Much attention has focused on learning styles and their impact on the teaching and learning
process; however, little has been done to systematically incorporate learning style theory
into actual teaching, nor to systematically examine its potential impact on student learning in
higher education. As part of a Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) project, six faculty
members representing the university’s Schools of Arts and Sciences, Business, Education and
Professional Studies, and Engineering and Technology implemented the 4MAT model in their
respective classes during the fall 2007 semester. 4MAT is a teaching methodology posited
by Bernice McCarthy (1987) that is built upon the principles of learning styles and their
relationship to the natural learning cycle. Use of the 4MAT Model in K–12 settings has been
supported by research (Wilkerson & White 1988; Blair & Judah 1990). This article lends
support to using 4MAT in a higher education setting. Faculty engaged in the SoTL project at
the completion of the semester asked their students to complete a Likert scale survey comparing
their redesigned courses to comparable college courses.Ameta-analysis of these data indicated
significant findings for six out of the eight comparative statements measured.