Abstract:

Identifying the factors that influence student learning is highly important, as this understanding allows educators to effectively design and implement new teaching methodologies and assessment strategies. Student’s learning approaches, that have been recognised as deep and surface, significantly impacts the learning process. Educators often aim to promote a deep approach, as it is believed to reinforce desirable traits such as higher-order learning and lead to better learning outcomes. In contrast, a surface approach is characterized by students focusing primarily on lower-level learning, such as memorizing facts, with minimal motivation to engage with the material beyond what is necessary for assessments requirements. To elucidate the learning approaches adopted by students undertaking the Human Physiology course within the Human Nutrition and Dietetics degree program, a survey was carried out. The poll was conducted anonymously upon the completion of the course. The statements included in the survey inquired about the usefulness of the different resources in the study of the subject, including the teacher’s explanation, the supportive material provided in the virtual campus, the laboratory practices, as well as the recommended bibliography. Participants were requested to indicate their level of preference for each statement on a six-point Likert scale, with 0 indicating 'strongly disagree' and 5 representing 'strongly agree'. The student cohort involved in this study undertook the course during the 2022-23 academic year. Human Physiology is a compulsory 6 ECTS subject taught in the second semester of the first year that covers the physiological foundations of the different organ systems. The course enrolled a total of 63 students, of which 59 responded to the survey. Analysis of the responses obtained from the survey revealed a high degree of satisfaction with the instructional approach, as evidenced by the rating scores expressed as means ± standard deviations (SD) of 3.88 ± 1.02 and 3.84 ± 1.07 for the theoretical and practical classes, respectively. Regarding the utilization of bibliographic resources, only 32% of the respondents reported consulting the recommended scholarly references. The majority of the student cohort (68%) indicated a reliance on the use of their personal class notes, in addition to the ones obtained from online platforms that share class notes, such as Wuolah platform. As supplementary sources of information, students reported utilizing online search engines, encyclopaedic websites such as Wikipedia, and educational videos on platforms like YouTube, albeit with limited frequency. The findings obtained from the study suggest that the student cohort exhibits a propensity towards surface-level learning, as evidenced by their primary reliance on personal notes or online platform resources, without corroborating the information with the recommended physiology textbooks for the course. Consequently, a lack of intrinsic motivation is observed among the students, as they appear to exert minimal effort beyond the requirements necessary to pass the final assessment. In conclusion, the present study gained insight into the study habits of the students, thus allowing us to promote the implementation of innovative pedagogical approaches that foster deep learning instead of surface learning.

Keywords:

Learning approaches, deep learning, surface learning, student motivation, study habits, teaching methodologies.