Novice medical students: individual patterns in the use of learning strategies and how they change during the first academic year.
BACKGROUND
Adequate use of different learning strategies is one of the most important prerequisites of academic success. The actual use of learning strategies is the result of an interaction between individual and situational variables. Against this background we conducted a longitudinal study with first year medical students to investigate whether individuals show different patterns in their use of learning strategies and whether these patterns change during the first academic year.


METHODS
Medical students (N=175, 58% female) were surveyed three times in their first academic year regarding their use of learning strategies. A hierarchical cluster analysis (Ward) was conducted in order to identify groups of students with different patterns of learning strategies.


RESULTS
We identified four different patterns in approaches to learning among novice medical students ("easy-going", "flexible", "problematic" and "hardworking" learners). Compared to their peers, the problematic learners had the worst final school grades. In addition changes in the use of learning strategies were identified, most of them occurred during the first term.


CONCLUSIONS
Students start their academic studies with different patterns of learning strategies; the characteristics of these patterns change during the first academic year. Further research is necessary to better understand how individual and situational variables determine students' learning.
Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg, Medizinische Fakultät, Abteilung für Medizinische Psychologie und Soziologie, Freiburg, Deutschland. goetz.fabry@klinikum.uni-freiburg.de
Götz
G
Fabry
Marianne
M
Giesler
D000124:Achievement; D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D001288:Attention; D003479:Curriculum; D003625:Data Collection; D004501:Education, Medical; D005260:Female; D005858:Germany; D006801:Humans; D007206:Individuality; D033182:Intention; D007389:Internal-External Control; D007858:Learning; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D011939:Mental Recall; D009042:Motivation; D011340:Problem Solving; D013337:Students, Medical / Q000145:classification / Q000523:psychology*; D058013:Test Taking Skills; D017748:Time Management; D055815:Young Adult