles among the respondents. Besides that, sensing, visual, and sequential styles were revealed as preferred styles among respondents regardless of their academic achievements. Overall, this study contributes empirical data regarding learning style preferences among undergraduates in local setting. Other implications are 1) educators must use diverse teaching methodologies that are able to cater to students’ different learning style preferences, and 2) students must be aware of their learning style preferences to enable them learning and mastering knowledge faster yet in an enjoyable manner.