Arab World English Journal (AWEJ) Vol.6. No.4 December 2015 Pp. 432-448
Learning Styles-based Curriculum in EFL Class for Senior High
School Students
Udin Kamiluddin
Institut Agama Islam Negeri “Syekh Nurjati” Cirebon
Jawa Barat-Indonesia
Abstract:
This study discusses the importance of applying a model of curriculum based on students’ learning styles in teaching English at Senior High School. A wide range of studies on learning styles that show positive results stretching from elementary to higher education has been increasing from time to time. Educators start to understand the significance of identifying the learning style preferences of the students then applying them into practical teaching-learning process. In this study an investigation was made to diagnose the learning style preferences of 210 students and four EFL teachers in learning English through the use of Willing’s questionnaire on “How do you learn best”. The subjects included students of grades XI A to XI H and four EFL teachers. Results show that most students in each of the six classes preferred to be teacher-oriented (dependent learner) and most students in each of the other two classes preferred to be communicative learners. The fact is that the results seem to indicate a common phenomenon across the years. This may be a significant indicator for future direction in curriculum development in general and task design in particular for the EFL students in this study or in similar learning contexts as those in this study. Suggestions are given with regard to how the students’ learning style preferences can help teachers to design instructional activities. Pedagogical implications are also discussed.
Key words: analytical learner, communicative learner, concrete learner, curriculum, learning style, teacher-oriented learner