Global Skills Conf. 2008 - Mexico

1. Global Skills Conf. 2008 - Mexico • “Learning Styles of Adult Populations from an International Perspective – Similarities and Differences.” • Prof. Robin Boyle Laisure, • St. John’s Univ. Sch. of Law, Queens, NY.

3. ‘Learning Style’ refers to . . . • the way in which each individual begins to concentrate on, process, internalize, and remember new and difficult academic information or skills.

4. Dunn & Dunn LS Model:26 Elements Affect Learning • Elements Divided Among Six Categories: • Emotional • Environmental • Perceptual • Physiological • Psychological • Sociological

5. Dunn & Dunn Learning-Style Model • 850 studies (American and international studies). • Conducted by researchers at more than 130 institutions of higher education worldwide. • Bibliography can be found at www. learningstyles.net.

6. Boyle’s studies -1996 to present - w/ American law students: • American law students are diverse in their learning styles – • Several studies performed totaling 4 American law schools. • (See bibliography).

7. The first of three studies of interest- • “A Comparative Study of the Learning Styles of Southeast Asian and American Caucasian College Students on Two Seventh-Day Adventist Campuses” (Doctoral dissertation, 1986). • By Sally Lam-Phoon

8. Study Methodology • Dunn & Dunn Learning-Style Model • Used the Productivity Environmental Preference Survey to ascertain learning styles • 309 total undergraduate students – 143 Asians (Southeast Asia Union College in Singapore) and 166 Caucasians (Andrews Univ., Berrien Springs, Mich.)

9. Caucasian v. Asian – Stronger Preferences Indicated: Caucasians – stronger preference for - Asians – stronger preference for - • responsibility (conforming to rules), • warmth, • intake, • learning in morning, and • mobility. • auditory, and • visual learning.

10. Asian/Cauc Study: • Asians were significantly more auditory and visual than Caucasians. • Researcher attributed differences in the findings of “Responsibility” to cultural differences within the family (for ex. how American children are given more independence).

11. Males v. Females Males had higher preference for: Males had lower preference for: • sound, • tactile learning experiences, • intake while concentrating, • responsibility, and • warmth. • Learning in several ways, • Peer-oriented learning, and • Persistence.

12. Males – Caucasian vs Asian Cauc. Males have a stronger preference for: Cauc. Males have a lower preference for: • Warmth, • Responsibility, • Persistence, and • Intake. • Auditory learning and • Learning in the late morning.

13. Females – Caucasian vs Asian Cauc. Females had a stronger preference for - Cauc. Females had a lower preference for – • Responsibility, • Warmth, • Mobility, • Learning in the morning, • Intake • Visual, and • Auditory learning experiences.

14. Researcher’s Implications - • Professors’ understanding of learning styles: • Aids in better communications with individual students. • Increases student competence and interest in the classroom.

15. Researchers Recommended: • When students understand their own learning style, they learn more easily and remember better by capitalizing on their unique learning characteristics. • Learning style emerges from the cultural background, and to ensure academic success, teachers should strive to accommodate cultural differences in learning style.

16. Second of Three studies: Mexican and American Undergrads • “A Comparison of the Learning Style and Creative Talents of Mexican and American Undergraduate Engineering Students” • By Dr. Joanne Ingham, Prof. Rosa Miriam Ponce Meza, and Prof. Gary Price. • 1998

17. 486 Engineering Students – Methodology: • Dunn & Dunn Learning-Style Model • Productivity Environmental Preference Survey (PEPS) • 203 Mexican students from Monterrey Institute of Technology, Mexico City. • 283 American students from Polytechnic University, NYC. • All ranged in age from 17-19.

18. Mexican students showed more of a preference for - • internal motivation, • kinesthetic (learn-by-doing), • mobility, • learning alone, • persistent (single-task oriented), • authority figure-oriented, • responsible (conforming), and • visual and auditory.

19. American students indicated a stronger preference for - • structure, • afternoon as time-of-day, and • work with peers.

20. Examined LS of Highly-Achieving Learners Defined by GPAs • 31 Mexicans: higher level of motivation (compared with lower achieving students) • 80 Americans: preference for quiet environment and kinesthetic engagement while learning.

21. Overall findings of Mexican/American study: • Significant DIFFERENCES exist BETWEEN two cultural groups (Mexican/American); • DIFFERENCES WITHIN each group; and • Some SIMILARITIES BETWEEN the learning styles of the Mexican and American learners.

22. Findings of Mexican/Amer Study Con’t • There were 12 learning style variables which discriminated b/w the Mexican and American learners. • For engineering programs in America, these results certainly support the movement away from a lecture-only instructional format toward providing increased learner-centered instruction.

23. International Studies with Adults – Third of Three Studies of Interest • Honigsfeld, A., Dunn, R., Rundle, S., Ahad, A., Giordano, J., Lauria, J., Lauridsen, O., Khanji, J., Orden, M. V., Watson, W. E., & La Delle Dillon, J., International comparison of freshmen learning styles: Statistically speaking about research vs. practice. 7(4) Journal of Global Awareness 72 (2006).

24. Honigsfeld, Dunn, & Rundle: 9 Undergraduate Schools • Aarhus, Denmark; • Muskogee, Oklahoma • Paget, Bermuda; • Two in Queens, NY; • Rockville Centre, NY; • Bayombong, Nueva Vizcaya, Phillippines; • Staten Is., NY; • Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

25. Participating Institutions St. John’s LaGuardia Molloy Wagner Aarhus Zayed St. Mary’s Bacone Bermuda

26. METHODOLOGY AND PROCEDURES Sample: Total of 3,691 students from nine participating colleges and universities

27. METHODOLOGY AND PROCEDURES… Continued • Students self-reported their age, gender. • Used Building Excellence (BE) by Performance Concepts International, an on-line assessment. • Dunn & Dunn Learning-Style Model. • Data were compared by age, gender, and institutions.

28. Findings for Age Under 25 Over 26 • More sound • More intake • Late afternoon • Evening • More verbal kinesthetic • More formal seating • More variety • Early morning

29. Male Female Findings for Gender More impulsive Cooler temperatures More mobility Evening More reflective Warmer temperatures More visual text More light

30. Findings for Comparison by Institution: • All but two learning-style elements (Intake and Mobility) significantly discriminated among the nine institutions.

31. 3 Institutions Stood Apart • Aarhus, Denmark (School of Business) • Bayombong, Phillippines (St. Mary’s Univ., Catholic) • Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (Zayed Univ.)

33. Findings of 9 Higher Education Institutions: The findings revealed: • similarities and differences by achievement levels, age, gender, and institutions; • more within-group differences than between-group differences. • Conclusion: Students at every institution are diverse in their learning styles. Through educational institutions, acculturation occurs that affects learning style.

34. These three studies suggest: • Students are diverse in their learning – regardless of institution or country. • Learning styles are influenced by • biology (findings on gender & age), • acculturation as influenced through educational institutions (9-institution study), and • Culture through family unit (Lam-Phoon study). • There are trends – high/low achievers, same age, gender, etc. Depends upon how strongly each element affects that person.

35. Cautionary Note: • Researchers explain that professors should NOT assume that students from a particular culture, country, or of the same gender and age have the identical learning style. • Although culture and biology affect learning style, students are diverse in their learning style in every nation studied (18 in total), every institution, within gender categories and within age categories.

36. To reach visual learners incorporate: • PowerPoints, • Handouts, • Have students read text and other students’ work in class.

37. Kinesthetic Learners – Learn by Doing • Have students simulate: • attorneys giving advice, negotiating deals, • clients asking questions, • judges ruling on motions, • oralists presenting arguments,

38. Tactual Learners learn by using their hands to manipulate material • Professor or students create manipulative resources (task cards, puzzles), • Permit laptop use, • Have students write their answers to questions in class before answering.