فصلنامه توسعه ی آموزش جندی شاپور
سال هشتم شماره 1 (پیاپی 20، بهار 1396)

Educational experts believe that effective teaching methods such as concept mapping are appropriate to help nursing students develop critical thinking skills. Hence, this study was carried out to review the effectiveness of concept mapping in developing critical thinking skills among nursing students in Iran and the world. A systematic review was conducted on thirteen research papers, review articles, and meta-analyzes published from 1998 to 2015 and assessed the effect of concept mapping method on nursing student's critical thinking. Farsi and English articles with full text available at Data bases such as Google Scholar, PubMed, Science Direct and Ovid were searched using keywords concept mapping, critical thinking skills, nursing student, and nursing education in the title or abstract of papers. Overall, eleven quasi-experimental studies and two experimental studies were reviewed. Most papers based on critical thinking questionnaires of California used to measure critical thinking. Most studies reported that concept mapping have been effective to promote critical thinking skills of nursing students. Our results showed that studies conducted on concept mapping are still in its infancy. Therefore, the positive impact of concept mapping method on nursing student's critical thinking skills is still an open question and requires further experimental and longitudinal studies with larger sample sizes and rigorous methodologies

Academic success of college students is one of the main aims and major concerns of the university authorities, students and their families that it is influenced by many factors. This study aimed to investigate the academic success of nursing and midwifery students and effective factors at Kashan University of Medical Sciences in 2015. This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on 244 undergraduate nursing and midwifery students who were selected randomly among a total of 300 students. Firstly, the sample size was calculated after a pilot study. To measure the academic success, the Academic Success Inventory for College Students (ASICS) was used. After translation of the questionnaire, 8 faculty members confirmed its content validity. The overall CVI calculated as 0.83; the CVR of the items ranged between 0.80 and 1; and the Cronbach's alpha was also calculated as 0.82. Moreover, data analysis was performed using descriptive and inferential statistics including Pearson correlation coefficient, Mann-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis, and also Kolmogorov-Smirnov test was executed to verify the data normality. Subsequently, a significant relationship was observed between the mean score of academic success of midwifery students and being native (p = 0.006) and housing conditions (p = 0.047). Spearman correlation coefficient also showed a significant relationship between nursing and midwifery students’ academic success scores and the overall GPA, and the students’ average in the last semester. In conclusion, the present study showed that the mean scores of the academic success was higher in native midwifery students as well as the nursing and midwifery students living in dormitories rather other groups. Considering the result of study, further studies with greater sample size are suggested to be conducted in other nursing schools to investigate the effect of other factors such as the number of courses and units possessed and passed.

Study habits of a person determines the academic progress, therefore, this study aimed to determine study habits among students at Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences and its association with demographic characteristics, too. This descriptive-analytic study encompassed 669 students including 330 graduate students and 339 under graduate and doctoral students. The sampling method in graduate group was census, but stratified random sampling was used in another group. Data were gathered using study habit inventory questionnaire PSSHI) and then were analyzed by SPSS16 through independent t test, one-way ANOVA, and Pearson correlation. The total mean score of the students’ study habits estimated 47.38±4.85 that the lowest average score among the different fields was related to the scope of the taking notes (41.85±21.14) and time management (42.36±15.71); moreover, students in the fields of health had the lowest average in taking notes and learning motivation. There was a significant relationship between some subscales of study habits and sex, marital status, field of study, exam preparation time (P0. 05). The study habits among students studying at Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences was in moderate level that was so far from an ideal level, therefore, it is recommended that principles of correct study should be considered at the initial entrance to university education.

Identification of factors affecting the selection Pharmacy field can provide an important step in development and success of students. The present study aimed to determine what factors affect attitude of Pharmacy students at Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences and their academic satisfaction. This cross-sectional study was planned to undertake a research on all students in pharmacy school at first semester in 1392, a total 247 students). First data were collected using a validity-and-reliability-approved questionnaire and then analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistical tests such as independent t test, ANOVA and Pearson correlation coefficient. Based on the mean scores obtained, factors such as “the rate of income and job security” and “Individual talent and ability” were considered as the main reasons for applying in pharmacy field, 4.19 and 4.08 respectively; and “urging by friends and relatives” and “social situation” were the least important factors by means of 3.33 and 3.73, respectively. Students with an average of 4.06 answered with a positive attitude to the question "Would you select the field of pharmacy if you take the exam again?" related to their interest and satisfaction. The results of the study suggest that the “business and economic conditions” can be the most affecting factors on the choice of academic field from Pharmacy students’ viewpoints, by contrast, such tendency in Pharmacy students could have negative consequences for graduates in future.

The experience of teachers is transferred to students in the classroom; and for the implementation of this, the continuous presence of students is necessary. Despite the numerous studies on the causes of absence, the strategies of its reduction have not been investigated. Hence, the aim of this study was to determine the strategies reducing the absenteeism in theoretical classes from the viewpoints of students in Shahrekord University of Medical Sciences. The population of this study consisted of all students studying in the second semester in 2016-2015 and just 401 students from Medical (n=75), Nursing and Midwifery (n=182), Health (n=32) and Paramedical (n=112) schools were randomly selected in proportion to the number of students in each school and field of study. The research involved collecting data from a researcher-made questionnaire. Then, data analysis were performed with SPSS and P