A STUDY OF THE EFFECTS ON LEARNERS LE 1 R M '

MATCHING? TEEL. ELLE LTELEs LE STUDENTS ALL:

RESTRUCTORS EN NURSLRG EQULATIGN

Thesis ALL the Degree LL PA. Di, .
TELCHLGAN STATE UN‘NERSN‘Y
LINESTAL ATARLE LANCE
1972' ‘

 

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thesis entitled
A STUDY OF THE EFFECTS ON LEARNING OF MATCHING

THE COGNITIVE STYLES OF STUDENTS AND INSTRUCTORS IN

NURSING EDUCATION presented by

Crystal Marie Lange

has been accepted towards fulfillment
of the requirements for

PHD degree in Education

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ABSTRACT

A STUDY OF THE EFFECTS ON LEARNING OF
MATCHING THE COGNITIVE STYLES OF STUDENTS AND
INSTRUCTORS IN NURSING EDUCATION

BY

Crystal Marie Lange

Purpose
The purpose of this study was to identify the effects

on learning of matching student's cognitive styles and pre-
ferred teaching style with instructor's cognitive style
and teaching style. The cognitive style of 255 nursing
students and the cognitive style of 33 nursing faculty was
determined. The teaching style of faculty was identified
and each student indicated a preferred teaching style. A
model was developed as a potential mathematical method for
matching the cognitive style of teacher and student. Stu-
dents were assigned to faculty on the basis of matching
cognitive style factors. Achievement and reactions of
matched students was compared with the achievement and

reactions of non-matched students.

Summary
Students in this study included all the men and women

Crystal Marie Lange

enrolled in the second nursing course during the winter
semester, 1972 at Delta College, University Center, Michi-
gan. Faculty for the study included all the full time and
part time faculty who were teaching students in the clinical
laboratory for the second nursing course. The measures

used in this study included: 1) cognitive style testing,

2) identification of teaching style, 3) faculty interviews,
4) test scores and final course grades, 5) student evalua-
tions of the faculty, and 6) teacher rating scales of
cognitive style.

A statistical hypothesis was formulated and nine
"hypotheses generating" questions. The hypothesis this
study tested was: When students' cognitive style and
preferred teaching style is matched with the instructor's
cognitive style and teaching style, the frequency of failure-
withdrawal in that course will not be less than the failure-
withdrawal rate for non-matched students. The Kolmogorov—
Smirnov statistical test was used to test this hypothesis
for significance at the alpha level of .05 with appropriate
degrees of freedom. The t-test for significance of differ-
ence between means, and the Pearson r correlation co-
efficient were used to test additional data collected to

answer the nine "hypotheses generating" questions.

Conclusions

 

The analysis of the data supports the following con-

clusions:

Crystal Marie Lange

1. When the cognitive style and preferred teaching
style of students is matched with the cognitive style and
teaching style of faculty the failure-withdrawal rate is
not significantly different when compared to the baseline
data.

2. When the cognitive style and preferred teaching
style of students is matched with the cognitive style and
teaching style of faculty, the failure-withdrawal rate of
one matched group was significantly different from the
non-matched group.

In the process of testing the research hypothesis,
nine additional hypotheses emerged which were stated in
the form of questions for further study. The data examined
in this study supports the following tentative conclusions
in anticipation of further investigation:

1. Matched students do, to a significant degree, per-
ceive their instructor more positively than do the non-
matched students.

2. Matched students do achieve higher mean scores in
final course grades than do the non-matched students. The
group of students in Group I, where the investigator was
the faculty team leader, consistently achieved at a sig-
nificantly higher level than Group II.

3. Students who were assigned an instructional mode
based on their cognitive style achieved at a level close to

their prior achievement on similar types of learning. One

Crystal Marie Lange

group, the small discussion group, did show an increase
over prior mean scores.

h. Students reacted favorably to the assignment of
an instructional mode based on their cognitive style.
Students viewed the experience as a welcome change and
would prefer to have a choice among instructional modes
for each lesson. They viewed the lesson as taking less
time to learn and more enjoyable.

5. Faculty perceive the matching of student's cogni-
tive style with the instructor's cognitive style as a
valuable tool. Cognitive style matching was perceived by
70% of the faculty (10) to be a helpful tool in the teaching-
learning process. The continuation of cognitive style
matching was recommended by 62% of the faculty (8). An
additional benefit cited by the faculty was the improved
communication among the faculty and an increased tolerance
for behaviors which might ordinarily be more criticized
than understood.

6. The greater the number of cognitive style elements
a student has, the greater is the possibility of passing in
the nursing courses. An analysis of the elements absent from
the cognitive style maps indicated students who achieved
"A" grades had the least number of missing elements. Stu-
dents who have reading level below 4.0 failed in the first
nursing course, although students with higher reading level
also failed. Evidence relative to predicting success in

the nursing course is inconclusive at this time.

Crystal Marie Lange

7. Student's cognitive style maps do change, based on
the findings of the numerical analysis of the cognitive
style maps for students who had two "testings." It was not
possible to predict the direction of the changes or aug-
mentations although there were more changes in the direc-

tion of the instructor's cognitive style.

A STUDY OF THE EFFECTS ON LEARNING OF
MATCHING THE COGNITIVE STYLES OF STUDENTS AND
INSTRUCTORS IN NURSING EDUCATION

By

Crystal Marie Lange

A THESIS

Submitted to
Michigan State University
In partial fulfillment of the requirements
for the degree of

DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY

Department of Instructional Development and Technology

1972

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

An undertaking, such as the doctoral program, really
involves many people who help to make it happen. The
dissertation is the final evidence, perhaps more tangible
than the inspirational sources that nurtured its develop-
ment and final birth.

The students at Delta College in the nursing program
have been the reason for and the answers to this study.
Although they may feel nameless, each one has made an
important contribution to this study. I appreciate
their honest assistance and open contributions. HOpe-
fully, the improved teaching-learning of future students
will make it all worthwhile.

The faculty members in the nursing program have con—
tributed in meaningful ways. They have challenged, asked
questions, supported, resisted, and behaved in most of the
usual human ways that consistently provide the necessary
positive and negative feedback to keep any investigator
honest. I truly appreciate their valuable contributions
and personal encouragement.

From my committee I have received precisely the appro—
priate combinations of encouragement, questioning and

support. Dr. Joseph E. Hill has provided the knowledge,

11

experience, and enthusiasm relative to the Educational
Sciences. Dr. Isabelle Payne shared her knowledge and
experience related to nursing education. The value of
disciplined research techniques has consistently been
emphasized by Dr. Donald Olmstead. My committee chairman,
Dr. Charles F. Schuller, has been consistently predictable
in his support, assistance and encouragement.

From the outset of this venture, my husband, Elmer,
has made educational pursuit possible through his encourage-
ment and help. Our seven children have each contributed to
the ultimate completion of this task. Our daughter, Helen,
spent many hours typing the original manuscript. I am
grateful to each one of them and appreciate their faith

and support in helping me complete the program.

111

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS . . . . . 11

LIST OF TABLES . . . . . . . V

LIST OF FIGURES. . . . . . . . V1

LIST OF APPENDICES . . . . Vii
Chapter

I. THE PROBLEM . . . . . . . 1

Need. 0 O O O O O O O O O O C O O C O 1

Purpose . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Hypothesis. . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Theory. 0 C O O O O O O O O O O O O 13

Definition of Terms . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Overview. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

II. REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE . . . . . . . . 31

III. DESIGN OF THE STUDY . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

sample. 0 O O O O O O 0 O O O O O O O O O O 56

Measures. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58

De81gn. O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O 76

Testable Hypothesis . . . . . . . . . . . . 86

Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88

IV. ANALYSIS OF DATA. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89

AnalySiS. O O O O O C O O O O C O O O O O 89

summary 0 O O O O O O O O O O C O O O O O O 115

V. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS . . . . . . . . . 116

summary 0 O C O O O O O O O O O O O O O O 116

Discussion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122

Recommendation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122

BIBLIOGRAPHY O O O O O O O C O O O O O O O O O O O O 127

LIST OF APPENDICES O O O O O O O O O O O O O C 133

iv

Table

1.

LIST OF TABLES

Final Grades of Students in the Second
Nursing Course Compared to Baseline
Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Comparison of Final Grades of Matched and
Non-Matched Students in the Second Nursing
Course . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Comparison of Students' Perception of
Instructor in Matched and Non—matched
Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Statistical Comparison of Students' Per-
ception of Instructor in Matched and Non-
matched Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Comparison of Mean Final Scores of Matched
and Non-matched Groups in the Second
Nur81ng course 0 O O O O O O O O O O O O O 0

Comparison of Prior Mean Scores with Current
Mean Scores for Groups Assigned Different
Instructional Modes According to Cognitive
Style . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Comparison of Mean Scores among Groups
Assigned Different Instructional Modes . . .

Faculty Reaction to Cognitive Style Matching

Page

89

91

93

94

96

99

101

106

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure
1. Rate of Pass, Fail & Withdrawal
in First Two Nursing Courses at
Delta COllege 1966-1970 0 o o o o o o o o
2. Continuum of Symbolic Conditions . . .

3. Research Design . . . . . . . . . . .

vi

Page

50
78

LIST OF APPENDICES

Appendix

A.

Identification of Teaching Style. . . . . .
Faculty Form . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Student Form . . . . . . . . .
Summary of Teaching Styles . . . . . .

Teacher's Rating Scale: Students of
Nursing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Nursing Student Survey Form . . . . . . .
Nursing Faculty Survey Form . . . . . . .

Summary of Selected Reasons for Section
Transfer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Treatment Lesson Quiz and Student
Reaction Form. . . . . . . . . . . . .

Baseline Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Summary of Increases and Decreases in
Cognitive Style Elements Comparing
Two Testings . . . . . . . . . . . .

Elements Absent from the Cognitive Style
of Passing and Failing Nursing Students.

Summary of Changes in Cognitive Style
According to Instructor Matching for
Two Testings . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Summary of Reading Levels . . . . . . . . .

Elements Missing in COgnitive Style
According to Final Course Grades
in NurSing o o o o o o o o o o o o o o 0

Changes in Student's Cognitive Style
Maps in Relation to Last Instructor. . .

vii

Page

13“

135
136

137

138
150
159

162

164

169

I71

173

175
178

180

182

CHAPTER I

THE PROBLEM

333g
In a nation that speaks of inalienable rights, the
right to learn must be paramount, asserts John Goodlad,
yet it has been denied because of habitual adherence to
many unproductive teaching concepts and practices.
Goodlad further claims the failures of our schools are
apparent in dropout rates, in barely minimal learning
on the part of many who do remain in school, and in
increasing alienation among the young of all colors and
classes. At the root of the problem is an implicit de-
nial of diversity or individuality. Learners are molded,
directed and Judged according to a narrow conception of
what is right and appropriate. Energy and talent is
channeled through a network of expectations, rules, grades,
required subjects and rewards for apprOpriate behavior and
subtle extinction of a range of talents and achievements
considered inconsequential.1

Academic ability of students is one of the best re-

searched areas in higher education according to Cross, yet

 

1John I. Goodlad, "Learning into the Twenty-First
Centur ," The Report of the President, 1970 White House
Conference on Children, The Superintendent of Documents,
U. 8. Government Printing Office, Washington, D. C. 2OAO2,
p. 1.

1

part of the challenge for the community college is dealing
with a new kind of student for whom traditional measures
of ability may not be appropriate. Now that education is
changing to meet the needs of new students, testing pro-
grams must change to meet the needs of new educational
programs.2

Numerous innovative practices are described by
Torkelson to be used in the learning process. Students
are able to use a wide assortment of technologies in order
to "get" the content of a particular lesson. A student
may use a motion picture film, slides, audio tape record-
ing, printed materials or manipulate actual objects as
directed by the instructor for a particular sequence of
learning. Some instruction allows the student to select
his own time for learning and spend the time he determines
is needed to achieve specified objectives. A computer is
able to present learning materials to students and keep
a continuous record of the individual student's progress.
Television cameras may record the student's activities and
allow him to see himself perform and to evaluate his own
activities. Students meet in large groups, small groups,

clinical laboratories, and in individualized audio-tutorial

 

2K. Patricia Cross, The Junior College Student:
A Research Description, Educational Testing Service,
Princeton, New Jersey 08540, 1968, p. 13.

 

3

settings in order to meet prescribed learning objectives.3

The described innovations have been adopted more in
some fields of study than in others. In higher education,
a number of institutions have conducted investigations to
determine the relative effectiveness of specific mediated
approaches to learning as compared with traditional approach-
es. Across the United States, technological innovations
have met with considerable acceptance as evidenced by the
development of learning resource centers and expanded use
of media materials in higher education. Nursing education,
as a part of the higher education system, has also been
involved in the use of the newer technologies to extend the
teaching skills of faculties to larger numbers of students.
A brief survey of the listing of special project grants
awarded for nursing education indicates almost every juris-
diction of the United States has some type of grant for the
stated purpose of developing, using, and/or evaluating a
technological innovation. A sampling of project titles
includes, "Development of Multimedia Materials and Methods
for Programmed Learning in Nursing," "Laboratory for Inde-
pendent Nursing Knowledge - LINK," "A Strategy Emphasizing
Self-Instruction Through Educational Technology," and

 

3Gerald M. Torkelson, "Technology: New Goals for
Individualization," Educational Leadership, Vol. 29, No. 4,
January 1972, p. 315-318.

"Utilization of Television for the Improvement of
Instruction in Basic Skills in Nursing on a Statewide
Basis in Florida."4

The relative ability of the newer technologies to
retain nursing students in the program to successful
completion and graduation has not been clearly identi-
fied. When the number of entering students are com-
pared to the numbers of graduating students for that
same class, the loss of students between entry and
graduation is considerable.

Each year the National League for Nursing conducts
a survey of admissions, enrollments, and graduations
for all state-approved programs in nursing in each juris-
diction of the United States.5 Response rates to the
survey are reported as 100 percent in all basic nursing
programs. In examining the figures for admissions and
graduations from programs in institutions of higher educa-
tion (baccalaureate degree and associate degree), approxi-

mately 50 percent of the admitted students are graduated.6

 

“Special Project Grants Awarded for Improvement in
Nurse Training, July 1970, U. S. Department of Health,
Education, and Welfare, Public Health Service - National
Institutes of Health, Bureau of Health Professions Education
and Manpower Training, Division of Nursing, Bethesda,_Mary-
land 20014, p. 1-66.

 

5"Education Preparation for Nursing -- 1970:" EEEEIEE
Outlook, September 1971, p. 604.

6Ibid.

The student who enters but does not complete the
nursing program often represents a large investment of
institutional and student energies, time, and money.
Winther and Potter carried out a longitudinal study of a
beginning freshman class (nursing students) at the Uni-
versity of New Mexico in Albuquerque, New Mexico.7 They
report more than half of the nursing students attending
the University of New Mexico drop out and the proportion
has not significantly changed over 15 years. Their study
supports the loss of nearly 50 percent before graduation
as reported by the National League for Nursing.

According to a recent report from Laney College in
Oakland, California, the dropout rate is one of the most
devastating problems facing community colleges.8 Another
community college nursing program in North Carolina also
reports, "The faculty has worked hard during the past two
years and has done a tremendous job in developing their
ideas into effective media for student learning. Students
have responded positively to the system and the majority of
them feel it is the only way to learn. Achievement Tests

 

7Sven F. Winther and E. Bruce Potter, The DropOut,
A Longitudinal Study of Beginning Freshman Class of I963.
University College and Counseling Center, University of
New Mexico, Albuquerque, New Mexico, December 1970.

8"Laney College, Oakland, California," Jottings from
the League for Innovation in the Community College, Number

11, May 31, 1972, p. 5.

and State Board Test Scores support the system as being
more effective than our previous methods. However, we
have not significantly reduced our attrition rate."9
A similar problem exists at Delta College, University
Center, Michigan, where this investigator has been teaching
nursing students for the past several years. A three-year
project was undertaken to develop and use audiovisual
materials in order to achieve the project objectives:
1) release the instructor for individual student teaching
in the patient care facility, 2) utilize faculty in teaching
greater numbers of students, without loss of instructional
quality, 3) permit the student to proceed at his own speed
to develop the competencies in nursing, and 4) facilitate
the use of the materials developed on a local, regional,
and/or national basis, in institutions conducting nursing
education programs.10
The project goals have been achieved and the developed
film materials have a national and international distribution
to date, but the number of students who are unsuccessful or
drop out continues to be relatively constant and is of major

concern to students, faculty, and administration.

 

9Personal letter from the Chairman, Department of
Nursing, Central Piedmont Community College, Charlotte,
North Carolina, June 23, 1971.

10Luis E. Folgueras, The Use of the Auto-Tutorial
Laboratory and the Mobile Tutorial Unit in Teaching Nursing
Techniques. Delta Cbllege, University Center, Michigan, 1969,

p. 50

 

1 l. I III I '1 II I
ll ll! 1,, ‘I‘ I I'll I Ill] 0

A survey of the nursing course grades earned by
students over a five-year period indicates that at the
end of the second course the mean failure-withdrawal rate
is 36 percent. 0f the students entering the first nursing
course, approximately 64 percent successfully complete the
second nursing course, and two additional courses are re-
quired for graduation. Usually the major losses are in
the first two courses, but by graduation time the Delta
program often meets the national figure of approximately
50 percent attrition. An examination of Figure 1 indicates
well over the 50 percent mark with 57 percent failed or
withdrew in 1966. The group entering in 1967 were the
first class to use mediated materials under experimental
conditions with the advantage of additional faculty funded
under project provisions. There is a decrease in the failure-
withdrawal rate with the class of 1967 to 22 percent followed
by a leveling off of at 29 to 34 percent in the next three
years in spite of more than triple increase in enrollment.

While the Delta College nursing faculty believe the
use of mediated learning approaches is effective, they would
like to decrease the failure-withdrawal rate of students
from the nursing courses. In the search for possible solu—
tions to the failure—withdrawal situation in the nursing
education program at Delta College, this investigator explored
the techniques in use at Oakland Community College. Con-
siderable improvement in student performance had been demon-

strated through a system of matching the learning styles

 

 

 

 

 

 

80

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

YEAR PERCENT 1o 20 30 no 50 60 7o
1966 PASS [(N=35) 93% J
N=62 FAIL or p ,
WITHDRAw[;gN-27157%I J
1967 PASS ETN=60) 73% 1
N=77 FAIL or 9 .
WITHDRAW [LN-171jgggf]
1968 PASS lp1N=1391tam i
N=220 FAIL or .3
WITHDRAW| (N=81)3Z% _‘J
1969 PASS F1N=112271%
N=158 FAIL or 1
WITHDRAW|;(N=46) 29% j _
1970 PASS r (AI-13516616 i
N=204 FAIL or __
WITHDRAW [IN-69) 39%”‘ j
FIVE PASS L, 69%‘ _j
YEAR
MEAN FAIL or

 

WITHDRAW I 36% I

 

Figure l.--Rate of Pass, Fail & Withdrawal
in First Two Nursing Courses at
Delta College 1966 - 1970.

* Data from Final Course Grade Sheets

 

Iii 1| (.‘l Ill All

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III ‘1 111

[II
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of students with appropriate instructors and learning
experiences. The system appeared to provide a degree of
potential for use in the nursing education setting. If
the techniques of matching learning styles and teaching
styles had proven effective for students at Oakland
Community College, Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, perhaps

a similar approach in nursing education would produce
positive results.

At Oakland Community College each incoming student
participates in a diagnostic program designed to measure
his ability to derive meaning from quantitative symbols
(sensory and code data). He will walk a line, assemble
shapes, match patterns, taste chocolate and sniff odors
as part of the diagnostic program. He will also undertake
a battery of written tests to determine his ability to
handle theoretical symbols (words and numbers). The out-
come of the diagnostic tests are translated into elements of
the individual's cognitive map, a picture of the ways in
which he derives meaning from his environment and experiences.
An orientation program explains the cognitive map and pro-
vides students with insight regarding their abilities and
limitations. The orientation program concentrates on the
implications of cognitive styles for achievement of educa-

tional tasks and selection of specific vocational pursuits.11

 

11E1uepr1nt for Personalized Education, Oakland
Community College, 2480 Opdyke Road, Bloomfield Hills,
Michigan 48013, p. 2.

10

An in-service training program at Oakland Community
College is provided to assist faculty in translating
knowledge of the cognitive styles of students into person-
alized educational programs. The diagnostic testing of
the faculty's cognitive and teaching styles furnishes
self-knowledge needed to the construction of positive
relationships with students. An attempt is made to match
the cognitive styles of students with that of faculty
members.12

Oakland Community College asserts that the full bene-
fits of using cognitive style can be achieved when educa-
tional programs are restructured to use different combina-
tions of methods and media based on a knowledge of students'
needs and abilities as indicated by his cognitive map.
Course educational objectives remain constant, but the
route to their achievement is varied through individualized
learning sequences developed jointly by the student and
instructor. A computer is available to help match the cog-
nitive style of the student to the appropriate instructional
mode.13

Large informal learning areas called Carrel Arcades
are available with a variety of learning activities (e.g.,

viewing of video tape recordings, listening to audio tape

 

4 12"Blueprint for Personalized Education," 0 . Cit.:
p. .

131b1d., p. A.

11

recordings, participating in small group seminars and
tutoring sessions). Paraprofessionals provide supportive
services in the Carrel Arcades.14

Individualized programed learning labs at Oakland
Community College provide personalized prescriptions for
improvement of academic deficiencies (reading, math,
listening, and others). Programed materials are selected
on the basis of the student's reading level and his cog-
nitive style. The materials are constructed in stages of
increasing difficulty and rapid feedback of learning achieve-
ment is provided. A wide range of materials are used in
conjunction with the programed materials such as three
dimensional models, film strips, reading machines, portable
tachistos00pes, and Language Masters. Students receive
guidance from faculty members specially trained in indivi-
dualized instructional techniques.15

From the integration of these specifications has
evolved a program that maximizes the successful achievement
of educational goals for students as indicated by a lowered
failure rate at Oakland Community College to less than 10
percent as compared with the national failure rate estimated
by the American Association of Junior Colleges to be in

16

excess of 50 percent. At Oakland Community College,

 

1“Ibid., p. 4.
15

16Ibid., p. 5.

Ibid., p. 5.

12

Varone and Wells reported a Summer Science Institute which
began with 32 students (from nine public high schools and
one parochial school) and ended seven weeks later with 30
students receiving certificates of successful completion.
The students and faculty followed the described design with
the use of cognitive style maps and specifically prescribed
learning experiences.17

In considering the urgent need to decrease the failure-
withdrawal rate of nursing students at Delta College and
the potential of the techniques developed at Oakland Com—
munity College, the purpose of this study has become

apparent.

Purpose
The purpose of this study is to identify possible

impacts on student success of matching students' cognitive
styles and preferred teaching style with instructor's cog-
nitive style and teaching style. The cognitive style of
selected nursing students and the cognitive style of se-
lected nursing faculty will be determined. The teaching
style of faculty will be identified and each student will
indicate a preferred teaching style. A model will be de-
veloped as a potential mathematical method for matching the

 

17Memorandum to Mr. S. J. Manilla, Provost, Oakland
Community College from A. Varone and R. Wells, Department
of Physical Science, regarding Summer Science Institute,
dated October 11, 1971.

Ill! .
Il‘ll.“l . (‘1

13

cognitive style of student and teacher. Selected students
will be assigned to selected faculty by matching cognitive
style factors. Achievement of matched students will be
evaluated and compared with non-matched students. The
reactions of students and faculty to cognitive style

matching will be recorded.

Hypothesis

 

The hypothesis to be tested in this study: Students
in the associate degree nursing program at Delta College
have decreased withdrawal* and/or failure rate in a nursing
course when student's cognitive style and preferred teach-
ing style are matched with instructor's cognitive style
and teaching style. A

In the process of testing the research hypothesis it
is proposed that additional hypotheses will emerge to be
stated in the form of questions for further investigation.
The answers to the "hypotheses questions" will provide
direction regarding the potential use of cognitive style

in the teaching-learning process.

Theory
Cognitive style maps are derived from multiple inputs

as described in the diagnostic procedures at Oakland
Community College. The development of cognitive style
*Analysis of the reasons for withdrawal indicate over 97%

of the withdrawals are for academic failure and less than
3% are for personal reasons.

14

is described as one of the seven educational sciences
which has been developed and investigated by scholars at
the Institute for Educational Sciences at Wayne State ,
University and the American Educational Sciences Associa-
tion at Oakland Community College. Joseph E. Hill has
been one of the major prOponents of the construction or
makeup of cognitive style. The reliability and validity
of cognitive style has been researched by several (Ecker,
1962; Saunders, 1963; Morshead, 1963; Rankin, 1964; Dehnke,
1966; Wyette, 1967; Zussman, 1968; Robinson, 1969). Recent
studies have been designed to identify the uses of cogni-
tive style as a tool for understanding selected educational
phenomena. Wasser has demonstrated the significant role
of cognitive style similarity (teachers and student) in the
evaluation (marking) process.18
Learners seek meaning in multiple and unique ways states
Wasser. Each individual has his own "style" for making sense
out of his world and finding answers to the question,"What
is going on and why?" The process by which individuals de-
velop knowledge and understanding is a study for the applied
field of education. The educational science of cognitive

style approaches individual methods of meaning-seeking

 

18Joseph F. DeLoach, "Cognitive Styles and Cognitive
Dissonance,‘ Oakland Community College Press, 1971.

 

15

behavior in a manner that permits educators to communicate
specifics about each student's search for meaning.19

Gordon Allport suggested the concept of "style" in his
discussion of personality development. He defined "style"
as the consistency and pattern of behaviors that individuals
use in carrying out various activities. He states, "Style
is the stamp of individuality impressed upon our adaptive,
behavior."20 In the perSpective of Allport's description
of style, the term is similar to the usages referred to as:
life style, Speaking style, writing style, or style of dress.
In this orientation style refers to a pattern of responses
which may be both general (i.e., life style) or more speci-
fic (i.e., writing style).

The construction or makeup of cognitive style used in
the Educational Sciences is different from those defined in
the field of psychology. From the Educational Sciences
perspective, cognitive style is made up of the particular
ways in which an individual becomes acquainted with or
gains knowledge about a given entity or situation. A brief
description of the elements contained in cognitive style will
clarify the theoretical basis of this study.

 

19Laurence Wasser, "The Educational Science of Cognitive
Style: An Introduction",”0akland Community College Press,

1971.

20Gordon Allport, Becoming(Basic Considerations for a
Psychology of Personality). New Haven: Yale University

Press, 1955. p. 78.

 

 

 

16

The educational science of cognitive style is made
up of four sets of related sciences: l) symbologosics or
the science of symbols and their meanings, 2) determantics
or the science of cultural determinants in the meaning of
symbols, 3) inferensics or the science of modalities of
inference, and 4) the science of biochemical and electro-
physiological components of memory.21 Since the fourth
set is presently still in developmental stages,only the
first three sets will be considered.

Symbolggosics, the science of symbols and their mean-

 

ing, includes two types of symbols: 1) theoretical symbols
such as words and numbers, and 2) qualitative symbols such
as smell, taste, and sensory input as described by Wasser.
The theoretical symbol represents something different than
the symbol itself and may include concepts and ideas.
Theoretical symbols include visual and auditory symbols.

A theoretical symbol might be the written word "chair" or
the spoken word "chair" which is the symbol for the object
usually used for sitting. The theoretical symbol represents
the object or the idea ordinarily associated with the symbol,
it is not the object itself. Qualitative symbols present
sensory experiences to the individual; such as, "Ice feels
cold," or "I smell smoke." Qualitative symbols are associa-

ted with the perception senses: auditory, visual, tactile,

 

21Wasser, "Educational Science," Op. Cit., p. 5.

17

savory, and olfactory. Qualitative symbols derive meaning
from three sources which include: 1) sensory stimuli (the
items you taste, smell, hear, feel), 2) humanly constructed
formalisms (games or codes such as red light associated
with the act of stopping at a corner), and 3) programmatic
effects (a synthesis of stimuli produced within the body
which is manifest in an intelligent behavior such as typing
or driving a car).22

Determantics, cultural determinants of the meaning of

 

symbols, considers the family, associates, and individuality
of a person to be the cultural influences on what one per-
ceives and understands. Each of the determinants influences
the individual's interpretation of symbOls pertaining to a
selected educational task although, according to Wasser, the
relative strength of its influence may vary with the age of
the learner and the conditions of the learning task. The
young learner may be more influenced by family in the early
learning of theoretical symbols such as "love." Later in
his development, associates may exert greater influences on
the meaning he attaches to symbols. The individuality of a
person may be a greater influence in selected situations
according to the educational task. The determinants are
influencing factors in any effort to educate an individual
since they affect the meanings the learner attaches to

specific symbols.23

 

22Wasser, "Educational Science," Op. Cit., p. 6.

231bid., p.8-lO.

l8

Inferensics, the educational science of modalities

 

of inference, deals with the several ways of producing
meaning from the theoretical and qualitative symbols.
Inferensics are made up of both deductive and inductive
inference processes. Inference consists of both the
process and the product. It is the process employed to
derive a conclusion and it is the conclusion which is
derived from the information or data.2u An inductive pro-
cess gives an experienced-based probability conclusion of
the kind man makes in many situations. For example, if the
light is green on your side of the cross street, and there
are no cars visible, it is probably safe for you to cross
the street. If the patient has a temperature elevation,
has a pulse increase, an elevated white blood count, and
appears flushed, there is probably some type of infectious
process going on in part of the body. A deductive process
produces a conclusion which is a consequence resulting from
a particular chain of reasoning, such as the process used
in mathematics.25

Diagnosis of Cognitive Style determines an individual's
orientations in each of the three sets in the educational

science of cognitive style to identify his strengths at a

 

24Ibid., p. 11.

25Ibid., p. 12.

19

given level of educational development according to

26

Schroeder. Teachers can learn the techniques of diag-
nosis. Empirical mapping of cognitive styles (recording
the findings in a meaningful format, or map) is an
activity for a diagnostician or empirical "mapper."
Behaviors are classified on a "make sense" of "does not
make sense" basis in relation to the defined elements.
This method is similar to the role of the medical doctor
in diagnostic activities.27

The diagnostic tools include direct and indirect
measures of each of the three sets which make up the
individual's cognitive style.28 Direct measurements are
interpretations of behavior observed by the diagnostician.
A team of diagnosticians will improve the reliability of
direct measurements. Indirect measurements are interpre-
tations of behavior through an examination of selected data
related to the individual. Test instruments are being re-
fined for the indirect measurement of cognitive style. The

specific elements identified in a student's cognitive style

are the strengths to be used in the process of his education.

 

26Arlan v. Schroeder, "Cognitive Style: The Key to
Student Placement?" Oakland Community College Press, 1971.

 

 

271bid., p. 3.

28Ibid., p. A.

20

The individual student's cognitive style provides infor-
mation to the teacher in selecting instructional materials
and processes most appropriate for a particular student

to achieve a given educational task.29

Instructional Prescriptions: The diagnosed cognitive

 

style provides information for the teacher and the student
to prescribe specific instructional activities that insure
with high probability that the student will successfully
accomplish a specific educational task. The cognitive
style of the individual is directly related to the educa—
tional level and cultural background of the individual as
well as the symbolic conditions of the specific learning
task. The diagnostician must analyze the student as well
as the demands of the educational task to be achieved.
Cognitive style provides a means of analyzing, interpreting,
and evaluating educational content in a unique approach.30
Much of nursing education's course work places great
emphasis on the ability to read at a specific level (theo-
retical visual language), as indicated by the studies of

 

29A comprehensive prOgram of measurement for the "edu-
cational sciences" is made up of nine broadly defined areas
including: 1) academic aptitude, 2) academic achievement,
3) special abilities, 4) personal interests, 5-7) family
and associates relationships, social adjustment, and atti-
tudes, 8) motor skill, 9) social activities and work experi-
ence. A detailed description is presented by Joseph E. Hill,
"Selected ASpects of Measurement and Mappingp" Oakland
Community College Press, 1971.

 

3002. Cit., p. A.

21

achievement.31 Textbooks disregard the symbolic condi-
tions (theoretical and qualitative) of educational tasks

by concentration on theoretical symbols.32 Textbooks are
written at a specific level and all students are supposedly
able to read at that level. The student who functions at

a lower level with theoretical symbols is at a disadvantage
which may lead to loss of interest, overwhelming frustra-
tion, and eventual failure or drop out. If the student
could receive information he is able to handle or receive
tutorial assistance to advance his ability to handle theo-
retical symbols, he might be encouraged to progress and

even succeed.33

Definition of Terms

 

Several terms and symbols are basic to the conduct of
this study. Most of the terms are taken from the Educational
Sciences related to cognitive style and include the follow-
ing:

Cognitive Style: an individual's mode of behavior in

 

search for meaning; a Cartesian product (G) made up of three
sets: S (symbols and their meaning), E (cultural deter-
minants of the meanings of symbols), and H (modalities of

 

31Cheryl L. Reed, John F. Feldhusen, "State Board Exam-
ination Prediction for Associate Degree Nursing Programs
Graduates," Nursing Research, Vol. 21, No. 2, March-April,

1972. p. 149-153.

 

32H111, Op. Cit., p. 6
33Ibid.. p. 7.

$’- t-

22

inference). The universal (or total element) Cartesian

product is represented by:

G = S x E x H

Since the purpose of determining an individual's

orientation in each of the three sets making up cognitive

style is to determine his strengths at a given level of

educational development, the following principles apply:

1)

3)

If the percentile rank of an individual's score

in a given element is in the spread of values
ranging from the fiftieth through the ninety-ninth
percentile (inclusively) of a population of these
scores, the individual is assigned a major orienta-
tion, written as a capital letter.

If the percentile rank of an individual's score

in a given element is in the spread of values
ranging from the twenty-fifth through the forty-
ninth percentile (inclusively) of a population of
these scores, the individual is assigned a minor
orientation, written as a small letter.

If the percentile rank of an individual's score in
a given element is in the spread of values ranging
from the zero percentile through the twenty-fourth
percentile (inclusively) of a p0pulation of these
scores, then the individual is assigned neither a

major nor a minor orientation, and the element is

23

not entered as a part of the cognitive style34
Applying these three principles and assigning an
abbreviation to each of the elements in the three sets
provides a written format to designate cognitive style.
The Educational Sciences have assigned letter designations
to each of the experiences and may be either auditory
(spoken) or visual (written). As discussed earlier in
this chapter, each of these types can be identified as
linguistic (language) or quantitative (numbers). The

 

theoretical elements include:
1) The Theoretical Auditory Linguistic - T(AL) -
the sound of a word or graphic symbol.
2) The Theoretical Auditory Quantitative - T(AQ) —
the sound of a number or a mathematical symbol.
3) The Theoretical Visual Linguistic - T(VL) -
the written word or graphic symbol.
4) The Theoretical Visual quantitative - T(VQ) -
the written number or mathematical symbol.
The qualitative symbols derive meanings from 1) sensory
stimuli, 2) humanly constructed formalisms (codes or games),

and 3) the programmatic effects of combinations of stimuli.

 

34Laurence Wasser, The Educational Science of Cognitive
Style: An Introduction, Oakland Community'College Press,

1971, p. 8.

24

The qualitative symbols include:
1) The Qualitative Auditory - Q(A) - symbol is

 

the perception of meaning from non-verbal sounds.

2) The Qualitative Olfactopy - Q(O) — symbol is the

 

obtaining of meaning from odors, smells, or aromas.

3) The Qualitative Savory - Q(S) - symbol is the media-

 

tion of meaning through taste.
4) The Qualitative Tactile - Q(T) - symbol is the

 

gaining of meaning through the sense of touch.

5) The Qualitative Visual - Q(V) - symbol is the ability

 

to derive meaning from what one sees.

6) The Qualitative Proprioceptive - Q(P) - symbol is

 

the ability to combine or coordinate inputs from
muscular functions into a specific response or
operation which is monitored by sensory input,
e.g., as in running to catch a baseball or typing
from written material.
The qualitative symbolic codes are organized in a similar
manner:

1) Qualitative Code Empathetic - Q(CEM) - is the

 

ability to put yourself in another's place, e.g.,
to know how it feels when someone has pain in a
surgical incision.

2) Qualitative Code Esthetic - Q(CES) - is the ability

 

to enjoy the beauty of an object or an idea.

3) Qualitative Code Ethic - Q(CET) - is commitment to

 

specific values or duties.

25

A) Qualitative Code Histrionic - Q(CH) - is the ability

 

to deliberately stage behavior to produce a desired
effect.
5) Qualitative Code Kinesics - Q(CK) - is the ability

 

to communicate through bodily movements or peripheral
vascular reactions.

6) Qualitative Code Kinesthetics - Q(CKH) - willing-
ness and interest in acquiring motor skill abilities.

7) Qualitative Code Proxemics - Q(CP) — is the ability
to judge the appropriate physical and social distance
between oneself and another as defined by the other
person, e.g., being able to recognize if you may
put your arm around that patient or call the boss
by his first name.

8) Qualitative Code Synnoetics - Q(CS) - is knowledge
of one's abilities, i.e., being able to establish
realistic goals for oneself.

9) Qualitative Code Transactional - Q(CT) - is the
ability to establish with others a positive com-
munication system which influences their actions
or goals, e.g., to convince someone that your way is
best.

The meaning brought to man by symbols is influenced by

the person's culture and experiences. A person interprets
the theoretical and qualitative symbols as an individual in

a role that has specific expectations. These expectations

26

are imposed by societal norms, peers, or associates, or

the family, and exert an influence over the person through-
out his life. What the person perceives as the meaning

of symbols is greatly determined by:

1) his Associates - A - or peers - this is repre-

 

sented by the various groups with whom the person
has the greatest contact and changes throughout
life.

2) his Family - F - this is either immediate or
extended or surrogate changing throughout life.

3) his Individuality - I - this is the person's

 

knowledge that his way is best along with his
ability and willingness to direct his behavior
accordingly.

The meanings of symbols are influenced also by the
modes of inference or reasoning that the individual has a
tendency to employ in an effort to formulate hypotheses.
There are two classifications of modes of inference. First

are the inductive processes which yield probability con-

 

clusions. Second is the deductive process which yields a

 

logically necessary conclusion derived from the given infor-
mation. There are four inductive processes, which are
classified as:

l) Magnitude - M - is categorical thinking, i.e.,

 

using rules, definitions, and/or classifications.

2) Differences - D - is the emphasis of one-to-one con-

 

trasts of selected characteristics or traits.

27

3) Relationships - R - is the comparison of two or

 

more selected characteristics or traits through
similarities.

4) Appraisal - L - is the process involving the appli-
cation of Magnitudes, Differences and Relationships
in reaching a probability conclusion.

Circle K - ® - is the deductive inferential process.
This inferential process is utilized most frequently
in logical proofs, e.g., in mathematics and in

symbolic 10gic.

Teaching Style: the consistency of a teacher's

response to, and behavior in, the student~teacher relation-

ship in the educative process. This "style" is expressed

as the Cartesian product of three sets as follows:

ts = {TDemeanor"‘} {"Concern" "Symbolic
(teaching mode
style) x of
Presentation"

In the first set "Demeanor" there are three elements that

can occur in binomial combinations as major orientations,

minor orientations, or other possible combinations of major-

minor combinations. These elements are expressed as (Pp)

"predominant," (SS) "adjustive" and (Eb) "flexible." Each 1

of these categories is subscripted with either authoritative

(a) or permissive (p). The following notation is an example

of a possible demeanor representation:

S
a

b
p

28

This demeanor indicates that the teacher is "adjustive-
authoritarian" in the range of 50 to 90 percent of the time
while being flexible-permissive in the range of 25 to 49
percent of the time.
In the second set, "Concern," three elements occur
in major, minor, or negligible orientations as they are
scored over the range of 0-9 points. An element (e.g.,
processes) is considered to be a "major" orientation if
it receives any score from 6 to 9 inclusive. The element
would be considered a "minor" if it were scored in the
range of 3 to 5 inclusively. Finally, the element would
be rated "negligible" if it received a score from 0 to 2
inclusively. The scores referred to here can be realized
by means of an observer rating these dimensions as they
appear to that individual or through a variety of ratings
accorded items comprising a rating-scale form of instrument.35
In the last set dealing with "symbolic mode," the three
symbolic conditions of an educational task are employed, and
can occur in major or minor orientations according to the
scoring schema associated with the elements in the "Concern"
set. The modes are: Theoretical Predominance (TP), Reci-
procity (REC), and Qualitative Predominance (QP) (see "cyl-
inder and cone" representation of symbolic conditions of

tasks in Chapter II).36

 

35Joseph E. Hill, Seminar Discussion at Oakland Commu-
nity College, June 26, 1972.

36Ibid.

29

When the cognitive style of the student has been
diagnosed and the cognitive style and teaching style of
the teacher have been diagnosed, the next process involves
putting the appropriate teacher and student together. This
leads to the next term for definition.

Matching: the process of determining the most com-
patible teacher, student, learning materials, and learning

environments. This technique is described in Chapter III.

Diagnosis: direct and indirect measures of the defined

 

elements of cognitive style and/Cr teaching style.

Overview

It has been the purpose in this chapter to present the
educational problem of\the nursing student who does not
complete a program of studies and fails or withdraws. This
problem has been considered from the perspective of higher
education and more specifically concerned with nursing edu-
cation. The Oakland Community College, Bloomfield Hills,
Michigan, system of using cognitive style as an aid in the
"personalization" of instruction was introduced and briefly
described since it is used in the experiment in Nursing
Education described in subsequent chapters. Consideration
has been given to the purpose of this study, its potential
in relationship to the identified problem areas, and the
terminology to be used throughout the study. A review of
the related literature in the next chapter will further

3O

develop the framework for this study and provide the
necessary information to discuss the design of the study
in Chapter III. The results of the study and an analysis
of the data are presented in Chapter IV. In Chapter V
the summary, conclusions, and implications for further

research are presented.

CHAPTER II

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

This review of literature deals with three selected
areas: higher education, nursing education, and the edu-
cational sciences. Each area is considered in relation to
the defined purpose of this study and the inter-related

questions.

Higher Education

 

Experimentation creates vitality according to Ralph
Tyler. Too often, he states, college seems a required,
dull period in which middle-aged adults who have made a
mess of the world are trying to make sure the next genera-
tion has an equal start. Tyler says the fashioning and use
of new inventions to solve critical problems changes the
outlook of many students from boredom to exciting effort.l

Many faculty in higher education have used experimen-
tation within the teaching-learning process to provide
interesting variety for students otherwise involved in a
dull educational experience. As Hagerman stated in rela-
tion to an audio-tutorial approach he is using to teach a

science course, "If 50 percent of the university courses

 

1Ralph w. Tyler, "We Need the Experimental College,"
Antioch Notes, XLI, September,1963, p. 42.

 

31

32

were structured in the same way I have my course structured
now, I would change mine so that it would be different."2
Hagerman would make a major change every two to three years
to maintain the "Hawthorn effect." His major concern is
student learning and he channels the energies to helping
students learn in a variety of settings.3

Since this study is concerned with the teaching style
of instructors and their interactions with students, con-
sideration is given to teachers and teacher behaviors in
the learning process. Don Davies, Associate Commissioner
for Educational Personnel Development of the Office of Edu-
cation, reports that teachers are the single most important
element in the school; more important than the quality of
the facilities, the quantity of the equipment and materials,
or the level of financing.“ A similar finding is reported

by Petro (who reviewed several research reports):

 

2Personal interview with Dr. Howard Hagerman, Associate
Professor, Lyman Briggs College, Michigan State University,
East Lansing, Michigan, November 10, 1970.

31bid.
uDo Teachers Make a Difference? U. S. Government

Printing Office, Washington, D. C. 20402 (Document Number
5.258:5 042), October 20, 1970.

 

33

The artistry of the teacher has such a powerful
impact on the quality of the students' learning
experiences that differences in procedure, technique,
equipment, organization, and method are apparently
insignificant.5

He claims,

Teachers have to care so much that it hurts;
that they are willing to go the extra mile, because
you can't inspire students, you can't make them
enthusiastic, you can't do a darn thing with the
student unless you've got a teacher...you've got
to have top-grade teachers.

Petro identified three crucial aspects of the teacher's
relationship with his students: 1) his ability to relate
to them personally, 2) his ability to pgggp them, and

3) his attitude toward them. He further describes the
crucial aspects:

relate: student-centered approach to teaching,
insight, personal flexibility, tendencies to critical
self-evaluation, role of listener even counselor,
projection of a positive, accepting, and caring
attitude.

Important research topics are avoided; such as,
the impact of occupational experience of the teacher
on the behavior of the student-learner, and the
human interaction aspects of the teaching-learning
situation.7

 

5Peter K. Petro, "The Derivation of Learning Hier-
archies and Instructional Objectives in Accounting with
Implications for Developing Instructional Systems for Post-
High School Programs," Unpublished Doctoral Dissertation,
Michigan State University, 1969 as reported by Harold R.
Wallace, Review and Synthesis of Research on Cooperative
Vocational Education, ERIC Clearinghouse on Vocational and
Technical Education, The Center for Vocational and Technical
Education, The Ohio State University, 1900 Kenny Road,
Columbus, Ohio, p. 69-70.

6Ibid., p. 71

 

7Ibid., p. 72.

34

With the rapid influx of college students and the
increased financial pressures to add more students to each
faculty member's classes, the situation becomes more com-
plex. Roth sees instructional systems as a means of
allowing the teacher to function effectively.

The only line of endeavor currently in sight which
provides real hope for the ultimate individualiza-
tion of education is the development of educational
systems based heavily on technologically supported
auto-instruction. The programs will be largely self-
selected, with defined entry and exit behaviors. They
will be branched to provide for a variety of learning
styles and modes and...they will be both self pacing
and internally rewarding to the learner. In some
few cases, with a very dedicated and perceptive
teacher, the attempt to individualize may even
cause the instructional style to be varied some-
what for different students. ...the learner can
select the most comforgable style in which to move
through the materials.

Torkelson further supports the position Roth describes
as the most legitimate and practical way of allowing the

teacher to teach.

The most conservative level of individualiza-
tion provides optional ways for individuals to
learn a prescribed curriculum. The potentials
of the new technology for the individualization
of instruction are reliable only out of an
adequate perception of what is really meant by
the new technology and upon a system of instruct-
ion which consciously organizes to determine the
uniqueness of all means or media of instruction
for different kinds of learners and for different
kinds of instructional purposes. All forms of
media are capable of helping learners to com-
prehend concepts, to acquire skills and to

 

8Theodore C. Roth, "Expanding the Concept of
Individualized Education," The Educational Forum,
Volume 36, No. 1, November, 1971, p. 61-62}

35

shape feelings. Given well-prepared materials,

independent of continuous teacher direction,

the potential for the teacher to begin to

exercise more uniqueness as a counselor, guide,

confidant, synthesizer, provaateur, evaluator,

creator of unique materials grows in proportion

to the availability of those well-prepared

materials.9

The teaching styles of teachers is referred to although
not defined, by Rogers. "There is agreement that effective
teaching styles must meet the physical, social, emotional
and cognitive needs of individual students. While se-
lecting instructional materials and content is not itself
a teaching style, it does reflect the philosophy of the
teacher and is a part of the teaching strategy.10

In spite of the stated need to have instructional
materials designed to meet the cognitive styles of students,
few materials have been prepared for identified learning
styles of students, and there is limited description of
how to identify learning styles. Ripple, Millman, and
Glock conducted a study designed to determine the rela-
tionship between selected characteristics of students
(anxiety, compulsivity, exhibitionism, and convergent -
minus - divergent thinking style) and the relative success

they have in learning from programed versus conventionally

 

9Gerald M. Torkelson, "Technology: New Goals for
Individualization," Educational Leadership, January, 1972,
Volume 29, No. 4, p. 315-318.

10Virginia M. Rogers, "Innovation through Experimentation,"
Educational Leadership, Volume 29, No. 4, January, 1972,
p. 301-304.

 

36

structured learning tasks. They found no significant
interaction between learner characteristics and the type
of learning task (programed, conventional). They used
random assignment to the type of learning task with no
attempt to match the learner characteristics and the design
of the learning materials.11
Perhaps part of the solution lies with the students
as Davis proposes, "instructors are not necessarily in
the best position to organize an optimum sequence of
instruction for students, that what is a 'logical' sequence
for the teacher may not be logical for the student."12
Mager also believes that motivation increases as a function
of the amount of control the learner is given over the
learning experience.13 On the other hand, Fry reports
student controlled instruction works very well for some

students but not for other students.1u

 

11Richard E. Ripple, Jason Millman, and Marvin Glock,
"Learner Characteristics and Instructional Mode: A Search
for Disordinal Interactions," Journal of Educational Psy-
chology, Vol. 60, No. 2, February, 1969, p. 113-120.

12Robert H. Davis, Some Psychological Considerations
in the Selection and Design of Instructional Models, a paper
presented at Joint UNESCO-IAU Research Program in Higher Edu-
cation Seminar on Methods and Programmes for the Improvement
of University Teaching, University of Amsterdam, November,

1970, p. 32.

13Robert F. Mager, "On The Sequencing of Instructional
Content," In J. P. DeCecco (Ed.), Educational Technology,
New York: Holt, Rinehart & Winston, 1964, p. 132-141.

1U’J. P. Fry, "The Effect of Student Controlled Instruct-
ion on Learning,’ Unpublished Doctoral Dissertation,
Michigan State University, 1970.

37

It would appear that one of the major problems within
higher education involves the harmonious and/Cr beneficial
combination of teacher, learner, and learning activities to
achieve Specified learning tasks. Within the nursing edu-
cation setting a similar problem is evident in relation to

learning achievement.

Nursinngducation

 

There is at present great concern about teaching
effectiveness and ways of measuring the outcomes of learning
in nursing education. As a part of the institutions of
higher education, the nursing programs are being scrutinized
in the same way other educational programs are being exam-
ined in terms of student achievement, of course objectives,
and failure-success rates. The nature of the learner may
be the greatest indicator of the ultimate effectiveness of
the teaching-learning process according to Metz and McCleary.
They assert an educational program should be commensurate
with the intellectual and individual needs of the learner
if effective learning is to take place. A nursing student
enters the educational program with previously developed
learning patterns, a variety of different educational
experiences, motivations and attitudinal processes. If
the student is to achieve the curriculum requirements,
the program must be presented in a way that recognizes the
existence of individual differences and is willing and
able to adapt to them. Metz and McCleary developed an

38

instrument to record each student's past learning experiences
on an individual basis. The collected information would
indicate individual or class experience with term papers,
group projects, library research, past reactions to quizzes
and examinations, note-taking performance, and selected
reading habits. Increased knowledge of the learning charac-
teristics of the student provides the faculty with informa-
tion that will allow for development of an educational
environment which enhances the learning process.15

How the instructor will use the increased knowledge of
the learning characteristics of students is not described.
Teachers might begin by identifying the major tasks of the
performance to be learned and the behaviors the student is
to acquire in order to master the tasks and performance
itself, suggests deTornyay.16 An attempt to assist the
learner to achieve the requirements of the learning task
should take into account the characteristics of the learner.

Educators in nursing need to consider different educa-
tional methods for teaching different aspects of nursing

(different learning tasks) as described by Skipper, Wooldridge,

 

15Edith A. Metz and Carol M. McCleary, "Knowing the
Learner," The Journal of Nursinngducation, Vol. 9, No. 1,
January, 1970, p. 3-9.

16Rheba deTornyay, "Instructional Technology," The
Journal of Nursing Education, Vol. 9, No. 2, April, 1970,

p, 5.

39

and Leonard in a discussion of the use of behavioral science
in nursing education.17 They suggest there is an inclination
in current educational programs to take the findings of
behavioral research and try to apply them in nursing situa-
tions. Teaching nurses innovative techniques in patient care
without teaching them how to achieve acceptance in the bu-
reaucratic hierarchy of the hospital environment can pro-

duce frustrated nurses. They have been prepared to practice
nursing in a way which is neither encouraged nor rewarded.

How to achieve the necessary changes in the hospital organi-
zation is an appropriate area for social research and an
important area to apply the behavioral sciences to the
problem of health. It is not difficult to understand why
many nursing education programs have not recognized behavioral
research as a part of practice. Instead of placing emphasis
on experimentation, inquisitiveness, speculation, and critical
thinking, there is a tendency to be rigid and didactic,
emphasizing conformity and traditional ways. The students

are usually required to fit the mold and may be confronted
with failure in the program if they do not meet the expected

conformity.18

 

17James Skipper, Powhatan Wooldridge, and Robert Leonard,
"The Use and Misuse of Behavioral Science in Nursing Education,‘
The Journal of Nursing Education, Vol. 8, No. 1, January, 1969,

p 0 25-27 0

18Ibid.

 

40

The application of behavioral research in nursing
education suggests the faculty included the application
of learning theory as described by Brodie. She suggests
the application of the classically associated stimulus-
response model of learning incorporating reinforcement
techniques. The strength of the nursing instructor's
reinforcing effect on student learning has recently been
studied with scientific rigor. Of particular interest are
the possible effects of the teacher's values, attitudes, and
more particularly, her beliefs and expectations of the indi-
vidual students' abilities. Studies have demonstrated that
the differences between two groups (identified as earmarked
for intellectual growth and the undesignated control group)
was in the mind of the teacher. In whatever subtle or overt
ways the teachers communicated to the experimental group
that they were expected to do well, it did work. Teacher's
expectation of their students' performance may serve as a
self-fulfilling prophecy.19 Every nurse educator can recall
situations where student performance was influenced by the
teacher's expectations.

In spite of many problems and obstacles, nursing educa-
tors have sought assistance to improve the teaching-learning

process as evidenced by the literature which describes the

 

19Barbara Brodie, "Re-examination of Reinforcement in
the Learning Process,’ The Journal of Nursing Education,
Vol. 8, No. 2, April, 1969, p. 27—32.

41

inclusion of research findings in nursing curriculum design
and implementation. Wolf examined some implications of
short-term, long-term memory theory in an effort to identify
the applications to nursing education and nursing practice.
Short term memory is described as the working memory used

to solve problems and may likely be composed of different
short-term memories such as visual, auditory, kinesthetic,
and linguistic.20 It would appear that the more sensations
going into short-term memory the more resources one would
have available to solve problems. It is hypothesized by
Davis that the short-term memory stores have a limited
capacity (seven plus or minus two pieces of information)

for holding information.21 If too much information is fed
into the short-term memory storage, the first items put in
are apt to be lost. Physiologists suggest that as infor-
mation comes into the organism, "neurona, models" are con—
structed by the mesencephalon, diencephalon, amygdala, and
the frontal lobes, by calling on the information in the long-
term memory. Incoming information is continuously monitored
to determine if it is similar to or different from the
characteristics of the neuronal model.22 If the sensations

are different, a series of changes take place which are

 

2OVivian C. Wolf, "Some Implications of Short-Term,
Long-Term Memory Theory," Nursinngorum, V01. 10, No. 2,
1971, p. 150-165.

 

21Davis, "Psychological Considerations," Op. Cit., p. 30.

22Wolf, "Short-Term, Long-Term Memory," Op. Cit., p. 154.

42

called the orienting response or reaction. The orienting
response is associated with other measurable changes such

as the conductivity of the skin, heart rate, respiratory
rate, and the electroencephalographic waves. In analyzing
the orienting process, two functions are apparently related
to the adequate functioning of the frontal lobes and the
amygdala: l) sampling the input of information, and 2)
registering, coding, and anticipating the information.

Wolf suggests the control processes that help keep informa-
tion in the short-term memory can help in holding information
long enough for a neuronal model to be constructed. The
neuronal model is essential to the processing required to
transfer information to the long-term memory which may have
its basic in long lasting anatomical or molecular changes.
Information may not be simply fed into long-term memory as

it comes to the individual; an important part of experiencing
may be the recombining of new inputs with prior experience

by recall thinking. The nurse educator can use the spacing
of information and the employment of many sensory inputs to
help code information into several short-term areas, some of
which may be more functional than others.23 The use of multi-
sensory learning experiences thus increases the student's
potential for learning since many inputs are being used.

The study and research of the biochemical aspects of learning

and memory appears to hold much potential for educators in

 

23Wolf, Op. Cit., p. 164.

43

all disciplines and at all levels of learning.

The nursing literature has not described procedures
whereby a student's individual learning style is determined
in order to design specific learning approaches for that
student. A number of studies have attempted to identify
factors which may predict the nursing student's success
both in a program of nursing education and on the state
board licensure examinations. Although most of the studies
are limited in sc0pe, a few sample investigations are
worthy of review.

In considering the problem of nursing student attri-
tion, Mitchell attempted to explore methods which could be
effective in reducing the number of nursing student dropouts.

Three intervention approaches were utilized,

each dealing with one-third of the experimental

group, utilizing counseling, motivational, and

tutorial techniques. Although there were no

significant differences between the three groups

in terms of the grades received, there were differ-

ences in the number of dropouts from each group,

with the fewest dropping out from the motivation

group followed by the tutoring group and finally

the counseling group.2

The achievement problem is considered from a somewhat
different perspective by Backman and Steindler in an inves-
tigation of the relationships of specific admissions cri-

teria to success in the Rutgers associate degree nursing

 

24Teresa Mitchell, "An Exploratory Study of Selected
Variables Related to Attrition in One School of Nursing,"
Kansas City, Missouri, University of Missouri, 1970, Doctoral
Dissertation reported in Nursinngesearch, Vol. 20, No. 2
March-April, 1970, p. 183.

44

program and performance on state board examinations.
Correlation coefficients were computed between measures
of scholastic aptitude and achievement on the one hand
and cumulative grade point average at the end of the pro-
gram and scores on the state boards exams on the other
hand. Results showed the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT)
to have higher correlation with the college GPA (r a .46)
and the five state board examinations (coefficients ranged
from .36 in Pediatric nursing to .50 in Medical nursing)
than did the other measures.25

A similar finding is reported by Kovacs in a study of
310 students graduating from three collegiate schools in
Pennsylvania where the Verbal and Total SAT scores appeared
to be more useful than measures of intelligence and high
school rank in predicting success in a baccalaureate nursing

program.26

Educational Sciences

 

The idea of learning sets was developed by Robert Gagné
and his associates. Gagné defines learning sets as the capa-

bilities the student has at any given stage in the learning

 

25Margaret E. Backman and Frances M. Steindler, "Let's
Examine: Prediction of Achievement in a Collegiate Nursing
Program and Performance on State Board Examinations," Nursing
Outlook, Vol. 19, July, 1971, p. 487-489.

26Alberta R. Kovacs, "Predicting Success in Three Se-
lected Collegiate Schools of Nursing," New York, New York,
Teachers College, Columbia University, 1968, as reported in
NursingResearch, Vol. 20, No. 6, November-December, 1971,
p. 5 7.

 

45

of a given task. Although these abilities are internal

to the learner, they are directly measurable as perform-

ances. It is possible to identify the sets needed to learn

a particular task by working backward from the selected task

to the prerequisite abilities. The simple and more general

abilities form a hierarchy Gagné terms a learning structure.27
DeCecco describes learning styles as personal ways an

individual processes information in the act of learning new

28

concepts and principles. He discusses two types of learn-
ing styles: conceptual tempos and selection strategies.
Conceptual tempos are basic inclinations of the individual
either to reflect on his solution of a problem or to make

an impulsive, unconsidered response. The person with the
impulsive, or fast, tempo solves a problem with little delay.
The person with the reflective, or slow, tempo considers
alternative solutions and consequently presents a slower
response. Studies suggest: 1) reflection tends to increase
with age, as does accuracy, 2) the tendency to display fast
or slow decision times was relatively stable, 3) the ten-

dency toward reflection or impulsivity is evident in carry-

ing out many tasks, 4) the dispositions seem to be linked

 

27Robert M. Gagné, "The Acquisition of Knowledge,"
Psychological Review, Vol. 69, 1962, p. 355-365.

28John P. DeCecco, The Psychology of Learning and
Instruction: Educational Psychology, Prentice-Hall, Inc,
Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, 1968, p. 75-76.

 

46

to some basic personality factors. It is suggested that
the teacher should adjust his procedures and the tempo of
the teaching to accommodate these two modes of learning.
Four selection strategies are described as the ways an
individual can learn concepts. In "conservative focusing,"
the learner uses a known example of the concept as a focus
and changes one characteristic of the unknown example at a
time to identify the essential characteristics. An example
cited which demonstrated "conservative focusing," follows:
The student visits a large furniture store and

finds a piece of French Provincial furniture, a

chair. Wishing to acquire the concept French

Provincial furniture, he uses the first example

as his focus and finds another chair similar in

every respect but one, its finish. He discovers

that this chair is also French Provincial. He

then finds a chair in which only the upholstery

is different and discovers that this chair is also

French Provincial. By selecting different chairs

and varying one attribute at a time, the student

will eventually discover the essential and non-

essential attributes of French Provincial chairs.29

Another strategy is "focus gambling" in which the indi-
vidual uses a focus example and changes more than one
characteristic at a time. In reference to the French
Provincial chair he may select one with a higher back,
straighter legs, and a different finish. If the salesman
tells him he has not selected a French Provincial chair,
he does not know which characteristic is wrong. He has

gambled and lost. The impulse individual uses focus

 

29DeCecco, Psyphology of Learning, 9p. Cit., p. 78.

47

gambling while the reflective individual uses conservative
focusing. The other two selection strategies are described
as simultaneous and successive scanning. In simultaneous
scanning, the individual formulates one or more hypotheses
of what the concept may be and looks for examples. In
successive scanning, he tests a single hypotheses at a
time. The learner may vary his strategy with the concept
or he may keep a particular strategy regardless of the
concept to be acquired. DeCecco suggests selection stra-
tegies as a means of classifying entering behavior for
instructional objectives for the learning of concepts,
principles, and problem solving.30

If educators and scholars are to establish mutual
understandings of the problems and phenomena in education,
a unifying conceptual framework and language are essential.
Hill has proposed that a conceptual framework and a scienti-
fic language can be developed for the applied field of
education.31 The conceptual framework which will best
serve the purposes of education is one made up of a set
of disciplines called the educational sciences which were
discussed in Chapter I, designated as: 1) symbols and their

meanings, 2) cultural determinants of the meaning of symbols,

 

30DeCecco, Psychology of Learning, Op. Cit., p. 78-79.

 

31Joseph E. Hill, "The Educational Sciences," Unpub-
lished manuscript, Oakland Community College, 1968.

48

3) modalities of inference, and 4) cognitive style. For
purposes of this study, consideration was given to those
investigations which deal most specifically with COgnitive
style and teaching style.

Wyett conducted a pilot study to analyze cognitive
style and teaching style of students to examine the possi-
bilities of using the educational sciences strata as tools
of analysis and prediction.32 The purpose was to determine
cognitive styles and teaching situations which could produce
a "different" approach to assessing particular aspects of
teacher preparation and teacher effectiveness in selected
teaching situations. He found that those persons in the
study who were placed in teaching situations which were not
in keeping with their style did not perform as well as those
who were appropriately matched; the teaching style of an
individual is apparently very strongly influenced by his
cognitive style.33

Using the conceptual framework of the educational
sciences, Schroeder studied the cognitive styles of 118
students and their teacher to seek answers to the following
questions:

Do students of cognitive styles considered to be

similar to that of the teacher tend to classify
her as an 'effective' teacher?

Do the students with cognitive styles similar to

that of the teacher tend to receive higher grades

in the subject taught than do those students with
a 'disjunct' style?

 

32Jerry Lane Wyett, "A Pilot Study to Analyze Cognitive
Style and Teaching Style with Reference to Selected Strata of
the Defined Educational Sciences," Wayne State University,
Detroit, Michigan, Doctoral Dissertation, 1967. n. 15

33Ibid., p. 101.

49

Is there a predominance of certain common elements
in the cognitive style of those students having
cognitive styles determined to be 'similar' to
the cognitive style of the teacher?
Is there a predominance of certain common elements
in the cognitive style of those students having
cognitive styles determined to be 'disjunct' to
the cognitive style of the teacher?3
Schroeder found that students rating the teacher high
in effectiveness tended to a statistically significant
degree (at .05 level) to be students having cognitive
styles "similar" to that of the instructor. Students
diagnosed as having "similar" cognitive styles also tended
to be the students who received the highest grades. The
predominant elements found for the "similar" group were:
T(VL) and T(AL) in the set of symbols and their meanings:
I and Ia in the "cultural determinants" set, and L in the
"modalities of inference" set. For the "disjunct" group
the elements were minor t(vl) in the set of symbols and

their meanings; A in 'cultural determinants" and M in the
"modalities of inference" set. 35

In order to determine whether a "collective cognitive
style" could be established for groups of students receiving

different final letter grades in two English courses at

 

3D'Arlen V. Schroeder, "A Study of the Relationship
Between Student and Teacher Cognitive Styles and Student
Derived Teacher Evaluations," Wayne State University, Detroit,
Michigan, Doctoral Dissertation, 1969, p. 8.

35Ibid., p. 10.

50

Oakland Community College, Hoogasian collected data for
472 students. The findings of his study indicated that
collective cognitive styles could be identified and related
to various letter grades earned by students, however, the
data did not serve as definitive predictors of final letter
grades; rather, the collective cognitive styles were useful
as predictors of success or failure in the courses under
study.36
In considering the symbolic conditions of learning
tasks, Hill explains the relationship between theoretical
symbols and qualitative symbols.37 He explains the rela-
tionship in terms of a four-part continuum illustrated by

a cylinder shown in Figure 2. The four parts are identified
as theoretical predominance (TP), reciprocity (REC),

 

 

 

Figure 2.—-Continuum of Symbolic Conditions

 

36vaughn Hoogasian, "An Examination of Cognitive Style
Profiles as Indicators of Performance Associated with a
Selected Discipline," Wayne State University, Detroit, Michi-
gan, Doctoral Dissertation, 1970, p. 42-43, 59-85.

37Joseph E. Hill, S hole and Their Meanings, Oakland
Community College, Bloom ield Hills, Michigan, p. 26-29.

51

qualitative predominance (QP), and qualitative independence
(Q1). The area labled (QI) is assumed to be solid and re-
presents a situation in which symbolic use is performed in
the domain of the qualitative, e.q., a persxlwho can neither
read or write music composing and presenting, by voice or
instrument, a music presentation. The next area of the
continuum, labeled (QP), includes the solid segment and a
hollow cone section. The hollow cone represents the theo-
retical symbolic which is less in volume in this area than
the solid cylindrical segment representing the qualitative
symbolic. Qualitative predominance (QP) would exist in a
music lesson in which the instructor gives some verbal
(theoretical symbolic) instruction; but the major activity
is the student's performance which would involve the quali-
tative symbolic. The condition of reciprocity (REC) occurs
in situations where the symbolic use is about equally divided
between the theoretical and the qualitative. The section of
the continuum labeled (TP) represents the situation where
the symbolic condition is predominantly theoretical. Ana-
lyzing a learning task in terms of the symbolic conditions
would help an educator to determine teaching methods most

appropriate for a specific learning task.38

Summary

A review of selected studies in higher education suggests

teachers are in a position to use technology as a means of

 

38Hill, "Symbols," Op. Cit., p. 30.

52

individualizing instruction and providing increased inter-_
action opportunities between the teacher and student. A
review of the nursing literature described the inclusion of
biological, social, and psychological research in the plan-
ning and implementation of teaching-learning requirements

in nursing education. The idea of learning sets described
by Gagné was reviewed as an introduction to the conceptual
framework of the educational sciences. Selected studies in
the educational sciences indicate students having cognitive
styles similar to their instructor tend to rate the instruct-
or high in effectiveness and tend to receive the highest
grades. In concluding, the area relative to the educational
sciences, a brief survey of the symbolic conditions of

learning tasks is presented.

CHAPTER III

DESIGN OF THE STUDY

Introduction

 

This study involves the students and faculty of the
associate degree, registered nurse, nursing education
program at Delta College, University Center, Michigan.

The college is a two-year community college with offerings

in technical, vocational, and transfer programs. Financial
support is provided by tax levy in the three surrounding
counties (Bay, Saginaw, and Midland), state appropriations,
and student tuition. There are approximately 5,000 full-
time day students enrolled in the college and another 5,000
part-time evening students. There are 178 full-time faculty
members, most of whom have a Master's Degree in their subject
discipline, with approximately 10 faculty holding a Ph.D.
Degree. The college provides several community service
activities and frequently is the location for professional,
business, and service organizations workshops and meetings.
The college is one of the original members of the League for
Innovation and enjoys a climate conducive to innovation in
teaching-learning approaches. The League for Innovation in
the Community College is a national organization of 15 junior
college districts that aims, through cooperative work, to

encourage and evaluate innovation and experimentation

53

54

designed to improve all aspects of college operation.
Membership includes 41 junior colleges with an enrollment
of more than 300,000 students and more than 10,000 faculty
members. The League proposes to accomplish its aims by
cooperative work between and among its members. Such
cooperation will assist them to:

1) experiment in teaching, learning, guidance, and
other aspects of junior college operation

2) share the results of their experiments
3) share ideas on planning and learning objectives

4) exchange instructional materials and procedures
designed to enhance learning

5) examine the relevance of varied modes of college
administration to experimentation in teaching
and learning

6) provide a common base for research on the effects
of various innovative practices by gathering and
sharing data on students, programs, and modes of
organization

7) evaluate the impact of the institution's practices
on its students and community.

The League is supported by membership fees and by other con-
tributions (including staff time, facilities and funds) by
its members, by foundation grants, and by government and
other contracts.

An office of institutional research at Delta College
further supports innovative approaches to the institutional
objectives. An experienced counseling staff provides
counseling, guidance and related student services. A 360-40

computer is used for registration, test correction services,

55

record keeping, payroll, as well as course offerings in
data processing and computer programming. The computer is
available for statistical analysis of data and evaluation
services.

Delta College serves the tri-county area of Bay,
Midland, and Saginaw, with a combined population of over
450,000. The area is a combination of farming and diversi-
fied industry. Among the industries represented in the
area are: Dow Chemical, Dow Corning, General Motors, Defoe
Shipbuilding, and Wickes Corporation. Saginaw has a rela-
tively large black population with social and community
problems resulting from segregation by way of housing and
school systems. There has been an attempt to recruit and
support a representative sampling of the black community
into the college by way of scholarship offerings and selected
special programs for the black students; namely, Black History
and Language offerings along with special tutoring services.
The college is located in Bay County in a rural area appro-
ximately equi-distant from the three cities. Most students
drive their own cars to the college or join in a car pool,
since public transportation to the college is extremely limited
or absent on a consistent basis. Limited dormitory facili-
ties are available on the campus and in connection with one
of the area hospitals. Nursing students have clinical
experiences in nine to ten of the area hospitals in Saginaw

and Bay City. Students are assigned to a single hospital

56

for a semester and are expected to provide their own
transportation to the clinical facility.

Delta College is an "open-door" college where all
high school graduates or those with equivalency diplomas
are admissible to the college. The counseling staff advises
each student to enroll in a course of study apprOpriate to
the individual student's learning needs and goals. The
student retains the option to enroll in any course of
study and may disregard counseling advice. The college
gives the student the right to attempt any course of study
he selects. For the most part, all students are eligible
to enroll in any course of study on a first-come, first-serve
basis. These policies apply to the nursing curriculum at
the present time. A grade point of 2.0 is required to be
in good standing and to graduate.

Sample

Students for this study include all the men and women
ranging from 17 to 67 years of age enrolled in the second
nursing course at Delta College, University Center, Michigan.
Approximately 45 students enroll in the spring term, and
210 in the fall term for a total of approximately 255 in
the first nursing course. The students enrolled in the
first nursing course have been counseled by the college
counseling staff and are eligible to enroll in the first
nursing course on a first-come basis. The students who

complete the first course with a final grade of D or above

4444 , .

57

are eligible to enroll in the second nursing course.

Students enrolled in this program can be expected to
1) be high school graduates, or the equivalent thereof,

2) have taken standard college entrance examinations,

3) have had a curriculum counseling session with a member
of the Delta College counseling staff. It could also be
expected that of the students in the nursing program,

1) nearly 50 percent are less than 25 years of age,

2) approximately 90 percent are female, 3) approximately
50 percent are single, 4) over 50 percent are employed 10
hours or more in addition to their course of studies, 5)
approximately 70 percent live at home and commute daily
to classes and clinical laboratory.

Faculty for the study include all faculty (full-time
and part-time) who are teaching students in the clinical
laboratory for the second nursing course. Faculty are
organized in a team to assist students more effectively.
There are two major tools that facilitate effective team
activity: 1) a basic written plan* of action for each type
of learning experience, and 2) one or more weekly planning
sessions. The basic written plan is treated as a working
tool to be used, revised and/or improved to keep student
learning needs in focus. Planning sessions concentrate on

the teaching techniques to be used in the sessions each

 

*The plan includes behavioral objectives for each session
rand a plan to meet each objective. The written plan is
contained in a course workbook, SEARCH, published each
term for each course; revisions are implemented each term.

58

week, the items to be included in the quiz session that
week, and the revisions to be implemented to improve
student achievement. The lead instructor coordinates
learning activities with faculty team members and parti-
cipating clinical facilities, develops course content,
and assists faculty and students in the teaching-learning
process. All faculty in a single course use the same
learning materials and objectives for each of the learning
sessions.1
For the orientation to this study, students and faculty
were provided with a written and oral explanation of the
purpose of the study and the expected participation. All
12 faculty agreed to participate in the study and all 33
faculty agreed to cognitive style diagnosis. All second

course students participated either as a part of the matched

or the non-matched group.

Measures

The measuring devices used in this study included:
1) cognitive style testing, 2) identification of teaching
style, 3) faculty interviews, 4) test scores and final course
grades, 5) student evaluation of faculty, and 6) teacher

rating scales of cognitive style. Each of these measuring

 

1Crystal M. Lange, Autotutorial Techniques in Nursing
Education, Prentice-Hall Publishing Company, Inc., Englewood
OIiffs, New Jersey, 1972, P. 40-51.

59

devices will be described as used within this study.

Cognitive style testing procedures developed at Oakland

 

Community College by Fragale, Svagr, and Zussman (with
established reliability and validity), were used for each
student and faculty. The testing procedures include 10
separate testing devices including reading, auditory,
olfactory, visual, tactile, and savory components. The
testing instruments include vehicles to determine the
theoretical, qualitative, and perceptive abilities of the
individuals as well as the cultural determinants and mo-
dalities of inference. The battery of cognitive style
tests has been administered to several thousand entering
freshman students at Oakland Community College (to date the
number is well over 20,000 students).

The elements of cognitive style were introduced in
Chapter I and considered in the related literature of the
"educational sciences" in Chapter II. The following instru-
ments as developed by Fragale, Svagr, and Zussman, were used

to identify cognitive style elements as part of this study.

Test 1. [T (VL) or t (v1)* Theoretical Verbal Linguistié]

Verbal Reasoning Test

 

This test is made up of 25 sentences in which the first
and last words are omitted. The student is asked to select
the words which would Complete the blank spaces in such a
way that the sentence would be true and sensible. The

student has a choice of five pairs of words to fill the

 

*See Chapter I for the explanation of major and minor scoring.

60

blank portions of each sentence. The first word of the
selected pair fills the space at the beginning of the
sentence, and the second word fills the space at the end
of the sentence. This test has a time limit of 15 minutes.
The following is a sample item:

..... is to masculine as woman is to .....
. man.......madame
malicious.......feminine
malicious.......girl

man........feminine
. man........gir1

MUOU'HD

Test 2. [T (AL) or t (al) Theoretical Auditory Linguistic]

Listening Comprehension Test

 

This test consists of a brief account of the food-
gathering behavior of a south sea island people. A tape
recorder is used to present the information to the students,
explaining how a coconut is removed from the tree for food.
After listening to the audio tape recording, the student
is asked selected questions to determine his understanding

of the account.

Test 3. ET (WQ) or t (vq) Theoretical Visua1 Quantitative]

Visual Numerical Test

 

In this test, 20 numerical problems are presented which
include addition, subtraction, multiplication, division,
square roots, percentages, fractions, ratios, cube roots,
and discounts. The student is given five choices with the

fifth to be used when no correct answer is included in the

61

first four choices. The student is given scratch paper
and has 15 minutes to complete the items. A sample item
in this test follows:

Multiply 2.04

.75
A. 1.5300
B. 153.0
C. 1530
D. 15300
E. none of these

Test 4. [T(VL) or t(v1) Theoretical Verbal Linguistia

Readinngest

 

The student has 36 short paragraphs to read. At the
end of each paragraph a question is presented to be answered
in one word. There are four choices for each question.

The time allotment is six minutes. One of the items follows:
Switzerland has little land and few people.
The Swiss people work hard, however, and their

country is clean and prosperous. Switzerland is

A. large B. small C. dirty D. poor

Test 5. [T(AQ) or t(aq) Theoretica1 Auditory Quantitative]

Oral Numerical Test

 

This test contains 10 numerical word problems, including
addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, fractions,
percentages, and word problems. The content is presented by
means of an audio tape recording or oral presentation. The
student writes only the answer. A sample problem follows:

A newsman collected 25¢ from each of six customers.
What is the total amount he collected?

62

Test 6. [T(VL) or t(v1) Theoretica1 Visual Linguisticg

Grammar Test

 

Each of 30 sentences is divided into four parts

lettered A, B, C, and D. The student is to decide which
part, if any, contains an error in grammar, punctuation,
or spelling. Then he indicates the letter corresponding
to the part of the sentence which is in error. Some of
the sentences are error-free. The letter E is provided as
an answer to indicate "no error.” No more than one error
occurs in each sentence. There is a time limit of 25 minutes.
The following is an example:

He knew / he done {/ as well as / anybody else.

A B C D E

Test 7. Qualitative Codes Test

 

This test is made up of 40 questions regarding the
student's interests, actions, attitudes, capabilities, conduct,
beliefs, values and other aspects of personal behavior. The
student is to rate each item with regard to how the item is
like him. Four possible responses are provided: usually,

sometimes, seldom, and never. This test is not timed, but

 

the student is urged to work quickly and to give the first
answer that comes to mind. It is emphasized that the student
record his first impression. An example of an item is:

I influence others to join me in a cause.

A. usually B. sometimes C. seldom D. never

63

Tests 8 and 9. Test of Cultural Effects

 

Ten stories or situations which may have happened to
people are presented. The student must make a decision about
how he would respond or react (in real life) if he were re-
quired to choose among the possible reactions: the one that
is "most like him" and the one that is "least like him."

The student must make these two choices and leave one
blank. No time limit is required for this test. A sample
item is:

Don Roberts needs a car to get to his new job.

He goes to the used car agency with some Of his

buddies and his Dad. His father wants him to

buy one car, his buddies are urging him to buy

a different one and he has been thinking about

another one. He should:

10. Buy what his father suggests
A) MOST B) LEAST

11. Buy what he has been thinking about
A) MOST B) LEAST

12. Buy what his buddies are telling him to get
A) MOST B) LEAST

Test 10. Test for Inferential Patterns

 

Ten situations are described in which the student is
asked to imagine he is involved. Each situation has four
possible responses. The student is asked to decide which
response he would "most likely" make as the first choice
or best solution, then second best, third best, and fourth
best. The student is required to rank all four responses
for each situation in the order of his "most likely" response

even though he does not like some of the Offered responses.

64

The following is a sample item:

If you were asked to recommend a "very good"
restaurant to your best friend's family, what
would you most likely do:

1.

Determine if the restaurant has the high
standards of very good restaurants you have
visited in the past.

a. first choice c. third choice
b. second choice d. fourth choice

Find out if its standards are in keeping with
older traditions as well as modern ones, and
the extent to which it is like or different
from other good restaurants and eating places.

a. first choice 0. third choice
b. second choice d. fourth choice

Discover in what ways the restaurant resembles
and duplicates other fine eating places.

a. first choice c. third choice
b. second choice d. fourth choice

Determine in what ways the restaurant's reputa-
tion is different from currently accepted
standards Of excellence.

a. first choice 0. third choice
b. second choice d. fourth choice

The instruments described above make up the major part

Of the Cognitive Style Test Battery used by Oakland Community

College, Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. The testing materials

and staff were brought to the Delta College Campus to com-

plete the diagnostic testing of the faculty and students

involved in this study. The Cognitive Style computer program

of Oakland Community College was used to print out the test

results in a Cognitive Style Map. A map made up of the three

sets might appear as follows:

65

r A
T(AL) t(aq) T(VL) t(aq)
Q(CEM) H H H R

f

Q(CH) n n n ‘A I )D L

 

 

Q(CP) n n u (f (m J
Q(CES) n n u
Q(CK) n n n

Q(CS) H II I!
Q(CET) II II II

 

09
II
x
x

 

Q(Ckh) H H II

Q(Ct) H H I!
k J

Identification of Teaching Style was accomplished

 

 

 

through the combined input Of faculty and students. A form
was prepared (See Appendix A) which briefly describes the
makeup of teaching styles or demeanors as outlined in
Chapter I. Teachers may possess major and/0r minor de-
meanors drawn frOm the following:

P- Predominant - consistently employing a fixed

style of teaching, either authoritarian or
permissive.

 

B- Flexible - uses a style that appears to be
best for each individual student.

8- Switcher or Adjnstive - begins on the basis
of the student's style and switching him to
the teacher's preferred style.

 

It is understood that teachers would not demonstrate one
particular style to the exclusion of the others, therefore
individuals are usually combinations of two styles (i.e.,

Predominant - switcher, Switcher - flexible).

66

A group discussion concerning teaching styles was
held with the faculty group as a part of an inservice
education program. Each faculty member was asked to
identify his teaching style as he perceived it and record
it on the form. In addition each faculty member was asked
to identify a student presently in his group who appeared
most compatible with his teaching style and a student who
appeared least compatible with his teaching style.

A student version of the "Identification of Teaching
Style" was prepared (See Appendix A) and discussed in each
clinical group of 15 students. Students had an opportunity
to read the description and to ask for clarification on any
aspect of teaching style. The instructor whose style was
being identified was not present during this discussion
period. Students were asked to rate the teaching style of
their present instructor and record it on the form. In
addition each student was asked to indicate the teaching
style he thought he would prefer for his next nursing course.
There was also provision for comments the student would like
to Offer regarding any personal preferences for the next
course. The students' identification of teaching style and
the faculty's identification of teaching style were tallied.
Most faculty received 15 student ratings plus their own
rating. The teaching style was determined by the combined
ratings. If an element (i.e., B - Flexible) was identified

by 50 percent and over of the raters, the element was

67

registered as a major. If it was identified by 25 to 49
percent of the raters, the element was designated as a
minor. An element which received less than 24 percent Of
the ratings was considered negligible and not included as
a part Of the instructor's teaching style. For example,

one instructor received the following ratings from 15

 

students:
Element Number Designation
P - Predominant 10 = Major
B - Flexible 8 = Major
S - Switcher 3 = Negligible

This instructor indicated her teaching style as she perceived
it was P - (Predominant) B - (Flexible). A summary Of
teaching styles for the nursing faculty is available in
Appendix A.

Faculty Interviews were conducted with each of the
faculty teaching the second nursing course. (Students in
this study had been assigned to faculty on the basis of
cognitive style maps and preferred teaching style for the
matched group and a number Of non-matched students (the
techniques for matching will be discussed at a later point
in this chapter). Shortly after the semester was underway
(approximately four weeks) interviews were held with each
instructor regarding specific observations of each student's
behavior. In the course of the interview the instructor was

asked to respond to the following general items:

68

1. Briefly describe your general reactions to
this student.

2. Describe a behavior you have observed that would
be an example of each of the cognitive style
elements.

3. What are the student's strengths and weaknesses
as you perceive them in terms of success in
nursing?

The interviews involved 13 faculty regarding 195
students. The length of interviews varied from a minimum
of three hours to a maximum of six hours in divided sessions
of one to two hours each. Instructor's statements were re-
corded for later analysis. At the conclusion of the inter—
view session the individual student's cognitive style maps
were reviewed and discussed in relationship to the instruct-
or's observations.

"General reactions to this student" usually provided
basic data about the student such as age, marital status,
personal problems, and work load. Other comments included
some clues as to the way in which the instructor perceived
the student, such as:

"She sees herself as a failure who will fail again."

"I spend a lot of time with this student, and she has
difficulty applying what she has learned."

"She has an outgoing personality."

"She is a very tiny lady with tiny feelings about
herself."

"I don't know her too well; she is a quiet one."

"I'm really fond of this student. She has a fine
feeling for the patient."

"She holds herself real tight."

69
"I don't know if she really wants to be in nursing."

"Describing Behaviorsz" Each element of the cognitive
style map was briefly explained as the first seven instructors
used "A Brief Guide to Cognitive Style Mapping: Symbols and
Their Meanings,"1 as a guide. The instructor was asked to
describe a student behavior in terms Of nursing care acti-
vities that would serve as an example of the presence or
absence of the particular element. Instructors were able
to identify a large range of behaviors for each of the
cognitive style elements. A sample of described behaviors
included:

T(VL) "She has trouble understanding what she reads."

"She looks up everything; she does excellent
preparation."

T(AL) "She asks for repetition a lot and must look
at you when you talk."

"She can follow my spoken directions very well."
"She listens to patients attentively."
"She doesn't use medical terminology often."

"He would rather have you tell him about some-
thing than to read it."

T(AQ) "She has no trouble with numbers."

"He is always ahead Of the group in figuring out
drug dosages from information I tell the group."

T(VQ) "She has to write the formula down each time."

"She does all right if the order is written on
the kardex as to the dosage."

 

1Joseph E. Hill and Derek N. Nunney, "Personalizing Edu-
cational Programs Utilizing Cognitive Style Mapping...",
Oakland Community College, February, 1971.

7O

Q(CES) "The patient's environment was left in a mess."

"She is very neat and tidy and conscious of
how things look in the patient area."

Q(CET) "She has definite ideas about quality of
nursing and wants others to meet her standards."

"She tries to get by with as little as possible."

Q(CH) "She is too self conscious to role play but
gives it a try."

"She enjoys playing a role when it is a
'good' part."

"When asked to role play she gets 'giggly.'"

"She can control her behavior to produce a
desired impression."

The described behaviors were summarized in written form
as a preliminary rating scale for the last six faculty to
use as guides during their interviews. The pre-testing of
the rating scale in the interview sessions were recorded
and items revised for clarification. Additional sample
behaviors were suggested during the later interview sessions
and incorporated in the revised scale.

"Strengths and weaknesses" were discussed in terms Of
the present course and the probability of success in the
next course. Possible approaches to specific behaviors were
discussed. Some of the comments included:

"She lacks initiative and doesn't communicate."

"She is able to work quickly and think about two to
three things at one time."

"She takes a long time to come to decisions."

"This person will make a positive contribution to the
profession."

71

"She has difficulty setting priorities."

"This person is not able to function in a leadership
role.‘ .

These types of comments provided additional perspective for
the understanding of cognitive style elements in the nursing
setting.

Pre-testing of the developed teacher rating scale was
achieved by three faculty not involved in the interviewing
process. These three faculty used the scale to rate 21
selected students. Each of the three faculty was given a
copy of the rating scale and score cards to tally their
ratings for the selected students. A copy Of the developed
instrument, "Teacher's Rating Scale, Students of Nursing,"

is available in Appendix B.

Test Scores and Final Course Grades

 

Test Scores: The cognitive style elements required for

 

the student to use a particular mode of instruction were
identified for one sequence in the second nursing course.
A group of the five most experienced" nursing faculty at
Delta College formed a panel to determine what cognitive
style elements a student would need in order to achieve the
Objectives for a selected lesson segment using one of three

methods: 1) audio tape recording in the autotutorial

 

*These faculty members had taught a minimum of five years
at Delta College, had at least five years clinical experience,
were full-time, and expressed interest in participating in
this function.

72

laboratory,2 2) small group discussions with a student
leader, and 3) read only. These three particular modes
of instruction were selected as representative Of two
relatively traditional methods of instruction and a
distinctly technological method. The limitations Of time
and materials within the scope of this study restricted
the inclusion Of several possible modes of instruction as
provided in Educational Sciences at Oakland Community Col—
lege. The "read only" represents the usual type of student
information source, namely, printed materials. The small
group discussion is unique primarily in the sense that it
is student-lead with the authority figure of the instructor
removed to provide a relatively relaxed student inter-
action process. The autotutorial mode of instruction is
a sophisticated application of educational technology where
the student uses a variety of equipment including an audio
tape playback, slide projector, moving picture projector,
a variety of real objects, as well as printed materials.
Since the usual mode of instruction in the Delta College
nursing program is the autotutorial method, the lesson
materials were developed and pre-tested for the "small group

discussion" group and the "read only" group.

 

2Crystal M. Lange, Autotutorial Technigues in Nursing
Education, Prentice-Hall, Inc., Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey,

@723 p. 18-190

 

73

Each student was assigned to one Of the instructional
modes according to the specified cognitive style elements.3
The identified major elements for each of these modes were:

1) Audio tape recording in the autotutorial laboratory
' T(AL) T(VL) 1 "

Q(CS) x I x .4M )

09
ll

 

 

 

1 Q(CET) R J

2) Small group discussion with a student leader

‘T(AL) ‘ 1 A " ' R 1

s Q(CEM)) x ( > Xfi M >
Q(CT) J . 1 ) J

The student leaders for the small group discussions
required the following major elements:

 

 

 

 

 

 

T(VL) ‘ A M’
g - Q(CET)} x x D match with small group
Q(CT) R
J

3) Read only students should have the following
major elements

 

 

r T(VL)? " ‘ M
g =< Q(CET) >x < I x R L
Q(CS) L j
\ Q(CEM);

 

In describing the modes indicated for each Of the
instructional modes, the student assigned to the autotutorial
laboratory would need a major in theoretical auditory lin-

guistic (the ability to get meaning from the spoken word),

 

3These elements are in agreement with those identified
by Charles M. Wynn and associates for similar modes of instruc-
tion in the "Physical Science BURST-Fall, 1970," Oakland Com-
munity College, Orchard Ridge Campus, Farmington, Michigan,
Personal letter dated February 9, 1972.

74

a major in qualitative code synoetic (the ability to know
one's own strengths and weaknesses), a major qualitative
code ethic (the ability to adhere to a set of principles),
and a major in theoretical verbal linguistic (the ability
to get meaning from the written word). In addition he
would have a major I (individualistic), and have an infer-
ential pattern which relies on definitions and rules (M)
magnitudes, and (R) relationships (looking for the simi-
larities in a situation).

The student assigned to the small group session would
also have a major in theoretical auditory linguistic, but
would need a major in qualitative code empathetic(Q(CEM))
and a major in qualitative code transactional Q(CT)

(the ability to convince others to go in your way), a
major associates orientation (A), and an inferential
pattern using (R) relationships and (M) magnitudes similar
to the student assigned the autotutorial instruction.

The student who is assigned to the read only method,
would require a major theoretical verbal linguistic (T(VL)),
a major code ethic, and a major qualitative code synoetic,
as well as a major in code empathetic. In addition he would
need to be a major independent (I), and use the inferential
pattern Magnitudes as well as the R (relationships).

At the conclusion of the lesson by cognitive style
assignment, all students took a computer corrected, 20 item
test. This test had been prepared and pre-tested in the

prior semester and was determined to be reliable and valid

75

according to item analysis. The student scores on this
test were compared with the scores each student had achieved
on similar tests that same semester.

Final Course Grades were available on the basis of a

 

percent score for the overall performance as well as

clinical performance and written tests and paperS. The

final course grade sheets indicate students who withdrew
from a course after the drop-add period Of registration.

Each instructor determines the percentage score for his
students in relation to the specified course and unit
behavioral Objectives. For purposes of this study the
established evaluation techniques for clinical and class-
room performance were in no way altered from the instructor's
usual methods. A comparison of final course grades achieved

by matched students and non-matched students was possible.

NursingpStudent Survey

 

For the past several semesters this investigator has
administered a survey instrument to students completing a
nursing course. The instrument has been repeatedly revised
following each administration and in accordance with faculty
and student responses, as well as continued analysis of the
resulting data. For purposes Of this study the developed
survey instrument was further revised to include cognitive
style elements. The prepared instrument was pre-tested with
both nursing and non-nursing students and a faculty sample
during the semester prior to the actual survey. The pre-

testing provided input for refinements and clarifications

76

and re-testing before the final instrument was administered.
Two forms were developed, one for on-campus administration
and one for mailing. The form used with students on campus
at the end Of the course (after final grades had been com-
pleted) used a computer answer sheet. The other form was
mailed to off-campus students (most of whom had withdrawn
prior to the survey) with provision for circling a response.
The mailed surveys included a postage paid, addressed,
return envelope. Samples of the two Nursing Student Survey

forms are found in Appendix C.

Nursing Faculty Survey

 

A 20 item faculty survey was prepared to determine the
ways each faculty perceived his particular group of students
and how he regarded cognitive style matching techniques. The
developed instrument was pre-tested with a small group Of
faculty not involved in the study group. The pre-testing
provided some revisions for Clarification. At the end Of
the course each participating instructor completed a faculty
survey form. A copy Of the faculty survey form is available

in Appendix D.

Design
The research design employed in this study is a modified

post-evaluation only control group design, identified by

Campbell and Stanley as a true experimental design."

 

"Donald Campbell and Julian Stanley, "Experimental and
Quasi-Experimental Designs for Research on Teaching," in Gage,
N.L., Handbook 9n Research on Teaching, Chicago: Rand McNally
and Company, 1963.

 

77

Students in the beginning class in the nursing program
were diagnosed as to cognitive style and preferred teaching
style early in the first nursing course. Each faculty
member was diagnosed as to cognitive style and teaching
style. Students were randomly assigned to faculty members
in the first nursing course according to the usual registra-
tion procedures. During the first term the matching of
student cognitive style and preferred teaching style with
faculty cognitive style and teaching style was prepared
for assignment to the matched group in the second nursing
course. Students who for any reason did not wish to accept
the assignment by matching could select a teacher on their
own and became part of a non-matched group.

Final course evaluations served as the criterion for
the matched group and the non-matched group in relation to
reduction of withdrawal or failing grades in the nursing
course. The final course evaluations derived from the
second nursing course were compared with baseline data for
students in the same course for the prior three years. The
baseline data is summarized in Appendix G. Since entry into
the second nursing course is based on successful achievement
of the defined Objectives in the first nursing course, there
is a common base of knowledge for students entering the
second nursing course. Inasmuch as the second nursing course
has two teams of faculty, it was possible to have two matched

(experimental) and two non-matched (control) groups. The

78

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mahpm o>Hpchoo m.p:op§pm op weaopooom meanopmz*

 

 

 

 

 

 

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wcapmma mahpm O>Hpacwoo mcapmoe Oahpm m>apacwoo nopa

 

 

HH macaw H QSOHG

 

 

 

 

 

79

design is presented in Figure 3.

The initial assignment Of students to Group I and
Group II was done by considering each student's stated
preference for hospital assignment. The hospitals used
by Group I are all located in the city of Saginaw. The
hospitals used by Group II included one Saginaw and two
Bay City hospitals. Following the assignment to Group I
and Group II, each student was assigned to a matched
(experimental) or non-matched (control) group. Each
hospital group (clinical laboratory) had a capacity of
15 students for each clinical instructor. The assignment
of instructors to three sections was not finalized prior
to the start of the course. Consequently it was not possible
to match students to instructor and those three sections
were non-matched only.

Matching of student's cognitive style and preferred

 

teaching style to an instructor's cognitive style and
teaching style was accomplished in the following steps:

1) A major orientation in each of the cognitive style
elements of the instructor was selected by a
panel of five nursing* faculty as the matching
elements. The instructor's cognitive style map
was examined for the selection Of a theoretical
and qualitative orientation, cultural determinants,
and modalities of inference. An example of such
elements identified from one instructor's cognitive
style map was as follows:

‘{T(VL) {’1'} ' R
s = x x: d
Q(CEM) {‘n}

*The panel was described earlier in this chapter.

 

2)

3)

4)

80

The identified teaching style as described earlier
was added to the cognitive style elements.

A point value was attached to each of the cognitive
style elements and the teaching style as indi-
cated below.

T(VL) [2] 121 g2]

s = Q(CEM)[2] x x "[2]
"P1
ts = 3?]
3?] Total points 3 16

The cognitive style maps of students were reviewed
to identify students who had the identified ele-
ments in their style and a preference for the
indicated teaching style. For each element in

the students' map, points were assigned in the
manner indicated above, except in the case where
the student had a minor element as compared to

a major for the instructor (or the student had

a major as compared to a minor for the instructor)
only one point was assigned. For example the
following shows points assigned a student map

as compared to the sample instructor.

Instructor Student

 

Total Points 16 Total Points = 12

T(VL) [21 T(VL) [21
Q(CEM) [21 q(cem) [1]
I [2] I [2]
R [2] r [1]
d [2] D [1]
m [2] M [1]

ts = H2] ts : P [2]

‘12] b F

81

5) A match Of at least 80 percent on the identified
elements was required to be considered a matched
student. If the instructor's elements were 16
points, each matched student would have at least
10 or more "matching" points. The majority of
the matches were 90 percent or higher.

The described matching techniques was performed for

over 225 students and the 12 faculty involved in the study.

4 _!——b'

When the section assignments were completed based on the
described matching procedures, each student was notified
of his assignment approximately six weeks before the start
of the semester. Each student had been involved in the A
cognitive style diagnostic tests, discussion sessions

regarding their own cognitive style map, the purpose of

the study and the identification of teaching style. Follow-

ing the assignment by matching, students had the option to

request another section or instructor. Of the matched

students over 50 students requested transfer to another

section for a variety of personal reasons. The "Request

for Change in Nursing Section" and selected reasons for

transfer are in Appendix E. Regardless of the reasons given,

each request for transfer was implemented. Each of the

clinical groups contained matched and non-matched students

since the transfers became a part of the non-matched group.

The groups of matched and non-matched students are summa-

rized below:

82

Group I
Instructor Matched Non-matched
l 7 6
2 9 6
3 - 15
A 5 7
5* - 14
21 48
Group II
Instructor Matched Non-matched
6 7 6
7 5 10
8* 5 8
9* - 14
10 4 9
21 47

The instructors were not aware of which students had
been "matched" and which were "non-matched" (except the
three instructors who had all "non-matched" students).
The instructors' final course evaluation was not influenced
by the knowledge Of "matched" and "non-matched" students
in each group.

Prior to the start of this study, in early fall, the

total faculty group (33) had participated in cognitive

 

*part—time faculty.

83

style diagnosis followed by an eight hour workshop con-

ducted by Dr. Joseph E. Hill and Dr. Virginia Svagr relative

to the Educational Sciences and cognitive style. During

the workshop each faculty member reviewed his own cognitive

style map as the specific elements were being discussed.

A summary of the research design indicates each of the

phases and approximate sequencing.

Phase

1
2
3
4
5

10
11

Description

 

Diagnosis of Faculty Cognitive Styles
Faculty Workshop and Orientation
Diagnosis of Students' Cognitive Styles
Student Orientation Sessions

Identification Of Teaching Style and
Preferred Teaching Style

Match Students Cognitive Style and
Preferred Teaching Style with Faculty
Cognitive Style and Teaching Style:
Assign to a Nursing Section

Transfer Students as Requested

Conduct Faculty Interviews Relative to
Student Behaviors and Cognitive Style
Elements

Administer Nursing Student Survey
Forms - End Of Course

End of Course Grades

Administer Nursing Faculty Survey Form

Hypothesis Generating Activities

 

In addition tO the research design described above,

selected "hypothesis generating" activities were pursued as

a part of this study.

The cognitive style requirements Of

84

a lesson segment,described earlier, were identified by a
panel of five nursing faculty. The content selected was
predominately theoretical concepts dealing with disturbances
in excretion and/0r retention. The usual instructional
mode at Delta College for such material is by means of an
audio tape recording in the autotutorial laboratory. The
panel identified cognitive style elements required for a
student to achieve the content in one of three modes:
1) audio tape recording in the autotutorial laboratory,
2) small group discussion with a student leader, and 3)
read only. The necessary elements for these three modes
were discussed earlier in this chapter and are found on
page 73.

For the purposes Of this study each student in Group
I and Group II were assigned to one of the instructional
modes according to the numerical cognitive style matching
process as described under "matching." The required mate-
rials were prepared for the "read only" group as well as
a discussion guide for the student leaders in the small
group discussions. An orientation session of one hour was
provided for each of the student leaders prior to their
discussion groups. Following the completion of the designed
instructional experience, a test was administered by each
instructor in the regular quiz session. The usual computer
answer sheets were used and a reaction sheet was provided

for students to indicate their responses to the lesson

85

format. The quiz scores on this unit were compared with
each student's composite quiz scores on similar units of
study throughout the semester. A copy of the quiz and
reaction sheet is contained in Appendix F.

Re-testing of Cognitive Style was conducted on a

 

selected sample of students near the conclusion Of this
study. The sample had been diagnosed for cognitive style
during the spring semester prior to the conduct of this
study (almost one year previous to the second testing).

The purpose was to identify changes which may have taken
place in the total cognitive style and to pose hypothesis
relative to the presence or absence of changes in cognitive
style. The diagnostic testing team from Oakland Community
College re-administered the complete testing materials to
these students during an eight hour session. Results and
comparisons of the diagnostic testing were Shared with indi-
vidual students on a one-tO-one basis.

The Teachers Rating Scale: Students of Nursing was

 

used to identify cognitive style elements of this same group
of students. The faculty who rated the students had not
been directly associated with the study except as they
participated in the general nursing faculty workshops. The
results Of these "hypotheses generating" activities are

reported in Chapter IV and Chapter V.

u— z

-‘s‘ '

86

Testable Hypothesis

 

To determine the effect of matching the students'
cognitive style and preferred teaching style with the
instructors' cognitive style and teaching style, statisti-
cal hypotheses were generated and tested. Each null hypo-
thesis tested is presented followed by an accompanying
alternate hypothesis.

Null Hypothesis: When students' cognitive style
and preferred teaching style is matched with the
instructors' cognitive style and teaching style,
the frequency of failure-withdrawal in that course

will not be less than the failure-withdrawal rate
for non-matched students.

 

Alternate Hypothesis: When students' cognitive
style and preferred teaching style is matched with
the instructors' cognitive style and teaching style,
the frequency Of failure-withdrawal in that nursing
course will be less than the failure-withdrawal
rate for non-matched students.

 

In this study the matching of students' cognitive
style and preferred teaching style with the instructors'
cognitive style and teaching style is the independent
variable and the failure-withdrawal rate (end of course
grades) in the nursing course is the dependent variable.
The Kolmogorov-Smirnov statistical test, a non-parametric
statistical test, was used to test the hypothesis. The
test is concerned with the amount of agreement between the
cumulative distributions Of observed relative frequencies
and expected relative frequencies. The test determines
whether the distribution of the cumulative relative fre-

quencies (in this case, end of course grades for matched

87

students) of the sample compares reasonably with the
distribution of the cumulative relative frequencies
expected (the base line data from non-matched students)
under the null hypothesis.5

Additional aspects of the data will be analyzed in
terms of non-parametric and parametric statistical tests.
The following questions will be considered in relation
to the data available:

1) DO students in the matched group perceive their
instructor more positively than non-matched
students as evidenced by responses on the
Student Survey?

2) Do students in the matched group tend to receive
higher grades than students in the non-matched
group?

3) When students are assigned an instructional mode
based on cognitive style, is measured achieve-
ment affected?

4) When students are assigned an instructional mode
based on cognitive style, are reactions to the
process favorable as indicated by their statements?

5) Do instructors perceive matching as a valuable tool
in the teaching-learning process?

6) Does the absence of a cognitive style element affect
probable success in a nursing course?

7) Does the makeup of a student's cognitive style map
change after experiences in the nursing courses?

8) If changes occur in students' cognitive style maps,
is there a pattern to such change?

9) Are faculty able to identify cognitive style ele-
ments of students with the aid of the Teachers
Rating Scale: Nursing Students?

 

5Joseph E. Hill and August Kerber, Models, Methods,
and Analytical Procedures in Educational Research, Wayne
State University Press, Detroit, Michigan, 1967, p. 311-322.

 

88

Summary

Entering nursing students and the nursing faculty
at Delta College, University Center, Michigan, were
diagnosed as to cognitive style. The determination Of
teaching style involved students and faculty designations
followed by each student specifying a preferred teaching
style. A group of students were matched to faculty on
the basis of cognitive style and preferred teaching
style. End of course evaluations were used to determine
differences in the achievement of matched and non-matched
students. The experimental design used in the study was
a Post-test Control Group Design. Two statistical hypo-
theses were generated to determine the effect of matching
students' cognitive style and preferred teaching style
with instructors' cognitive style and teaching style.
The hypotheses were tested using the Kolmogorov-Smirnov
statistical test. The probability level for rejecting
the null hypothesis was at the .05 alpha level.

In order to identify possible answers to nine "hypotheses
generating" questions, survey instruments and interviews
were conducted. Additional statistical analyses were con-

ducted on the data to suggest further areas of study.

CHAPTER IV

ANALYSIS OF DATA

Analysis of Data

 

The statistical hypotheses were tested using a
Kolmogorov-Smirnov statistical test. End of course
grades were used as the dependent variable to determine
the effect of matching the student's cognitive style and
preferred teaching style with the instructor's cognitive
style and teaching style. The final grades were compared
with the baseline data (Appendix G) as tabulated in
Table 1.

TABLE l.--Final Grades of Students in the Second
Nursing Course Compared to Baseline Data.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Grades: W/E D C B A
Matched
Students

n1 - 42 9 1 10 13 9
Baseline
Data

n2 = 510 89 18 109 178 116
Accumulated
Frequencies
s(x1) 42 9/42 10/42 20/42 33/42 42/42
s(x2) 510 89/510 107/510 216/510 394/510 510/510
Deviations 852 606 1,128 282 O
S(Xl)-S(X2)=D 21:320' 21,420 21,u20 21 2O

 

 

 

 

 

 

89

90

In examining Table 1, it is Observed that the maximum
deviation (D) between the respective cumulative distribu-
tion is to be found in the third category of the distri-
bution, i. e., the "grade" column of "C". The D a 1,128/21,420.
Computing the critical value of D at the .05 level of signi-

ficance is:

 

 

 

 

D = 1.36 nl + n2 42 + 510
I ("1 "25 21,1120
552 a5; 0.21832
1-36 21, 20
L

 

The computed value of the observed D = 0.052661, therefore
the null hypothesis cannot be rejected. The null hypothesis
states: When students' cognitive style and preferred teach-
ing style is matched with the instructors' cognitive style
and teaching style, the frequency Of failure-withdrawal

in that course will not be less than the failure-withdrawal
rate of non-matched students. When the matched students

are compared with the baseline data there is no statistically
significant difference.

In considering the cumulative grade distribution of
groups involved in this study, the matched group for Team 1
was compared to the total non-matched group. The final
grades for the matched group were compared with the final
grades of the non-matched group using the same Kolmogorov-

Smirnov statistical test and are presented in Table 1.2.

In examining Table 1.2,

91

it is observed that the

maximum deviation (D) between the respective cumulative

distribution is to be found in the third category Of the

distribution, i.e., the "grade" column Of "C”.

D = 859/1995 is computed according to the Kolmogorov-
Smirnov statistical test.

to be .294 at the .05 level of significance.

The critical value is computed

The observed

D value (859/1995) is .4306, for the matched (#1) group.

Although the null hypothesis cannot be rejected with the

baseline data, the null can be rejected for the matched (#1).

TABLE l.2--Comparison of Final Grades Of Matched & Non-
Matched Students in the Second Nursing Course.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

w/E D C B A
Matched
Students (#)
n1 = 21 2 O 2 9 8
Non-Matched
Students
n2 = 95 3O 6 23 26 10
Accumulated
Frequencies
S(x)21 2/21 2/21 4/21 13/21 21/21
8(X2)95 30/95 36/95 59/95 85/95 95/95
Deviations
s(x1) - S(X2)=D 440 566 859* 550 O

1995 1995 1995 1995

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

group compared to the total non-matched group.

 

*value = .4306, significant at the .05 level

 

92

In examining the data presented in Table 1.2, and
considering the results of the statistical analysis, it
may be concluded that the matching of student's cognitive
style and preferred teaching style with the instructor's
cognitive style and teaching style may have had a posi-
tive effect on the failure-withdrawal rate of the matched
group for Group #1. In considering the answers to the
next two questions, additional data is presented which
further supports the positive effects Of cognitive style
matching.

In response to the question, "DO students in the
matched group perceive their instructor more positively
than non-matched students as evidenced by responses on
the Student Survey?" the following information was
considered. Five items on the Student Survey dealt
with the student's perception Of the instructor.* The
percent of students responding to each item is summarized

in Table 2.

 

*Criteria for the selection Of the items was the inclusion
of the words "my instructor" and the connotation relative
to cognitive style.

93

TABLE 2.--Comparison of Students' Perception of
Instructor in Matched and Non-matched Groups

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

IDUJ :> U Um
acct on H- Hc+
Item 811 s m m'1
m<3 m m 030
m:3 m 09 c2:
09 s 809
t—J (D (Dr-4
<< 0 m<<
My instructor understands
me and my learning needs.
Matched 44 33 17 6
Non-matched 2O 52 20 6
My instructor makes reason-
able assignments and demands.
Matched 38 45 8
Non-matched 3O 53 10
My instructor gives me enough
direction so I know what I
should do.
Matched 3O 44 2O 6
Non—matched 24 47 19 9
My instructor stimulates me
to do my best.
Matched 39 30 18 12
Non-matched 27 41 19 11

 

Responses to the Student Survey were assigned a
numerical value of five for most favorable to one for
least favorable. The maximum student rating score on the
five selected items was 25 for most favorable and a mini-

mum of five for least favorable. The mean score for

94

matched students was calculated and the mean score for
non-matched students was calculated. A test for differ—
ence between means was performed using the t-test as
described by Downie and Heath.1 The mean scores,
standard deviations and t-values are presented in

Table 3 below.

TABLE 3.--Statistical Comparison of Students'

Perception Of Instructor in Matched
and Non-matched Groups

 

 

Total Matched Mean Score Standard t-value
Group Deviation

"43 19.0698 6.3823
Total 2-39132*
Non-matched
Group

n93 16.4731 7.0735

 

 

 

 

*.05 level Of significance

 

It would appear from the results Of the student survey
and the statistical analysis of the students' responses,
that those students who were matched with their instructor
on the basis of cognitive style and preferred teaching
style do perceive their instructor more positively. In

analyzing the information relative to question two which

 

1
N. M. Downie, R. W. Heath, Basic Statistical Methods,

Harper and Brothers, Publishers, New York, 1959, p. 127-131.

 

95

follows, additional data further deals with the differ-
ences between the matched and the non—matched student
groups.

Question 2: "DO students in the matched group tend
to receive higher grades than students in the non—matched
group?" The final grades in the second nursing course
are computed on a numerical basis as well as a letter
grade. The final grade sheet shows a letter grade only,
but the computed numerical scores were also available for
this study. The grade scale used in the nursing course is

as follows:

90 and above A
80 to 89 B
70 to 79 C
60 to 69 D
59 and below E

The mean grade scores of the matched students and the mean
grade scores of the non-matched students were computed.
The t-test for difference between means was calculated.
The mean scores, standard deviations and t-values are
summarized in Table 4. In this evaluation, the matched
groups were treated in the two sub-groups for Group 1 and

Group 2 and were compared separately and collectively.

96

TABLE 4.--Comparison Of Mean Final Scores of Matched
and Non-Matched Groups in the Second Nursing Course.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

n Group Mean Standard t-value
Deviation
21 Matched
#1 82.7143 12.6299
93 Non-matched
Total 70.9467 16.5978 3.05156**
21 Matched
#1 82.7143 12.6299
22 Matched
#2 68.2727 14.9418 3.41481**
43 Matched
Total 75.3256 15.5223
93 Non-matched
Total 70.9462 16.5978 1.39071
47 Non-matched
#1 74.6808 14.9305
46 Non—matched
#2 67.1304 17.4898 2.24076*
43 Matched
Total 75.3256 15.5223
46 Non-matched
#2 67.1304 17.4898 2.33171*
21 Matched
#1 82.7143 12.6299
47 Non-matched
#1 74.6808 14.9305 2.14439*
22 Matched
#2 68.2727 14.9418
46 Non-matched
#2 67.1304 17.4898 0.26354
68 Total
#1 77.1618 14.6508
68 Total
#2 67.5000 16.6047 3.59792***

 

*

.05 level of significance, **.01 level of significance,

*4!- hr“ 101ro1 AP a4nn-1 95/19an

97

Note the non-matched group for each team is similarly treated
in this analysis. The computed t-value indicates a differ-
ence at the .05 level of significance for the means between
the matched groups in all tests except where total matched
and total nOn-matched groups are computed. For example,
in column 1, row 1, the mean Of the "matched group" 82.7143,
when compared to the mean Of the total non-matched group,
70.9467, the t-value Of 3.05156 was found to be significant,
i. e., to occur beyond the .01 level of significance. On
the other hand, in column 1, row 3, dealing with the mean
of the "matched total group," (75.3256) and the "non-matched
total group" (70.9462), the t-value of 1.39071 did not occur
beyond the .05 level. It should be noted that in all cases
the "matched group" means were higher values.

It should be clearly understood that like any other
instructional system, the results are nOt independent of
the instructors, their positive attitudes and similar subtle
elements involving complex human interactions. Such factors
have had an impact on the findings of this study as sug-
gested by the demonstrated differences in the two groups
of students and faculty involved in this study. The differ-
ences between the means of Group I (matched plus non—matched)
and Group II as indicated in Table 4 are significant. The
faculty group I worked closely with the investigator and
consistently demonstrated a high degree Of enthusiasm and

acceptance of the concepts involved in cognitive style

98

matching. The faculty group II, on the other hand, had
limited contact with the investigator and demonstrated
a "wait and see" attitude regarding the value of cognitive
style matching. Even when these factors are considered
the analysis of the data in Table 4 demonstrates that the
mean final scores of the matched students are affected in
a positive direction, that is in all cases analyzed in this
study the students who were matched on the basis Of cogni-
tive style and preferred teaching style do have higher mean
scores on the final grades than do the non-matched students.
Question 3: "When students are assigned an instructional
mode based on their cognitive style, is measured achieve-
ment affected?” Each student in the second nursing course
was assigned a specific instructional mode (autotutorial,
discussion group, or read only) based on his individual
cognitive style map as outlined in Chapter III. Each student
was asked to use the assigned mode of instruction for the
content Of the selected lesson. At the end of the lesson
a written quiz was administered during the usual integrated
quiz session scheduled every week. The results achieved on
the assigned lesson were compared with each student's usual
achievement on similar testing instruments for similar
lesson content. It would be expected that the students
could perform as well as usual, less well than usual, or

better than the usual performance on quizzes. The Pearson r

99

described by Downie and Heath was computed to determine
if achievement was similar to prior performance.2 The
results of the comparison are presented in Table 5.
TABLE 5.--Comparison of Prior Mean Scores with Current

Mean Scores for Groups Assigned Different
Instructional Modes According to Cognitive Style.

 

 

 

 

n Group Mean Score Mean Score Pearson
for Instruct- Prior Quizzes r
ional Mode

24 ATL 70.2083 74.5417 0.67695*

41 Small Group

Discussion 78.1219 76.9268 O.54600**

31 Read Only 81.1935 81.2000 0.27223

 

 

 

 

 

*.001 level Of significance, **.01 level of significance

 

Although only the mean scores of the respective groups
are shown in Table 5, the values of the correlation co—
efficients were calculated on the basis of paired scores,
for each individual student. For example, in colum 1, row 1,
the mean score of 70.2083 represents the mean of 24 students'
scores who received instruction by means of the auto-tutorial
laboratory (ATL) approach. Each of these 24 scores were
paired with the average score that each student had achieved

in association with 13 quizzes taken thoughout the course.

 

2Downie and Heath, Op. Cit., p. 84, 143.

100

The resulting values Of the correlation of these two
distributions was found to be r = .67695. This value of
"r" was found to be significant at the p = .001 level.

Since the students achieved similar scores on the
assigned instructional mode which matched the cognitive
style elements of the student with the requirements of
the learning task, it appears that other variables beyond
the mode per se have an effect on the student's achievement.
These students are highly motivated to achieve well in the
nursing course and the opportunity to have instructional
experiences "made to order” for their own learning style
is viewed as "individualization" that allows them to learn
with greater ease, less time, and more enjoyment.

Students who were assigned the instructional mode which
best fit their own cognitive style performed very much like
they had on prior quizzes as evidenced by the correlations.
When the mean scores among the different instructional modes,
autotutorial, small group discussion, and read only, are
compared, the read only group is observed to have the highest
mean. That same group had a high mean score on prior quizzes
as recorded in Table 5. For purposes of comparison, the
tests for significance between means (t-test) is presented
in Table 6.

The small group discussion group shows a small increase
in mean scores as evidenced by Table 5 where the mean score

for the instructional mode is 78.1219 compared to a mean

101

TABLE 6.-—Comparison of Mean Scores Among Groups
Assigned Different Instructional Modes.

 

 

 

 

n Group Mean Standard t-value
Deviation
24 Autotutorial 70.2083 10.0520
41 Small Group
Discussion 78.1219 2.73641*
24 Autotutorial 70.2083 10.0520
31 Read Only 81.1935 12.8956 3.43960*
41 Small Group
Discussion 78.1219
31 Read Only 81.1935 12.8956 1.04670

 

 

 

 

 

*.05 level of significance

 

on prior quizzes Of 76.9268. That group is also higher on
the mean score as compared to the autotutorial group mean
of 70.2083 as presented in Table 6.

It appears that assignment to a mode of instruction
based on the cognitive style of the student is more important
to the student's achievement than the instructional mode
itself. Some students will be able to achieve well in a
read only mode, other students will be able to achieve
well in a small group discussion mode, still others will
achieve well in an autotutorial mode. Other factors con-
tribute to the success of the various instructional modes

as evidenced by the students' responses in the next question.

" 1-. ”me

“’3‘;

102

Question 4: "When students are assigned an instruct-
ional mode based on cognitive style, are reactions to the
process favorable as indicated by their statements?"

At the end of the evaluation for the assigned instructional
mode, students were asked to comment on the following items:
1) The most helpful thing about this lesson was...

2) The least helpful thing about this lesson was...

3) In the future I would recommend...

4) General comments...

The comments written by the students were submitted to
content analysis as described by Hill and Kerber to provide
data that might be categorically classified and evaluated,
and therefore provide a description and interpretation of
a situation or status not otherwise readily described.3
The content analysis provided the following statements
about the experience relative to the assigned instruct-
ional modes:

"The most helpful thing about this lesson was...

"Sharing and relating the lesson tO past experiences
in our small group session.’

"Getting together in the small group and exchanging
ideas.

"Stressing Of important points and confining the
lesson to them."

"I was able to go at my own speed. I could absorb
.more when I found answers myself and had to write
them down."

 

3Hill and Kerber, Models and Methods, op. Cit., p. 109.

e“wmnv

103

"I always enjoy learning."

"I enjoyed it because it was fairly easy."
"Seemed a bit more satisfactory."

"I like tO study independently."

"I prefer learning by reading so I felt it was
easier this way.’

3

m

"I learn more from reading than listening to someone." t
"This was a little bit better than usual."

"The ease of learning. If I can see how words are ;

spelled instead Of listening, I remember longer." ;

f

"I could do my lesson at my convenience and when I
study best, for example, early morning when ATL
would not be open."

"I liked the small group discussion."

"Enjoyed it more than previous method."

"Best lesson this semester!"

"The learning was easier for me this way."

"It wasn't easy. There was just as much work in it."

"Easiefi because I didn't have to guess what to study
most.

Comments on the item, "The least helpful thing about
this lesson was..."

"Group discussion; only because there were only
two of us in the group...not enough feedback."

"I misjudged the amount of time needed for the small
group session. We could have used another good hour."

"I didn't remember as much as I should."

"Little reinforcement of what I learned; less retention
Of knowledge."

"I was afraid I would not know all of the material
I should."

104

"NO discussion to clear any misconceptions." (read
only student)

"Not enough time to meet with group."
Comments on the item, "In the future I would recommend..."

"Students allowed to choose learning method which
suits them best."

"Placing the students with the teacher that they a
matched up with in the test given prior to the 1
first nursing course."

"More matching! I agree I got more out of reading
than trying to join a discussion group. It lets
our personal preference mean something."

"More time to get organized. I didn't get a chance
to get tOgether with everyone because of working
hours, baby sitter problems, etc."

"Not using this method."

"That this be tried more than once. I think that
if I become accustomed to this way of learning, I
would be able to absorb more."

"Each week changing the pattern, so that one is given
the opportunity to examine and learn from each way."

"Small group discussion assignment."

Responses to the item, "General Comments..."

"This really would have been a good experience if
more people would have taken it seriously. It was
disgusting to me to do everything and then have
students show up with very little preparation."

"I learned a lot about the students in this manner.
One girl came to the group discussion without her
materials or any reading done. Another girl never
came at all. It makes a difference how willing a
person is to learn, if she comes prepared or not."

"If this method of study was adOpted as policy, I
think the whole lesson would take on a different
meaning. As it was, many students did not take the
lesson seriously because we were 'guinea' pigs. I
think it could be effective from what I've seen this
week, but modifications would have to be made."

'l.[illl IllillIl-liulliluill Iii-ill

cll‘ll‘lbl If ll all. I"

I'llll‘lll

105

"I thought I could learn more easily by reading,
but after going through this course, I find that
I learn more by watching it done and doing it
myself, or seeing pictures of it."

"I found this week to be quite enjoyable."

"I liked the idea of having the material written out.
I think I can concentrate on the lesson more. I
wished I could have had it for other lessons."

"TOO bad we didn't do this every week!"

“‘- “‘”“-“I1'

"I liked it!"

"I found this style very interesting and helpful.
It involved communication and explanation which
increased awareness and interest." 1

"This style of teaching is a good idea. With small
group discussion sometimes one or two people lead
the way. Everyone must do his part to make it
interesting."

"I really recommend we start a schedule such as
this soon."

"I felt it disrupted the whole pattern of learning
I had established."

"It was interesting."
"I didn't spend near the time on preparation this week."
"It was a nice change."

"Give the student the choice of using any Of the ways
of learning."

Question 5: "Do instructors perceive matching as a
valuable tool in the teaching-learning process?"‘ Each of
the instructors involved in this study were asked to respond
to a Nursing Faculty Survey Form (complete form is in Appen-
dix D). Selected statements and the faculty responses to

these statements are summarized in Table 7.*

 

*The criteria for the selection of these particular statements
was the inclusion of the term "cognitive style" and/0r conno-
tation of reaction to the process of cognitive style matching.

106

TABLE 7.--Faculty Reaction to Cognitive Style Matching.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

rpm > U U01
Item "+35; 0+3 6" $5;
coo o m nao
«>5 o T: c2:
m 6 'im
H 0 0+4
<4 m m<<
Cognitive style matching is
helpful to me as an
instructor. (1 blank) 2 8 2 0 number
8 62 15 0 percent
Cognitive style matching
has not affected anything
I did this semester. 2 5 5 1 number
15 38 38 8 percent
I would favor cognitive
style matching for all
students and faculty. 2 5 6 0 number
15 38 46 0 percent
Cognitive style matching
should be continued.
(1 blank) 4 4 4 0 number
31 31 31 0 percent
This semester has been
personally fulfilling. 9 2 l 0 number
69 15 8 0 percent

 

 

 

 

 

The following is a summary of the written comments

submitted by the faculty regarding cognitive style:

"The cognitive style matching seemed to have a
They had a
feeling of 'belonging' to the group on the first
day. This was a very positive force in group
interaction and instructor rapport.

positive affect on the students.

tremendous experience!

group any time!"

Give me another

It was a

'matched'

107

"I've really enjoyed teaching this semester! I
feel much of this attitude is related to the
cognitive style matching. I've felt that I
could really relate to the students not only
as an instructor, but as a person."

"On the whole the group seemed tO do well under
my instruction."

"Though I was not matched with my section, I found
the knowledge of their learning styles helped me
present materials and learning situations to the
individuals in a meaningful way."

‘swmar

"Cognitive style matching was most valuable! By
all means continue its use. The knowledge of
individual student's learning styles helped me
to understand the behavior rather than being
irritated. Faculty were better able to communi-
cate with each other; they seemed more accepting
of behaviors where in the past they have tended
to criticize. I was more able to predict how an
individual student and/0r faculty would react in
a situation when I was familiar with his cognitive
style."

‘9': 'r..‘

"This semester there seemed to be some square pegs

in round holes despite the fact we were supposedly
matched according to cognitive style."

"Cognitive style identification would be helpful."
"The interview session served to reinforce my original
perceptions of individual students, and perhaps to
reveal the why's of their behaviors."

In examining the faculty responses in Table 7, it is
noted that 62% of the faculty (8) state cognitive style
matching should be continued. It should be noted as des-
cribed in Chapter III, that each instructor had both
matched and non—matched students in her group. The instructors
may have expected a greater degree of similarity in cogni-
tive style of their students than in truth did occur due

to the student's Option to change sections. Since the

faculty did not know which students were "matched" with

108

their cognitive style and teaching style, this may have
been a factor in their reactions. Despite this reaction,
note that 84% of the instructors state the semester had

been a personally fulfilling experience.l

Question 6: "Does the absence of a cognitive style
element affect probable success in a nursing course?" g
In order to answer this question the cognitive style map f
of each student was reviewed in order to identify the 5
absent or negligible cognitive style elements; that is a g
i

search was made of each map to see what elements a student
did not have indicated in his learning style. The fre-
quency of the missing or absent elements was tabulated

for each student who had been originally diagnosed in the
categories of those students who had passed the nursing
courses and those students who had failed or withdrawn from
the first or second nursing course. The frequency tabula—
tions are available in Appendix L. It was noted that the
element, Theoretical Auditory Quantitative, T(AQ), was
absent for 18 students who had passed while the same element
was absent or missing for 27 Of the students who failed a
nursing course. The total missing elements for the students
who failed was 178 while the total of missing elements for
the students who passed was 121. It would appear that the
higher number of elements the student has in his cognitive
style map, the greater is his possibility for passing in the

nursing courses.

109

In considering this question from another perspective,
the missing or absent elements were tabulated according to
the grades earned in the nursing courses. The tabulated
frequencies for the missing or absent cognitive elements
according to final nursing course grades is available in
Appendix L. In examining the totals for each grade cate-
gory, the least number of missing elements occurs in the
"A" category. While further study of this phenomenon is
necessary to draw conclusions, it could appear from initial
analysis that clues to probable success or failure of nursing
students can be found in the elements present or absent in
their cognitive style maps.

Inasmuch as the cognitive style diagnosis procedure
included a reading level for each student, it was possible
to analyze these scores for potential clues relative to
success in the nursing courses. The reading level for each
student was tabulated according to his grade achievement in
the nursing courses. If the student failed in the first
nursing course, his reading level was recorded in a separate
category. Students who started the second nursing course
were tabulated according to final grade achieved, i.e.,

A, B, C, D, W/E. The summarized tabulations are available
in Appendix K. These tabulations indicate reading levels
below 5.9 have no students in the "A" category, although
there are two students in the "B" category with reading
level 5.0 to 5.9. Those students (7) who had reading levels

below 4.0 failed in the first nursing course. As a part

-_ . .-_.-_'-u-r-n- =1

110

of this study additional information was examined, and

the mean scores for reading level were calculated for the

matched and non-matched groups of students. For the

"matched" students the reading level mean was 8.0368

and the non-matched reading level mean was 7.9695.

Evidence relative to the reading level is at this time g

non-conclusive except as noted with the lower levels.
Question 7 and Question 8 are considered Jointly:

”Does the makeup of a student's cognitive style map

change after experience in a nursing course? If changes

occur in the student's cognitive style map, is there a

pattern to such change?" At the conclusion of this study

it was possible to re-test a small group of students (16)

who had been tested approximately one year earlier. The

two cognitive style maps for each student were analyzed

to identify possible changes that might have occurred.

The raw scores for each of the cognitive style elements

produced by the diagnostic procedure, were tabulated and

a determination of increase or decrease in each element

was computed. A sampkacomputation for identification of

changes in cognitive style is presented in Appendix J. In

computing the positive and negative changes in the cognitive

style, that is, increases on raw scores on elements and

decreases on raw scores, there was a range of 39 to 110

change points noted. Based on the limited observation of

these students, it would appear that changes do occur in

111

the cognitive style map.

In addition to the above described procedure, the
two cognitive style maps for each student were examined
to determine changes which may have taken place as far
as an element rating of major, minor, or negligible. In
order to facilitate the evaluation of potential changes,
a number value was assigned to the major and minor elements;
that is, two points were assigned to a minor element,
three points to a major element and 0 points for a negli-
gible element. If a student's map indicated a change from
a major to a minor or from a minor to a negligible or
absent element, a decrease in the point value was recorded
accordingly. If the student's map changed from an absent
(negligible) element to a minor, or from a minor to a
major, the change was recorded as an increase according
to the point values. The summary of changes in the cogni-
tive style elements of these students is available in
Appendix H. In examining the changes which are recorded
in the students' cognitive style maps, the greatest number
of changes appear in the third set, Modalities of Inference,
with 56 points of change recorded. This suggests there
have been changes or augmentations in the student's
learning styles. McAdam described five ways in which a
student might change or augment his learning style. Para-

phrased they are described as follows:

.yli‘qllll 1" l
‘1'

llldll.
I If..£ 11
'I [II
II III
'II‘
{1. Q

112

1) increased level of educational development
2) increased reading level

3) increase from a minor to a major element

A) increase from a negative to a minor element

5) elimination of elements in the modalities of
inference set that tend to contribute to
variability in reasoning which acts to the
disadvantage of the indivfidual in dealing
with an educational task. Although the first
four points are obvious in their pertinence to
the process of changing cognitive style, the
fifth point requires a brief discussion.
Suppose that an individual shows the following 3
elements in the modalities of inference set g
of cognitive style:

{D <15}

McAdam points out that two such individuals in his

'immr

study showed a greater capacity to deal with educational
tasks demanding an appraisal (L) approach after the
"Difference" (D) modality had become negligible, i.e.,

not appearing, in the cognitive style of the individual.

This conclusion was based upon observations by a jury,

panel of three persons with extensive backgrounds in the
Educational Sciences, and testimony of the two study
participants. A number of changes (10) are noted in the
"Difference" modality of inference for the nursing students;
in truth, the greatest number of changes in the cognitive

style maps are recorded for the "Difference" (D) mode.

 

“Glenn F. McAdam, Personalizing_Instruction through the
Educational Sciences of Cognitive Style and TeachingIStyle,
unpublished doctoral dissertation, Wayne State University,

1971.

113

In addition to the two procedures just summarized,
an effort was made to measure the changes that might have
occurred in relationship to the instructor's cognitive
style map. The instructor's cognitive style map was
assigned a numerical rating as described in Chapter III
(two points for each cognitive style element). Each of
the student's two maps were computed as to closeness of
match using the matching formula described earlier. For
example, instructor #1 had 38 elements for matching (two
points for each element present), and student #1 had 28
matching points for the first map to produce the numerator
28/38 and the resulting value of .736842. This same student
had 30 matching points on the second map for a value of
(30/38) .789473. The difference between the two cognitive
style maps is a value of +305263l in the direction of
the instructor's cognitive style. If the change in the
student's cognitive style map produced a lesser match (as
with student #1 for instructor #2), a negative level was
assigned to the change as with the student mentioned above,
the value becomes -.30556. The changes recorded with this
procedure are summarized in Appendix J. The tabulations
are available in Appendix M.

Although this is insufficient data to support a major
conclusion, it does appear that changes do occur in the
cognitive style map which can be determined in relation
to other phenomena in a related fashion. All the students

who had the repeat diagnostic studies had been successful

‘uwmv

114

in the nursing courses and did volunteer to participate in
the repeat test session. Most of these students also came
in for a conference evaluation of the changes that had
taken place in their cognitive style maps and offered
confirming comments relative to the identified changes.
Question 9: "Are faculty able to identify cognitive
style elements of students with the aid of the Teachers
Rating Scale: Nursing Students?" In order to answer
this question three faculty members used the developed
Teacher's Rating Scale (Appendix B) in relation to the
same students who had submitted to the repeat diagnostic
testing procedure. The students were not aware that
the teachers were rating them, but the additional data
served as an additional base for possible comparison.
The three instructors had not been associated with the
study group and had a limited experience in relation to
cognitive style elements as presented in the initial work-
shop almost one year previously. The elements identified
by these three instructors did not consistently agree with
the major and minor elements of the student's cognitive
style map, although there was more agreement of the absent
or negligible elements. Since the raters were inexperienced,
it is possible additional preparation would be beneficial
in producing more conclusive results. The evidence produced

in the described circumstances is inconclusive.

~" rm §?(.'.f.|’

“).

115

Summary

The effects on student learning of matching students'
cognitive style and preferred teaching style with the
instructor's cognitive style and teaching style were
determined by the Kolmogorov-Smirnov statistical test.
The null hypothesis cannot be rejected when the matched
group of students is compared to the baseline data. The
null hypothesis can be rejected at the alpha level of
.05 for the matched #1 group when compared to the non-
matched group.

In order to answer nine "hypotheses generating"
questions additional data was secured and analyzed.

The answers to questions posed by the study comprise
the conclusions derived from the effort. These answers,
along with implications and recommendations for consider-

ation of further study are discussed in the next chapter.

CHAPTER V

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS

Summary

The study reported had two purposes: One purpose
was to determine the effect of matching the student's
cognitive style and preferred teaching style with the
cognitive style and teaching style of the instructor.

A second purpose of this study was to seek possible
answers to eight questions in selected hypotheses
generating activities.

The hypothesis which this study tested is restated
as an introduction to the conclusions: Students in the
associate degree nursing program at Delta College have
decreased withdrawal and/pr failure rate in a nursing
course when students' cognitive style and preferred
teaching style are matched with instructor's cognitive
style and teaching style. In the process of testing the
research hypothesis, it was proposed that additional hypo-
theses would emerge to be stated in the form of questions
for further investigation.

The purpose of this chapter is to state the conclu-
sions of the study regarding the hypothesis and questions
raised in Chapter I. A secondary purpose is to explore

selected implications of the answers to the questions

116

I TAP-A"

117

presented. In conclusion some recommendations for further
study will be put forth based on the information derived
from this study.

Conclusions

 

In relation to the statistical hypothesis an analysis
of the data supports the following conclusions:

1) When the cognitive style and preferred teaching
style of students is matched with the cognitive style and
teaching style of faculty, the failure-withdrawal rate is
not significantly different when compared to the baseline
data.

2) When the cognitive style and preferred teaching
style of students is matched with the cognitive style and
teaching style of faculty, the failure-withdrawal rate of
one matched group was decreased when compared to the non-
matched group at an alpha level of .05.

In relation to the questions posed, the answers to
each question are based on the analysis of the data and
information reported in Chapter IV. Each question will be
re-stated and the conclusions derived from the study will
follow.

Question 1: "Do students in the matched group per-

 

ceive their instructor more positively than non-matched
students as evidenced by responses on the Student Survey?"
It is the conclusion of this study that matched

students do, to a significant degree, perceive their

118

instructor more positively than do the non-matched
students. The mean scores for the matched group and the
mean scores for non-matched group were compared with the
use of the t-test and were found to be significantly
different at the alpha .05 level of significance.

Question 2: "Do students in the matched group tend

 

”‘ffi"“' F?

to receive higher grades than students in the non-matched
group?"

It is the conclusion of this study that matched
students do achieve higher mean scores than the non- 9
matched students. The matched group #1 consistently
achieved higher mean scores when compared to the non-matched
groups at a .05 significant level. The mean scores of the
matched groups were compared with the mean scores of the
non-matched group and a test of significance of difference
with the t-test indicated the matched group #1 was higher
than the non-matched group at the .05 level of significance.

Although group 2 matched and non-matched did not have
significantly higher mean scores when compared with group 1,
the mean scores of the matched group are in a favorable
position. The influence of other factors, such as faculty
attitudes and enthusiasm, in student achievement must be
considered. In conclusion, all students in group 1 (matched
and non-matched) achieved higher mean scores than all
students (matched and non-matched) in group 2 at a .001

level of significance.

119

Question 3: "When students are assigned an instruct-

 

ional mode based on their cognitive style, is measured
achievement affected?"

It is the conclusion of this study based on the
evidence examined, that the students who were assigned
an instructional mode based on their cognitive style
achieved at a level close to their prior achievement on
similar types of learning. One group, the small discussion
group, did show an increase in mean scores over prior mean
scores. There was a high correlation on the assigned
instructional mode with the prior instructional approaches
as evidenced by the Pearson r test which was significant
at the .001 level for the autotutorial group and at the
.01 level for the small group discussion group. The study
demonstrates that the "read only" group mean score remained
approximately the same, although there was not a signifi-
cant correlation as indicated by the Pearson r test for
significance. Although the t-test for significance of
difference between means indicates the two groups, small
group discussion and read only, achieved higher mean scores
than the autotutorial group at a .05 level of significance,
the correlation test with the Pearson r indicates the
achievement for those two groups of students is not signi-
ficantly different than prior achievement of the same group

of students.

120

Question A: "When students are assigned an instruct-

 

ional mode based on cognitive style, are reactions to the
process favorable as indicated by their statements?"

Based on the content analysis of the statements sub-
mitted by the students there was favorable response to the
assignment of the instructional mode. Students viewed the
experience as a welcome change from the usual procedure.
Several students would prefer to have a choice among
instructional modes for each lesson.

Question_§: "Do instructors perceive matching as a

 

valuable tool in the teaching-learning process?"

It is the conclusion of this study that faculty do
perceive the matching as a valuable tool based on the
responses to the Nursing Faculty Survey. Cognitive style
matching was perceived by 70% of the faculty (10) to be
a helpful tool in the teaching-learning process. The con-
tinuation of cognitive style matching was recommended by
62% of the faculty (8).

Faculty comments indicate an additional benefit from
the cognitive style matching was the improved communication
among the faculty and an increased tolerance for behaviors
which might ordinarily be more criticized than understood.

Question 6: "Does the absence of a cognitive style

 

element affect probable success in a nursing course?"
It is the conclusion of this study that the greater

number of cognitive style elements the student has in his

121

cognitive style, the greater is the possibility of
passing in the nursing courses. An analysis of the
elements absent from the cognitive style maps indicated
students who achieved "A" grades had the least number of
missing elements. Students who have reading level below
4.0 failed in the first nursing course, although students
with higher reading levels also failed; evidence relative
to predicting success in the nursing course is inconclu-
sive at this time.

Questions 7 and 8: "Does the makeup of a student's

 

cognitive style map change after experience in a nursing
course? If changes occur in the student's cognitive style
map, is there a pattern to such change?"

It is the conclusion of this study that the student's
cognitive style maps do change, based on the numerical
analysis of the cognitive style maps for the students who
were "re-diagnosed." Based on the study of these maps, it
is not possible to predict the direction of changes or
augmentations. There were more changes in the direction
of the instructor's cognitive style map, but other factors
need to be determined which were beyond the scope of this
study.

Question 9: "Are faculty able to identify cognitive

 

style elements of students with the aid of the Teachers
Rating Scale: Nursing Students?"
The evidence produced in this study is insufficient to

make a conclusion relative to this question. The three

. ll.‘1'l." I'.|Iiil.fllll_l.ll1ll.

 

122

raters were able to recognize the negligible elements
(missing) more readily than they were able to distinguish
the degree to which an element was present, minor or
major in ratings. Further study and investigation is

necessary to provide more conclusive results.

Discussion

 

In considering the impact of cognitive style matching
on the teaching-learning process, this study has considered
various measures of the effectiveness as perceived both by
students and faculty. Both the students and faculty have
perceived this tool as a valuable dimension to help the
teacher to relate, care about student learning, and to
act as a facilitating agent in the learning process.

The potential for cognitive style in the individualiza-
tion of instruction holds promise in that optional ways for
individuals to learn a prescribed task are present. As
Petro indicated, it is the artistry of the teacher which
has a powerful impact on the quality of the students'
learning experiences; cognitive style matching and identi-
fication provides an additional dimension for the teacher

to develop artistry.1

Recommendations

 

Two types of recommendations are given below. One type
deals with the refinements of this type of study, the other

type concerns additional studies which would provide more

1

 

Petro, Op. Cit., p. 69.

123

precise answers to some difficult questions dealing with
nursing education.

A replication of this study with selected refine-
ments may produce more precise results. An important
factor would be to have cognitive style matching for
entire groups of students rather than a mixture of
matched and non-matched. Given the opportunity to
freely assign students to an instructor, a group of
high-degree matched students could be compared to a
group of "high-degree" non-matched students. The effect
of specific faculty re-enforcing behaviors should be
studied in relation to the changing of cognitive style
maps; that is, if the faculty member gives praise and/br
recognition to behaviors which use the appraising (L)
approach, does the student develop greater appraising
type behaviors (L)? Given a faculty member who considers
"relationship” type behaviors to be more important, (and
rewards these kinds of behaviors) does the student develop
more (R) relationship type behaviors?

Additional studies need to be conducted to explore
the following areas as relating to nursing education:

1) What are the cognitive style requirements for
specific learning tasks? That is, what elements
does a student need in order to learn how to take
a blood pressure? What cognitive elements does
he need in order to carry out a patient

assessment?

124

2) When learning materials are prepared to fit
the requirements of the learning task and the
student's learning style, is student learning
achievement improved?

3) Given free choice of selecting different moda-
lities of learning, will the student vary his
learning approaches? Will there be a measurable
difference in the achievement of the student?

4) What techniques produce augmentation (changes)
in a student's cognitive style in a predictable
direction?

5) What elements in cognitive style predict a
nursing student will perform at an expected
level in specific nursing settings; i.e., public
health, emergency room, intensive care, medical
nursing?

6) What elements in cognitive style predict a
"compatible” group of faculty?

In an effort to identify possible "predictors” of
success in the nursing program at Delta College, this
investigator tabulated as much information as was available
dealing with cognitive style of students, faculty, and
course achievement. Since there is little evidence currently
available that will predict success in the nursing course
(high school grades, IQ, SAT, GPA, have not been predictive),

these described variables were examined. Correlations using

125

the Pearson r and tests of difference between means
using the t-test, were run on the data for the matched
and non-matched groups of students as well as the total
group of students. Although the data at present is con-
clusive, it appears highly probable that a longitudinal
study may produce important information relative to
cognitive style elements and possible predictors of
success in the nursing program. Some of the analyzed
data suggests the following factors may be related, and
should be studied further:

1) The possible relationship between T(VL) theore-
tical visual linguistic and success in nursing.
The matched group #1 showed a correlation of
0.34870* (Pearson r) for these two variables.

2) The relationship between success in the nursing
course and Q(CK) Qualitative code kinesics. The
matched group #1 showed a negative correlation
of -.H5206* (Pearson r) for these factors.

3) Magnitude inferential (the person who follows the
rules and wants things well spelled out) as well
showed a negative correlation with success in the
course (-.51389*). "Differences" (D) had a positive
correlation with success in the course indicated
by a Pearson r - .33883. Does the student come
with these cognitive style elements, or does the

nursing program stimulate him to develop these

 

* .05 level of significance.

126

modalities of inference? What is the faculty
role in the teaching-learning process in relation
to the development of inferential patterns?

4) Faculty qualifications were also correlated with
student success in the course and found to rate
high on the Pearson r = .52844*. That is the higher
were the faculty qualifications as far as advanced
degrees, teaching experience, work experience,
and full time status, the higher was the students'
achievement. This suggests in depth study of
faculty in relation to student achievement may be
beneficial as well.

It appears probable that a longitudinal study (five
or more years) of the identified factors may be beneficial
in the identification of valid predictive elements in
relationship to the potential success in a course of

nursing studies.

 

* .05 level of significance.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

127

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Hill, Joseph E. and Kerber, August. Models, Methodstand
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APPENDICES

133

APPENDIX A

IDENTIFICATION OF TEACHING STYLE

134

IDENTIFICATION OF TEACHING STYLE
FACULTY FORM

Teachers may possess major and/Or minor teaching styles
drawn from the following:
Predominant -P- consistently employing a

fixed style of teaching, either
authoritarian or permissive.

 

Flexible -B- uses a style that appears to
be best for each individual student.

Adjustive or Switcher -S- begins on the basis
of the student's style and switching him
to the teacher's preferred style.

 

It is assumed that teachers would not demonstrate one
particular style to the exclusion of the others, there-
fore individuals are usually assigned combinations of
two styles (i.e., Predominant - switcher, Switcher -

flexible).

Of the teaching style described above, please indicate

your teaching style as you perceive it.

Teaching Style

 

Name

 

Of the students you presently have in your clinical group
please indicate the following:
Student who appears most compatible with your teaching

style

 

Student who appears least compatible with your teaching

style

This information will be used in matching students with faculty
for the January Term; then destroyed as to specific names.

135

 

IDENTIFICATION OF TEACHING STYLE
STUDENT FORM

Name

 

Present Section

 

Teachers may possess major and/Cr minor teaching styles drawn

from:

P- Predominant- consistently employing a fixed
style of teaching, either authoritarian or
permissive.

 

B- Flexible- uses a style that appears to be best
for each individual student.

S- Switcher or Adjustive— begins on the basis of
the student's style and switching him to the
teacher's preferred style.

 

It is assumed that teachers would not demonstrate one parti-
cular style to the exclusion of the others, therefore indi-
viduals are usually combinations of two styles (i.e.,

Predominant - switcher, Switcher - flexible).

Of the teaching styles described above, please indicate the
teaching style of your present instructor (clinical) as you

perceive it.

Teaching Style Present Instructor:

 

Please indicate below the teaching style you think you
would prefer your next instructor to possess.

Next Instructor Preferred Teaching Style?

 

Comments you would like to offer about an instructor you

would prefer to have next semester:

136

SUMMARY OF TEACHING STYLES
OF FACULTY IN STUDY

Teaching Styles are summarized as follows:

P = Predominant: consistently employing a fixed
style of teaching, either authoritarian or
permissive.

 

 

tU
II

Flexible: uses a style that appears to be best
for each individual student.

S = Switcher or Adjustive: begins on the basis of
the student's style and switching him to the
teacher's preferred style.

 

It is assumed that teachers would not demonstrate one par-
ticular style to the exclusion of the others, therefore
individuals are usually assigned combinations of two
styles with a major being designated by an upper case
letter and a minor with a lower case letter.

Teacher Designated Style
1 P b
2 BD
3 P s
4 B p
5 S b
6 S p
7 P b
8 B s
9 B s

10 B D
11 B s
12 P s

137

APPENDIX B

TEACHER'S RATING SCALE

Students of Nursing

Rating Key
to be used with IBM cards

Always
Usually
Sometimes
Rarely
Never

MUOwb
II" "In"

138

TEACHER'S RATING SCALE
Nursing Students
CARD A
Cognitive Style Element

T (AL) - Obtaining meaning from spoken words
Theoretical Auditory Linguistic

 

l. The student remembers information discussed in pre-
conference as evidenced by being able to re—tell the
information or anwer questions about it.

2. The student can describe an incident that occurred in
patient care.

3. The student is able to follow directions.

4. The student participates in conferences with other
students and/Or the teacher.

5. Uses medical terminology in discussing patient care.

 

T (VL) Theoretical Verbal Linguistic - Obtaining meaning
from written words

 

6. The student can summarize or answer questions about
information he has read (text book, doctor's orders,
patient record, kardex)

7. The student reads more than the assigned readings.

8. Shows evidence of having read about clinical assignments.

9. Reviews prior readings such as basic science, prior course
readings as it relates to present activities.

10. Written work usually complete

 

T (AQ) Theoretica1 Auditory Quantitative - Obtaining
meaning from spoken numbers

 

11. The student can calculate drug dosages correctly from
information presented orally.

12. The student can remember the patient's room number.

139

13.
14.

15.

140

The student can remember his student number.

The student can follow verbal directions that
contain numbers.

The student can compute the rate of flow for an
I.V. from oral information.

 

T (VQ) Theoretical Visual Quantitative - Obtaining

Meaning from written numbers.

 

16.

17.

18.

19.

20.

The student solves drug dosage problems most easily
when he writes them on paper.

The student can identify the amount of drug in a given
quantity (i.e., 50 mg per) ml.) from the written label.

The student can convert from apothecary to metric
system with a conversion chart.

The student can calculate the rate of I.V. from
written information.

The student can accurately copy the amount of drug
ordered from the chart or kardex.

 

Q (A) Qualitative Auditory - Obtaining meaning from

non-verbal sounds

 

21.

22.
23.

24.

25.

The student can identify differences in breathing
patterns by listening to the patient's breath..

The student can identify hospital noises by their sounds.

The student can identify the heart beat when he listens
with the stetheSCOpe.

The student can identify patient distress sounds, i.e.,
moan, groan, crying.

The student can identify breath sounds when he listens
with a stethescope.

 

Q (0) Qualitative Olfactory - Obtaining meaning from odors,

smells or aromas

 

26.

The student can identify deviations from usual odors in
a patient's room, charts and reports these (i.e.,
vomities, foul s utum, fecal material, wound
discharges, etc.)

141

27. The student takes action to improve or alter unpleasant
odors in the patient's room (i.e., removes foul mate-
rials where possible, provides air circulation,
deoderants).

28. The student will comment on the patient's perfume or
aftershave lotion.

29. The student comments on the Odors in the patient's room
or in the clinical setting. e

30. The student will smell particular items to determine
status; i.e., the patient's breath, the cast, wounds,
etc.

 

Q (S) Qualitative Savory.- Obtaining meaning by the
sense of taste.

 

31. The student can tell the difference between sweet and
sour milk by tasting.

32. Given a patient who complains that a food tastes bad,
(too salty, too flat, too spicy, etc.) the student
will appropriately taste the food to assess the
situation.

33. The student comments on the taste of particular foods.

34. The student refers to and/b?shares recipes for parti-
cular foods.

35. The student can taste when foods are too salty.

 

Q (T) Qualitative Tactile - The ability to obtain meaning
by the sense of touch.

 

36. The student is able to feel the radial pulse within a
reasonable period of time, i. e., five to fifteen seconds.

37. The student is able to feel the rise and fall of the
chest during respirations.

38. Given a patient who appears flushed or pale, the student
will feel the skin to determine skin temperature.

39. Given a patient with a casted extremity, the student
will feel the extended parts (i.e., toes, fingers)
to determine temperature.

40. Given a patient with a distended body part, the student
will feel the part to assess the status (i.e., distended
abdomen, edematous legs and feet).

142

 

Q (v) Qualitative Visual - The ability to obtain meaning

by the sense of sight.

 

41.

42.

43.

an.

45.

The student can see the difference in patient skin
color due to circulatory status; i.e., flushed, pale,
cyanotic as evidenced by reporting or recording.

The student can see that the patient is in correct
body alingment or incorrect alignment, as evidenced
by reporting and/Or actions to change the position.

The student can see changes in skin color in a par-
ticular area as a result of pressure on the part as
evidenced by reports and/Or nursing actions.

Given a patient with jaundice the student will see
the skin coloring as evidenced by reporting or
recording.

The student is able to accurately count the respira-
tory rate by seeing the chest rise and fall.

 

Q (P) Qualitative Proprioceptive - The ability to obtain

meaning through coordinated inputs; sometimes
referred to as the "sixth sense."

 

46. The student can coordinate two or more senses, such as
seeing and hearing, to take a blood pressure.

47. The student can coordinate muscle activity with seeing,
i.e., putting on an ace bandage or a breast binder.

48. The student can "size up" the patient situation and
realize that all is not well with the patient.

49. The student can perceive the patient's muscle response
to a nursing care activity, i.e., cleansing a wound.

50. The student can "size up a load" and move things smoothly.

CARD B

 

Q (CEM) Qualitative Code Empathetic - The ability to put

yourself in another person's situation.

 

1.
2.

The student listens to the patient's problems.

The student expresses concern about the patient's
problems.

4.

5.

143

The student takes action to assist the patient with a
particular problem if possible, i.e., takes action
to relieve pain.

The student acts as the patient's advisory when and
where possible.

The student says kind things about the patient.

 

Q (CES) Qualitative Code Esthetic - The ability to enjoy

the "beauty" and "pureness" of an object,
situation, or idea; a sense of orderliness
and beauty.

 

10.

The student comments on the environment as pleasant,
unpleasant regarding color, space, lighting.

The student presents a neat and orderly personal
appearance with clean, pressed uniform, neat hair
style, etc.

The student leaves the patient's environment in an
orderly state.

The student comments on how pretty things are.

The student expresses enjoyment of music, art and/Or
ideas.

 

Q (CET) Qualitative Code Ethic - A commitment to a set of

values, a group of moral principles, obligations,
duties.

 

11.

12.

13,,

14.
15.

The student sets high standards of nursing care for
self and others.

The student reports situations as they occur to maintain
safe patient care, i.e., records exact time a medication
is given, reports errors, etc.

The student gives correct information to patients and
families, when in doubt, secures correct information.

The student carries out the plan of patient care.

The student gives evidence of high integrity in carrying
out written assignments and quizzes.

 

Q (CH) Qualitative Code Histrionic - Staged behavior or the

deliberate use of a set of behaviors to produce
some particular effect on other persons; role-playing.

 

144

16. The student is able to play an assigned role in a
classroom situation particularly if he views the role
as the "good” person.

17. The student is able to play an assigned role in a
classroom situation even when the role is the "bad"
person.

18. The student is able to act out the role of "nurse"
in the patient's presence.

19. The student likes to take the role of patient or
doctor in a play acting situation.

20. The student is able to behave in different ways to
achieve changes in patient behavior.

 

Q (CK) Qualitative Code Kinesics - The use of non—verbal
functions such as shrugs, smiles, gestures, body
motions, blushing to communicate.

 

21. The student uses gestures in response to questions.

22. The student uses gestures to communicate with a non-
hearing patient.

23. The student blushes.

24. The student shows pleasure and/Or displeasure through
body motions.

25. The student uses gestures and body motions in describing
patient care activities.

Q (CKH) Qualitative Code Kinesthetics - Motor skill ability.

 

 

26. The student carries out procedures smoothly, without
awkwardness or shakiness.

27. The student is able to get things done in a reasonable
period of time.

28. The student enjoys doing things with the hands, i.e.
backrub, injections.

29. The student has a good sense of balance.

30. The student has good muscle control.

145

 

Q (CP) Qualitative Code Proxemics - Ability to determine
critical physical and social distances between one
self and another as defined by the other person.

 

31. The student knows about how far he should stand from
the patient who is talking to him.

32. The student is able to determine that it would be
acceptable to hold the patient's hand.

33. The student waits to be invited before joining a
group at coffee break.

34. The student introduces himself to other members of
the health team at appropriate times.

35. The student determines when the patient would prefer
to be alone and/Or silent.

 

Q (CS) Qualitative Code Synnoetics - Personal knowledge of
oneself in relation to one's environment.

 

36. The student makes realistic work plans for his time
in the clinical laboratory.

37. The student is able to determine when he needs help
in moving or lifting a patient.

38. The student is able to identify correctly when he
needs the instructor's assistance.

39. The student is aware of (or accepts from others) his
weakness and attempts to improve these.

40. The student is aware of his strengths and builds on these.

 

Q (CT) Qualitative Code — Transactional - The ability to
influence others.

 

41. The student tries to convince the group to do things
his way.

42. The student will be selected by other class members
for responsible roles.

43. The student is able to convince the patient to engage
in a particular activity, i.e., ambulate, deep breathe
and cough.

44. The student is able to do effective patient teaching.

146

45. The student is able to secure positive action from
other members of the health team to the patient's
benefit.

CARD C

 

A - Associates - Represented by the various groups with

whom the student has the greatest contact (fellow
students in nursing).

 

The student will share materials and information with
others.

The student prefers to work with another student.

The student follows the example set by other students
in nursing.

The student is influenced by the decision of other
students.

The student tries to find out what the group thinks
is best in a given situation.

 

 

 

 

F - Family - Either immediate or extended or surrogate
changing throughout life.

6. The student makes references to his family members and
their activities.

7. The student compares a patient care situation to a
family member, i.e., mother, father, husband, wife, etc.

8. Family commitments have high priority for the
student's time.

9. The student is concerned about how the family will
respond to what he does.

10. The student consults with a family member before he
decides to do particular things.

I — Individuality - The knowledge that his way is best along
with the ability and willingness to direct his behavior
accordingly.

11. The student will not let other students change his
position or decision.
12. The student prefers to carry out patient care activities

by himself, i.e., does not like to be on a multiple
assignment.

13.
14.

15.

147

The student makes independent nursing care decisions.
The student prefers to study by himself.

The student accepts the fact that he is frequently
a leader in the clinical group.

 

D - Difference - Contrasts selected characteristics on a

one-to-one comparison of difference.

 

16.

17.

18.

19.

20.

The student can identify shades of difference in a
patient's skin color, i.e., shades of paleness,
shades of cyanosis - as evidenced by reporting and
recording.

The student can see small differences in a healing or
non-healing wound as evidenced by reporting or
recording.

The student contrasts present vital signs with the
vital signs measured previously to determine differences.

The student contrasts the responses of a patient with a
particular disease with another patient having the
same disease.

The student compares one health worker with another
to identify differences, i.e., the doctor's orders
written by two doctors for similar situations.

 

M - Magnitude inference - A form of "categorical thinking,"

using categories, definitions, authority sources.

 

21.

22.

23.

24.

25.

The student frequently quotes the teacher or the text
book or the rules to others.

The student prefers to have specific step-by-step
directions for each task.

The student arranges his written work in neat columns
or outline because "that is the way to do it."

The student carries out nursing care activities because
the ”head nurse said to do it” or that is "what the
doctor ordered."

The student wants new terms defined as they are intro-
duced; he uses a dictionary frequently.

148

 

R - Relationships — Comparison of two or more selected

characteristics to determine similarities.

 

26.

27.

28.

29.
30.

The student will make statements such as, "this patient's
wound looks like another patient..."

The student relates new information to similar infor-
mation he has had previously.

The student compares several pieces of Similar infor-
mation, i.e., all the similar laboratory reports.

The student frequently says, "that's just like..."
The student enjoys relating information or experiences

with patients or family that are similar to the
situation being presented.

 

L - Appraisal - The application of Magnitudes, Differences,

and Relationships in reaching a probability conclusion.

 

31.

32.

33.

34.

35.

When asked to make a decision, the student says he
needs time to think about it.

The student often criticizes multiple choice or true-
false test items.

The student gives many details before he gets to the
point in describing a nursing care situation.

The student reaches different conclusions in similar
situations and may be perceived as "inconsistent."

The student has difficulty making ”snap" decisions,
and dealing with emergency type nursing care situations.

 

K - Deductive inferential process

 

36.

37.

The student enjoys the type of reasoning used in solving
mathematical problems, i.e., a = b, a - c, therefore

b = c; infection produces elevated temperatures (a = b),
infections produce elevated white blood count (a = 0),
therefore elevated temperature produces elevated white
blood count (b . c).

The student enjoys problems in which the solution is
deduced from the rules.

38.

39.

40.

149
The student defends his actions in "logical"
progression.

The student does not like to be in a Situation where
he cannot predict the outcome.

The student expects patients to react to his nursing
care in similar ways.

APPENDIX C

NURS ING STUDENT SURVEY

150

NURSING STUDENT SURVEY
#0320721
CML

Dear

 

I need your help! A list of statements follows
about the nursing course and instructors. By responding
to these items you will help to improve teaching methods.
Think about each item in relation to your experience
while you were in the nursing course or courses. Please
return your completed paper in the return envelope as
soon as possible. If you have any questions or problems,
please telephone me at home in Saginaw, 792-0807 or at
Delta, 686-0400, ext. 274 or 288.

Thank you for your assistance.
Mrs. Crystal M. Lange

Use the following key for each statement:
1. Strongly agree
2. Agree
3. Disagree
4. Strongly disagree

Circle the number which best fits the way you feel about
the statement.

The following is a sample question and circled answered.

1 like to attend Delta College (:) 2 3 4

151

10.

11.

12.

13.

14.

152

The weekly reading assignments were too
long.

The reading assignments I understood.

I could get everything done that was
expected of me.

My family or work responsibilities inter-
fered with my studies.

I could understand what was required in
the course.

I was able to put what I read into
practice when it came to patient care.

I could remember what I had read.
I could follow directions which were told me.
I could work the math problems.

I was easily distracted by outside noises
in the ATL.

I could make my hands do what I wanted them
to do in the clinical laboratory.

I can tell by feeling if water or solutions
would be too hot or too cold when doing baths
or treatments for patients.

I was able to do the procedures after they
were demonstrated in ATL.

I was able to "size up a load" when it came
to getting things done in the clinical
laboratory.

Strongly Agree
to h) Agree

I-’

1

[UNION

w w Disagree

UJUUUJU.)

Strongly Disagree

4:42-

#k-P’J:

15.

l6.

17.
18.

19.
20.

21.

22.
23.

24.

25.

26.

27.

28.

153

I was able to put myself in the
patient's place.

I become involved with the patients
and their problems.

I am able to stick to the rules.

I could carry out the teacher's verbal
directions.

I was able to role play or pretend.

I often spill things or am slow and
clumsy.

I knew how far to stand from a patient
or the instructor when talking to them.

I knew my own strengths and weaknesses.
Other students influenced what I did.

I could tell the difference between
important and unimportant things in

nursing care.

The instructor gave me enough time to
think.

I had trouble with the multiple choice
test items.

My instructor gave me enough direction
so I knew what I should do.

I was able to decide what I should do
in most situations.

Strongly Agree
m Agree

[.4

h)

Disagree

w

Strongly Disagree

:-

29.

30.

31.

32.

33.
34.
35.

36.

154

In most situations I could predict
what would happen.

My instructor made reasonable assign-
ments and demands.

My instructor understood me and my
learning needs.

I could get everything done that was
expected of me.

I enjoyed going to clinical laboratory.

I was constantly afraid of failure.

My instructor stimulated me to do my best.
Please select that which applies to you.
Your age group

1. l8 - 2O

 

2. 21 - 26
3. 27 - 36
4. 37 - 46
5

 

. 47 and over

 

Strongly Agree

H

Agree

I'D

MEDIUM

Disagree

U0

wwww

Strongly Disagree

.p

4:47-1:41"

155

37. How many credits did you complete before you started
the first nursing course?

 

 

 

 

1. none

2. 3 - 6

3. 7 - lO

4. ll- 14

5. 15 and over

 

38. How many credit hours did you carry the first semester
you were in nursing?

 

 

 

1. 8

2. 9 - 12

3. 13 - 15

4. l6 and over

 

39. How many hours do you work at a job for each week
this semester?

 

 

 

 

1. none
2. 8 - 16

3. l7 - 24

4. 25 - 36

5. 37 and over

 

COMMENTS:

NURSING STUDENT SURVEY
#032072A
CML

Please respond to the following statements about your
nursing course this semester. Consider each item in
view of your experience this semester. Use the
following key for each statement:

11.
12.

13.

14.
15.
16.
17.
18.

 

l. Strongly agree
2. Agree
3. Disagree
4. Strongly disagree
My instructor understandime and my learning needs.
My instructor makes reasonable assignments and demands.
I enjoy going to the clinical laboratory.
In most situations I can predict what will happen.
I am able to decide what I should do in most situations.

My instructor gives me enough direction so I know what
I should do.

I am constantly afraid of failure.
I have trouble with multiple choice test items.
My instructor gives me enough time to think.

I can tell the difference between important and unimportant
things in nursing care.

I am influenced by what other students tell me.
I know my own strengths and weaknesses.

I usually know how far to stand from a patient or my
instructor when talking to them.

I am able to role play or pretend.

I can carry out my instructor's overall directions.
I am able to stick to the rules.

I become involved with patients and their problems.

I am able to put myself in the patient's place.

156

19.

20.

21.

22.

23.
24.
25.
26.

27.
28.

29.
30.
31.
32.
33.
34.
35.

157
I am able to ”size up a load" when it comes to getting
things done in the clinical laboratory.

I am able to do procedures after they are demonstrated
in ATL.

I can tell by feeling if water or solutions would be
too hot or too cold when doing baths or treatments
for patients.

I can make my hands do what I want them to do in the
clinical lab.

I am easily distracted by outside noises in ATL.
I can follow directions which are told to me.
I can remember what I have heard.

I am able to put into practice what I have read when
it comes to patient care.

I understand what is required in this course.

My family or work responsibilities interfere with
my studies.

I can get everything done that is expected of me.
I understand the reading assignments.

The weekly reading assignments are too long.
Course assignments and demands are reasonable.

I can work math problems.

My instructor stimulates me to do my best.

I enjoy working with my instructor.

158

36. Please select that which applies to you. Your age

 

 

 

 

group.
1. 18-20
2. 21-26
3. 27-36
4. 37-46
5. 47 and over

 

37. How many credits did you complete before you started
the first nursing course?

 

 

 

 

1. none

2. 3-6

3. 7-10

4. 11-14

5. 15 and over

 

38. How many credit hours did you carry the first
semester you were in nursing?

 

 

 

l. 8

2. 9-12

30 13-15

4. 16 and over

 

39. How many hours do you work at a job for pay each
week this semester?

 

 

 

 

1. none

2. 8-16

3. 17-24

4. 25-36

5. 37 and over

 

Comments:

APPENDIX D

NURSING FACULTY SURVEY

159

 

 

l. lulu-H 11" [I'll I

NURSING FACULTY SURVEY

Please respond to the following statements about your

group of students this semester. Consider each item in

view of ypur experience this semester. Use the following

 

key for each statement:

14.

15.

. Strongly agree

. Agree

. Disagree

. Strongly disagree

kWMt—J

I enjoy going to the clinical laboratory.

In most situations I can predict what will happen.

My students were able to tell the difference between
important and unimportant things in nursing care by
the end of the semester.

My students are able to carry out my overall duectkwm.

I become involved with students and their problems.

I am able to put myself in the student's place.

My students are able to remember what I tell them.

My students understand what is required in this course.

The weekly reading assignments are too long.

Course assignments and demands are reasonable.

I find my students stimulating.

I enjoyed working with this group of students.

This group of students presented me with the usual
amount of problems.

This group of students on the whole seemed compatible
to each other.

On the whole this group of students seemed compatible
to my teaching style.

160

l6.

17.

18.

19.
20.

161
Cognitive style matching is helpful to me as an
instructor.

Cognitive style matching has not affected anything
I did this semester.

I would favor cognitive style matching for all
students and faculty.

Cognitive style matching should be continued.

This semester has been personally fulfilling.

Comments regarding cognitive style and cognitive

style matching:

General Comments:

APPENDIX E

SUMMARY OF SELECTED REASONS
FOR SECTION TRANSFER

162

SUMMARY OF SELECTED REASONS FOR SECTION TRANSFER

"Conflict of time."

"I would like to stay with the same group of people.
I'm also acquainted with the hospital I'd prefer, and
where it is."

"I would like Friday afternoons free."

"Cannot afford gas or distance. Do not like
snowy roads."

"I wish to change to this hospital because I think
the training will be better there, and I would like a
change."

"Convenience of time with consideration of my
children and husband."

"I worked at the other hospital in 111 and was
uncomfortable about the atmosphere there."

”Convenience of obtaining a baby sitter."

"Because I have all pant uniforms and that hospital
doesn't allow them."

"Need to be home when children come home from school.
Transportation."

"I would like to be in a section in which I know at
least one person. Also, I often go out of town on Friday
afternoons."

"Section 02 would be more convenient because I would

have Tuesday off and I work Tuesdays. I am earning my
way through college so it is important that I work."

163

APPENDIX F

TREATMENT LESSON QUIZ AND
STUDENT REACTION FORM

164

G.T.L. lV-C
Quiz
#041272

Matching: Select the best or most appropriate nursing

 

action for each condition.

Condition Nursing Action

 

 

1.

Ulcerative Colitis 1. Teach patient prOper body

mechanics for lifting and
pulling.

Hernia 2. Teach patient and family re-

garding special gluten free diet.

Vaginal fistula 3. Tension centered on large colon;

allow patient to talk out
tensions.

Celiac Disease 4. Observe and measure output hourly.

5. Provide local cleanliness and
irrigations.

 

Urinary Obstruction 1. Daily weight, restricted fluids.

Renal Calculi 2. Observe and measure hourly output.

Nephritis 3. Maintain patent (Open) catheter

post operative.

Prostatic Hypertrophy

4. Strain all urine, maintain
fluid intake.

5. Observe for blood and mucus in
the small stools.

Your newly admitted patient is complaining of abdominal
pain at McBurney's point. Which one of the following
nursing measures would be incorrect or wrong?

1

2
3
4
5

Apply cold compresses to the site.

Low fowler's position.

Administer prescribed pain medication.
No food or fluids by mouth.

Observe vital signs hourly.

165

10.

11.

12.

13.

14.

166

The inability to excrete waste products through the
kidney will be reflected in all of the following
except:

the patient's responses

elevated blood urea nitrogen

increased odor of urine from mouth and skin
. increase in blood hemoglobin

4:me

The minimum 24 hour urinary output necessary to
maintain normal function is:

l. 400 ml. or c.c.
2. 1,300 ml. or c.c.
3. 800 ml. or c.c.
4. 200 ml. or c.c.

What is the normal urinary output in 24 hours?

l. 400 c.c. to 500 c.c.

2. 600 c.c. to 1000 c.c.
3. 1200 c.c. to 1500 c.c.
4. 1600 c.c. to 2000 c.c.
5. 2200 c.c. to 3000 c.c.

When you are ambulating a patient with a retention
catheter, what is the best nursing action?

1. Clamp off the catheter, disconnect the drainage
tubing, ambulate the patient.

2. Allow the patient to sit in a chair close to
the drainage setup.

3. Keep the catheter and drainage tubing together
and carry these with the ambulating patient.

4. Clamp off the catheter, cover the catheter end
with a sterile protector after it is disconnected
from the drainage tubing, ambulate the patient.

The patient who has had a prostatectomy may have inter-
mittent bladder irrigations. What will be the response
of the bladder to a rapid filling with the irrigating
solution?

1. hemorrhage

spasm

atony

increased capacity
decreased capacity

U'l-PUH'D

15.

16.

17.

18.

19.

20.

167

Chemotherapy may be prescribed to slow down tumor
growth. Which one of the following side effects
would not be likely to happen?

. decreased white blood count
. alopecia

abnormal bleeding

. increased red blood count

. diarrhea

U'l-L‘UJIUH

Which one of the following states would not occur
with diarrhea?

fluid loss
electrolytes lost
decreased peristalsis
circulatory failure
weight loss

KIT-PWIUH

When output from the intestinal tract is decreased,
what situations exist?

constipation
diarrhea

renal obstruction
circulatory overload

:WMI—J

What is loss of voluntary control of bowel or bladder?

l. constipation

2. incontinence

3. diarrhea

4. fistula

5. relaxed pelvic muscles

Which of the following nursing measures would be most
important for the patient with a levine tube?

1. maintain patency of the levine tube.

2. offer frequent, small amounts of water.
3. maintain flat position in bed.

4. warm applications to the abdomen.

What is the major responsibility of the nurse in
promoting renal elimination?

l. administration of laxatives.

2. administration of enemas.

3. establishing a fixed routine.

4. administration of fluids between 2,000 and
3,000 ml. daily.

G.T.L. 1V-C Name

 

#041272
CML Date

 

Section

 

Please complete the following reaction sheet.
My assignment for GTL lV-C Part 1 was (please check)
ATL

 

Small group discussion

 

Tutor in small group discussion

 

Read only

 

Please respond to the following items in relation to:

a) ease of learning

b) amount of learning

0) enjoyment of learning

The most helpful thing about this lesson was

The least helpful thing about this lesson was

In the future I would recommend

General Comments

168

APPENDIX G

BASELINE DATA

169

BASELINE DATA

GRADES ACHIEVED
IN N211 (SECOND NURSING COURSE)

 

Year Number A B C D
1969 151 30 68 39 2
1970 145 30 4O 33 9
1971 172 40 54 34 7
1972 (Fall) 42 16 16 3 0
TOTALS 510 116 178 109 18
Percent 22 34 21 3

170

12

33
37

N

89

17

APPENDIX H

SUMMARY OF INCREASES AND DECREASES IN COGNITIVE
STYLE ELEMENTS COMPARING TWO TESTINGS

171

(0.031040401083083 Fatal-3'3

>

H

NZEU

SUMMARY OF INCREASES AND DECREASES IN COGNITIVE

STYLE ELEMENTS COMPARING TWO TESTINGS

INCREASES IN

COGNITIVE STYLE ELEMENTS

(AL)
(AQ)
(VL)
(VQ)

(CEM)
(CBS)
(CET)
(CH)
(CK)
(CKH)
(CP)
(CS)
(CT)

41‘ WHNMWOHNO UJHWI—J

OO

4:wa

172

 

 

DECREASES IN TOTAL

COGNITIVE STYLE ELEMENTS CHANGES
5 6
O 3

4 5 l8
1 4

0 OD

O 7
l 2
2 2

2 5 25
O 2
O 2
l 2
0 3
4 8

4 4 l3
1 l
10 17
3

56
7}
0 4

APPENDIX I

ELEMENTS ABSENT FROM THE COGNITIVE STYLE OF
PASSING AND FAILING NURSING STUDENTS

173

i .‘ A~.a_‘—"rl r.‘_ r

Element

T(AL)
T(AQ)
T(VL)
T(VQ)
Q(CEM)
Q(CES)
Q(CET)
Q(CH)
Q(CK)
Q(CKH)
Q(CP)
Q(CS)
Q(CT)

x 23 3 tr U r4 w :>

Totals

Pass

n=96

O
18

R)
NOOUUOOOUIIUO

I-‘ M
UTOUUH

121

174

ELEMENTS ABSENT FROM THE COGNITIVE STYLE OF
PASSING AND FAILING NURSING STUDENTS

Fail
n=87

27
21
22

[D
DUI-'0

OOI-‘RDOUOHCDU'I

[\D
I—‘l’O

30

178

APPENDIX J

SUMMARY OF CHANGES IN COGNITIVE STYLE
ACCORDING TO INSTRUCTOR MATCHING
FOR TWO TESTINGS

175

SUMMARY OF CHANGES IN COGNITIVE STYLE

Match Points = 38

Instructor #1

STUDENT
#1

ONUl-D’UUR)

FIRST

MATCHING

COGNITIVE STYLE

ACCORDING TO INSTRUCTOR MATCHING

SECOND
MATCHING

COGNITIVE STYLE

 

 

28/38
24/38
29/38
28/38
32/38
26/38

Instructor #2

STUDENT
#1

2

3

31/36
28/36

29/35

Instructor #3

STUDENT
#1

GUI-POOR)

34/40
34/40
25/40
33/40
30/4O
28/40

.736842
.631578
.763157
.736842
.842105

.631578

Match Points

.86111

.77777
.80555

Match Points

.94444
.94444
.69444
.91666
.83333
.77777

30/38
26/38
30/38
33/38
32/38
31/38

36

29/36
31/36
31/36

40

31/40
26/40
33/40
34/40
30/40
26/40

176

.789473
.684210
.789473
.868421
.842105

.815789

.55555
.86111

.86111

.86111
.72222
.91666
.94444

.83333
.72222

++++

DIFFERENCE

.052631
.052632
.026316
.131579

.184211

.305556
.O8334O

.055560

.083330
.O22222O

.0222220

.027780

fl

.055550

177

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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APPENDIX K

SUMMARY OF READING LEVELS

178

READING LEVEL FOR NURSING STUDENTS
IN RELATION TO FINAL GRADES IN THE
NURSING COURSE

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

n=23 n=§6 n=§4 n=4 niég n=547first course)
- 2.9 1
-3.9 6
-49 4 3 1 8 15
-59 2 3 0 6 9
-59 4 7 9 0 31 7
-79 5 6 6 o 21 8
-89 2 4 1 1 11 3
-99 2 1 2 2 3 2
10. -10.9 3 4 2 O O 1
11. -11.9 6 7 8 O 5 2
12._-12.9 1 1 O O O O

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

179

APPENDIX L

ELEMENTS MISSING IN COGNITIVE STYLE ACCORDING
TO FINAL COURSE GRADES IN NURSING

180

ELEMENTS MISSING IN COGNITIVE STYLE ACCORDING
TO FINAL COURSE GRADES IN NURSING

Element n=23 n=§6 n=34 n23?
T(AL) o o O O
T(AQ) 4 6 7 10
T(VL) O 2 5 5
T(VQ) 2 6 6 9
Q(CEM) o O 2 O
Q(CES) o l 2 2
Q(CET) O O O O
Q(CH) 7 7 12 7
Q(CK) 2 1 O O
Q(CKH) O O 4 4
Q(CP) O O o O
Q(CS) O O O O
Q(CT) O 0 O O
A 2 o 1 O
F O o O O
I o O o O
D 1 o 1 O
L 1 7 12 9
M 2 l l O
R O O O O
(K) .2. .1 __§ ...9.
Totals 23 38 59 55

181

APPENDIX M

CHANGES IN STUDENT'S COGNITIVE STYLE MAPS
IN RELATION TO LAST INSTRUCTOR

182

 

183

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

m-. H+. e+ H+
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m m m m m m m m m 1m m m m m m m- m m m m Hm bmme
m m m m m m m m m m m m m m m m o m o m -mm-mu soposscnsH
H- m+ H- HH H- -m
m m m m m m o m m m m m m m m m m m m m Hm wm\Hm m-
m m m o m m o m m m m m m m m m m m m m mm -mm\mm
H- .1-
m m m m m m m m m m m m w m m m m m m m mm -mm\mm m-
m m m m m m m m m m m m -m‘ m m m m m m m mm -mmxmm
H+. H- w+ H+ H- H- II
m m o m m m m m m m m m m m m m m m m m mm -Mm\mm :-
m m o m m m o m m m m m m m m m m m m m mm -mm\mm
m- + H- .1-
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m o m m m m o m m m m m m m m m m m m m am -mm\:m
H+. m- H- H+ H+ .11
m o m m m m m m m m m m m m m m m m m m om -mm\om H-
m m m m m m m m m m m m m m m m m -m m m Sm? mewm -
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m 2 H Q H m a. .o .0 .o .O O .o .O .o .o I L I I aw.
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.4
S

 

 

mOBoDmEmZH Bmdq OB ZOHedqmm 2H

mmflz deBm m>HBHszo m.BZMQDBm ZH mmoz<mo

 

pcopzpm um

SUMMARY OF CHANGES IN COGNITIVE
STYLE MAPS FOR SIX STUDENTS
' WITH INSTRUCTOR #1

1 change Major T(AL) to minor t(al): Theoretical Auditory
Linguistic

3 change Major T(VL) to minor t(vl): Theoretical Verbal
Linguistic

1 change minor q(ces) to Major Q(CES): Qualitative Code
Esthetics

1 change negligible q(ces) to Major Q(CES): Qualitative
. . Code Esthetics

2 change minor q(cp) to Major Q(CP):, Qualitative Code Proxemics
1 change Major Q(CS) to minOr q(cs): Qualitative Code Synoetics

...a

change minor q(ct) to Major Q(CT): Qualitative Code‘
‘ Transactional

change negligible A to minor a: ‘AssOciates

change Major F to minor f: Family

change Major D to negligible: Differences ,
change negligible D to Major D: Differences

change Major M to negligible: Magnitudes

change Major M to minor m: Magnitudes

N N H-H H R) [0

change minor r to Major R: Relationships

Total Changes: .
4 changes in Theoretical Elements

' ,6 changes in Qualitative Codes
24~changes in Cultural Determinants
‘8wfihgngas in MpdalitieS-of Inference

..-
\. '

.1-

. 184

 

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