ERIC Number: EJ969865
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2012-Jun
Pages: 8
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1043-4046
EISSN: N/A
Assessment Outcome Is Weakly Correlated with Lecture Attendance: Influence of Learning Style and Use of Alternative Materials
Horton, Dane M.; Wiederman, Steven D.; Saint, David A.
Advances in Physiology Education, v36 n2 p108-115 Jun 2012
The relation between lecture attendance and learning is surprisingly weak, and the role of learning styles in this is poorly understood. We hypothesized that 1) academic performance is related to lecture attendance and 2) learning style influences lecture attendance and, consequently, affects performance. We also speculated that the availability of alternative resources would affect this relationship. Second-year Bachelor of Science physiology students (n = 120) self-reported their lecture attendance in a block of 21 lectures (attendance not compulsory) and use of alternative resources. Overall self-reported lecture attendance was 73 [plus or minus] 2%. Female students (n = 71) attended more lectures (16.4 [plus or minus] 0.6) than male students (14.3 [plus or minus] 0.08, n = 49) and achieved a higher composite mark in all assessments (73.6% vs. 69.3%, P less than 0.02). Marks in the final exam were not statistically different between the sexes and correlated only weakly with lecture attendance (r = 0.29, n = 49, P less than 0.04 for male students; r = 0.10, n = 71, P = not significant for female students; and r =0.21, n = 120, P less than 0.02 for the whole class). Of the students who passed the exam, poor attenders (less than 11 lectures) reported significantly more use of lecture recordings (37 [plus or minus] 8%, n = 15, vs. 10 [plus or minus] 1%, n = 85, P less than 0.001). In a VARK learning style assessment (where V is visual, A is auditory, R is reading/writing, and K is kinesthetic), students were multimodal, although female students had a slightly higher average percentage of the R learning style (preferred read/write) compared with male students (28.9 [plus or minus] 0.9%, n = 63, vs. 25.3 [plus or minus] 1.3%, n = 32, P less than 0.03). Lecture attendance was not correlated with measured learning style. We concluded that lecture attendance is only weakly correlated with academic performance and is not related to learning style. The substitution of alternative materials for lecture attendance appears to have a greater role than learning style in determining academic outcomes. (Contains 2 tables and 5 figures.)
Descriptors: Cognitive Style, Academic Achievement, Physiology, Lecture Method, Correlation, Higher Education, College Science, Attendance, Outcomes of Education, Comparative Analysis, Gender Differences, Science Education
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A