Can the learning styles of surgical residents impact their capacity to succeed in different learning environments? A case study

Abstract

Objective: Fleming developed VARK (visual, aural, read/write and kinesthetic) as an acronym to describe different learning styles. The purpose of this study is to identify the particular teaching settings that are most and least conducive to learning for visual, aural, reading/writing and kinesthetic surgical residents and attending physicians. Methods: This is a qualitative and quantitative study based on focus group data and anonymous questionnaires. Focus groups were conducted with 27 residents and attending physicians in the general surgery department. Respondents were divided into five different groups (interns, mid-years, chiefs, pre-duty hour attendings and post-duty hour attendings). During the focus groups, short questionnaires were also administered to the respondents. Results: Overall, both residents and attending physicians felt that it would be ideal to increase the time spent in certain learning environments such as the operating room and simulation lab. There was not a significant difference in responses among the five groups. In addition, the results show that the different learning styles of respondents inform the ideal amount of time they should spend in each learning environment. More specifically, kinesthetic learners feel more time should be spent in the operating room (41.5% of the time), clinic (10.9% of time) and simulation lab (7.2% of time). Conversely, they feel that less time should be spent in lecture (7.4% of time) and in group-learning settings (3.4 % of time) compared to the other three groups of learners. Conclusions: These findings can help explain why the same learner can excel in one learning environment and not in others. This research builds on the finding that different types of learners find some learning environments to be more conducive to learning than others.