Document Type (Journals)
Original Research
Abstract
As occupational therapy (OT) and physical therapy (PT) programs expand across the United States to address a shortage in the health workforce there is a limited understanding of the relationship between learning strategies and academic success in these professions. The purpose of this study was to explore the Learning and Study Strategies Inventory (LASSI) in relation to hybrid-online clinical neuroscience course outcomes in OT and PT students. Thirty-four students (n=14 OT; n=20 PT) self-administered the LASSI during the spring of 2019. The scales of Information Processing (r = -0.43; p<0.01), Self-Testing (r = -0.36; p<0.05), and Test Strategies (r = 0.32; p<0.05) displayed modest statistically significant relationships to final neuroscience grade and cumulative professional grade point average (r = -0.43; p<0.01), (r = -0.30; p<0.05), (r = 0.29; p<0.05), respectively. Some scales of the LASSI appeared to be modestly related to academic difficulty in this sample, however scales were not significantly related to academic achievement. Students who scored highly on the LASSI scale of Test Strategies tended to have higher course performance compared to their peers. Students who rely on certain learning strategies may be at risk for academic difficulty in hybrid-online coursework. Those who scored highly on the LASSI scales of Information Processing and Self-testing tended to have lower course performance compared to their peers. The LASSI may provide OT and PT students a better understanding of learning and study strategies that are related to academic difficulty in online learning.
Biography
Dr. Evan Pucillo, PT, DPT is an assistant professor at the University of St. Augustine and teaches evidence-informed practice in the Physical and Occupational Therapy education programs. He is the rehabilitation section editor for the Journal of Global Health Leadership and regularly serves as Team Director for short-term medical outreach with OneWorld Health.
Dr. Erica Kiernan, PT, DPT, OTR/L, MOT is an assistant professor in the Physical and Occupational Therapy education departments at the University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences where she teaches neuromuscular rehabilitation. Her current research agenda includes exercise and functional outcomes for persons with Parkinson’s Disease.
Dr. Mary Shotwell, PhD, OT/L, FAOTA is the program director for the Occupational Therapy department at the University of Saint Augustine for Health Sciences in St. Augustine, FL. She has experience in adult education and gerontology. She is an active member and fellow of the American Occupational Therapy Association.
Dr. Jacqueline Crossen-Sills, PT, PhD is the interim chair of the Institute of Physical Therapy and the Academic Program Director for the Doctor of Physical Therapy Program at the University of Saint Augustine for Health Sciences. Her areas of research include educational quality indicators, outcomes management and performance improvement.
Declaration of Interest
The authors report no declarations of interest. This research did not receive any specific grant monies from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.
Recommended Citation
Pucillo, E. M., Kiernan, E., Shotwell, M. P., & Crossen-Sills, J. (2020). Learning Strategies and Academic Difficulty in Occupational and Physical Therapy Online Education. Journal of Occupational Therapy Education, 4 (2). https://doi.org/10.26681/jote.2020.040205
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
Included in
Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research Commons, Occupational Therapy Commons, Physical Therapy Commons