Learning style differences between mechanical and electrical engineering students

Recognizing students’ preferred learning styles can inform instructional design and support academic success, yet the linkage between learning-style models and teaching practice is often overlooked. In this paper, the interactions between prominent learning style models and both the cognitive and teaching styles are discussed and presented in a novel visual way. Additionally, two courses shared by Electrical Engineering (EE) and Mechanical Engineering (ME) students, and taught by two professors with contrasting teaching styles, are used to assess how instructional approaches interact with learner preferences and outcomes. This research aims to raise two research questions: 1) Should instructors adjust their teaching style based on students’ discipline? 2) Is there a correlation between students’ learning style and their choice of field of study? Four case studies are used to evaluate the impact of teaching styles on the learning of ME and EE students. Results indicate a discipline-specific pattern: EE students predominately display abstract, intuitive, and aural preferences and perform well in theory-oriented settings, whereas ME students more often exhibit concrete, sensing, and kinesthetic preferences and benefit from real-world, hands-on examples to grasp theoretical concepts. These divergent preferences may influence disciplinary orientation and have clear implications for curriculum and pedagogy. While the limited sample precludes definitive conclusions, the observed trends suggest that combining abstract exposition with applied, experiential learning could better accommodate diverse engineering learners.