Major,%20minor%20

1
Major, minor negative learning style
preferences of Greek university learners

• Angeliki Psaltou-Joycey
• Zoe Kantaridou

2
Outline

• Literature review
• Purpose
• Instrument
• Results
• Teaching suggestions

3
Literature review-1

• Moody, 1988
• Ehrman Oxford, 1989
• Reid, 1987
• Peacock, 2001

4
Literature review-2

• General comment
• Learning styles are influenced by
• Educational occupational engagements
• Culture

5

• Although culture is not the single
  determinant, and although many other influences
  intervene, culture often does play a significant
  role in the learning styles unconsciously adopted
  by many participants in the culture

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Purpose of study

• Provide general learning style profile
• Show differences among fields of study
• Suggest learning strategies

7
Participants

• Aristotle University University of Macedonia
• N1616
• Mean age 19.5 yrs old
• Fields of study
• Humanities ?Engineering
• Foreign Languages ?Sciences
• Education ?Medicine
• Economics ?Computer Science

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Styles Analysis Survey, Oxford 1995

• Use of senses during study
• visual, auditory, hands-on
• Personality/ psychological
• Relationship with others Extroverted or
  introverted
• Handling of possibilities Intuitive-random or
  Concrete-sequential
• Approach to activities Closure-oriented or open
• Cognitive
• Use of ideas Global or analytic

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Greek uni Ss learning profile
10

• Major
• natural learning method, strong learning
  preference
• Minor
• Modest but functional learning preference
• Negative
• Difficult-to-handle learning method,
  non-spontaneous

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Styles FIELDS of STUDY FIELDS of STUDY FIELDS of STUDY FIELDS of STUDY FIELDS of STUDY FIELDS of STUDY
Styles HUM/FL EDU ECON MED ENG/SC CS
Visual major major major major major major
Auditory negative negative negative negative negative negative
Hands-on negative minor minor minor minor minor
Extrovert minor minor major minor minor major
Introvert negative negative negative negative negative negative
Intuitive-Random major major major major major major
Concrete-sequential minor major minor minor minor minor
Closure-oriented major major minor major major major
Open negative minor negative negative negative negative
Global major major major major major major
Analytic negative negative negative minor negative negative
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Styles FIELDS of STUDY FIELDS of STUDY FIELDS of STUDY FIELDS of STUDY FIELDS of STUDY FIELDS of STUDY
Styles HUM/FL EDU ECON MED ENG/SC CS
Visual major major major major major major
Auditory negative negative negative negative negative negative
Hands-on negative minor minor minor minor minor
Extrovert minor minor major minor minor major
Introvert negative negative negative negative negative negative
Intuitive-Random major major major major major major
Concrete-sequential minor major minor minor minor minor
Closure-oriented major major minor major major major
Open negative minor negative negative negative negative
Global major major major major major major
Analytic negative negative negative minor negative negative
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Styles FIELDS of STUDY FIELDS of STUDY FIELDS of STUDY FIELDS of STUDY FIELDS of STUDY FIELDS of STUDY
Styles HUM/FL EDU ECON MED ENG/SC CS
Visual major major major major major major
Auditory negative negative negative negative negative negative
Hands-on negative minor minor minor minor minor
Extrovert minor minor major minor minor major
Introvert negative negative negative negative negative negative
Intuitive-Random major major major major major major
Concrete-sequential minor major minor minor minor minor
Closure-oriented major major minor major major major
Open negative minor negative negative negative negative
Global major major major major major major
Analytic negative negative negative minor negative negative
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Styles FIELDS of STUDY FIELDS of STUDY FIELDS of STUDY FIELDS of STUDY FIELDS of STUDY FIELDS of STUDY
Styles HUM/FL EDU ECON MED ENG/SC CS
Visual major major major major major major
Auditory negative negative negative negative negative negative
Hands-on negative minor minor minor minor minor
Extrovert minor minor major minor minor major
Introvert negative negative negative negative negative negative
Intuitive-Random major major major major major major
Concrete-sequential minor major minor minor minor minor
Closure-oriented major major minor major major major
Open negative minor negative negative negative negative
Global major major major major major major
Analytic negative negative negative minor negative negative
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General comment

• Most balanced learners
• Education 5 major 3 minor
• Medicine 4 major 4 minor
• Least flexible learners
• Humanities Foreign Languages,
• 4 major 2 minor

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Major/ minor Suggested strategies Suggested strategies
Visual Visual input OHTs, PowerPoint presentations, diagrams, highlighting, semantic mapping, revising Visual input OHTs, PowerPoint presentations, diagrams, highlighting, semantic mapping, revising
Extroverted Active cooperative tasks, projects, laughter/jokes, role plays Active cooperative tasks, projects, laughter/jokes, role plays
Intuitive-random Brainstorming, identifying the purpose, making guesses, using induction Independent work after clear instructions of the process purpose of the task, goal-setting, self-evaluation
Concrete-sequential Clear instructions, making plans, applying rules to new situations Independent work after clear instructions of the process purpose of the task, goal-setting, self-evaluation
Closure-oriented Goal-setting with deadlines, links to previous knowledge Goal-setting with deadlines, links to previous knowledge
Global Mind-maps, cultural knowledge, delay speech production, summarizing, guessing Frequent (re-)organizing of vocabulary, skimming Mind-maps, cultural knowledge, delay speech production, summarizing, guessing Frequent (re-)organizing of vocabulary, skimming
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Negative styles Suggested strategies
Auditory Note-taking from auditory input
Open Negotiation of tasks/ purpose Except for EDU (minor)
Analytic Scanning, recombining/ analyzing into constituents, compare/contrast Except for Medicine (minor)
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Humanities Foreign Languages
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Education
20
Economics
21
Medicine
22
Thank you

• Good Luck with your
• Visual hands-on
• Extroverted
• Intuitive-random concrete sequential
• Closure-oriented and
• Global students