Investigating Undergraduate Students’ Learning Styles and Preferences in English as a Second Language: The Case of a Public University in Ghana
Gifty Budu 
, Edward Owusu , Levina N. Abunya & Emma Sarah Eshun
Issue: Vol.6 No.5 Issue Article 3 pp. 402-413
DOI: https://doi.org/10.38159/ehass.2025653 | Published online 11th April, 2025
© 2025 The Author(s). This is an open access article under the CCBY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
This study examines selected undergraduate students’ learning styles and preferences at a public university in Ghana. These participants were Level 100 students pursuing the Bachelor of Information Technology programme. The study sought to answer three research questions: What are the students’ learning styles? What are the students’ preferred learning styles? What characteristics do students demonstrate to establish their learning styles? Thirty participants (30) were purposefully sampled from the Faculty of Computing and Information Systems of a public university in Accra, Ghana. In this study, the research instruments used for the data collection were Fleming’s questionnaire on learning styles and semi-structured interviews. The outcome of this study revealed that the participants used all the learning styles such as Visual, Auditory, Read and Write, and Kinesthetic (VARK). The most favoured learning style indicated by the questionnaire responses was Auditory. The interview responses indicated that they used different learning styles, but each participant had the most preferred learning style. The study concluded that learners should be allowed to integrate varied learning styles to improve their learning and make learning interesting and relaxed. The study will be beneficial in formulating policies (at the tertiary education level) that seek to provide different opportunities for students regarding learning styles and preferences for studying English as a second language.
Keywords: Learning Styles, Visual, Auditory, Read, Kinesthetic, Preferences
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Gifty Budu is a Communication Skills Lecturer in the Department of General Studies at the Ghana Communication Technology University, Accra. She developed the Communication Skills Course Module for the University’s Institute of Continuing and Distance Education. Currently, she is on a PhD Programme in Applied Linguistics at the Department of Applied Linguistics at the University of Education, Winneba, Ghana. She obtained her Master of Philosophy in Teaching English as a Second Language from the University of Education, Winneba, Ghana, and her Post Graduate Certificate in International Higher Education Practice from Coventry University, UK. Her research interests include Applied Linguistics, Discourse Analysis, Contact Language, and Open Distance and E-Learning. She is a member of the Linguistics Association of Ghana (LAG).
Edward Owusu (PhD) is an Associate Professor of English Language & Applied Linguistics in the Department of Communication Studies at Sunyani Technical University. Additionally, he is the Director for Grants, Research, and Development. He has about 80 publications in peer-reviewed indexed journals. His research interests are Language Studies, Literature, Sociolinguistics, Linguistics, Critical Thinking, HRM, Ethics, Language Education & Communication Skills. Professor Owusu is a Linguistics Association of Ghana (LAG) member. He is also a Visiting Associate Professor at IDL, KNUST; Christian Service University, and Regent University College of Science and Technology, where he facilitates some courses and assesses PhD, MPhil, and MA dissertations. He has attended and presented papers in several countries in Asia, Europe, and Africa. He is the Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Psychology and Behavior Studies.
Dr Levina Nyameye Abunya (PhD) is a Lecturer of Linguistics in the Department of Language and Communication Sciences at Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology. She obtained her PhD from the University of Ghana. Her research interests include descriptive linguistics with a special focus on Gaun languages, language and literacy, sociolinguistics, language teaching, and language acquisition. She is a member of the Association of Contemporary African Linguistics (ACAL) and the Linguistics Association of Ghana (LAG).
Emma Sarah Eshun (PhD) is an Associate Professor of Language Education and Applied Linguistics in the Department of Basic Education at the University of Education, Winneba, Ghana. Her research interests are Bilingual Instructional Pedagogies (i.e., L1 and L2), Language and Media Literacy of young learners, Language in Education Policy and Planning, and Literature. She also has a focus on Syntax, Cognitive Semantics, and Sociolinguistics. She has a special interest in the structure of Mfantse and other minority languages. She is also interested in general educational issues. Professor Emma Sarah Eshun is a Linguistics Association of Ghana (LAG) member. She has experience in supervising students’ educational research projects in the University for both undergraduate and post-graduate students. She is also an external thesis examiner for the University of Cape Coast and KNUST PhD and M.Phil Programmes. She has been involved in several international, national, and local education development projects and conferences.
Budu, Gifty, Edward Owusu, Levina N. Abunya and Emma Sarah Eshun. “Investigating Undergraduate Students’ Learning Styles and Preferences in English as a Second Language: The Case of a Public University in Ghana,” E-Journal of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences 6, no.5 (2025): 402-413. https://doi.org/10.38159/ehass.2025653
© 2025 The Author(s). Published and Maintained by Noyam Journals. This is an open access article under the CCBY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
