Investigating Challenges and Preferred Instructional Strategies in STEM

In this mixed-methods study, undergraduate students identified with a learning disability indicated their preferred instructional approaches to learning in college-level STEM courses. The relationships between preferred instructional strategies and learner characteristics: (a) declared major; (b) learning disability; and (c) gender were examined. Participants (n= 48) completed a survey instrument regarding their perceptions and preferences of instructional strategies in their science classes as well as their challenges to learning. An additional focus group (n=8) was conducted to further explore how these students prefer to learn in science. The participants' self-reported challenges for learning science content included: (a) difficulty in interpreting complex texts; (b) trouble remembering or recalling content; and (c) content that was not connected to real-world applications. While the challenges faced by the participants did not correlate to the participants' identified learning disability or declared major, the identified challenges differed by gender. The study participants self-reported a preference for direct instruction with hands-on experiential learning opportunities taking place outside of the traditional classroom environment. The declared major and type of learning disability appeared to have no relationship to the most preferred or least preferred instructional method.