Navigating Language Learning: A Personalized Instructional Plan for English Based on Students’ Styles and Beliefs
Karen Talledo
Discipline: Education
Abstract:
This study identified the learning styles and learning beliefs of Grade 10 students at Julian Enad Memorial National High School in their English subject for the 2024-2025 school year. It employs a convergent parallel mixed-methods design where quantitative and qualitative data were simultaneously gathered and analyzed separately. The study respondents were assessed using the VARK and BALLI research instruments for quantitative data collection, and samples were interviewed to gather qualitative data and determine the dominant learning styles and beliefs. The thematic analytical framework of Braun and Clarke was used to analyze data from the structured interviews of student participants and the FGD of English teachers. Findings revealed that students vary in learning styles and learning beliefs. Dominant learning styles are auditory, visual-spatial, and kinesthetic. The importance of learning English and challenges encountered are associated with the beliefs related to English difficulty, the Nature of Language Learning, Learning and communication Strategies, and Motivation and expectations. The study also found no significant difference in belief scores among the different learning style groups. The study's results also revealed that teachers use differentiated instruction to accommodate diverse learning styles. Factors in choosing appropriate strategies and resources depend on learners’ attributes and curricular competencies. An instructional plan was proposed to address their learning styles and beliefs revealed from this study.
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