Crosscultural differences in learning styles of secondary English learners

Bilingual Research Journal, Summer 2002 by Park, Clara C

Dunn, Gemak, Jalai, Zenhausen, Quinn, and Spiridakis (1990) conducted a crosscultural study of learning styles involving Chinese, African, Greek, and Mexican American children in elementary schools. They concluded that all four groups were field-dependent (preferred to study with peers), with Greek-American children showing the highest group means and African Americans demonstrating the lowest group means. Chinese American elementary school children were the most kinesthetic and tactile among the four groups and were the most significantly different from African Americans, followed by Greek Americans, then last Mexican Americans. The Chinese Americans wanted to study alone rather than with peers and needed more structure than African American or Greek American children but less structure than Mexican Americans. Among the four ethnic groups, the Chinese Americans scored the lowest on a teacher motivation scale (Chinese = 12.72, Greek = 12.88, Mexican = 13.24, and African = 13.68). Suh and Price (1993) conducted a comparative study of Korean secondary students in Korea and American secondary students from an international perspective. They concluded that Korean students in Korea preferred more structure and more formal design, but needed less mobility and were less persistent than American students. Other studies also noted cultural differences in the learning styles of African American, Mexican American, Southeast Asian, and Native American students (Bell, 1994; Dunn, Griggs, & Price, 1993; Guild, 1994; Melear & Richardson, 1994; More, 1990; Park, 2000; Ryan, 1992; Sims, 1988).

Previous research also indicated that students' learning styles were significantly related to their achievement level. Park (1997a) found that among high, middle, and low achievers, high achievers were the most visual and low achievers were the least visual, and that middle and low achievers had minor preferences and high achievers had a negative preference for group learning. Suh and Price (1993) also found that gifted Korean students in Korea were more persistent and expressed greater preference for learning visually and kinesthetically and with more structure than academically non-gifted peers. The gifted students were also less parent-motivated and less desirous of having an authority figure present than the academically non-gifted. They preferred to learn in several ways and less socially than did United States students. Other research also indicated a significant relationship between student achievement level and their learning style preferences (Ingham & Price, 1993; Park, 1997b).

Slavin (1983) and Kagan (1986) observed that cooperative group learning produced gains in academic achievement, especially among African and Latino American students. It also helped all participating students develop social skills and better race relations. In her study of sociocultural influence on classroom interactional styles in Vietnam, Sullivan (1996) noted that in contrast to the general notion that Asian students were silent, Vietnamese college students were quite verbal in their English classes as they responded to teachers in unison or in chorus. In her study of group work in an ESL classroom, Kinsella (1996) observed that despite the merits of pairing and grouping strategies, not all ESL students in high school or college classrooms embraced collaborative classroom learning with the same zeal as their instructors. In fact, such well-intended instructional efforts as group strategies may be met with reluctance and disorientation on the part of some ESL students due to their cultural backgrounds or pre-immigration schooling experiences. Reid (1987) found that virtually none of the college ESL students in her study chose group learning as a major learning preference. In a similar vain, Park's studies of secondary students (1997a, 1997b, 2000, 2001) also indicated ethnic group differences in students' preferences for group learning.