Clinical Instructors' and Student Athletic Trainers' Perceptions of Helpful Clinical Instructor Characteristics

Area of Science:

• Allied Health Education
• Athletic Training Education
• Clinical Education

Background:

• Student learning in clinical settings is influenced by instructor characteristics.
• Perceptions of helpfulness can vary between students and clinical instructors.
• Understanding these perceptions is crucial for optimizing clinical education.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare student and clinical instructor perceptions of helpful clinical instructor characteristics.
• To identify key traits that facilitate student learning in athletic training programs.
• To inform best practices in clinical athletic training education.

Main Methods:

• A questionnaire assessing helpful clinical instructor characteristics was developed.
• 206 undergraduate students and 46 clinical instructors participated.
• Data analyzed using descriptive statistics and Pearson correlations.

Main Results:

• High agreement was found between student and instructor ratings of instructor characteristics.
• Modeling professional behavior was identified as the most helpful characteristic subgroup.
• Integration of knowledge and research into clinical education was rated least helpful.

Conclusions:

• Clinical instructors should prioritize modeling professional behavior to foster student learning.
• Athletic training programs may need to increase emphasis on integrating research into clinical education.
• Findings can guide curriculum development and instructor training.