Learning style preferences and their relationship to language learning strategies of Chinese college students of English as a foreign language

The study was designed to investigate the learning style preferences and strategy use of college EFL learners in China, as well as the relationship between the two aspects that underpin the business of English language learning. The present study also attempted to reveal the relationship between learning style preferences, learning strategies and effective EFL learning. The participants of this study were 186 freshmen and sophomores from four major fields, namely English, Comper Science, Engineering and Management in Tianjin University of Technology. The instrument used in this study were three questionniares aiming to reveal participants’ demographic data, their preferred learning styles and frequently used strategies. The collected data were computed and analyzed via descriptive statistics, including Pearson’s correlation and multiple regression. Results suggested that the Chinese EFL students’ preferred learning styles were visual, reflective and sensing. In terms of language learning strategy use, the results showed that Chinese students employed compensation strategy more frequently than other learning strategies. To assess the relationship between learning style preferences and learning strategies, Pearson’s correlation indicated that generally speaking, significant relationship existed between learning styles and strategies. In dimension of perceptual learning styles, visual learning had strong relationship with all six learning strategies. Moreover, the strongest relationship existed between intuition, sensing, judging learning modalities and all the six learning strategies in affective learning style dimension. In terms of cognitive learning style, field-dependent learning was the only mode which did not had significant relationship with all the six learning strategies. The result of the stepwise multiple regression specified metacognitive learinng strategy was the only significant variable to predict Chinese college EFL learners’ English achievement. This study contributes to provide a picture of the application in the relationship of Chinese college EFL students’ learning style preferences, learning strategies, and effective EFL learning. It may also provide some pedagogical implication to the EFL teachers who are aiming to promote Chinese college students’ English academic achievement