PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to analyze the subjectivity of wisdom in the Korean elderly. METHODS: Q-methodology was used. The 33 selected Q-statements from each of the 41 participants were classified into a shape of normal distribution using a 9-point scale. The collected data were analyzed using the Analysis Software for Q-Technique. RESULTS: Four types of wisdom for research participants of Korean elderly were identified. Type I is experience-oriented action type; Type II is emotion-oriented sympathy type; Type III is human relationship-oriented consideration type; and Type IV is problem solution-oriented insight type. CONCLUSION: The results of this study indicate that different approaches to health and nursing care for elders can be recommended based on the four types studied.
Aged ; Humans ; Nursing Care ; Test Taking Skills

Clerkship has a vital role in undergraduated medical education. Despite potential benefits, clinical teaching has been much criticised for its variability due to its complex clinical environment. This article describes several problems and educational theories related to learning in clinical settings. Effective strategies were developed after these problems arised and learning theories were created, in terms of students, clinical teachers and teaching institution: first, the student should prepare medical knowledge and survival skills for self-directed learning in the clinical setting; second, the clinical teachers provide opportunities for active participation-effective feedback-reflection to students; and lastly, the teaching institution has to design a clerkship curriculum effectively. A clinical environment for students allowing them to participate actively is essential.
Clinical Clerkship ; Curriculum ; Education, Medical ; Humans ; Learning ; Test Taking Skills

PURPOSE: It aims to identify the effect of five variables to score of the Korean Medical Licensing Examinations (KMLE) for three consecutive years from 2011 to 2013. METHODS: The number of examinees for each examination was 3,364 in 2011 3,177 in 2012, and 3,287 in 2013. Five characteristics of examinees were set as variables: gender, age, graduation status, written test result (pass or fail), and city of medical school. A regression model was established, with the score of a written test as a dependent variable and with examinees' traits as variables. RESULTS: The regression coefficients in all variables, except the city of medical school, were statistically significant. The variable's effect in three examinations appeared in the following order: result of written test, graduation status, age, gender, and city of medical school. CONCLUSION: Written test scores of the KMLE revealed that female students, younger examinees, and first-time examinees had higher performances.
Female ; Humans ; Licensure* ; Physical Examination ; Schools, Medical ; Test Taking Skills

It aimed to compare the study skills of two groups of undergraduate pharmacy students in the School of Medicine, University of Zambia using the Study Skills Assessment Questionnaire (SSAQ), with the goal of analysing students' study skills and identifying factors that affect study skills. A questionnaire was distributed to 67 participants from both programs using stratified random sampling. Completed questionnaires were rated according to participants study skill. The total scores and scores within subscales were analysed and compared quantitatively. Questionnaires were distributed to 37 students in the regular program, and to 30 students in the parallel program. The response rate was 100%. Students had moderate to good study skills: 22 respondents (32.8%) showed good study skills, while 45 respondents (67.2%) were found to have moderate study skills. Students in the parallel program demonstrated significantly better study skills (mean SSAQ score, 185.4+/-14.5), particularly in time management and writing, than the students in the regular program (mean SSAQ score 175+/-25.4; P<0.05). No significant differences were found according to age, gender, residential or marital status, or level of study. The students in the parallel program had better time management and writing skills, probably due to their prior work experience. The more intensive training to students in regular program is needed in improving time management and writing skills.
Surveys and Questionnaires ; Humans ; Marital Status ; Motivation ; Pharmacy* ; Students, Pharmacy* ; Test Taking Skills* ; Time Management ; Writing ; Zambia*

Computerized adaptive testing (CAT) greatly improves measurement efficiency in high-stakes testing operations through the selection and administration of test items with the difficulty level that is most relevant to each individual test taker. This paper explains the 3 components of a conventional CAT item selection algorithm: test content balancing, the item selection criterion, and item exposure control. Several noteworthy methodologies underlie each component. The test script method and constrained CAT method are used for test content balancing. Item selection criteria include the maximized Fisher information criterion, the b-matching method, the a-stratification method, the weighted likelihood information criterion, the efficiency balanced information criterion, and the Kullback-Leibler information criterion. The randomesque method, the Sympson-Hetter method, the unconditional and conditional multinomial methods, and the fade-away method are used for item exposure control. Several holistic approaches to CAT use automated test assembly methods, such as the shadow test approach and the weighted deviation model. Item usage and exposure count vary depending on the item selection criterion and exposure control method. Finally, other important factors to consider when determining an appropriate CAT design are the computer resources requirement, the size of item pools, and the test length. The logic of CAT is now being adopted in the field of adaptive learning, which integrates the learning aspect and the (formative) assessment aspect of education into a continuous, individualized learning experience. Therefore, the algorithms and technologies described in this review may be able to help medical health educators and high-stakes test developers to adopt CAT more actively and efficiently.
Animals ; Cats ; Education ; Health Educators ; Humans ; Learning ; Logic ; Methods ; Patient Selection ; Retinoscopy ; Test Taking Skills

In this article, we critically reviewed various literatures on stress and adjustment in medical schools as a preliminary work for the future empirical study. We adopted Biopsychosocial Model as the frame of reference, which considers not only the relationship between stressor and psychological distress, but also their interaction with moderating variables such as psychosocial resources and vulnerabilities. According to the model, three important aspects of medical school stress were reviewed: 1) the types of medical school stresses, 2) the adverse effects of stressors on the adjustment such as depression, anxiety, physical symptoms, drug abuse, eating problem, attrition, change of attitude and personality, etc, 3) the moderating effects of various vulnerabilities and resources including Type A behavior pattern, masculinity/femininity, locus of control, optimism, anger expression, coping style, social support, and study skills on the suppression or development of psychological distress. Investigating the moderating variables in particular may have great clinical implications since these variables are closely related to the psychological factors concerning successful adjustment in medical school. Conclusions drawn from this review suggests several directions of future research. First, a comprehensive study which covers the whole process of medical school stress is recommended. Longitudinal design will be more suitable for dealing with the developmental features of medical education. Finally, the severity of medical school stress must be compared with the stress of general colleges and other professional graduate schools. This article is expected to provide some theoretical basis for future studies regarding the successful adjustment in the medical school, the development of preventive intervention programs and the reform of medical education systems.
Anger ; Anxiety ; Depression ; Eating ; Education, Medical ; Humans ; Internal-External Control ; Psychology ; Schools, Medical ; Substance-Related Disorders ; Test Taking Skills

PURPOSE: This study aims at increasing our understanding of first-year medical students' learning behaviors, major satisfaction, and study skills. We investigate different features of freshmen's behavior in relation to learning and explore the extent to which freshmen were satisfied with their major and perceived their study skills. METHODS: A total of 106 freshmen participated in this study. At midyear, first-year medical students were asked to complete a questionnaire that included the learning behaviors, major satisfaction, and study skills. The data collected from the survey were analyzed using t-test, ANOVA, chi-square test, correlation analysis, and multiple regression analysis. RESULTS: The study reported that most of freshmen had a lot of difficulties in studying at medical school by lack of prior learning. Despite first-year students, they were studying hard their major. Freshmen spent studying an average of 1 hour or less than 2 hours every day. The study also indicated that of major satisfaction, the overall satisfaction of the department was the highest and the satisfaction in learning environment was the lowest. There were significant differences among the freshmen on the major satisfaction due to admission process, academic performance, and housing type. Of 11 study skills, while freshman highly perceived their teamwork, stress management, and reading skills, their weak study skills identified in this study were writing, note taking, time management, and test taking skills. There were significant differences among the freshmen on the study skills due to gender and academic performance. Finally, freshmen's learning behaviors and major satisfaction were significantly associated with some of study skills. CONCLUSION: This study may have implications for the academic adjustment and learning processes in the first year. We need to consider variables such as learning behaviors, major satisfaction, and study skills, when discussing about how to maximize the learning potential of medical students. It is also important that we develop education program so that all students acquire these necessary skills and continue to improve positive behaviors related to learning.
Housing ; Humans ; Learning ; Personal Satisfaction ; Schools, Medical ; Students, Medical ; Test Taking Skills ; Time Management ; Writing ; Surveys and Questionnaires

PURPOSE: Numerous studies have revealed that study skills have a constructive role on the academic performance of students, in addition to educational quality, students' intelligence, and their affective characteristics. This study aims to examine study skills and the factors influencing them among the health sciences students of Urmia University of Medical Sciences in Iran. METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study carried out from May to November 2013. A total of 340 Urmia health sciences students were selected using a simple sampling method. Data were collected using the Study Skills Assessment Questionnaire of Counseling Center of Houston University and analyzed with descriptive and analytical statistics. RESULTS: The mean and standard deviation of the students' study skills were 172.5+/-23.2, out of a total score of 240. Around 1.2% of the study skills were weak; 86.8%, moderate; and 12%, good. Among the study skills, the scores of time management, and memory and concentration were better than the others. Also, there was a significant positive correlation between study skills scores and the students' family housing status and academic level (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: Although the majority of the participants had moderate study skills, these were not sufficient and far from good. Improving and promoting the study skills of university students require the designing and implementing of education programs for study strategies. Therefore, decision makers and planners in the educational areas of universities should consider the topic described above.
Counseling ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Education ; Housing ; Humans ; Intelligence ; Iran ; Memory ; Test Taking Skills* ; Time Management ; Surveys and Questionnaires