students' conceptions of learning in different educational contexts

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Higher Education 35: 299–316, 1998. 299 c 1998 Kluwer Academic Publishers. Printed in the Netherlands. Students’ conceptions of learning in different educational contexts GUNILLA EKLUND-MYRSKOG Faculty of Education, A ˚ bo Akademi University, Vasa, Finland; e-mail: [email protected] Abstract. The aim of this study is to investigate students’ conceptions of learning in different educational contexts, and analyze to what extent conceptions are contextually dependent. Student nurses and car mechanic students are chosen as two groups, and qualitative similarities and differences between the students are described and explained in terms of the educational contexts: nursing education and car mechanic education. The study is ‘qualitative’ by its nature, and the phenomenographic approach and grounded theory are taken as the points of departure. Data for the cross-section study were collected through individual interviews with student nurses (n = 60) and car mechanic students (n = 54). Different groups of students were interviewed at the beginning and at the end of the educational programs. As a result of the analysis, qualitative similarities and differences in students’ conceptions were found. Differences among students within a program were, however, fewer than differ- ences among students participating in different programs. In comparing groups of students within the programs, similar trends of development could be identified. Students within both programs used more developed conceptions at the end than at the beginning of the programs. The differences found within and between the student groups could be explained in terms of educational contexts. The results thus showed that conceptions were to some extent contextu- ally dependent. Introduction In recent years there has been a substantial amount of research focusing on students’ learning. To promote understanding of the phenomenon of learn- ing, some research has more specifically focused on how the participants in this process interpret learning. The pioneering work in research into how students conceptualize learning was done by Perry (1970), who investigated students’ intellectual development during the course of tertiary study. Within a phenomenographic approach, studies have then been carried out aiming at describing individuals’ conceptions of learning. A ‘conception’ can be defined as the fundamental way a person understands a phenomenon or an object in the surrounding world (Marton & Svensson 1978, 20). It is not visible but can be seen as a qualitative relationship between an individual and some phenomenon (Johansson, Marton & Svensson 1985, 235).

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Page 1: Students' conceptions of learning in different educational contexts

Higher Education 35: 299–316, 1998. 299c 1998 Kluwer Academic Publishers. Printed in the Netherlands.

Students’ conceptions of learning in different educational contexts

GUNILLA EKLUND-MYRSKOGFaculty of Education, Abo Akademi University, Vasa, Finland; e-mail: [email protected]

Abstract. The aim of this study is to investigate students’ conceptions of learning in differenteducational contexts, and analyze to what extent conceptions are contextually dependent.Student nurses and car mechanic students are chosen as two groups, and qualitative similaritiesand differences between the students are described and explained in terms of the educationalcontexts: nursing education and car mechanic education.

The study is ‘qualitative’ by its nature, and the phenomenographic approach and groundedtheory are taken as the points of departure. Data for the cross-section study were collectedthrough individual interviews with student nurses (n = 60) and car mechanic students (n = 54).Different groups of students were interviewed at the beginning and at the end of the educationalprograms.

As a result of the analysis, qualitative similarities and differences in students’ conceptionswere found. Differences among students within a program were, however, fewer than differ-ences among students participating in different programs. In comparing groups of studentswithin the programs, similar trends of development could be identified. Students within bothprograms used more developed conceptions at the end than at the beginning of the programs.The differences found within and between the student groups could be explained in terms ofeducational contexts. The results thus showed that conceptions were to some extent contextu-ally dependent.

Introduction

In recent years there has been a substantial amount of research focusing onstudents’ learning. To promote understanding of the phenomenon of learn-ing, some research has more specifically focused on how the participantsin this process interpret learning. The pioneering work in research into howstudents conceptualize learning was done by Perry (1970), who investigatedstudents’ intellectual development during the course of tertiary study. Withina phenomenographic approach, studies have then been carried out aimingat describing individuals’ conceptions of learning. A ‘conception’ can bedefined as the fundamental way a person understands a phenomenon or anobject in the surrounding world (Marton & Svensson 1978, 20). It is notvisible but can be seen as a qualitative relationship between an individual andsome phenomenon (Johansson, Marton & Svensson 1985, 235).

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In the 1970s the first study was carried out aiming at describing people’sconceptions of learning (Saljo 1979). In the study 90 individuals in Swedenwere interviewed and asked the question: “What do you actually mean bylearning?” Five conceptions of learning could be identified and accordingto the first conception, learning was seen as an increase of knowledge. Theconception had similarities with the second one, according to which learningwas seen as memorizing. In the third conception, learning was understood asthe acquisition of facts, procedures etc. which could be retained and/or utilizedin practice. In the remaining two conceptions, the reproductive nature oflearning was replaced by conceptions in which the emphasis was on learningas a constructive activity. According to the fourth conception, learning wasseen as the abstraction of meaning and in the fifth conception, learningwas understood as an interpretative process aiming at an understandingof reality. The categorization of Saljo (1979) has been supported by otherstudies. However, in a study of Marton, Dall’Alba, and Beaty (1993) a newconception was identified and the categorization of Saljo was reconstructed.According to this sixth conception, learning was seen as a personal change,adding an existential aspect to learning.

The structure of the phenomenographic studies on learning conceptionshas been quite similar, although the studies have often been carried out indifferent contexts and independently of each other. The major part of thisresearch has been conducted in Western countries such as Sweden (Saljo1979), Great Britain (Giorgi 1986; Marton, Dall’Alba & Beaty 1993), theNetherlands, and Finland (Myrskog 1993), and also in Australia (Prosser,Trigwell & Taylor 1994). However, the interest in examining the importanceof context to students’ conceptions of learning has over the last few years led toparallel studies in Asia, Africa, and South America. Researchers have startedto carry out similar studies in countries such as China (Marton, Dall’Alba &Tse 1992; Pratt 1992; Wen & Marton 1993), Hong Kong (Marton, Watkins& Tang 1995), Nepal (Watkins & Regmi 1992), Nigeria (Watkins & Akande1994), and Uruguay (Nagle & Marton 1993). Some of these studies are of aslightly different character due to the fact that questionnaires are often usedas the method of collecting data. The main aim is, however, the same, namelyto study individuals’ conceptions of learning, but in conditions different fromthe Western countries (see Eklund-Myrskog 1996, Table 2).

In both qualitative and quantitative studies a quite similar variation ofconceptions has been identified, and the question is whether conceptions oflearning are contextually dependent (Dahlin & Regmi 1995; Marton, Watkins& Tang 1995; Myrskog 1993). Judging by results from different studies, itseems that culture does not determine the content of the learning conceptionin any absolute sense. However, the learning-context does seem to influence

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which aspects of the conception are accentuated and which are left in thebackground (see also Martin & Ramsden 1987; Van Rossum, Deijkers &Hamer 1985; Van Rossum & Schenk 1984).

Aim of the study

The aim of this cross-section study is to investigate students’ conceptionsof learning in two different educational contexts, nursing education and carmechanic education. Within these contexts, students’ ideas are investigated atthe beginning and at the end of the educational programs. Qualitative similar-ities and differences between the students are related to the contexts, i.e., theprograms. The variation between the contexts means that the programs havedifferent goals, contents, and structures. Within these contexts, student nursesare given a school-text concerning the essence of caring, and car mechanicstudents a text about angles of wheels. When students are asked to talk abouttheir ideas of learning within these different contexts, the contexts thus differboth with respect to the program and the task. Students’ conceptions of learn-ing are thus further described and explained in relation to these surroundingcontexts. The specific aims of the cross-section study are to investigate:1) student nurses’ conceptions of learning at the beginning and at the end

of the educational program,2) similarities and differences between student nurses’ conceptions of learn-

ing at the beginning and at the end of the educational program,3) car mechanic students’ conceptions of learning at the beginning and at

the end of the educational program,4) similarities and differences between car mechanic students’ conceptions

of learning at the beginning and at the end of the educational program,and

5) similarities and differences between student nurses’ and car mechanicstudents’ conceptions of learning.

The empirical study

A ‘qualitative’ approach as the point of departure

In the present study, the phenomenographic approach is taken as the mainpoint of departure. Within the phenomenographic approach, the aim is toinvestigate how individuals conceive different phenomena in the world aroundthem (Marton 1981 1988). A fundamental feature of the approach is the dis-tinction between a first-order and a second-order perspective. In a first-order

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perspective, the intention is to describe the world ’as it is’, while in a second-order perspective, the aim is to describe how individuals conceive phenomenain the world around them, i.e., to describe phenomena as they appear to thoseindividuals (Johansson, Marton, & Svensson 1985, 247; Marton 1978, 2–8).In phenomenography, the term ‘conception’ is thus of fundamental impor-tance.

Conceptions are described in terms of their content – there is always some-thing that is conceived and consequently it is not possible to talk aboutconceptions in general. The two parts – what is conceived and how it isconceived – together form the core of the phenomenon. In phenomenogra-phy both a what-aspect and a how-aspect of a conception are discerned: thewhat-aspect refers to the meaning content, while the how-aspect refers tothe way of understanding the object. The what-aspect is the condition of thehow-aspect, in that it is necessary to have a conception of what a phenomenonis before one can discuss how it is constructed. The what- and how-aspectsare, however, internally related to each other and cannot be separated. Withinphenomenography, the aim is then on the one hand to describe individuals’conceptions and on the other hand to describe similarities and differencesbetween these conceptions (Larsson 1986; Uljens 1988, 17–21).

Qualitatively different conceptions of a phenomenon are described in termsof different categories of description. By comparing similarities and differ-ences between individuals’ statements, these are relegated to qualitativelydifferent categories. The categories of description are content-specific andformulated in such a way that they characterize the specific content of theconceptions as well as possible. Each category represents a unique way ofunderstanding the phenomenon in focus, and the categories found togetherdefine a category system. A crucial feature is thus the fact that the categoriesof description and the category system are constituted by the researcher, andare verbal descriptions of the individuals’ interview answers.

The set of conceptions are seen as relatively stable in a certain populationin a certain context. The system of categories is seen as generalizable betweensituations, although individuals can move from one category to another ondifferent occasions (Marton 1981, 1986). Categories of description can thusbe lifted out of the context where they have been found in order to be usedas tools for understanding conceptions of similar phenomena or aspects indifferent situations (Johansson, Marton & Svensson 1985, 249–250).

The phenomenographic approach has been criticized for its way of alien-ating individuals from their own utterances by reducing the utterances toisolated statements and by systematically disregarding the contexts in whichthey were produced (Saljo 1994). Svensson (1979, 1985, 1989) has triedto develop the phenomenographic approach and, in line with his contextual

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analysis, conceptions of a phenomenon would be analyzed in relation to thecontext into which they are embedded. According to the contextual analysis,thoughts and conceptions are part of a wider context and consequently theyshould not be separated from the context within which they are embedded.Instead, they are seen as dependent on both the individual and the contextwhere he/she operates (Svensson 1989, 46).

As has been made evident, the aim of this study is to describe and explainstudents’ conceptions of learning in relation to surrounding contexts. In orderto do this, the study will be expanded towards grounded theory (Glaser1978, 1992; Glaser & Strauss 1967; Strauss 1987) with the emphasis onthe conditional matrix. The conditional matrix can be represented as a set ofconcentric circles, one inside the other, each level corresponding to a differentaspect of the world. In the center of the matrix is the phenomenon, whichcan be conditionally related to levels above and below it. The conditionalmatrix thus opens up the analysis to a wide range of possible conditions thatbear upon a given phenomenon, and the matrix makes it possible to relate acertain phenomenon specifically to those conditions (Strauss & Corbin 1990,158–175).

Grounded theory and its conditional matrix is used in this study in so faras students’ conceptions of learning are described and explained in terms ofdifferent contexts. The outermost ring represents two educational programs– nursing education and car mechanic education. Within these, groups ofstudents are interviewed both at the beginning and at the end of the educationalprograms. Finally, a microcontext in the form of an interview-situation iscreated as the level closest to the phenomena under study.

Subjects

Data for the cross-section study were collected through individual interviewswith student nurses at a nursing school and car mechanic students at a voca-tional school. In the nursing school, 27 student nurses were interviewed atthe beginning and 33 at the end of the period of education. In the vocationalschool, 24 car mechanic students were interviewed at the beginning and 30at the end of the car mechanic educational program. A total number of 55female and 5 male student nurses and 54 male car mechanic students thusparticipated in the study.

Data collection

In order to estimate the influence of the educational context on students’ con-ceptions of learning, one context-related text in relation to each educational

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program was used as the basis of the interviews. The student nurses read atext concerning the essence of caring and the car mechanic students a textabout angles of wheels. The choice of context-related texts was based on theassumption that readers always create and construct meaning in response to atext. Individuals’ prior knowledge and experience play a central role in guid-ing and shaping the interpretation and understanding of a text, and in this wayreading can be seen as a constructive process. By choosing texts representingthe core of the educational programs and by discussing with students mattersin relation to such texts, students’ interpretations and understanding of thetexts could be seen as influenced by their previous knowledge and experience.

The students were initially asked to read the context-related text and, afterthey had read it, the researcher asked questions about its content, the way theygenerally learn new things, and how they know when they have learnt some-thing. These main themes did not vary between the subjects and were intendedto reveal students’ conceptions of learning in relation to the educational con-texts. Within the selected themes, the aim was to carry on the conversationwith the students and encourage them to express their thoughts about the phe-nomenon in focus. In addition to the main themes, the interviewer also askedother questions, aiming at clarifying the researcher’s own understanding ofthe students’ thoughts. These questions were, however, adapted to the stu-dents’ discussion with respect to the fact that the students themselves definedthe content, i.e., delimited and treated the content from the point of view oftheir own understanding of the same content. The interviews lasted about 45minutes and all interviews were tape recorded and transcribed word by word.

A qualitative analysis of the data

The qualitative analysis of the written interview protocols was carried out inseveral stages. In the beginning, the researcher read all interview protocolsand marked the parts where students expressed their thoughts about learning.The researcher then considered the selected part in every interview protocol,underlined the most essential sentences and wrote down key words charac-terizing the student’s view of the item in question. The sentences underlinedand the key words in the protocols were then compared with each other inorder to find qualitative similarities and differences between the students. Nosentence or key word was, however, analyzed as independent of the rest ofthe interview protocol. The researcher worked all the time with the whole setof interview protocols in order to stay close to the educational contexts asdefined by the students’ statements during the entire interviews.

Content specific similarities and differences between students’ utterancesconcerning the phenomenon were noted and then described and categorized

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in terms of qualitatively different categories of description. ‘Qualitativelydifferent’ meant different ways of conceiving the phenomenon, not in termsof the amount of detail provided but rather in relation to their structuralmeaning. Each category thus represented a unique way of understanding thephenomenon in focus. These categories together defined a category system.

The qualitative analyses of the student nurses’ and the car mechanic stu-dents’ responses were carried out independently of each other. The categoriesof description and the category systems originated from the empirical dataand were content-specific by their nature. Since the main aim of the studywas to investigate student nurses’ and car mechanic students’ conceptionsof learning, the qualitative analysis finally resulted in two different categorysystems. These will be presented below.

Results

Student nurses’ conceptions of learning

As a result of the analysis of student nurses’ ways of reasoning about learn-ing, a total number of five different conceptions could be identified. Theconceptions were classified into the categories of description below.

Learning in terms of remembering and keeping something in mindStudents in the first category saw learning in terms of remembering andkeeping something in mind. Differences were found between students assome of them thought that learning meant remembering something in general,while others related learning more directly to the school context, includingexaminations and evaluation. Consequently, these students’ conceptions andmotives of learning were to a large extent determined by the demands andexpectations they experienced within the framework of their school.

I read the text : : : and underline what I think is important or what I thinkwill be important, what will be evaluated in some test or examination.What do you then do with the important sentences you have underlined?I store them and I try to remember them. I try to grind them into my head,so I don’t have to read the whole text again : : : In that way I have fewersentences to keep in mind.

Learning in terms of understandingIn the second category, students saw understanding as the central featureof learning. Differences were identified between students as to whether ornot they related learning to any specific motive. To some students, learning

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meant understanding something in general, while to others learning primarilymeant understanding something for the school context. The latter group ofstudents concentrated on learning and understanding what they thought wouldbe evaluated within that frame of reference.

I always try to relate a new text to reality and understand it.Why is it important for you to understand what it is about?Because otherwise it’s unnecessary for me to read it.Why is it then unnecessary?Because I don’t learn anything if I don’t understand what it’s about andthen I can’t write anything in the test.

Learning in terms of applying knowledge, based on understandingStudents in the third category saw applying knowledge as the main featureof learning. The ability to apply was based on understanding and representeda deep view of learning. At the beginning of the program, students relatedlearning to everyday life, while at the end of the program they related learning,indirectly or directly, to their future profession as nurses. The latter group ofstudents tried to understand in what way they could gain advantage fromtheir knowledge in practice and how it could help them reach certain goals.Learning thus meant acquiring and maintaining knowledge all the time andnot only remembering it for a specific period of time.

Well, I try to understand how I can profit from the new knowledge inpractice and what goal it can help me reach. Can it support me in gettinga better idea of caring or of the patients or of how the administration isorganized or of something like that. I want to see it in front of me, I needthis in order to understand one thing or another.

Learning in terms of getting a new perspectiveIn the fourth category, learning was seen in terms of getting a new perspective.The students explained that the new perspective did not appear immediately,but after they for example had read a text several times. This conceptionrelated learning more specifically to the learners because they began to seethings in a different way through learning.

When I read something I see it in a certain way : : : but after a while Ibegin to see the text in another way and I just begin to get somethingimportant out of it : : :That sounds interesting : : :

Well, the first time I read a new text, I may not notice everything in it,what lies behind certain things in the text. But after I’ve read it severaltimes I may notice, oh, well here’s also something else that : : :

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Table 1. The distribution of student nurses’ conceptions of learningbetween the two groups

Conception Beginning of End of Totalprogram program

n % n % n %

A quantiative view:Remember 8 30 6 18 14 23A qualitative view:Understand 16 59 18 55 34 57Apply 2 7 7 21 9 15New perspective 1 4 1 3 2 3Own conception 1 3 1 2

27 100 33 100 60 100

Learning in terms of forming a conception of one’s ownIn the fifth category, one student at the end of the program saw learning interms of forming a conception of his own. He tried to understand the subjectmatter in order to be able to form his own opinion of it. This conception couldthus not be identified among students at the beginning of the program.

I pick out different parts of the text and then I try to summarize them to agreater whole.Why do you want to get this whole?In order to get the whole content of knowledge that I think the text or thesubject is about. I can’t remember every word in a text, but I have to formmy own conception of it, of the whole text or subject matter.

In relation to previous research it is obvious that the conception accordingto which learning is seen as remembering and keeping something in mindwas closely related to the view according to which learning is seen as anincrease of knowledge and reproduction, i.e. represents a quantitative viewof learning. The other conceptions were again related to the view accordingto which learning is seen as understanding, i.e. a qualitative view of learning.Table 1 displays the distribution of student nurses’ conceptions of learning.

When comparing the total number of student nurses categorized accordingto the two views, 77% of the students were classified as representing a qual-itative view and 23% a quantitative view. At the beginning, most students(70%) saw learning mainly in terms of understanding, and were classifiedas representing a qualitative view. The other students (30%) were in turnclassified as representing a quantitative view, because they saw learning in

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terms of remembering. In the same way, most students (82%) at the end ofthe program were classified as having a qualitative view, because they sawlearning in terms of understanding, getting a new perspective, or forming aconception of their own. Only 18% of the students at the end of the pro-gram had a reproductive view of learning and were categorized as having aquantitative view. No statistically significant differences could, however, beidentified between the two groups of students.

Car mechanic students’ conceptions of learning

As a result of the analysis of car mechanic students’ ways of reasoning aboutlearning, four different conceptions could be distinguished. The conceptionswere classified into the categories of description below.

Learning in terms of rememberingIn the first category, students saw learning in terms of remembering. Most ofthe students related learning to the school context and their view of learningwas to a high degree directed by the demands and expectations they hadexperienced or expected within the framework of the school. These studentssaw learning in terms of remembering and also partly in terms of being able toreproduce something. The students did not try to gain deep understanding ofthe content in focus nor did they relate it to their own practice. Only beginnerswere classified into this category and consequently this conception could notbe identified among students at the end of the program.

Well, how do you then know you have learnt it?I know it when I get the test.In what way?I don’t know. : : :Well, if I can fill in the test.

Learning in terms of applying knowledge, based on knowing how to doStudents in the second category saw applying knowledge as the central featureof learning. They referred to practical situations and their ability to apply wasbased on knowing how to do something. Differences were found betweenstudents, as some of them explained that they had acquired new knowledgewhen they remembered it and were able to apply it in practice. Other studentsemphasized that they had learnt the new content when they were able toapply it in practice in such a way that it worked. Consequently, these studentshad a very normative view of learning, since they accentuated the outcome.Despite the fact that all students in this category related learning to applyingtheir knowledge, none of them explicitly talked about understanding.

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How do you know you have learnt it?I see if it works. If it doesn’t work, then I haven’t really learnt it, and if itworks, then it’s okay and I’ve learnt it.You said it works. In what way?Well, if the moped works well.

Learning in terms of understandingIn the third category, understanding was seen as the main feature of learning.Differences could be identified between students because most students at thebeginning of the program related learning to the understanding of texts andtheoretical matters, while students at the end of the program related learningand understanding mainly to practical working situations. This conception oflearning was thus closely related to the previous one, because most studentspartly connected learning with the ability to apply new knowledge in practice.However, the distinctive feature of the conception in the third category wasthat the students emphasized that they understood what they had learnt.

What do you do in order to learn it?Well, as for example with those slide-calipers, I read about how to usethem, and then I measured with them. So, now I’ve a rather clear idea ofthem and of how to read them off.What do you mean with having a clear idea of them?Well, I understand how to check them and how to read them off, in orderto get those numbers from them.

Learning in terms of forming a conception of one’s ownOne student at the end of the program saw learning in terms of forming aconception of his own. The student first tried to relate the new knowledge toreality in order thus to be able to remember it. By relating the theory to realityhe was then able to understand and form a conception of his own of it. Thisconception could not, however, be identified among students at the beginningof the program.

Well : : :when I see things in reality, it’s then easier for me to remember.Why do you think that is a good idea?Well, I don’t really know : : : I may then get some idea of my own of it, anidea of how it works. If I didn’t understand everything the teacher said,so maybe I then could think it out by myself, if I think of it for a whilewhen I see it in reality, I may then get an idea of my own of it.

In relation to previous research it is obvious that the conceptions according towhich learning is seen as remembering and applying knowledge were closely

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Table 2. The distribution of car mechanic students’ conceptions of learn-ing between the two groups

Conception Beginning of End of Totalprogram program

n % n % n %

A quantitive view:Remember 6 25 6 11Apply 13 54 15 50 28 52

A quantitative view:Understand 5 21 14 47 19 35Own conception 1 3 1 2

24 100 30 100 54 100

related to the view according to which learning is seen as an increase ofknowledge, i.e. a quantitative view of learning. The two other conceptionswere again related to the view according to which learning is seen as under-standing, i.e. a qualitative view of learning. Table 2 displays the distributionof car mechanic students’ conceptions of learning.

When comparing the total number of car mechanic students categorizedaccording to the two views, 63% were classified as having a quantitativeview and 37% a qualitative view. In contrast to the student nurses, most carmechanic students (79%) were at the beginning of the program classified ashaving a quantitative view of learning. The rest of the students (21%) sawlearning in terms of understanding and were classified as having a qualitativeview of learning. Comparison between students at the beginning and at theend of the program showed a statistically significant difference (chi2 = 4.86,df = 1, p < 0.03, with continuity correction, p < 0.05). At the end of theprogram, half of the students (50%) saw learning in terms of understanding,and half of them (50%) saw learning in terms of reproducing and applying.Consequently, more students related learning to a qualitative change at theend than at the beginning of the program.

Discussion

Some methodological reflectionsThe aim of the study was to investigate qualitative similarities and differencesin students’ conceptions of learning. The study was descriptive in characterand the phenomenographicapproach was taken as the main point of departure.Because the aim of the approach is to find new meanings of phenomena, the

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ambition is to gain heterogeneity and as great variation as possible in relevantaspects of the group studied. The study was based on interviews with 60students in nursing education and 54 students in car mechanic education. Thechoice of the different programs was directed by the ambition to find twoprograms within Finnish vocational education that in some respects were asdifferent as possible. The programs chosen differed from each other both inaim, content, and structure.

When choosing these specific educational programs, one point of departurewas the fact that students could be accepted for both programs on similargrounds. Both students who began to study nursing and those who enrolled incar mechanic education had been accepted to the programs on a quota-basisafter finishing their compulsory education, and in this respect the studentscould, theoretically, choose either of the programs. Despite this theoreticalpossibility there was a selection to the different programs, which means thatthere were natural differences between the two student groups from the verybeginning of the programs.

The two educational programs were, of course, highly gender-differentiated.Female students, with few exceptions, participated in the nursing education,while only male students participated in the car mechanic education. However,the fact that the student groups in this study are to be considered as naturalgroups, means that the gender-differences and the high degree of concentra-tion of men/women belong to the contextual characteristics. Consequently,the gender-differences are not problematic, as the essential gender-differencesbetween the student groups are a natural characteristic of the contexts, a typ-ical female- and a typical male-dominated education.

Because this was a cross-sectional study and different groups of studentswere interviewed at the beginning and at the end of the educational programs,there were differences between the groups within the programs that cannot berelated to the educational context. Consequently, it cannot be assumed that thedifferences between the groups within the programs were only a consequenceof the educational contexts. A number of factors influence students’ concep-tions of learning which lead to differences between students both within andbetween the programs. However, while the educational contexts are homo-geneous within a group, one can with good reason assume that differencesbetween groups were related to differences in the contexts.

Students’ conceptions were characterized not only by the educational con-texts in focus during the interviews, but also by the interview situation.Consequently, the interview is also a context one has to take into consider-ation. Differences in students’ utterances were not only due to the differentgeneral contexts, nursing education and car mechanic education, but also tothe interview situation. Differences between students, within and between the

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student groups, can thus be ascribed to the educational contexts, at the sametime as differences in the interview situations cannot be neglected. The vari-ation in the interview situations was, however, assumed to be of negligibleimportance in relation to the existing differences between groups, both withinand between the educational programs.

Conclusions and reflections on the results

In both the traditional phenomenographic studies in Western countries andthe more recent studies carried out in Asia, Africa, and South America, a quitesimilar variation in conceptions has been found. As was evident, the results ofthis study partly support the previously identified variation. However, the aimof relating individual conceptions of learning to surrounding contexts has alsoshown that the qualitatively different ways in which learning is experiencedcan be assumed to be contextually dependent.

When investigating similarities and differences between students’ concep-tions of learning at the beginning and at the end of the educational programs,some differences were found between the categories. Within nursing educa-tion, four of five conceptions could be identified in both groups of students.The conception in the fifth category, ’learning in terms of forming a con-ception of one’s own’, could only be found in one student at the end of theprogram. The conception represented the most elaborate view of learning,and therefore it was not surprising that no beginners had been able to developsuch a deep conception (see Table 1). Within car mechanic education, twoof four conceptions were similar in both groups of students. Only studentsat the beginning of the program had a very superficial view of learning andwere classified into the first category, ‘learning in terms of remembering’. Incontrast to this, only one student at the end of the program had a very elab-orate view of learning and was classified into the fourth category, ’learningin terms of forming a conception of one’s own’. These two conceptions werethus only identified in one of the two groups within car mechanic education(see Table 2).

However, in comparing student nurses’ and car mechanic students’ con-ceptions of learning, bigger differences were found between the programsthan within them. Only two of the conceptions found could be identified inboth student groups. The differences among students’ conceptions of learningwithin the programs were thus smaller than the differences in conceptionsamong students participating in different programs. The closer the contextswere to each other, the larger the overlap. The influence of the education-al contexts, nursing education and car mechanic education, was thus moreobvious between the programs than within them.

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When investigating similarities and differences between students’ concep-tions of learning at the beginning and at the end of the educational programs,essential differences were also found between the individuals. Within nursingeducation, the majority of both groups had a qualitative view of learning. Asmany as 19 students (70%) at the beginning and 27 students (82%) at the endof the program thus related learning mainly to understanding. In contrast tothe student nurses, most students within the car mechanic education repre-sented a quantitative view of learning and saw learning mainly in terms ofremembering or applying, based on knowing how to do something. As manyas 19 students (79%) at the beginning and 15 students (50%) at the end of theprogram were thus classified as representing this view.

Essential differences could thus be identified between students’ conceptionsat the very beginning of the programs. Most student nurses were classified asrepresenting a qualitative view of learning, while most car mechanic studentswere classified as representing a quantitative view. The differences betweenthe two student groups at the beginning of the programs were quite similar tothe differences identified at the end. At the end of the programs, most studentnurses had a qualitative view of learning, while only half of the car mechanicstudents were classified as representing this view. The difference betweenthe student groups at the beginning of the programs could be assumed to berelated to the natural individual choice of programs. A selection had alreadytaken place when pupils in the compulsory school chose which educationalprogram they wanted to join. It was evident that almost only female studentsparticipated in nursing education and only male students in car mechaniceducation.

Despite the essential differences found between the student groups at thebeginning of the programs, both student nurses and car mechanic studentswere to a greater extent classified as representing a qualitative view of learn-ing at the end than at the beginning of their programs. A similar trend ofdevelopment could thus be identified within both student groups, although itwas more obvious among car mechanic students. The development can becharacterized as a ‘cognitive jump’, or a cognitive change from a quantitativeto a qualitative view of learning. In accordance with the results from thiscross-section study, it thus seems that during the educational programs, somestudents abandon their quantitative view of learning in favour of a qualitativeview. The students realize the importance of understanding and relate learningto a greater extent to themselves.

Within nursing education, there was a tendency that more students at the endthan at the beginning of the program connected learning with understanding.These students mainly related learning to their future profession as nursesand emphasized the importance of understanding in what way they could

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gain advantage from their knowledge in practice, and how it could help themreach certain goals. During the program, it seemed that some student nurseshad begun to realize that learning not only meant remembering knowledgefor a specific period of time, but acquiring and maintaining it all the time, andespecially for their future profession as nurses. A change from a quantitativeto a qualitative view of learning had thus occurred.

Within car mechanic education, it was also evident that students at the endof the program connected learning with understanding to a greater extent thanstudents at the beginning. These students related learning and understandingmainly to practical working situations and most of them connected learningwith the ability to apply new knowledge in practice. However, in contrast tomost beginners, these students did not merely emphasize applying, but apply-ing connected with understanding. During the program, some car mechanicstudents thus seemed to have realized the importance of having a qualitativeview of learning and being able to understand what they learnt (see Perry1970).

However, variations in both student groups existed and some students seemnever to develop a qualitative view of learning. The trend of developmentfound within the programs thus showed that students’ conceptions of learningwere influenced by their educational experience. The qualitatively differentways in which learning was experienced were thus assumed to be contextuallycolored.

Acknowledgments

The author acknowledges the support for this project in the form of fundingfrom the Academy of Finland.

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