Nursing Students' Preferred Learning Style

Background: Academic success depends on curriculum planning and goals- setting, choosing suitable teaching methods, considering students' learning style and the teacher and the manner in which material is presented and effective time management. Learning style is the processing of information and comprehension. If teachers present contents in a style that matches a student’s preferred learning style, academic performance and success will improve and promote. Assessing learning styles will benefit the student and the teacher as well as the educational system. If content retention improves it will result in an increase in the test scores. It is also important to determine if students, as a group, fit into a particular style or a particular cycle as they move through an educational program. Methods: The study is a descriptive analytical research. Nursing Students at Isfahan Medical Sciences University completed a questionnaire formulated to assess learning styles. Analysis of variance was used to investigate the possible relationship between learning cycle and student's grades in the curriculum (i.e. freshman, sophomore, junior, or senior). Cross tabulation was used to test for a relationship between learning style and student academic year of study in the curriculum. Results: 294 students received the Kolb LSI questionnaire. The data demonstrated that juniors preferred a converger learning style and the senior students were in the abstract conceptualization cycle of learning. There were no relationships demonstrated between other groups in the study. Conclusion: The junior and senior students appear to prefer the stage of learning involving thinking and problem analysis. When a group of students demonstrate a preference for particular learning style teachers can develop their curriculum along their learning style.