The Relationship Between Learning Styles and Academic Outcomes defense1

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN LEARNING STYLES AND ACADEMIC OUTCOMES IN AFRICAN AMERICAN SCHOOL CHILDREN

By: John C. ThomasAlabama A&M UniversityDepartment of Social Work, Psychology, & CounselingApril 18, 2013

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Thesis Chairperson- Dr. Everton McIntosh Thesis Committee- Dr. Fred Bigenho, Dr.

George Mamboleo, and Dr. Jitendra Kapoor Graduate Studies Office Family Mrs. Theta Warren Mr. Jerome Saintjones C.J. Donald Elementary School Alabama A&M University

INTRODUCTION

Statement of the Problem• African American students have scored lower on

standardized test than Caucasian and Asian counterparts.

• The achievement gap has only closed minimally in recent years.

• Education initiatives have been explored, but none have closed the achievement gap.

• Some specialist believe students who lack middle class educational resources are more prone to have less educational outcomes.

• Regardless of economic status educational planners have done a poor job of producing techniques that cater to African Americans’ learning styles.

Statement of the Problem (cont.)• With more emphasis on the African American

community the assumption that other ethnicities are better equipped academically can be dissolved.

• The methods of generalizing instruction may be the cause for these beliefs.

• The methods used today are not working for all ethnicities.

• Individualized teaching strategies need to be included in the educational realm.

• In order to revamp the public education system thinking of students as individuals has to be considered to enhance academic outcomes.

Need for Study School systems seem far removed from the powerful

early nineteenth century vision of the common school for all.

Most teachers don’t understand the learning needs of African American students.

The needs of African American students have been ignored by educational planners, due to the delicacy and complexity of these students’ learning needs and how they store information.

If more effort is placed on determining the needs of African American students, it could possibly improve students’ attitudes to learn and teachers’ enthusiasm toward teaching.

Purpose of the Study• To study the learning styles of African American

students enrolled in an urban Alabama school to determine if using them could increase standardized test scores

• The school could be considered struggling to close the achievement gap between races.

• Donald Elementary School students scored lower than state and national standards in reading and math.

• The results on standardized test indicate there is a must to improve test scores.

Definition of Key Terms1. Achievement Gap- Refers to the disparity in academic performance between groups of students. The gap can be shown through grades, standardized test scores, course selection, dropout rates, and college completion rates among other things (Education Week, 2011).2. Learning Styles- The concept that individuals differ in regard to what mode of instruction is most effective for them (Pashler, McDaniel, Rohrer, Bjork, 2008).3. Standardized Test- A test that is designed to assess individuals against a common standard (U.S. Department of Education, 2012)

Proposed Hypotheses • Hypothesis I: There will be no significant difference between

African American students who are visual learners and African American students who are auditory learners.

• Hypothesis II: There will be no significant difference between African American students who are visual learners and African American students who are kinesthetic learners.

• Hypothesis III: There will be no significant difference between African American students who are kinesthetic learners and African American students who are auditory learners.

• Hypothesis IV: There will be no significant difference between the pretest scores and posttest scores for visual learners.

• Hypothesis V: There will be no significant difference between the pretest scores and posttest scores for auditory learners.

• Hypothesis VI: There will be no significant difference between the pretest scores and posttest scores for kinesthetic learners.

REVIEW OF LITERATURE

Learning Styles• Learning styles refer to individual

differences in the way information is perceived, processed, and communicated (Campbell, Campbell, & Dickinson, 2004).

• Some students learn more efficiently by reading (visual), some by listening (auditory), and others by physical interaction (kinesthetic).

• Characteristics that trigger concentration, maintain it, and cause long-term memory is the best style for an individual.

The Auditory Learner Depends on hearing and speaking as

their predominant way of learning Auditory learners like to read out loud,

speak in class, and also enjoy oral reports.

Auditory learners learn best when listening to recorded lectures, auditory CDs, repeating facts out loud, and participating in group discussions.

The Visual Learner• Characteristics of a visual learner are learning

by seeing and observing, thinking in pictures, and enjoying doodling and drawing.

• Visual learners respond well to movies, television, slides, posters, charts, diagrams, computer graphics, and color coded materials.

• The environment that caters to a visual learner is aesthetically pleasing, bright lights, and circular seating patterns.

• A teacher’s demeanor should also exude enthusiasm because visual students can feed off visual nonverbal behavior.

The Kinesthetic Learner Kinesthetic intelligent students learn

better by involving muscular movement. They manipulate or experience what

they learn to understand and retain information.

To accommodate, a classroom would allow the ability to move and be active.

Learning Style of African American Students• More accepting of visually presented

material• Would rather interact with others as well

as remember information more in a social context

• Not only do African American students need to see what’s going on but they also need to feel what’s going on, not in a literal sense but a psychological one (Gerow, Bordens & Blanch-Payne, 2011).

No Child Left Behind (NCLB)• NCLB was introduced to offset the achievement

gaps in test scores among ethnicities’• Also designed to help excel the endeavors of

students no matter their ethnicity and/or economic background

• Concentrates on reading skills• President Bush stated that this act was

necessary, “Because almost every other subject is dependent on children’s abilities to understand their text books and other reading materials (Finn & Hess, 2004).

No Child Left Behind (Refuted)• NCLB was created to close the achievement gap

between the majority and minority student.• National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP)

provides no evidence for the effectiveness of the federal NCLB of 2001 (Ravitch, 2009).

• Administration decided to place most of the responsibility on state agencies, school districts, principals, and teachers

• NCLB has an unrealistic demand that schools around the nation lower state standards in order to be labeled proficient.

• The purpose of the standardized test scores were to help identify achievement deprived schools and districts and place them under the watch of the government.

The Obama Education Plan• Major emphasis on early childhood education• This focus can ensure that all students will

have mastered the basic skills that will equip them with the knowledge to carry on in secondary and higher education.

• Targets students before they reach grade school

• Proposes a reform of assessment, accountability, and compensation

• Instead of punishing a school for not meeting standards, the plan would offer assistance

African American Test Scores During the past 40 years, studies have

shown that African American students have scored lower on standardized tests than Caucasian and Asian students (Lee, 2004).

20 point difference among African American, Caucasians, and Asian students in the areas of mathematics and language

Past and Present Trends (Nationally)• African Americans currently score lower than

European Americans on vocabulary, reading, and mathematics tests, scholastic aptitude and intelligence test (Jencks & Phillips, 1998).

• Nine year old African American students scored 24 points lower than Caucasian students in 2008

• In the area of mathematics, in 2008, the achievement gap was 26 points

• Has only decreased only by 9 points in 35 years

Past and Present Trends (State of Alabama) In Math, the state of Alabama ranks 49th

out of 50 states. In reading, the State of Alabama ranked

45th out of 50 states. In 2007, Alabama ranked 43rd in best

educated states .

The Importance of Third Grade• Third grade is the transition from basic learning

to advanced learning that will be used for the future.

• Multiplication and division, are the building blocks for higher caliber subjects such as algebra.

• Not reading by third grade puts children at risk of not graduating high school later (Richards, 2012).

• Less common for teachers to shepherd students through assignments

Socioeconomics Factors in the African American Community

Sociologist Dalton Conley has noted that more than half of all African American children under the age of six live in poverty.

These same students attend poorly funded public schools and produce low standardized test scores.

Socioeconomic factors influence the outlook of learning for African American students.

A lack of engagement felt by students from teachers Can cause disengagement from student Teachers may then label them lazy or unmotivated. Difficult students cause a decline in teachers and

deteriorate their motivation to teach.

METHODOLOGY

Participants• The experiment was conducted at C.J. Donald

Elementary School.• Public school in Fairfield, Alabama• 360 students total and has 13 students to 1 teacher

ratio• Most of the students come from lower socio-

economic situations.• 92 percent of students are eligible for free lunch• The experiment consisted of 30 third grade students.• All African American students tested• School chosen for the experiment because it can be

a clear representative of struggling schools that are aspiring to close the achievement gap

Instrumentation• The learning style assessment that was used is a

14 question assessment, designed by Jonelle Beatrice.

• Comes from her book Learning to Study Through Critical Thinking

• The highest number of responses are the primary mode of learning.

• The pretest and posttest were math and language booklets made by Discovery Education.

• Considered a predictive standardized assessment

Research Design & Procedure• The instructor of the given class taught the

normal lesson plan.• The first assessment was done without

exactly knowing each student’s learning style.

• Pretest scores diagnosed how effectively the first lesson was received by each student.

• After determining the students’ efficiency with the instructor’s lesson, a learning styles assessment was given.

Research Design & Procedure (cont.)• The students were grouped according to their

learning style that had been determined (visual learner, auditory learner, or kinesthetic learner).

• The second time students were taught according to their learning style.

• A second assessment was given, using the same standardized test from the first assessment.

• Data was compared to the first assessment and determine whether, there was an increase or decrease in performance before and after determining students learning styles.

Reliability and Validity• Internal validity was controlled by using the same

test during the pretest and posttest procedures.• The pre-test posttest procedures reliability was

assured by using inter-rater reliability.• The reliability of the learning styles assessment

to be use has not been established (Direct Communication, Beatrice).

• Assessment currently being used at Youngstown State University in the Center for Student Progress

• The face validity of the learning styles assessment is established by experts such as Beatrice developing the assessment.

Statistical Analysis Hypotheses 1, 2, and 3 were analyzed by

the Analysis of Variance and by the Independent Groups’ t-tests.

Hypotheses 4, 5, and 6 was analyzed by Repeated Measures t-tests.

RESULTS

Descriptive Statistics The experiment was conducted at C.J.

Donald Elementary School. Comprised of 360 students 97.1 percent African American 92 percent of students are eligible for

free lunch Experiment consisted of 30 third grade

students

Descriptive Statistics (cont.) 17 students tested to be visual learners

6 students tested to be kinesthetic learners

7 students tested to be auditory learners

Descriptive Statistics (cont.)

Mean N Standard Dev.

Pretest 19.15 17 6.48Posttest 22.19 17 7.53

Table 1. Means and Standard Deviations of Pretest and Posttest Results for Visual Learners.




Table 2. Means and Standard Deviations of Pretest and Posttest Results for Auditory Learners.




Table 3. Means and Standard Deviations of Pretest and Posttest Results for Kinesthetic Learners.

Testing of Hypotheses Hypothesis one states that there will be no

statistically significant difference between pretest and posttest scores for visual learners.

A repeated measure t-test was computed. The t-test indicates a statistically significant

difference between pretest and posttest scores for visual learners, t(16)=2.83, p<.05.

Visual learners did have significant differences between their pretest and posttest scores.

The null hypothesis is rejected.

Testing of Hypotheses (cont.)

N Mean Std. Dev.

Std. Error Mean

t df Sig.

Pretest 17 19.15 6.48 1.11 2.83 16 0.007Posttes

t 17 22.29 7.53 1.29

Table 4. Repeated Measures t-test for Pretest and Posttest Scores for Visual Learners

The t-test indicates a statistically significant difference between pretest and posttest scores for visual learners, t(16)=2.83, p<.05.

Testing of Hypotheses (cont.) Hypothesis two states that there will be no

statistically significant difference between pretest and posttest scores for auditory learners.

A repeated measure t-test was computed/ The t-test indicates no statistically significant

difference between pretest and posttest scores for auditory learners, t(6)=0.72, p>.05.

Auditory test improved only marginally. The null hypothesis is retained.


N Mean Std. Dev.

Std. Error Mean

t df Sig.

Pretest 7 18.86 5.53 1.18 0.72 6 0.480Posttes

t7 19.71 5.98 1.60

Table 5. Repeated Measures t-test for Pretest and Posttest Scores for Auditory Learners

The t-test indicates no statistically significant difference between pretest and posttest scores for auditory learners, t(6)=0.72, p>.05.

Testing of Hypotheses (cont.) Hypothesis three states that there will be no

statistically significant difference between pretest and posttest scores for kinesthetic learners.

A repeated measures t-test was computed. The t-test indicates a statistically significant

difference exists between pretest and posttest scores for kinesthetic learners, t(5)=10.66, p<.05.

Kinesthetic learners improved their performance at posttest.

The null hypothesis is rejected.


N Mean Std. Dev.

Std. Error Mean

t df Sig.

Pretest 6 16.50 4.17 1.20 10.66 5 0.0001Posttes

t6 19.75 4.20 1.21

Table 6. Repeated Measures t-test for Pretest and Posttest Scores for Kinesthetic Learners

The t-test indicates a statistically significant difference exists between pretest and posttest scores for kinesthetic learners, t(5)=10.66, p<.05.

Testing of Hypotheses (cont.) Hypothesis four states that there will be no

statistically significant difference between African American students who are visual learners and African American students who are auditory learners.

Hypothesis five states that there will be no statistically significant difference between African American students who are visual learners and African American students who are kinesthetic learners.

Hypothesis six states that there will be no statistically significant difference between African American students who are auditory learners and African American students who are kinesthetic learners.

Testing of Hypotheses (cont.) A one way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was

computed. There is no statistically significant difference

between visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learners at pretest, [F(2,27)=0.459, p=0.637].

There is no statistically significant difference between visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learners at posttest, [F(2,27)=0.539, p=0.589].

The null hypotheses were retained at pretest as well as at posttest.


Source DF SS MS F PTreatmen

t2 32.008 16.004 0.459 0.637

Error 27 942.276 34.899Total 29 974.284

Table 7. One Way Between Groups Analysis of Variance for Pretest Scores (Visual, Auditory, Kinesthetic).

There is no statistically significant difference between visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learners at pretest, [F(2,27)=0.459, p=0.637]


There is no statistically significant difference between visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learners at posttest, [F(2,27)=0.539, p=0.589].

DISCUSSION

Discussion The focus of this study was to evaluate

learning styles of third grade African American students.

Past research has shown over the years, a difference in the achievement gap amongst Caucasian and African American students.

The current study tested variables which could be used to incorporate future education initiatives that primarily involve African American students.

Discussion Hypothesis one states that there will be no significant

difference between pretest and posttest scores for visual learners.

Hypothesis one was rejected. Assessment scores were higher at posttest. This reassures that visual learners learn best by seeing . Introducing a room that is aesthetically pleasing is the

optimal situation concerning learning for a visual student. During the course of the experiment, slides, posters, and

diagrams were used during lessons after the visual learners in the class were determined.

Visual learners performed better at posttest because visual teaching techniques preferred by the students were introduced.

Discussion Hypothesis two states that there will be no significant

difference between pretest and posttest scores for auditory learners.

Hypothesis two was retained. Students did not score significantly higher at posttest

(the posttest scores did increase). Previous research shows that auditory learners

depend on hearing and speaking (Kostelnik, Soderman, & Whiren, 2004).

During the study the auditory learners read out loud and repeated what the instructor said out loud.

Differences between means for the pretest and posttest were still not significant.

Discussion Absence of significance may have occurred because of the

difficulty to provide instruction to auditory learners. Maybe the use of all auditory learning styles techniques were

not implemented Auditory learners were not able to really grasp concepts in

mathematics (mathematics was taught first during experiment).

They were not able to conceptualize what was being written on the board.

This intimidation may have been carried over to the language portion of the experiment, due to the math portion being given first.

Close attention needs to be paid to auditory learners because they may have a hard time internalizing information (Spark Box, 2012).

Discussion Hypothesis three states that there will be no significant

difference between pretest and posttest scores for kinesthetic learners.

Hypothesis three was rejected. Kinesthetic learners scored significantly higher on

assessments at posttest . Results indicated that kinesthetic learners learn most

effectively when muscular movement is involved (Gardner, 2011).

To accommodate the kinesthetic learners in the classroom, a large space was made at the front of the classroom to allow them to move, be active, and perform in front of the class.

Discussion Hypotheses four states that there will be no

significant difference between African American students who are visual learners and auditory learner.

Hypothesis five states that there will be no significant difference between African American students who are visual learners and kinesthetic learners.

Hypothesis six states that there will be no significant difference between African American students who are auditory learners and kinesthetic learners.

All three of these hypotheses were retained.

Discussion There was no statistically significant

difference between all three learning styles.

Each student’s preferred learning style was effective to his or her learning.

Each learning style has the ability to enhance learning in the classroom.

Implications for Clinical Research There are strong possibilities for all learners to have

an equal chance of learning effectively. The study showed that all three learning styles

improved test scores at posttest. Visual and kinesthetic learners improved

significantly, while auditory learners improved marginally.

All three learning styles can contribute in the classroom.

More time needs to go into the training of instructors to utilize all three learning styles.

An increase in learning capabilities could possibly increase test scores in all minority communities.

Implications for Clinical Research There was improvement in auditory learners

posttest scores, but not statistically significant. Other methods of conveying information to

auditory learners should be explored. For example, perhaps language should be

taught first to auditory learners, instead of mathematics.

Teaching language first may be easier for auditory learners to conceptualize and in turn motivate them to excel in other subject areas.

Conclusion This experiment evaluated the use of

African American students’ learning style to improve their academic achievement on standardized tests.

Sample consisted of 30 third grade African American males and females from an urban elementary school

Findings were significant for African American visual learners.

Conclusion Significant differences were found for

kinesthetic learners No significant differences were found for

auditory learners Posttest scores did increase for auditory

learners Findings support that students increased

their academic achievement when there instruction matched there learning styles preference

REFERENCES Campbell, L., Campbell, B., & Dickinson, D. (2004). Teaching and learning through

multiple intelligence. USA: Pearson Education, Inc. Finn, C, & Hess, F. (2004). Leaving no child behind? options for kids in failing

schools. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, p. 32. Gerow, J., Bordens, K., & Blanch-Payne, E. (2011). General psychology: With a

spotlight on diversity. (3 ed.). Pearson Learning Solutions Jencks, C., & Phillips, M. (1998). The black-white test score gap. The new york times.

Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/books/first/j/jencks-gap.html. Kostelnik, M.J., Soderman, A.K., Whiren, AP. (2004). Developmentally Appropriate Curriculum: Best Practices in Early Childhood Education (3rd ed.). Columbus: Pearson, Merrill Prentice Hall. Lee, J. (2004). Multiple facets of inequity in racial and ethnic achievement gaps.

Peabody Journal of Education , 51-73. Pashler, H., McDaniel, M., Rohrer, D., &Bjork, R. (2008). Learning styles: Concepts

and Evidence. Psychological science in the public interest, 9 (3), 115-119. Ravitch, D. (2009). Time to kill No Child Left Behind'. 28(36), 4-6. Spark Box. (2012). Learning types. Retrieved from http://www.sparkboxtoys.com

learning/types.

VITAJohn C. Thomas was born in Birmingham, Alabama on May 25, 1988, the son of Belinda Hill and John D. Thomas. After completing his work at Fairfield High School, he went on to Alabama A&M University where he studied Community Planning & Urban Studies and received his Bachelor of Science in May 2010. For the next three years he worked diligently in the Graduate Studies Department, while pursuing his Masters of Science degree in Psychology, finishing May 2013.

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The Relationship Between Learning Styles and Academic Outcomes defense1