Learning Style Preferences of Gifted Minority Students

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to compare the learning style preferences among gifted African-American, Mexican-American, and American-born Chinese middle grade students, considering gender and grade levels. The subjects were randomly selected from seven Chicago public schools, and group-administered the Learning Style Inventory. A three-way analysis of variance revealed significant ethnic, gender and grade differences among gifted African-American, Mexican-American and American-born Chinese students on several learning styles preferences. All three gifted groups were characterized by motivation, responsibility, and preferences for studying in the afternoon and bright light. A majority of the three groups also did not prefer noise, temperature (warm environment), auditory modality, structure, and authority figures. Findings of the study support and extend past research regarding the learning styles of gifted students. They render support for the provision of differentiated curricula for gifted minority students.