Learning Preference Differences Among Adults In Traditional and Nontraditional Baccalaureate Programs

Abstract

This study compared the learning preferences, defined as the choice of one instructional situation over another, of adult students in a nontraditional baccalaureate program with those of adults enrolled in a traditional program. The results showed a significant difference between the two groups in terms of the degree to which they preferred to structure their own learning. Adults in the nontraditional program preferred learning situations which they directed themselves, while the other group preferred those which were structured by the teacher. Both groups had a very strong preference for learning through concrete and applied tasks over those which were abstract in nature. Age and gender were not related to learning preferences. The paper recommends how administration, faculty, and students could use learning preference data for such purposes as individual program planning and the selection of teaching strategies.