title: Learning styles in otolaryngology fellowships.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Previous studies have identified a predominant learning style in trainees from different specialties, more recently in otolaryngology residents. The purpose of our study was to determine a predominant learning style within otolaryngology fellowships and to identify any differences between otolaryngology fellows and residents.
  
  
  METHODS
  We conducted a survey of otolaryngology fellows at 25 otolaryngology fellowship programs accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education.
  
  
  METHODS
  We emailed Kolb's Learning Style Index version 3.1 to 16 pediatric otolaryngology (PO) and 24 otology/neurotology (ON) fellows. This index is a widely used 12-item questionnaire. The participants answered each item in the questionnaire as it applied to their preferred learning style: accommodating, converging, diverging, or assimilating. Results were then analyzed and compared between each subspecialty and the previously reported preferred styles of otolaryngology residents.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Ten PO and 20 ON fellows completed the survey, with an overall response rate of 75%. PO and ON fellows (60% of each group) preferred a learning style that was "balanced" across all four styles. For ON fellows, 35% preferred converging and 5% preferred accommodating styles. For PO fellows, converging and accommodating styles accounted for 20% each.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  It was previously reported that 74.4% of otolaryngology residents prefer either converging or accommodating styles. We believe that the fellowship training environment calls for fellows to use more than one learning style to become proficient physicians, hence the trend toward potentially developing a balanced style when at this level.
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.
authors.forename: David A Diaz Voss
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Varela
authors.forename: Mohammad U
authors.initials: MU
authors.lastname: Malik
authors.forename: Kulsoom
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Laeeq
authors.forename: Vinciya
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Pandian
authors.forename: David J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Brown
authors.forename: Robert A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Weatherly
authors.forename: Charles W
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: Cummings
authors.forename: Nasir I
authors.initials: NI
authors.lastname: Bhatti
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002983:Clinical Competence; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004503:Education, Medical, Graduate / Q000379:methods; D004521:Educational Measurement; D005257:Fellowships and Scholarships / Q000592:standards / Q000639:trends; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007396:Internship and Residency / Q000592:standards* / Q000639:trends; D007858:Learning; D008297:Male; D010036:Otolaryngology / Q000193:education*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014481:United States