A Comparative Questionnaire-based Study on Learning Styles and Studying Resources among Undergraduate Medical Students in Public and Private Universities

Background: Learning styles are circumstances beneath which learners most expeditiously and successfully understand, process, store, and recall what they are attempting to learn. The main goal of the current study was to compare different methods of study and learning style predilections amongst undergraduate MBBS students who attend public and private universities.

Methods: The current study was a descriptive cross-sectional research. Data collected were obtained through a questionnaire filled by second- and third-year students in Omdurman Islamic University - OIU (public) and University of Medical Sciences and Technology – UMST (private) using systematic random sampling. Using the SPSS version 23 software, the data were analyzed and Chi-square test was used to test the significance considering the α (alpha) level of significance as 0.05.

Results: The application of the Chi-square test showed that there is no relation between the a method of study used and the students’ grades (P = 0.333). The most preferred learning style in OIU was found to be Aural (60.0%), while in UMST it was read/write (57.9%). The most preferred source of studying used in OIU was found to be extracourses (private courses given outside the university), whereas in UMST it was found to be the teachers’ slides.

Conclusion: The most preferred learning style for public university was found to be aural while for private university it was found to read/write. This factor must be taken into consideration while teaching sessions are being conducted. Interestingly, there was no statistical association between the study methodology and students’ grades.

learning predilections, learning styles, studying methods, instructing techniques, teaching and learning

[1] ABA English. (2019). What is the difference between learn and study? [Web log post]. Retrieved from: https://blog.abaenglish.com/what-is-the-difference-betweenlearn- and-study

[2] Salah, A. T., Alameen, M. G., ElSheikh, N., et al. (2015). Type of high secondary school (governmental vs. private) and type of high secondary school certificate (Sudanese vs. Arabian): Do they affect learning style? Sudan Journal of Medical Sciences, vol. 10, no. 3.

[3] ] Evans, D and Brown, J. (2009). How to succeed at medical school (2nd ed.). Wiley-Blackwell.

[4] Almigbal, T. H. (2015). Relationship between the learning style preferences of medical students and academic achievement. Saudi Medical Journal, vol. 36, no. 3, p. 349.

[5] VARK. (n.d.). The VARK questionnaire. Retrieved from: http://vark-learn.com/the-varkquestionnaire/

[6] Khane, R. S. and Joshi, A. A. (2014). A questionnaire based survey from first year MBBS students about teaching learning methods of physiology in private medical college. Medical Science, vol. 3, no. 2.

[7] Kamil, A. I. and Kheder, S. I. (2015). Methods of instruction in the National University: Preferences, opinions, and students’ perception (2014–2015). Sudan Medical Monitor, vol. 10, no. 4, p. 117.

[8] Keefe, J. W. (Ed.). (1987). Learning style: Theory and practice. Reston, USA: National Association of Secondary School Principals.

[9] Liew, S. C., Sidhu, J., and Barua, A. (2015). The relationship between learning preferences (styles and approaches) and learning outcomes among pre-clinical undergraduate medical students. BMC Medical Education, vol. 15, no. 1, p. 44.

[10] Ojen, N., Sobers-Grannumna, N., Gauru, U., et al. (2017). Learning style preferences: A study of Pre-clinical Medical Students in Barbados. Journal of Advances in Medical Education & Professionalism, vol. 5, no. 4, p. 185.

[11] Shahrakipour, M., Arbabisarjou, A., Zare, S., et al. (2017). Learning styles in students of medical sciences. Global Journal of Health Science, vol. 9, no. 2, pp. 192–200.

[12] Rahman, S. M., Alam, T., Alam, N. N., et al. (2017). Medical undergraduates preference in learning style: A single-institute experience from Bangladesh. Kuwait Medical Journal, vol. 49, no. 1, pp. 12–16.

[13] Soundariya, K., Deepika, V., and Kalaiselvan, G. (2017). A study on the learning styles and learning approaches among medical students. National Journal of Physiology, Pharmacy and Pharmacology, vol. 7, no. 10, p. 1020.

[14] Jamani, N. A., AbdAziz, K. H., Ab Karim, H. S., et al. (2018). Learning style preferences among pre-clinical medical students in a public university in Pahang. Age, vol. 21, pp. 0–84.

[15] Joshi, A., Prabhakaran, A., Ganjiwale, J., et al. (2018). Identification of learning styles in 1st year undergraduate MBBS students of a private medical school in western India. National Journal of Physiology, Pharmacy and Pharmacology, vol. 8, no. 1, pp. 102–6.

[16] Baudains, C., Metters, E., Easton, G., et al. (2013). What educational resources are medical students using for personal study during primary care attachments? Education for Primary Care. , vol. 24, no. 5, pp. 340–345.

[17] Abdall, S. Z. (2016). Quality assurance in Sudanese higher education: Current status and challenges ahead. Journal of Total Quality Management, vol. 17, no. 1, pp. 1–18.

[18] Wynter, L., Burgess, A., Kalman, E., et al. (2019). Medical students: What educational resources are they using? BMC Medical Education, vol. 19, no. 1, p. 36.

[19] Romanov, K. and Aarnio, M. (2006). A survey of the use of electronic scientific information resources among medical and dental students. BMC Medical Education, vol. 6, no. 1, p. 28.

留言 (0)

沒有登入
gif