ASSESSMENT OF LEARNING STYLES AMONG UNDERGRADUATE ANDPOSTGRADUATE STUDENTS

Abstract

The present study was conducted to assess the preferred learning styles of Undergraduate (UG) and Postgraduate (PG)
students of the College of Community Science, PJTAU, Hyderabad. A VARK (Visual, Auditory, Read/Write and Kinesthetic) learning
style framework was used for the study. A structured questionnaire consist of 20 statements was developed and administered to 30
students (UG & PG) selected using purposive sampling technique. Responses were recorded on a five-point Likert scale ranging
from strongly agree to strongly disagree. The collected data was tabulated and analysed using the SPSS package. Descriptive
statistics such as frequency and percentages were discussed, while an independent t test was conducted to compare the learning
style of UG and PG students. The findings revealed that kinesthetic learning was the most preferred learning style, followed by visual
and auditory learning, whereas read/write learning was comparatively less preferred. The independent sample t test revealed no
statistically significant difference in overall VARK learning style score between UG and PG students (p > 0.05). The study concludes
that kinesthetic learning, visual and technology based instructional strategies can enhance student engagement, comprehension and
knowledge retention. Therefore, higher education institutions should adopt learner-centred teaching approaches that combine multiple
learning modalities to address diverse student preferences and improve teaching–learning outcomes.