Factors Affecting Student Concentration in Classroom: Student's Viewpoints in North Khorasan University of Medical Sciences

Lack of concentration in classroom is considered to be one of the most prevalent educational problems throughout education. The aim of this study is to discover and determine factors contributing to the students’ concentration in North Khorasan University of Medical Sciences.
Material & This descriptive study was performed on 460 students of North Khorasan University of Medical Sciences. A questionnaire consisting of two parts including; demographic data and 21 questions was used to assess the effective factors in students’ concentration. Data were analyzed by SPSS-14 software based on frequency of distribution, mean and standard deviation.
Most of the cases (66.3%) were female and the overall mean age was 21.3± 3.4 years. Among the teacher-related factors and student-related factors, "Proper time management by the teacher at presentation" (mean 3.34±0.90) and “Interest in the subject" (mean 3.42±0.41) were proved to be the main interfering factors, respectively. Among the environmental factors, proper lighting and ventilation (mean 3.2±0.86) were also the most significant factors.
According to the students’ views about concentration, changing some behavioral patterns among the students could lead to improvement in their concentration level. This may include planning for enough rest, paying attention to present the applied topics, and consequently encouraging students, and providing a convenient learning setting such as physical conditions of the classroom.