HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Submit a response Alert me when this article is cited Alert me when eLetters are posted Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in ISI Web of Science Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via ISI Web of Science (1) Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Baykan, Z. Articles by Naar, M. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Baykan, Z. Articles by Naar, M.

HOW WE LEARN

Learning styles of first-year medical students attending Erciyes University in Kayseri, Turkey

Address for reprint requests and other correspondence: Z. Baykan, Faculty of Medicine, Dept. of Medical Education, Erciyes Univ., Kayseri, Turkey (e-mail: zbaykan{at}erciyes.edu.tr)

Abstract

Educational researchers postulate that every individual has a different learning style. The aim of this descriptive study was to determine the learning styles of first-year medical students using the Turkish version of the visual, auditory, read-write, kinesthetic (VARK) questionnaire. This study was performed at the Department of Medical Education of Erciyes University in February 2006. The Turkish version of the VARK questionnaire was administered to first-year medical students to determine their preferred mode of learning. According to the VARK questionnaire, students were divided into five groups (visual learners, read-write learners, auditory learners, kinesthetic learners, and multimodal learners). The unimodality preference was 36.1% and multimodality was 63.9%. Among the students who participated in the study (155 students), 23.3% were kinesthetic, 7.7% were auditory, 3.2% were visual, and 1.9% were read-write learners. Some students preferred multiple modes: bimodal (30.3%), trimodal (20.7%), and quadmodal (12.9%). The learning styles did not differ between male and female students, and no statistically significant difference was determined between the first-semester grade average points and learning styles. Knowing that our students have different preferred learning modes will help the medical instructors in our faculty develop appropriate learning approaches and explore opportunities so that they will be able to make the educational experience more productive.

Key words: visual, auditory, read-write, kinesthetic; VARK; medical education; learning modes

This article has been cited by other articles:

				J. A. Slater, H. L. Lujan, and S. E. DiCarlo Does gender influence learning style preferences of first-year medical students? Advan Physiol Educ, December 1, 2007; 31(4): 336 - 342. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]