Learning Styles

Students learning style reflects the manner in which he or she assimilates, processes and recalls information, (Whittington and Raven, 1995), and instructors must recognize learning style as a significant source of diversity in the classroom. This diversity underscores the need for educators to incorporate a variety of teaching methods, curriculum material and assessment techniques to foster and support the process of learning (Torres and Cano, 1994). Various means of characterizing learning combination with opportunities apparent from the existing research, suggest the need to further explore the relationship between student preferred way of learning and their achievement in course offering in senior high schools. According to Alistair McNaught (2002), in practice psychologists suggest 70% of people can cope whether or not a lesson matched their preferred learning style but motivation is likely to be reduced by consistent exposure to materials outside your preferred style. Since every student has his own style of learning, teachers should identify these differences in order to improve the process of teaching and learning.

According to Diaz and Carnal (1999) educators have for many years, noticed that some students prefer certain methods of learning more than the others. These traits refers to as learning styles, from a students unique learning preference and aid teachers in planning of small group and individualized instruction. If optimal student learning is dependent on the learning styles, and these styles vary between distance and equivalent on-campus students, then faculty should be aware of these differences and alter their preparation and instructional methods accordingly.

Every student has a learning style. Rita Dun and her colleague say, which is the result of many influences, and no learning style is either better or worse than another. Certain learning style characteristics are biological (response to sound, light, design, perception, intake, mobility needs and persistence), whereas others are developed experiences (socialized preferences, motivation, responsibility, conformity and the need for structure) (Restak, 1979).

Because a great deal of diversity is unrest in learners, a need exists, to address this diversity in class instructions in order to improve student performance. Research has shown that student motivation and performance improve when instruction is adapted to student learning preference, and styles (Miller, 2001). Individuals learn best in many different ways; sometimes using a variety of learning style but teachers and trainers may not always present information and learning experience in the ways that best suit learner.

Recent development view that the effort and expectations by the government and other stakeholders (like parents, educational policy makers) in encouraging the study of the subject economics at the senior high school level have not yielded fully the desired results and the set goals have, thus not been accomplished. Many students studying the subject at the senior high school do not understand and appreciate government economic policies and decisions neither are they able to manage efficiently economic resources at their disposal better than their colleague who did not offer the subject. The external assessment body known as the west Africa examination council (WAEC) published in its 1993 chief examiner’s report that “the major problem that accounted for the poor performance of the majority of the candidate was, inadequate preparation for the examination” (Source: Daily Graphic, December 1998 page 5).

If such an international body who evaluate the performance of students came out with this statement then it must be well noted that there are serious problems with the learning style of economics students at the senior high school level and an urgent steps must be taking to address the situation. In summary, the choice of one’s learning style in the field of economics goes a long way to influence their academic performance.