Association of learning approaches with academic performance of Sri Lankan first-year dental students

Primarily deep approach (DA) and surface approach (SA) to learning have been distinguished among students.

We aimed to determine the learning approaches and their association with the academic performance of a batch of 1st-year Sri Lankan dental students.

Learning scores of students were calculated using the revised two-factor study process (R-SPQ-2F) questionnaire and they were correlated with the academic performance of students.

The 80.65% of students showed a greater DA score than SA score. Mean values of students' DA and SA scores were 31.79 ± 6.1 and 22.74 ± 5.5, respectively. A positive statistically significant correlation (r = .3, p < .05) was observed only between DA score and marks of Short Answer Questions in anatomy.

This sample of students uses both deep and surface learning approaches with more preference to DA than SA. The correlation between learning approaches and academic performance was inconsistent.