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Advances in Social Sciences Research Journal – Vol. 9, No. 11
Publication Date: November 25, 2022
DOI:10.14738/assrj.911.13507. Kashoob, M., & Jawahar, A. (2022). Investigating Omani EFL Students’ Learning Styles at the Foundation Program in UTAS-Salalah.
Advances in Social Sciences Research Journal, 9(11). 516-522.
Services for Science and Education – United Kingdom
Investigating Omani EFL Students’ Learning Styles at the
Foundation Program in UTAS-Salalah
Muna Kashoob
English Language Center, University of Technology and
Applied Sciences, Salalah, Oman
Antony Jawahar
English Language Center, University of Technology and
Applied Sciences, Salalah, Oman
ABSTRACT
This study aimed to investigate the most preferred learning styles by Omani EFL
students’ and to find out the relationship between the students’ learning style and
their gender. 100 students were selected randomly from the four levels in the
foundation program at the University of Technology and Applied Sciences. There
were 56 females and 44 males. The participants answered the Grasha-Riechmann
student learning styles scale. The findings indicated that the dependent learning
style was the most preferred learning styles by Omani EFL students. Also, the female
students obtained significantly higher mean in collaborative than male students,
but in the rest of the learning styles, students were almost the same. The avoidant
learning styles was the least favorite learning style by both female and male
students. Based on the results, Omani EFL students are more dependent on their
teacher and classroom. Moreover, female students tend to collaborate with other
students and participate in their different activities and there is no huge difference
between female and male students in the other learning styles. The results of this
study can help teachers to become more sensitive to the diverse learning styles and
it can serve as a guideline to design course content that is more compatible with the
students’ styles.
Keywords: Learning, EFL, students, gender
INTRODUCTION
Different individuals have different learning styles. These differences constitute the foundation
of different learning style theories /models. To understand the learning process and the
influential factors on this process, we have to shift our attention from individual abilities and
skills to non-cognitive factors such as learning styles. A learner’s learning style may be
considered as a factor that differentiates learners, which, in turn, might affect their educational
performance. Teachers who assume that all students share similar cognitive abilities and
learning styles are probably making a big mistake in choosing the most appropriate teaching
method to deliver their lectures. Thus, identifying a learner’s learning style might help teachers
to develop a teaching method which is more compatible with the learners’ learning styles. In
other words, the mismatch between students’ learning styles and teachers’ teaching style could
lead to less effective learning outcomes.
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Kashoob, M., & Jawahar, A. (2022). Investigating Omani EFL Students’ Learning Styles at the Foundation Program in UTAS-Salalah. Advances in
Social Sciences Research Journal, 9(11). 516-522.
URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.14738/assrj.911.13507
STATEMENT OF PROBLEM
Developing an effective learning environment is the main concern of any educational system.
Reviewing the literature, the authors came up with a revelation that no study has been
conducted to date to explore the learning styles of EFL students in Oman. The current study
might shed light on and bridge the existing gap. It aims at exploring the learning styles utilized
by Omani students in a study at the University of Technology and Applied Science- Salalah,
Oman. Furthermore, a comparison between two gender groups’ learning styles might reveal
why female students outperform males.
OBJECTIVES OF STUDY
The current study pursues the following two-fold purpose:
1. To investigate the preferred learning styles of EFL students in the Foundation Program
at University of Technology and Applied Science- Salalah, Oman.
2. To explore the relationship between students’ learning styles and their gender.
LITERATURE REVIEW
Learning as a crucial and prevailing endeavor has always been the main concern of educators
who are interested in understanding how individuals learn. As Cassidy (2004) states,
individuals’ performance and learning outputs are the result of their approach to learning
situation.
The past decades witness marked an upturn in the number of studies on students’ learning
styles. As a result, a variety of definitions and categories have been proposed for learning styles.
For example, Kolb developed four learning styles, including: divergers, assimilators, convergers
and accommodators (1976). Claxton and Ralston (1978) defined learning style as the way
students respond to and use stimuli in the context of learning. Different theoretical models
developed to characterize the way an individual approaches a learning situation. For example,
according to Curry’s Onion model (1987), learning consists of four layers: cognitive personality,
information processing, social interaction and the outermost layer of instructional preference.
Riding & Cheema’s (1991) taxonomy, based on the way individuals process and represent
information, classifies learners as who list- analytic and verbalizer-imager. Rayner & Riding
(1997) categorize learners to three personality-centered, cognitive-centered and learning- centered groups. (Cited in Cassidy 2004).
Stressing that all learners have some ability in all four learning styles, Gregorc’s (1982b)
proposed classification of learning styles include; concrete sequential, abstract sequential,
concrete random, and abstract random learners.
Grasha and Riechmann Student Learning Style
Grasha and Riechmann (1974) classify learning styles into six categories, each of which has its
own characteristics. A close examination of the categories suggested by Gregorc and Grasha&
Riechmann reveals that ‘concrete random’ learners in Gregorc’s classification have similar
traits to independent learners in Grasha & Riechmann’s categories (1974).
Competitive
A typical competitive learner learns the content to perform better than others in the class. They
believe that they must compete with other students in a course to be rewarded. They prefer to
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Advances in Social Sciences Research Journal (ASSRJ) Vol. 9, Issue 11, November-2022
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be group leaders in class discussions, to dominate discussions and to be singled out for doing a
good job. They like class activities where they can do better than others. And teacher centered
instructional procedures (Rollins, 2015)
Collaborative
Collaborative learners believe that learning happens by sharing the ideas and opinions with
others. Thus, they like to cooperate with the teacher and work with others. Their preferences
are group projects, group discussions and seminars.
Avoidant
Learners with avoidant learning style dislike attending class and learning. They are not
interested in what goes on in class. They study to get a passing grade and dislike tests and
exams.
Participant,
Learners with participative style are interested in attending class and taking part in the class
activities as much as possible. They like teachers who can analyze and synthesize information.
They prefer lectures with discussion where there is a chance for students to discuss materials.
Dependent
Learners with dependent style show little curiosity in the content of course and learn only what
they are asked. For them, teachers and classmates are just support sources. They follow
teachers’ instructions and guidelines. They prefer a teacher-centered approach to teaching.
They use the outlines or notes on the board and follow the deadlines and instructions for
assignments.
Independent
Independent style learners like to think on their own and are confident of their ability to learn.
They learn the content they think is important. They prefer to work by themselves. Moreover,
their preference is students-centered teaching method where they can design project.
To find out the relationship between the students’ learning styles and their academic
achievement, Malsawmkimi, & Fanai,(2019) collected data by employing a Perceptual Learning
Style Preference Questionnaire among 192 students from two Private Higher Secondary
schools. The results of their study showed no correlation between the academic achievements
and students’ learning styles. They conclude that “a particular learning style does not have any
effect on the marks of the students” (p. 21)
To measure the undergraduate students’ learning styles, Cassidy & Eachus (2000) conducted a
research study using Approaches and Study Skill Inventory for Students developed by Tait &
Entwistle (1996). The results of their study show a positive correlation between students’
academic achievements and their selected strategic approach. Furthermore, there was a
meaningful correlation between learning styles and other factors that are related to students’
performance such as self-efficiency and locus of control.
Baneshi et al (2014) investigated the learning styles of 1039 graduate and undergraduate
students, majoring in Science and Humanities. They used Grasha-Riechmann’s student learning
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Kashoob, M., & Jawahar, A. (2022). Investigating Omani EFL Students’ Learning Styles at the Foundation Program in UTAS-Salalah. Advances in
Social Sciences Research Journal, 9(11). 516-522.
URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.14738/assrj.911.13507
style survey to collect data. The results of their study show that gender is an influential factor
in the learning styles of students where female students are more collaborative, participative
and dependent while males are more avoidant and independent. In addition, the Science
students’ means in collaborative, participative, dependent, and competitive styles were
meaningfully higher than Humanities group.
Corbin’s (2017) study on 670 tertiary level students in a Caribbean institution aimed at
investigating the relationship between students’ learning styles and their academic
performance and to find out how variables such as age and gender might have an impact on
students’ learning styles. The results of his study show that ‘collaborative’ was the most
preferred learning style among participants. In addition, there was a meaningful difference
between male and female students on dependent, participant, independent, and competitive
learning styles. Furthermore, age was an influential factor in participant, collaborative,
independent, avoidant and competitive learning styles.
Panambur et al (2014) investigated the learning preferences of 140 students studying in the
preclinical years of the medical degree program at Oman Medical College, Sohar. They used a
learning style questionnaire (VARK model) to collect data. The findings of their study indicates
that (35%) of students prefer a single mode of learning, either visual (8%), auditory (9%),
read/write (9%), or kinesthetic (9%). The remaining students preferred learning using a
combination of either two (14%), three (19%), or four (32%) sensory modalities (p. 461).
RESEARCH METHOD
Among the available instruments to measure students’ learning style, Grasha & Riechmann’s
survey emphasizes on the type and level of a learner’s interaction and his/her attitude toward
teachers, peers and course content. The survey consists of 60 items, with ten items for each
type of learning style. To measure the dominant learning style (s) of sample population, the
items are averaged together. The survey includes a 5-degree Likert rating scale (strongly
disagree, moderately disagree, undecided, moderately agree, strongly agree).
The present study used a 60-item version of Grasha & Riechmann’s learning style survey
(1994). The Arabic version of the survey was developed. A Google form was used to create the
online questionnaire. The population of the study consists of one hundred students in the
English Language Center at University of Technology and Applied Science- Salalah (UTAS),
Oman. The survey link was circulated among students at the beginning of summer semester
(semester 3), AY 2021-2022.The students were given three weeks to complete the survey.
Data Analysis
Table 1: Gender-wise distribution of sample
Gender Frequency Percent
Female 56 56
Male 44 44
Total 100 100
The above table showed that 56% respondents were female and 44 % respondents were male.
The majority of the respondents were female.
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Advances in Social Sciences Research Journal (ASSRJ) Vol. 9, Issue 11, November-2022
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Table 2: Means of all the respondents in the six learning styles
S.No Independen
t
Avoidant Collaborative Dependent Competitiv
e
Participant
1 1 4.11 2 2.82 3 3.90 4 3.85 5 3.84 6 3.79
2 7 3.78 8 2.76 9 3.80 1
0
4.24 1
1
3.71 1
2
3.97
3 1
3
2.88 1
4
3.21 1
5
4.06 1
6
3.97 1
7
3.63 1
8
3.58
4 1
9
3.23 2
0
3.74 2
1
4.34 2
2
4.57 2
3
3.89 2
4
3.83
5 2
5
3.68 2
6
2.45 2
7
3.16 2
8
3.15 2
9
3.74 3
0
3.98
6 3
1
4.14 3
2
4.19 3
3
4.17 3
4
4.01 3
5
3.88 3
6
4.29
7 3
7
3.57 3
8
4.15 3
9
4.27 4
0
3.94 4
1
3.00 4
2
4.30
8 4
3
3.96 4
4
4.35 4
5
4.34 4
6
3.98 4
7
3.91 4
8
3.94
9 4
9
3.73 5
0
2.12 5
1
3.64 5
2
4.37 5
3
3.19 5
4
4.02
10 5
5
4.20 5
6
2.44 5
7
3.95 5
8
4.18 5
9
3.17 6
0
3.51
Tota
l
37.29 32.23 39.63 40.24 35.97 39.23
Mea
n
3.72857
1
3.22321
4
3.963230
5
4.02426
9
3.5969
2
3.9225
6
Table 2 illustrates the mean scores of EFL Omani students on all the six categories of learning
styles. The highest mean score was found as 4.024269 which is the dependent learning style.
Based on that, majority of Omani ELF students prefer to follow teachers’ instructions and
guidelines. They prefer a teacher-centered approach to teaching. The lowest mean score was
found as 3.223214 that represents avoidant learning style.
Table 3: Female and Male Mean Differences
Learning Styles Female Males
N Mean S.D N Mean S.D
Independent 56 3.78 0.88 44 3.68 0.95
Avoidant 56 3.25 0.94 44 3.2 1.04
Collaborative 56 4.07 0.79 44 3.86 0.89
Dependent 56 4.13 0.75 44 3.92 0.89
Competitive 56 3.56 1.06 44 3.63 1.02
Participant 56 3.94 0.88 44 3.9 0.89
Table 3 shows that the mean scores of females and males are almost the same except in
collaborative learning style. There is a noticeable difference between females and males in
collaborative learning styles. In collaborative learning style, Female’s mean is 4.07 while male’s
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Kashoob, M., & Jawahar, A. (2022). Investigating Omani EFL Students’ Learning Styles at the Foundation Program in UTAS-Salalah. Advances in
Social Sciences Research Journal, 9(11). 516-522.
URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.14738/assrj.911.13507
mean is 3.86. Thus, females enjoy doing group works like group projects, group discussions and
assignments. In general, there is no significant difference between female and male mean scores
in the rest of learning style categories.
CONCLUSION
As male and female students have different learning styles, the course designers and
assessment designers should take into account these potential different requirements. In other
words, the results of this study can help authorities to become more sensitive to the diverse
learning styles and different gender groups they have. Moreover, it can serve as a guideline to
design course content that is more compatible with the students’ styles. Furthermore, the
outcomes of this study contribute to the efforts of teachers in choosing an appropriate teaching
methodology to match with students’ learning styles. Teaching at UTAS Salalah for a significant
period of time, it hardly comes as a surprise to us that the predominantly accepted style is
teacher-centered. There are probably several motivations for this. We are all sharing
classrooms with numbers of students that do not allow teachers to customize teaching
approaches with what preference they perceive individual learners, or small groups of learners
within the larger classroom, to hold. Further, there is a wide and diverse array of motivations
for attending college that may not be directly related to learning at all. The thought that comes
to our minds is/was, if class sizes were smaller, and the students all came from the same specific
geographic region, there might be a greater potential for engaging in the kinds of analyses
suggested in the paper. These limitations should be considered in future studies.
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