Student and faculty learning styles in a Canadian and a Chilean self-directed, problem-based nursing program.

A descriptive comparative study was conducted to identify and compare/contrast the learning styles of nursing faculty and entry-level students in 2 self-directed (SDL), problem-based (PBL) nursing programs. The Kolb LSI-1985 was administered to 94 first-year generic students, 63 post-R.N. students, and 22 faculty members in a Canadian university nursing program. A Spanish translation was completed by 37 incoming nursing students and 13 faculty members in a Chilean university. One-way ANOVA analysis of group mean scores showed significant differences among the 4 student groups in the active experimentation learning mode. Post hoc tests confirmed that Chilean students are less likely to be active learners than their teachers or Canadian students, a finding of significance in preparing students to assume self-direction of their learning. Canadian faculty had higher abstract conceptualization scores than Chilean faculty, which has implications for faculty development of educator roles for SDL/PBL.

Growth status of school-age Mayan children in Belize, Central America.

This paper reports the growth status of a sample of Mopan Maya school children living in a rural village in Belize. These children exhibit a growth pattern typical of chronic undernutrition, in that a high percentage are stunted (66%), but virtually none are wasted by WHO criteria. The Belize Maya children are compared to four other Amerindian groups and found to be shorter and lighter than a semi-urban group from Guatemala, but taller and heavier than three rural groups from Guatemala and Mexico. The Belize children exhibit the largest arm circumferences among all five groups. This pattern of growth is discussed in light of current ideas concerning the contribution of genetics vs. environment to childhood growth and population well-being.

PIP: The degree of child growth is often used as an indicator of the level of health, nutritional status, and well-being for populations overall. Although individual gene constructs determine to an enormous extent the degree to which an individual will eventually grow, environment also certainly plays a major role, especially during preadolescence. The author reports the growth status of a sample of Mopan Mayan school children living in the rural village of San Antionio in southern Belize. The landlocked population includes approximately 940 people and another 171 distributed along the road to town. This research conducted between November 1990 and July 1991 found a growth pattern among the village children typical of chronic undernutrition in which 66% were stunted and almost none were wasted according to World Health Organization criteria. Compared to four other Amerindian groups, it was found that the Belize Maya children are shorter and lighter than a semi-urban group from Guatemala, but taller and heavier than three rural groups from Guatemala and Mexico. The Belize children had the largest arm circumferences among all five groups. This pattern of growth is discussed in light of current ideas on the contribution of genetics versus environment to childhood growth and population well-being.