Jordanian baccalaureate nursing students’ perception of their learning styles

Abstract

The purpose of this descriptive study was to determine Jordanian nursing students' perception of their learning styles. All nursing students enrolled in four universities offering a baccalaureate degree in nursing at the time of the research project (n = 420) were approached. A structured self-administered questionnaire (Autonomous Learner Index) developed by the researchers was used for data collection. The questionnaire was pilot tested on a sample of nursing students who were not included in the study. The tool was reliable with an alpha coefficient of 0.89. The majority of Jordanian nursing students perceived themselves as independent learners. The vast majority of students indicated that they have a desire to learn new things, are curious to learn, and can identify their goal independently. However, a low percentage of students indicated having good study skills, ability to concentrate while studying and using their study time efficiently. The two-tailed t-test indicated no significant differences at alpha 0.05 levels between students' learning preferences and the selected demographic variables. Based on the study findings, it is suggested that nurse educators should provide positive reinforcement of students' active involvement in the learning process, which will stimulate continued self-direction. Moreover, courses on study skills, writing skills, and literature searching skills should be introduced early in nursing curricula.