A multiple cross-cultural comparison of approaches to learning

Abstract

This study compares learning approaches of local English-speaking students and students from Asian countries studying at an Australian metropolitan university. The sample consists of students across 13 different countries. Unlike previous studies, students from Asian countries are subdivided into two categories: students from Confucian Heritage Cultures (CHC) and students from Asia-based non-Confucian Heritage Cultures (non-CHC). The rich diversity of student background enables meaningful comparison between cultural groups. There are three key findings. Firstly, CHC and non-CHC students are more likely to adopt a deep learning approach than local English-speaking (LES) students. Secondly, CHC students show a strong tendency to simultaneously adopt surface and deep approaches to learning. This tendency also exists with non-CHC students, albeit not as strongly as in as the former group. The LES students show the least tendency to adopt this mixed approach. Thirdly, memorisation appears correlated with deep learning across all three groups. The study is exploratory in nature but, if confirmed with larger samples, points to the need for further research beyond the traditional focus on CHC students on the role that memorisation and culture play in learning.

Keywords:

• student approaches to learning
• Confucian Heritage Cultures
• non-Confucian Heritage Cultures based in Asia
• local English-speaking

Notes

1. If the means of LES, CHC and non-CHC are X₁, X₂ and X₃ respectively, the mean difference for LES students becomes MD = X₁ – 1/3.

2. According to Bray (1994) one notable exception is Vietnam where Ho Chi Minh’s liberation campaign included an extensive plan for the remodelling of the curriculum so as to reflect the social reform introduced by the political revolution.