Abstract

The purpose of this study is to examine the learning styles and strategies of 15 year-old students and its relationship to academic achievement based on gender and type of school (single-gender or coeducational school). An adapted learning style inventory and learning strategies inventory were distributed to 400 fifteen year-old students from single gender and coeducational schools. A preliminary study of the achievement trend of male and female students over a six year period in critical subjects was carried out using secondary data. Based on an analysis of variance (ANOVA) and t-test, there is a significant difference in academic achievement of male and female students when compared to types of school. Using Structural Equation Modeling, the results indicate that the relationship between learning strategies and academic achievement was significant. Findings from this study adds a new dimension to explain the growing ‘gender gap’ within the Malaysian school system.