Learning styles of medical students change in relation to time

Abstract

The aim of the present study was to investigate if any changes exist in the learning styles of medical students over time and in relation to different curriculum models with these learning styles. This prospective cohort study was conducted in three different medical faculties, which implement problem-based learning (PBL), hybrid, and integrated curriculum models. The study instruments were Kolb's Learning Style Inventory (LSI) and a questionnaire describing the students' demographic characteristics. Sample selection was not done, and all first-year students (n = 547) were targeted. This study was designed in two phases. In the first year, the study instruments were delivered to the target group. The next year, the same instruments were delivered again to those who had fully completed the first questionnaire (n = 525). Of these, 455 students had completed the instruments truly and constituted the study group. The majority of the students were assimilators and convergers in both the first and second years. A change in learning style was observed between 2 yr in 46.9% of the students in the integrated curriculum, in 49.3% of the students in the hybrid curriculum, and 56.4% of the students in the PBL curriculum. The least and most changes observed between the learning style groups were in assimilators and divergers, respectively. Curriculum models and other independent variables had no significant effect on the change between learning styles. The learning styles of medical students may change over time. Further followup studies in larger groups are needed to clarify this relation.

Learning styles and learning approaches: How closely are they associated with each other and do they change during medical education?

“…[16]. Kolb argued that the learning styles of individuals are not constant and may change over time [6]. The learning style of each individual is in a relatively stable structure in accordance with their personal characteristics, and displays compliance with learning status [2].…”

“…This is an ideal learning process in which the learner functions on a feeling, monitoring, thinking and doing basis, and in which he or she questions the process of learning and what is learnt [5]. Kolb describes the learning styles of the individuals according to these learning methods in four groups [6,7]:…”

Learning styles and approaches: Can reflective strategies encourage deep learning?

“…22 Learning styles are utilized in education as a tool to implement or refine teaching methods and modules. [23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30][31][32][33][34] However, a preferred learning style may not indicate students' level of understanding of the content or context. 22 There are no "good" or "bad" learning styles; rather, one learning style may suit an individual's learning context better than another.…”

“…42 Moreover, in practice, there is also research that has shown that learning styles may change from time to time due to its property of adapting to the different learning environments. 27 Thus, learning styles may be adaptive in nature moving from different learning environments. Learning styles of pharmacy students may remain stable during the formal education years; however, given the adaptive properties of this construct, learning styles of pharmacy students are therefore likely to change when students progress to practice settings where the learning environment changes from a theoretical to a clinical environment.…”

“…This is consistent with the previous research, particularly when styles have changed from early higher education to career, or as in medicine, pharmacy, or nursing, where learning environments may change from a theoretical to clinical setting ( Fig.). 27,44 Although learning styles are unique to an individual and are relatively stable during these stages, they may adapt as they progress from one stage of the developing learning process to another. This is particularly evident during the Integration stage (Fig.…”