CHAPTER 1

THE PROBLEM AND ITS BACKGROUND

Introduction
There is a presence of various learning styles in education because of individual

learning and processing styles. Learning style defines the methods followed by the students

for acquiring, processing, and retaining information; it has a great influence on the academic

outcome of the students. Thus, learning styles are fundamentally important for the teachers in

their efforts to deliver an efficient instructional approach that resonates with the natural

orientation of the learners. Some of the most evident learning styles are visual, auditory,

kinesthetic, and reading-writing style, each emphasizing a specific way through which a

person interacts with and processes information. Distinguishing between favorite learning

styles can aid educators in developing a more personalized learning environment to fit

diverse needs. Most students have different learning styles that reflect the way they absorb,

process, and store information; as such, it has a direct reflection in their performance as well

as engagement in class.

Theories of VARK-Visual, Auditory, Reading/Writing, and Kinesthetic-this describes

the preferred ways that students like to use to interact with and understand information. For

example, visual learners need pictures, diagrams, or charts to help understand the subject,

while auditory learners listen best with lectures and discussions, and kinesthetic learns best

with hands-on activities. Where reading/writing learners work best with text. In addition, self

study could be also one of the learning styles in which other students use to do. It is a method

of garnering information and after processing and retaining it without taking the help of

another individual. Such learning preferences are essential while designing an efficient

education plan that will improve the desired outcome of learning. By appreciating such

diverse learning styles, educators could pay attention to the particular needs of the students.
Despite the differentiated instruction in modern education, it still is challenging to implement

using teaching strategies appropriately based on learning styles, especially subjects that

require a need for critical thinking and understanding, such as history.

Historical literacy-the analysis, interpretation, and contextualization of historical

events is one of the most needed skills by students, but turns out to be somewhat challenging

because of the content of history being so hard to understand. History is often challenging,

therefore, students tend to disengage themselves and lacking motivation in studying the

subject. The teaching of history in learning styles could make lessons interactive, appealing,

and accessible so that better control over a subject may be developed.

Background Of The Study

Learning Styles are one of the most widely used approaches to individualized learning

and can adapt according to the need of the learners. The adaptation of Learning Styles can

make the learners more participatory. Since they are in an environment designed according to

their needs. (Alshammari et al., 2015). It is supported by the study of Dalaman et al. (2019)

demonstrated that if the teacher is aware of the preferred learning style of the students, then

this alone would guarantee a successful academic intervention in handling issues that may

arise while teaching and learning. A teacher varies teaching according to the preferred mode

of learning by his students and the type of learning material to be presented in a specific

lesson, which can be either visual, auditory, hands-on, or reading and writing. In relation to

such approaches, different learner needs may be better addressed; barriers to better

comprehension and retention of the information are eliminated.

However, learning styles offer extreme support to the instructor in the process of

learning, but there is a problem of personalization. The tutor cannot give a lesson that will be
personalized and adapted according to the needs and preferences of every student by

following the traditional methodologies (Maravanyika et al., 2017).

Generally, most people believe that individual styles of learning play a deep role in

how they will perform or acquire target learning outcomes. More than this, when the

curriculum of study is aligned with the students’ individual styles, the students learn better,

motivated, contribute to participation, and perform more academically. Use of instruction

tailored to the needs of students to help them learn will build confidence and interest in

learning. This is either solely to make students better equipped with the necessary skills and

strategies for attaining academic success or solely to produce a more inclusive and effective

environment as an end in itself.

This trend extends towards personalizing learning and differentiated instruction,

especially in a history classroom, because it makes the content relevant and accessible to

them. A practical effect of this is that there may emerge historical literacy portfolios that can

be instructional and assessment tools. Portfolios can make students demonstrate their

knowledge of the events that occurred, analyze the sources about them, and present it

creatively. This would enhance the potential of portfolios in fostering historical literacy

because it could align the portfolio tasks to suit the students’ preferred learning style. The

concept of diversity in learning is favored, but the liveliness of history and its appeal

culminate through knowledge application.

In this study, it aims on determining the chosen learning style by the grade 8 students

in World History and develop a custom-fit historical literacy portfolio based on findings.

Then the portfolio shall be assessed on content, originality, accuracy, and its appeal to the

target users to ensure that it effectively meets the standpoints of education and inspires the

interest of students. The acceptability level in the eyes of the students and educators to
determine its applicability and influence in real classroom settings should be taken into

consideration while judging the portfolio. To such an extent, aligned with the personal and

differentiated instruction trend of educational outputs, the study is eager to have a model

making historical literacy innovative and sensitive to modern learners’ needs.

Objectives:

1. Identify the preferred learning styles of grade 8 students in Historical literacy in world

History in terms of:

1.1 Visual

1.2 Auditory

1.3 Reading and writing learner

1.4 Kinesthetic

1.5 Self Study

2. Analyze how different learning style enhance the historical literacy of Grade 8

students in World History

3. Evaluate the significance of preferred learning style of Grade 8 students in enhancing

historical literacy in World History.

4. Proposed a Threads of Time: Historical Literacy Portfolio in World History

5. Determine the level of acceptability of the historical literacy portfolio I’m terms of:

5.1 Content

5.2 Originality

5.3 Accuracy

5.4 Appeal to the target user

Significance of the Study

This study will be beneficial to the following entities:

 Students – it will help students to know what their preferred learning styles that will

enhance and improve their academic performance

Teachers – this study seeks to know and understand the preferred learning styles of the

students which can help the teachers on which method to apply in teaching. The use of the

preferred learning styles of the students may develop an interactive relationship

between the students and the teachers.

Parents- it will help to tailor study method in which they can make learning more effective

and enjoyable by aligning study habits with their child’s preferred learning style.

Future researchers – The outcome of this study will help future researchers to further

explore for other aspects that would improvement strategies to support the students.

Scope and Limitation

The study aim to determine the preferred learning styles of students towards

enhancing historical literacy in World History. This will involve 140 selected Grade 8 Junior

High School students of Paaralang Sekundarya ng Lucban Integrated School at Barangay

Aliliw, Lucban Quezon.

Definition of Terms

The following terms receive both technical and operational definition to provide the

readers with a clear understanding of this study.

Accuracy – the condition or quality of being true, correct, or exact; freedom from error or

defect; precision or exactness; correctness https://www.dictionary.com/browse/accuracy

Appeal to the target user – the quality of being attractive to an audience

https://www.collinsdictionary.com/us/dictionary/english/audience-appeal

Auditory learning style – Auditory learners learn best through sound and music. The

auditory learning style involves communicating through speaking ideas rather than writing.

Operationally, Auditory learning is a style of learning in which an individual learns more

efficiently by listening. https://www.time4learning.com/learning-styles/auditory-aural.html

Content – Operationally, define as an information, ideas or material presented in a form that

includes curriculum materials, lessons and instructions

Historical Literacy – an ongoing practice of digging into history from multiple perspectives

https://www.socialstudies.com/blog/use-the-10-elements-of-historical-literacy-to-teach-

social-studies

Kinesthetic learning style – links the process of learning to physical activity. It is a learning

style during which the learner has to feel or move in order to learn more effectively. Also

referred to as ‘tactile’, ‘hands-on’, or ‘physical’ learning https://bau.edu/blog/what-is-a-

kinesthetic-learner

Learning Styles – different ways people interpret, organize and represent information.

Operationally, it is a process in which student follows to acquire, process and retain

information.

https://study.com/academy/lesson/what-are-learning-styles-types-lesson-quiz.html

Originality - the quality or state of being original

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/originality
Portfolio – a compilation of assessment and instructional tool, allowing for a comprehensive

evaluation of student’s development https://spacesedu.com/en/what-is-a-student-portfolio-

everything-you-need

Reading and Writing learner – Sometimes referred to as the second visual style, reading

and writing is a type of learning during which people prefer to read and write in order to learn

more effectively. These learners are known as read and write learners and usually learn best

by reading and writing the information down. https://bau.edu/blog/read-and-write-learners

Self Study style – Self-learning is the method of gathering, processing, and retaining

knowledge without the help of another person. Any knowledge you get outside of a formal

educational setting, such as through self-study or experience, is self-driven learning.

https://ca.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/self-learning

Visual learning style - Visual learners learn best by utilizing graphs, tables, charts, maps,

colors and diagrams. They also tend to learn holistically, instead of sequentially, or in parts.

https://www.time4learning.com/learning-styles/visual-spatial

World History – branch of history concerned with the study of historical phenomena that

transcend national, regional, or cultural boundaries or distinctions between peoples or with

the study of history from a global, comparative, or cross-cultural perspective.

https://www.britannica.com/topic/world-history
 REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE AND STUDIES

Learning Style

Learning style refers to an individual’s unique preferences or ways of receiving,

processing, and remembering new information (Fitria, 2023). Therefore, learning styles

acknowledges that each student has a specific way of learning content that may influence his

or her level of engagement and performance. For that reason, learning styles in the education

sector have always been important because only through knowing the learning styles of

students, teachers can adjust the teaching style to fit a learning style that will make lessons

meaningful and accessible to the students. The more students aligned toward a preferred

learning mode, the better they will become and thus capable of holding in understanding and

recalling material. This would be highly important for complex subjects like history, which

requires the need to both analyze and interpret information based on the type of thinking, thus

higher-order thinking skills. Teachers may make history more appealing and interesting, and

thereby more relevant to learners through learning styles. That is why teachers would be able

to promote the enhanced historical literacy and critical ability of students.

In line with this, Aisami (2015) stated that identifying students’ learning preferences

has been recognized as a crucial factor in designing effective instruction. This is since it
helps instructors tailor learning experiences because it helps understand how students

perceive, process, and retain information. When teaching styles are aligned with the preferred

learning styles of the students then relevance and access greatly increase, thereby helping to

motivate students as well as academic success. This supports the contention that the one size

fits all approach to instruction may not be suitable for all learners because each learner comes

into a classroom with a different set of preferences and strengths.

Visual

Masela and Subekti (2021) expressed that visual learners prefer to have things

underlined and highlighted because this will help them to better memorize most of the

important information in easier forms with simplification and other similar visual

arrangements. This allows the visual learner to be more engaging about the material being

read and can recall the central ideas better when the same material is presented in simple

visual ways. Using various colors helps to clarify items by making distinctions over

categories, whether it is on subjects, concepts, or themes. It orients and hence enables

reminding as color-coded notes and all associations made are visualized by visual learners.

By the introduction of these methods, maximum learning effectiveness whereby content is

met in the best possible way according to his or her abilities and preference can be realized

by the visual learner.

In the study of Bethel-Eke and Eremie (2017), state that it refers to a style of learning

whereby a student employs graphs, charts, maps, and diagrams. It is the most of the eye-body,

which emphasizes seeing, observing, and drawing. Visual learners rely mostly on images and

pictures because they think in pictures as well as understand the concepts better when

represented in this manner. This mode of learning allows a student to relate ideas easily
through graphics; therefore, it is the easier integration of information into the memory of the

student.

Lessons that can illustrate these concepts or ideas, such as mind maps, infographics,

timelines, and diagrams amongst others, would particularly interest visual learners to be

supported through visual materials. For example, if in teaching history, it is compiled with a

timeline and historical maps then the visual learners will not only understand the timeline of

the events but also where the events occurred that makes it possible and interesting to access

abstract or confusing information. Such students can also be helped through visible aids like

pictures, videos, or charts since these will help them in visualization-meaning a better

understanding of what they are reading and therefore making learning more meaningful.

It is noticed that Bihis, (2020) states that visual learners practically draw much more

marks on mind maps, presentations, tables, and drawings which are the elementary structure

of how one learns. For instance, mind maps provide an audio-visual support showing ideas

that are linked together thus making it easy for people to visualize the linkage of ideas, “how

things go with each other”. The process of breaking down a subject into a highly digestible

visual information may be assisted through using presentations and tables, as the same will

clearly help improve memory.

Drawings and other visual aids allow the visual learner to engage with material in

somewhat original ways by interpreting information and representing it through illustrations

or diagrams. They would come in pretty handy when taught subjects such as abstract ideas

and concepts, procedures, or series of operations because they enable any learner to visualize

in a structured and aesthetically pleasing way the material that they must learn. Thus, visual

tools enable visual learners to deepen their perception and create solid, memorable

associations, as a result creating more effective and meaningful learning opportunities.

Auditory

According to Oluremi, (2015). If they feel that recollection of some memory would

appeal to them, then “listening to the speech of others and repeating the word yourself can

help you remember it.” Audio learning is effective in adding more information by listening or

speaking. This learning mode enables an auditory learner to learn content interactively, either

by forming discussions, asking questions, or even through the oral emphasis of what they

have learn. They will tend to develop powerful mental associations that will help recall when

they listen to explanations, discussions, or even the repetition of information by their own

voice. For instance, they listen lectures, participate in group discussions, or use audio

recordings because it could improve their perception and retention. In this manner, the

utilization of auditory strategies within their time will help them in maximizing their strength

in processing auditory information by maximizing their ability to learn and reflect on what

they have learned.

Kinesthetic

According to Oluremi (2015) “Kinesthetic learning learners learn better through

action, which involves either being literally on the move or in an environment that will allow

for easy interaction with the subject matter. The students work best in interactive scenarios

where there is movement and hands-on practical activities including fieldwork outside the

classroom where they can freely explore and carry hands-on experiences”. This sort of

learning lets them interact with the content of learning by being in-line with their instincts

that make the process fun and efficient.

The usual kinesthetic learner would have a really hard in ordinary lecture halls where

they are actually made to sit for hours because it does not align with the desire for movement

and active participation. They learn much better through experiments, model building, or
demonstrations that involve actions with their bodies and other means of interactive learning.

Through interaction in the process of learning such as movement and actions, kinesthetic

learners can become effective at retaining and processing information as these methods are

able to play to their strength and preference for learning.

Portfolio

Mubarak (2021) continues and affirms, portfolio assessment is a process utilized in

the collection and assessing the works of individual pupils over a set time period. It

empowers the teachers to monitor changes in their pupils in terms of development of skills

and knowledge gain through several phases by collecting their work like assignments,

projects, and reflection. Portfolio assessment compiled from different evidence at any point

of time ensures giving a complete outlook of a student’s development, strength, weaknesses,

and learning achievements.

Portfolio is not merely archiving the student’s work; it is also a value tool by which

feedback and guide are given. Portfolio, in this case, helps the instructors provide students

with individual feedback so that the learners can realize what they are good at and which

areas require improvement while they are getting coached toward their academic

development. An appropriate portfolio activity creates students to become proactively

involved in the learning process through the reflection of their work as a self-assessment tool

and knowing the improvement scope of themselves.

On the other hand, Yumithasari et al. (2022) defines portfolios as the potential to

enable the students to perform research activities that are a fundamental part of learning

undertaken, being a writing-based way to assess the communication skills. Through these

research-type activities, the student is encouraged to discuss topics, gather information, and

finally to present it in an orderly manner, thus making them better at expressing ideas
themselves. This practice develops further writing ability as well as enables the ability to

communicate even the most complex ideas clearly and effectively.

Historical Literacy

Keçe (2015) emphasized the historical thinking skills of learners for teaching history

with the final goal of having superior quality historical literacy. Historical thinking is the

deconstruction of sources, multiple perspectives understanding, cause and effect

establishment, and well-supported constructions of interpretation of historical events. While

fostering such skills the teacher encourages learners to engage with history at a much

meaningful level than just memorizing mere dates and events. This shall make them think

critically and according to that, understand history in a more holistic perspective. They will

connect the past with the present using historical reasoning in real-life situations. Such skills

are very essential in making informed, analytical, and reflective learners appreciate the

complexities of the history discipline.

According to Ersoy and Öztürk, (2015) “teaching historical thinking skills is an

important step toward leading students’ perception of history away from the narrow fact-

based view.” They underlined that “the focus should be on cultivating critical and analytical

skills, which would allow them to map the relationships between historical phenomena and

their implications in the present context.”. This helps the learner appreciate not only the past

but also strengthens national identity and loyalty by compelling them to think objectively

about history and cultural heritage in their country. With historical thinking skills, it makes

the learner appreciate different perspectives, evaluate, and be an active citizen who is well-

versed on matters related to society.

 According to Baildon and Afandi (2018) historical literacy is a comprehensive and

integrated practice in teaching history in school. For example, it encompasses elements such

as structures of narratives determining historical comprehension, reasoning development, and

contextualization of events within a wider framework. Historical literacy also places value on

using abundant resources to fill out history knowledge, as it seems to be implied in the use of

textbooks and primary sources. An integrated approach allows students “to do more than

memorize facts of history; rather they engage with history in a new way, deep and reflective,

to develop historical awareness.” Historical literacy links over time and bridges across

understanding and appreciation for the breadth and complexity of historical time by

becoming conscious about how history shapes their present and future.

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