Prevalent Learning Styles among Nursing and Midwifery Students and its Association with Functionality of Thinking styles and Academic Achievement a Study in Mashhad School of Nursing and Midwifery

Introduction: One of the most important factors related with student's thinking style and academic achievement is learning styles. The purpose of this study is to determine the most current learning styles among students and its association with functionality of thinking style and academic achievement in school of nursing and midwifery of Mashhad. Methods: In a descriptive cross-sectional study, 214 students of nursing and midwifery school in Mashhad University of Medical Sciences (MUMS) were selected through stratified sampling method. Data gathering tools were Kolb’s learning styles questionnaire (LSI) and functions of thinking style questionnaire and the research method was descriptive correlational. Data was analyzed using descriptive statistics (mean and standard deviation) and inferential statistics (Pearson correlation coefficient, MANOVA, and x2). Results: Learning styles of majority of students in this study were absorbent. The results of X2 test showed that there were significant differences among the prevalent learning styles of total students (p= 0/000), but there was no significant difference between the prevalent learning style of male and female students (p= 0/14). In addition, the results of MANOVA indicated that there was no significant difference in academic achievement and functions of thinking style based on the student's learning style (p= 0/36). Conclusion: Considering the fact that learning styles appropriate with academic field could lead to students’ achievement and regarding that no significant difference was observed in academic achievement and functions of thinking style based on the student's learning style, it is recommended to educational administrators to take actions about enrichment of educational settings, teaching methods, and teacher evaluation.