Exploring the Preferred Learning Styles among first and final year MBBS students using VARK Inventory at Fauji Foundation Hospital Rawalpindi

Abstract

Introduction:'Learning style' is defined as an individual's preference in obtaining and understanding information. Students use different learning styles in acquisition of knowledge, skills and attitude. Objective:To determine the learning styles of preclinical and clinical students belonging to 1st and final year MBBS using the VARK questionnaire; to compare learning styles of 1st and final year medical students. Methods:A cross-sectional study was conducted to collect data about the learning style preferences of 1st and final year MBBS students of Foundation University Medical College. The VARK questionnaire was used to categorize the learning styles as Visual (V), Auditory (A), Read and Write (R) and Kinesthetic (K). This study was conducted from 15 July to 15 August 2021. A convenience sampling technique was used for data collection. A total of 249 students responded to the questionnaire. Results: Among 249 students, 141 were 1st-year students and 108 were final-year students. The most common learning style reported was Kinesthetic (34%), then Auditory (29%), then Visual (20%), and finally, Read/Write (17%). The majority of students (95.6%) preferred quad modal sensory modality for learning followed by trimodal (4%), unimodal (0.4%), and bimodal (0%) preferences.There was a significant difference in the mean scores of visual and auditory learning styles (overall mean of visual scores was 5.42 ± 2.9 and mean of auditory scores was 6.58 ± 2.9 ) between the students of 1st and final year. Conclusion: Majority of the students enlisted in this study had a quad modal learning preference. The most common reported learning style of all the students was Kinesthetic (K), followed by Auditory (A), then Visual (V), and then, Read/Write (R). KEYWORDS: Learning styles, VARK, Visual, Aural, Read/Write, Kinesthetic, Modal, Medical Students.