Beyond One-Size-Fits-All: Mapping the VARK Learning-Style Preferences of Generation Z ESL University Learners in Sindh, Pakistan

Abstract

Generation Z learners, raised amid ubiquitous digital connectivity, are reshaping expectations of second-language pedagogy in ways traditional lecture-based English as a Second Language (ESL) instruction often fails to accommodate. This study investigates how Gen Z ESL learners at public-sector universities in Sindh, Pakistan, align with the Visual, Aural, Read/Write, and Kinesthetic (VARK) model of learning-style preference (Fleming & Mills, 1992), and explores the pedagogical implications for a multilingual, resource-constrained provincial context. Using a Creswell and Creswell (2023) explanatory sequential mixed-methods design, the study surveyed 310 undergraduate ESL students (Female n = 168; Male n = 142) with the VARK questionnaire and conducted 24 semi-structured interviews to contextualise the resulting patterns. Descriptive and inferential analysis showed that 51.6% of respondents were multimodal, with Kinesthetic (17.1%) the leading unimodal style, followed by Visual (13.5%), Aural (10.0%), and Read/Write (7.7%)*; a chi-square test revealed a significant gender association, χ²(4, N = 310) = 14.87, p = .005, Cramér's V = .22, while no significant faculty association was found, χ²(8, N = 310) = 9.42, p = .308. Codebook thematic analysis of interview transcripts, informed by Braun and Clarke's (2023) typology of thematic-analysis approaches, generated seven themes, most prominently a preference for short-form visual content, situational blending of modalities, and demand for instant feedback. The findings extend VARK theory by showing that Gen Z's digitally mediated multimodality is a patterned generational disposition rather than incidental variation, requiring ESL pedagogy in Sindh to move beyond monomodal delivery toward deliberately sequenced, technology-integrated instruction. The paper proposes an original "Digitally-Mediated Multimodal Pedagogy" (DMMP) framework and offers practical recommendations for ESL instructors, curriculum designers, and policymakers in under-resourced Pakistani higher-education settings. (*Percentages sum to 99.9% due to rounding.)