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CHAPTER FIVE CONCLUSION
The major findings of the present study will be summarized in section 5.1, followed by some pedagogical implications, which will be presented in section 5.2.
Finally, the limitations of the present study and suggestions for further research will be reported in section 5.3.
5.1 Summary
The present study investigates the relationship between Taiwanese senior high school EFLstudents’ English proficiency and their learning styles/ multiple intelligences. Two questionnaires and four English tests were given to 107 subjects to look into the differences in their learning styles and multiple intelligences.
Furthermore, six subjects were interviewed to confirm the statistic results. The major findings are summarized below:
It was shown that most subjects had strong motivation for learning, and preferred kinesthetic and tactile learning. Overall, their English proficiency was correlated with their motivation, peer-oriented, auditory and tactile learning. The high achievers were found to show significantly stronger motivation but weaker preferences for auditory and tactile learning styles than the low achievers.
With regard to multiple intelligences, it was found that interpersonal, musical,
and spatial intelligences were the strong intelligences for the subjects as a whole. In
addition, their English proficiency had something to do with logical-mathematical,
naturalist, musical, and spatial intelligences. On the whole, the high achievers
showed significantly higher musical intelligences but lower naturalist and
logical-mathematical intelligences. Besides, the subjects’ English proficiency was
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positively correlated with the span of their English learning, their interest in English, and their parents’ attitude.
5.2 Pedagogical Implications
Based on the findings of the present study, some implications can be offered to EFL teachers and material designers in Taiwan. First, it was found that the subjects’
English proficiency was positively correlated with their motivation but negatively correlated their tactile learning styles. Therefore, EFL teachers and material designers should manage to evoke their students’ interests in English through various ways. In addition, EFL teachers are suggested to identify the preferred learning styles of their students in the beginning of their courses so that they can use a variety of teaching strategies with their students who have different learning modes. Reid (1987) also suggested that identifying learners learning style preferences may “have wide-ranging implications in the areas of curriculum design, materials development, student orientation, and teacher training” (p.88). For the low achievers who preferred tactile learning, teachers may design activities that meet their needs, such as the making of pumpkin lanterns according to English instructions on Halloween.
Second, the subjects’ English proficiency was found to be positively correlated
with musical and spatial intelligences. The high achievers seemed to show a
stronger preference for individual learning. Thus, EFL teachers and material
designers may elaborate on a variety of practical activities for students at all levels of
achievement to join in. For example, teachers who use songs, raps, or chants or
teach words spelling against the musical backgrounds will probably find that
musically inclined students respond enthusiastically. Similarly, the extensive use of
pictures and images in English teaching may reach students who are spatially oriented.
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And the designation of individual assignments may favor students who prefer individual learning.
Third, it was also found that the subjects’ English proficiency was positively correlated with their parents’ attitude. Consequently, it is suggested that parents may encourage their children to expose themselves to English as often as possible to cultivate their interests in English, such as reading English novels, joining overseas study tours, etc.
Finally, it is important to bear in mind that no particular teaching strategy will work best for all students. Individual differences in learning styles and multiple intelligences among students offer teachers an excellent opportunity to develop innovative teaching strategies with their students. As long as teachers can shift their emphasis on learning styles and multiple intelligences from time to time, there will always be a time during the period or day when their student has his/her own most highly developed leaning styles/ multiple intelligences actively involved in learning.
5.3 Limitations of the Present Study and Suggestions for Further Research
Owing to limited resources that the researcher could access, there are some limitations of the present study deserving further investigation:
1. This study only looked into the relationship between EFL English proficiency
and learning styles/multiple intelligences of 107 first-year female students of a
senior high school. Thus, the results may no be able to apply to subjects of a
different gender or with a different educational background. It is suggested that
male students be assessed so that gender differences in learning styles/ multiple
intelligences can also be explored. In addition, a larger sample from different
campuses are necessary for us to get a better picture of the relationship between
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English proficiency and learning styles/ multiple intelligences.
2. Our subjects’ productive skills were determined only by their performances on a speaking task and a writing task
1. Such scores may not be as objective as those obtained from the GEPT, which also measures learners’ receptive skills. Future research may use a standardized test as a measure of the subjects’ English proficiency.
3. Some subscales of the revised Learning Style Inventory used in the present study, such as auditory learning style, were not satisfactory. Future researchers may revise the description about auditory learning to improve the validity of the questionnaire.
4. Another possible research topic may focus on the relationship between learning styles/ multiple intelligences and individual English skills to diagnose learning weaknesses of individual learners. Besides, students’ parents may be interviewed or given questionnaires to look into their attitudes toward English learning as well as their influences on their children’s English proficiency.
It is hoped that the present study will shed light on the issue about the relationship between English proficiency and learning styles/ multiple intelligences and inspire other researchers to carry out a follow-up study to improve EFL learners’
English proficiency.
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