Culture and learning style's sensitive learning outcomes aid multicultural classrooms

Abstract

Past scholars have highlighted on learners' dissatisfaction with multicultural-classrooms teachings. This represents a vital concern for investigation since ample students from different cultures enrol in western higher education (HE) institutions (HEIs) despite the reported declining teaching-learning quality. This study investigates whether learners' culture (LC) and learning style (LS) affect learner expectations through learning outcomes (LOs). Instructors can improve curriculums using complimentary LS and LOs. This study confirms that national culture and LS do govern LOs; thru an interdisciplinary model assessing the effect of Hofstede's national culture and Charlesworth's learning-styles on learning outcomes. An adopted survey was distributed to undergraduates in a NY-based HEI. Data analysis, mainly confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modelling, confirmed that individualism/collectivism, power-distance national culture, and activist and pragmatic learning styles, empowers learning outcomes (i.e., learner expectations). Implications to theory and practice are also expressed.