RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CRITICAL THINKING CAPACITY AND LEARNING METHODS AND STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT OF NURSING STUDENTS

Abstract

Academic achievement plays a crucial role in the future success of each student, and neglecting this fundamental issue can reduce academic performance and increase educational costs. A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted on second-year regular nursing students studying at the Faculty of Nursing, Thai Nguyen University of Medicine and Pharmacy, to determine the relationship between critical thinking skills and preferred learning methods with their academic performance. The study results showed that the majority of students had low critical thinking skills (average score of 12.56 ± 1.04 points). Most (43.6%) nursing students preferred the Diverging learning method (concrete experience/reflective observation). Critical thinking skills were moderately positively correlated with students' academic performance (r= 0.35, p = 0.02). There was a statistically significant relationship between learning methods and the academic performance of nursing students (p < 0.05). These research findings suggest that nursing educators need strategies to improve critical thinking among students and create learning environments that match students' preferred learning methods.