Academic Performance in Introductory Accounting: Do Learning Styles Matter?

This study examines the impact of learning styles on academic performance using major assessment methods (examinations and assignments including multiple-choice and constructed response questions (CRQs)) in an introductory accounting course. Students' learning styles were assessed using Kolb's Learning Style Inventory Version 3.1. The results indicate that students' learning styles, after controlling for other variables, are associated with academic performance, particularly, in the final examination including both formats, multiple-choice questions and CRQs. Students who exhibit the "assimilating" learning style appear to perform better in some of the assessments than students with "diverging" or "accommodating" learning styles. The findings have implications for designing assessments to ensure that they are not biased towards particular learning styles which would improve their validity and fairness.