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Bridging
Accommodating learning styles education
in international bridging programs
education programs
Lillie Lum 147
Faculty of Health, York University, Toronto, Canada
Pat Bradley
Department of Nursing, York University, Toronto, Canada, and
Nikhat Rasheed
Connect: College of Ontario, Thunder Bay, Canada
Abstract
Purpose – Bridging education programs have been developed to enhance the ability of
internationally educated professionals (IEPs) to access professional employment in Canada. IEPs
are professionals who received their original training outside of Canada. Bridging education programs
consist of specialized courses, offered by higher education institutions, focusing on skill and
knowledge upgrading in preparation for meeting professional licensure requirements. The purpose of
this paper is to gain insight into the preferred learning styles of IEPs enrolled in nursing, pharmacy
and teacher programs.
Design/methodology – This survey research assessed the learning styles/preferences and degree of
self-directed readiness of IEPs enrolled in three different Ontario bridging education programs:
pharmacists, nurses and teachers. These professions represent some of the largest regulated
professions in Canada. Three professions were selected for this study because they have similar
regulatory procedures for candidates seeking licensure. These programs were situated within higher
education institutions. Adult immigrant students participated by completing Kolb’s Learning Style
Inventory and Guglielmino’s Self-Directedness Scale.
Findings – The most significant finding of this research is that all three professions were found in the
divergent quadrant of the Kolb Learning Style Inventory. The learner with a divergent style of
learning prefers observation rather than action and is able to view concrete situations from multiple
perspectives. These learners value concrete experience and reflective observation, suggesting that
they tend to consider a situation from differing perspectives. This finding suggests that being a recent
adult immigrant has a stronger effect upon preferred style of learning in bridging education than
profession-specific factors. IEPs are also illustrated to be highly self-directed learners.
Research limitations/implications – The generalizability of these results must be treated with
caution due to the small sample size. Several factors influenced the results such as difficulties in
accruing a larger and more representative sample.
Social implications – Currently, substantial funding is provided for bridging education in Canada.
There is little research being conducted on the effectiveness of this type of higher education from the
perspective of learning processes. More research is needed to enhance the ability of IEPs to succeed in
these programs. Ultimately, it can improve new immigrant professionals’ success in the labor market.
Originality/value – Research on bridging education is still in its infancy and there is little research
evidence to guide the development of effective programs. Some research indicates that bridging
education programs are useful for providing profession-specific language training and orientation to
the Canadian workplace. If the preferred learning styles of immigrant professionals can be identified,
more effective courses for immigrant learners can be developed. Educators can create increased
academic success and improved employment outcomes.
Keywords Canada, Immigrants, Nursing, Education sector, Professional qualifications, Higher Education, Skills and Work-
Based Learning
Learning styles Vol. 1 No. 2, 2011
Paper type Research paper pp. 147-168
r Emerald Group Publishing Limited
2042-3896
This research was funded by a grant from the Canadian Council on Learning from 2006 to 2008. DOI 10.1108/20423891111128917
HESWBL Introduction
1,2 Currently, approximately 60 per cent of immigrants arrive in Canada as economic
class migrants under the Federal Skilled Workers Program. As a result of these
strategic admission policies, immigrants to Canada, specifically internationally
educated professionals (IEPs), are highly educated and experienced. Approximately
half of these immigrants seek further education at higher education institutions
148 such as universities or community colleges as a means to obtaining gainful
employment (Annisef et al., 2009). Almost one in five recent immigrant university
graduates were attending school in Canada in 2007, even though they already had a
university degree (Statistics Canada, 2007).
Bridging education for IEPs has been considered an important lever in facilitating
licensure and access to stable, valued work, and has become the focus of an
extraordinary amount of government expenditure over the past two decades
(Hawthorne, 2008). The primary rationale for the development of this specialized form
of professional education is the perceived discrepancy between immigrants’ prior
knowledge and experiences and Canadian standards of professional practice. The
Canadian Information Centre for International Credentials (2007) defines bridging
education as a program of study involving courses designed specifically to provide
individuals with skills and knowledge required for entry into an occupation or a
higher level educational institution. The Ontario government describes it as “support
programs which have been put together by employers, colleges and universities,
occupational regulatory bodies, and community organizations intended to help
newcomers gain their license or certificate in their profession or trade” (Ontario
Ministry of Immigration and Citizenship, 2010).
Absence of a systematic professional development and enculturation program for
immigrant professionals may result in unnecessary barriers. Bridging education
provides a structured system for continuing professional development of professionals
educated outside North America to acquire competencies and meet domestic standards
of practice. The role of higher education in providing this type of programming has
not been extensively described. While many universities may possess faculties of
medicine, nursing, pharmacy, etc., these tend to focus on the needs of new practitioners,
or the continuing education needs of those already licensed.
The multicultural nature of bridging education poses additional challenges for
curriculum developers and instructors who may or may not be able to adapt their
instructional design and methods to meet the needs of individuals from various
cultures who display different learning styles and needs (Lum et al., 2008).
Furthermore, educators within these specialized programs are challenged to design
and provide programs that are sufficiently flexible to accommodate the diverse
learning backgrounds and needs of international professionals yet achieve a sufficient
degree of uniformity in learning outcomes to enable applicants to meet Canadian
profession-specific licensing or registration requirements. The tension that results from
the need to accommodate diversity whilst achieving performance standardization
within regulated professions has created challenges for educational practice within
bridging programs.
The research on learning styles that focuses on individual differences in cognitive
style and instructional preferences, that is, an individual’s disposition towards
particular aspects of the learning environment (Sadler-Smith and Smith, 2004) provides
a possible educational foundation for bridging programs. Traditionally, researchers
have used learning styles research as a framework for predicting and improving
educational achievement as well as improving vocational selection, guidance, and Bridging
placement. It only makes sense that when designing and facilitating learning education
experiences, in addition to organizational and environmental contexts, the
characteristics of the learner be taken into consideration (Sadler-Smith and Smith, 2004). programs
However, the learner is often forgotten in program and curriculum design. Particularly
in today’s educational environment of standards and accountability, and a focus on
standardization and cost effectiveness, there is less emphasis on the individual learner. 149
In the case of IEPs, it is particularly important to design bridging education which is
learner centered and prepares students for obtaining licensure and employment
readiness since they often suffer high unemployment and underemployment in Canada.
This paper describes the results of a survey research study examining the learning
style preferences and self-directedness of IEPs enrolled in three established
professional bridging educational programs in Toronto, Ontario, Canada in 2008-
2009. If the preferred learning styles of immigrant professionals in bridging education
programs can be identified, more effective courses and programs for immigrant
learners can be developed. In addition, educators can create increased academic
success and improved employment outcomes. Since tension is particularly salient for
educators and administrators who teach in courses outside the core curriculum of
post-secondary educational institutions, that is, institutions offering education beyond
grade 12 education, applying learning styles research to bridging education could
contribute to improved course design and subsequent learning. The key research
questions explored in this research include: (1) Do IEPs have a preferred style of
learning in bridging education programs? and (2) If so, what are the implications for
teaching methods and student learning?

Background literature
IEPs and bridging programs
Currently, immigration policy in Canada, as in many other developed countries, is
based on a human capital model. According to this model, skilled workers are the
focus of immigration selection efforts as they are chosen to come to Canada based
on a points system that is calculated on their prior education, work experience, and
official language proficiency. This policy shift toward human capital was validated
in Canada in 2002, with the revised Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. Given
this focus on human capital and careful prior assessment mechanisms, Canadian
citizens, community members, and policy actors all expect that these individuals
should be successful in the labor market. This success is assumed since the immigrant
was given priority based on education, language ability, and employment skills.
However, despite higher levels of human capital recent cohorts of immigrants are
not faring as well in the Canadian labor market. This experience rings true whether
measuring success in terms of employment/unemployment rates, income, or type of
occupation. The employment rate among prime working-age immigrants two years
after arrival was 63 per cent, 18 percentage points below the national rate of 91 per cent
(Statistics Canada, 2003). According to 2006 census data, despite strong economic
growth in the late 1990s, the gap in labor market conditions between recent
immigrants and the Canadian born individuals persisted. For example, the 2008
Canadian census revealed that 24 per cent of male, university-educated immigrants
were under employed (Statistics Canada).
IEPs represent a large group of recent immigrants possessing academic credentials
and experience from their countries of origin. Rates of under-employment are
HESWBL particularly apparent in the regulated professions who have a higher experience of
1,2 failure in securing employment than their local counterparts (The Office of the Fairness
Commissioner Annual Report, 2009). Only 24 per cent of IEPs in regulated professions
that require licensure work in the occupations match their studies, compared to 62 per
cent of Canadian-born professionals, and 53 per cent of immigrants that complete their
studies in Canada (Statistics Canada, 2010). In Canada, as in other industrialized
150 countries, most professions are regulated by self-governing bodies established under
provincial/state laws to protect the public by setting standards of practice and
competence. All of these regulated professions require that an individual be registered
with the regulatory body in order to use the title of the profession and perform the
work of the profession. Regulatory bodies assess professional qualifications,
educational credentials, language proficiency, and other criteria.
As a result of much of the research examining labor market integration, bridging
education projects have been recommended as a major policy solution for immigrant
professionals (Goldberg, 2005). Bridging programs are specifically designed to assist
new immigrants who have completed their basic professional education in other
countries to transition into the labor market by assessing their existing skills and
competencies and providing training and Canadian workplace experience to meet
Canadian licensing requirements and professional standards. The goal of this training
is to promote IEPs’ rapid integration and transition into the Canadian labor market
through the acquisition of cultural, technical and literacy competency, and also to
provide knowledge about practicing in Ontario workplaces. Good programs also
provide placement opportunities and access to mentors to help immigrants gain
Canadian experience (Austin, 2004, 2008).
Despite this policy focus for IEPs, access to professions has not improved for
immigrant professionals (Goldberg, 2006). A dramatic increase in provincial and
federal government-funded specialized immigration and settlement services has not
led to the overall success in obtaining gainful employment by IEPs and the negative
outcomes of underemployment remain (Reitz, 2005; Walters et al., 2006). Many IEPs
continue to face difficulties passing licensure exams and in accessing equivalent
professional positions in the Canadian workforce despite extensive bridging education
programs.
The lack of academic success and employment integration, often framed as the
result of individual ability deficits, may be more aptly attributed to differences in
learning style, studying approaches, and instructional format preferences. Learners
demonstrating stress or failure may be feeling the effects of the devaluing of their
previous education, skills, knowledge, and learning styles. Style approach and format
flexibility are required in order to choose or develop an appropriate strategy and
employ appropriate tactics to succeed in novel situations (Curry, 2000, p. 250) as in
the IEP learning experience.

Bridging education research

Research on bridging education is still in its infancy. There is some beginning
research on learning processes of adult immigrant professionals within Canadian
bridging education programs. An exploratory study of 60 Ontario bridging education
programs reviewed entry requirements, core delivery components, IEP’s program
preferences, and employment outcomes. The results showed that a great deal of
variability in educational quality existed (Akhter et al., 2006). Most bridging education
programs assess language proficiency and credential equivalence; some provide credit
for prior learning assessment (PLA). A majority provide an experiential component Bridging
such as a work placement, practicum, and/or mentoring as a part of the course. Fewer education
than half the programs provide occupation-specific language training and direct
employment supports. programs
Program-based information suggests that bridging education programs are
effective in providing profession-specific language, skills training, clinical practice
experience, orientation to the Canadian workplace, completion of required course 151
credits, providing information about the licensing and accreditation process, access
to a social network for building friendships, supporting peers, and sharing “best
practices” about the process of licensing and accreditation. The International
Pharmacy Graduate Program in Ontario, Canada, has developed a model that has
been recognized by the provincial government as “best-practice” for bridging
education. This five-element model consists of PLA and recognition, individualized
learning plans, mentorship, distance learning opportunities, and peer-network
formation (Austin and Dean, 2006).
Conventional approaches to the design of bridging education programs have been
typically based upon instructional design strategies predicated on the implicit
assumption that the target group of learners will exhibit uniformity in the ways they
process and organize information, and that this uniformity will mirror the predominate
professional culture in Canada. At present, existing programs typically accommodate
diversity by ignoring its existence. In adopting such a stance, one runs the risk of
devaluing important aspects of diversity and individual learning styles and
preferences. The study hypothesis is that this view has been one of the detrimental
features of current bridging education and inhibits learners’ academic and
employment success. This paper proposes that it would improve IEPs’ educational
experiences if the diverse learning styles of multicultural students in bridging
education programs were valued and enhanced as a beneficial contribution to the
professional growth and employment process.

Learning styles research

There is a strong intuitive appeal in the idea of learning styles, teaching, and course
design evident in the higher education literature published in Europe and the USA.
The logic of life-long learning suggests that students will become more motivated to
learn by knowing more about their strengths and weaknesses as learners.
The research field is extensive and conceptually confusing. Coffield et al. (2004,
p. 18) concluded, following an in-depth review of learning style literature, that “beneath
the apparently unproblematic appeal of learning styles lies a host of conceptual and
empirical problems”. Their review identified a vast volume of literature consisting
of 71 models of learning styles and 13 major models. Conceptual problems were also
identified. The literature provides a myriad of definitions of learning styles and has
received much attention from diverse disciplines such as sociology, education,
psychology, and business administration. Researchers from these specialities tend to
interpret evidence and theories in their own terms making construct validation
a difficult challenge. Any attempt to integrate the varied models of learning styles in an
all encompassing model is an impossible task.
A learning style model, developed in the 1970s by Kolb from a solid theoretical basis
emphasizing experiential components of learning, remains one of the most commonly
used. This model has been tested in a variety of professional learning context such
as medicine, business, and management education. As a result, this model has had
HESWBL strong appeal to researchers and educators. Kolb’s model has been cited in over 1000
1,2 references (Coffield et al., 2004).
Kolb’s Learning Style Inventory (LSI) is based upon John Dewey’s emphasis on the
need for learning to be grounded in experiences and John Piaget’s theory of intelligence
resulting from the interaction of the person with the environment (Wolfe et al., 2005).
The experiential learning theory, originally described by Kolb in 1984, describes how
152 learners see and interpret information. The theory proposes that there are two
dimensions to learning. A learner first perceives information received from concrete
experiences or abstract conceptualization. Second, the way this information is
processed is based upon active experimentation or reflective observation. These
dimensions form four quadrants that are displayed in Table I and have been
categorized as divergers, assimilators, convergers, and accommodators (Kolb, 2005).
While he makes these distinctions, Kolb believed that no one learns in one
exclusive style and no learning style is better or worse than another. Learning
styles are not absolute and all learners can function in all learning styles when
necessary.
Wolfe et al. (2005) concluded that in each classroom differences in learning style
preferences are common. As such, all learners cannot be taught in the same way.
Assessment of learning styles can be used as a starting point for understanding

Learning styles Learning modes

Assimilative Abstract conceptualization

Strengths: building theoretical models Focus: logic, ideas and concepts
Emphasis: less on people and more on ideas Values: conceptual systems and rigorous idea
and concepts analysis

Reflective observation
Focus: understand meaning of ideas
Values: patience, impartiality and thoughtful
judgment

Accommodative Concrete experiences

Strengths: doing and risk taking Focus: involved interpersonal experiences
Emphasis: adapting oneself to new situations Values: real world situations

Active experimentation
Focus: influencing people and changing
situations
Values: ability to manipulate environments

Convergent Abstract conceptualization and active

Strengths: intelligence tests experimentation
Emphasis: problem solving and decision making

Divergent Reflective observation and concrete experiences

Strengths: creativity and brain storming
Table I. Emphasis: social literaction and perspective
Conceptual schematic of taking
Kolb’s learning styles and
learning modes Note: Information provided in this table is adapted from Kolb (1984)
the way an individual approaches learning. Teachers need to acknowledge learning Bridging
style differences in their program delivery. Knowing more about an individual’s education
learning style can be extremely beneficial. When educational programs take learning
styles into consideration, it can maximize individuals’ learning experiences. The more programs
an individual learner knows about his or her learning style, the more he or she becomes
aware of how this learning style differs from that of others. This awareness is helpful in
adapting to situations in the classroom or on the job. It can also help make career 153
choices and improve professional relationships (Kolb, 2005, p. 2).
Despite the strengths of Kolb’s model of learning, its psychometric properties
have been the subject of criticism and controversy. The lack of test-retest reliabilities
of the LSI suggests that this measure may be “volatile”, unlike the theoretical
constructs it purports to measure. In other words, can learners be confident that
their learning style classification is due to personal characteristics, situational
factors, or simply measurement error? Lam (1997) suggested that the earlier version of
the LSI does not provide a reasonably stable measure of learning style when used
with a non-Caucasian sample. Kolb (2000) claims that the latest version of the
LSI has further improved its reliability and validity, but as yet there is no independent
body of evidence to confirm or deny this statement. Despite these weaknesses
in the instrument, many argue for its usefulness as a pedagogical tool (Coffield
et al., 2004).

Learning styles and professional education

Some research exploring learning styles preferences of specific professions has been
reported, but there is no conclusive evidence as to whether profession-specific
learning styles exist. Cavanagh et al. (1995) suggested that nursing students tended to
be in the assimilator category of the learning style model. Davis (1998) found no
statistically significant correlation between learning style and medical specialty.
Zhang and Flipse (2005) reported that medical students’ learning styles change as they
progress through their medical education. More recently, an instrument based upon
Kolb’s learning cycle was developed for pharmacy education and practice. The
Pharmacist’s Inventory of Learning Styles (Austin, 2004) is unique to the pharmacy
profession, as well as having an emphasis on the psychometric measures of reliability
and construct validity.
There has been limited research exploring the relevance of applying learning styles
models to inter-disciplinary or multicultural professional education. Yet the way
professionals learn and perform in the workplace has gained increasing relevance in
North America. Learning style concepts have inadvertently become deeply embedded
in professional licensing mechanisms controlling the right and ability of individuals to
practice in North America. Nelson and Purkis (2004) have noted that in the past two
decades, competency standards enforced through legislation have been developed in
response to government initiatives aimed at improving consistency in workforce
training and accreditation and in fostering national and international portability of
qualifications. To this end, bridging education provides an opportunity for IEPs to
become informed of these regulatory changes and to develop an awareness of their
preferred learning styles.
Developing culturally sensitive curricula is essential. However, program developers
and instructors in bridging education programs may not fully appreciate its
importance. There may be inherent biases toward students’ learning styles within
health professions’ bridging programs (Lum et al., 2005). For example, courses have
HESWBL been developed based on a deficit model of learning that casts international students as
1,2 lacking essential academic and professional competencies (McLoughlin, 1999). This
deficit mentality contributes to negative immigrant identities and can inhibit IEPs’
ability to access the labor market in occupations for which they are qualified. When
the identities of immigrant professionals are constructed as deficient, as “in need of
training” and “not up to Canadian standards”, it becomes difficult for them to achieve
154 equity in the Canadian labor market (Goldberg, 2005). This approach also assumes that
IEPs must abandon or “unlearn” their original knowledge and skills and adopt
completely new methods of learning in order to assimilate North American or
Westernized values. This ethnocentric view fails to acknowledge and recognize that
IEPs may bring new ways of approaching professional practice that are valuable in
Canadian workplaces.
In light of the highly diverse cultural background of IEPs, the question of how
culture influences learning styles needs to be considered. De Vita (2001) argued that
because of culture, by influencing the way we perceive, organize, and process
information, the way in which we communicate and interact with others must by
definition affect the preferences students have for thinking, relating to others, and
particular types of classroom environments. In the case of IEPs, consideration of their
personal cultural background and the culture within a specific profession predispose
individuals to certain ways of learning. The form of learning that takes place within a
given culture plays a critical role in reinforcing, if not shaping, learning style
preferences that are therefore subject to cultural conditioning. If this is the case, then
this may explain why teaching methods, learning tasks, and environments, which
promote learning in some cultures may be ineffective in others (De Vita, 2001, p. 167;
Li et al., 2008).
Hughes-Weiner (1986) noted differences in cultural orientation in the context of the
Kolb’s model. Auyeng and Sands (1996) conducted cross-cultural research using
the Kolb’s model to illustrate that the learning styles of accounting students
differed according to the location of their education. Australian students preferred
an accommodator learning style while students from Hong Kong and Taiwan
preferred an assimilator style. Tan and Pilay (2008), who investigated the differences
between learning approaches of Chinese and Malaysian students, acknowledged
the importance of recognizing the cultural issues in studying learning approaches
of adult learners. Although there is limited research in this specific area, there is
sufficient evidence to support the hypothesis that the presence of internationally
educated students may accentuate the diversity of learning styles within a given
classroom.
In addition to learning styles, there may be other factors influencing the academic
success of IEPs. Research on international students characterized them as didactic
learners, that is, demonstrating lower levels of initiative and preferring teacher-
directed learning (Smedley, 2007; Stewart, 2007). Tagawa (2008) found low levels of
readiness for self-directed learning among medical students in Japan. In another
study of international engineering students in Australia, Stewart (2007) found that
those who displayed a higher readiness for self-directed learning were able to
achieve greater learning outcomes. Guglielmino (1978, 1989) proposed that
self-directed learners tend to perform better in jobs involving a high degree of
change, requiring a high degree of problem solving, and requiring a high degree
of creativity. Employers and professionals support self-directed learning as an
important component of life-long learning as well as being an essential component of
professional competency. This study attempts to fill the gaps by exploring the link Bridging
between culture, learning styles, and self-directed learning within the professional education
bridging education context.
Sadler-Smith and Smith (2004) provides a more current definition of learning programs
styles as an information-processing activity and learning preferences as the individual
choice of one particular mode of learning over the other. There are criticisms of the
Kolb’s learning cycle model and his LSI (Honey and Mumford, 1986; De Vita, 2001; 155
Felder and Silverman, 1988). However, it is the most frequently used method for
assessing learning for adult learners within professional programs. This inventory is
also particularly relevant to students in professional learning environments where
active involvement is important.

Methodology
Participants
This research assessed the learning styles/preferences and degree of self-directed
readiness of IEPs enrolled in three different Ontario bridge training programs:
pharmacists, nurses, and teachers. These professions represent some of the largest
regulated professions in Canada. These three professions were selected for this study
because they have similar regulatory procedures for candidates seeking licensure. Two
of the programs (nursing and pharmacy) were situated within post-secondary
institutions (community college and university) and one (teachers) at a community
agency. The programs, offered in fall 2007 to spring 2008, varied considerably in
duration, in-take processes, tuition, and curriculum design.
The three-month pharmacy and two-year nursing programs focused on increasing
IEP’s clinical skills and ability to pass certification examinations. These programs
oriented IEPs to core curricula through lecture, clinical practice, and mentoring
options. The teaching program was a six- to ten-week bridge-to-work program
providing IEPs with information, documentation assistance for certification (although
not education geared toward certification), employment preparation, and language
upgrading in collaboration with partner agencies.

Instruments
Kolb’s LSI (KLSIIa version 3.1): this inventory can serve as a stimulus for interpreting
and reflecting on the ways that a learner prefers to learn in specific settings. The Kolb’s
LSI consists of four categories of learners.
Learners who view concrete situations from different perspectives in order to
generate a wide range of ideas are creative and are good at understanding people
and are considered to have a diverging style of learning. They prefer to observe
rather than take action and have broad cultural interests. In formal learning situations,
they prefer working in groups to gather information, listening with an open mind, and
receiving personalized feedback. This learning style is considered to be effective in
arts, entertainment, and service careers.
Learners who combine abstract conceptualization and reflective observations and
who perform best at understanding a wide range of information and putting it into a
concise logical form are referred to as having an assimilating learning style. They tend
to be more interested in abstract ideas and concepts. This assimilating learning style is
important for information and science careers.
Learners who are most effective at finding practical uses for ideas and theories are
those with a converging learning style. They have the ability to solve problems and
HESWBL make decisions based on finding solutions to questions or problems. These skills are
1,2 important in technology careers. Research by Garvey et al. (1984) and Adamcik et al.
(1996) locates pharmacy students as convergers.
Learners who have the ability to learn primarily from “hands-on” experience
possess an accommodating learning style. They probably enjoy carrying out plans
and involving themselves in new and challenging experiences. They prefer concrete
156 experience with active experimentation rather than logical analyses. This learning
style is important in action-oriented careers such as marketing or sales. Because they
tend to accomplish tasks based on facts and reality, they take risks and lead others.
Castro and Peck (2005) suggest that accommodators and divergers are more
communicative learners and seem to be most successful in learning foreign languages.
Kolb locates nursing students as accommodators and nursing students have tended
to report an accommodating or assimilating learning styles (Smedley, 2007 and
Li et al., 2008).
The LSI is a self-report questionnaire that enables individuals to identify
their preferred learning style. The theory of experiential learning has been widely
used as a basis for helping individuals identify the kinds of learning activity that
they find most satisfying and will improve their learning environment (Hayes and
Allinson, 1996). Student learning styles are based on responses to the 12-item
questionnaire, with each question containing four multiple choices items. Currently,
the KLSI is the self-assessment tool forming the basis for reflective practice for
registered nurses in Ontario, Canada (Self-Assessment Tool, College of Nurses of
Ontario, 2008).
Guglielmino’s Self-Directed Learning Readiness Scale (SDLRS): this is widely used
to measure readiness for self-directed learning. The SDLRS is designed to measure the
complex attitudes, abilities, and characteristics, which comprise readiness to engage
in self-directed learning. The modified version of the survey developed for adults
with low reading levels or non-native English speakers consists of 34 statements,
utilizing a five-point Likert scale response. Research has suggested that individuals
who have developed high self-directed learning skills tend to perform better in jobs
requiring a high degree of problem-solving ability, creativity, and change (Guglielmino
and Klatt, 1994).
In this study, a modified version of the assessment form adapted for students for
non-native English speakers was used since all of the IEPs spoke English as a second
or third language. The SDLRS-ABE version has been shown to be a reliable measure
of self-directness.
The Bridging Education and Professional Work Survey: an additional survey of
60 items gathered data on demographic profile, language skills, educational
qualifications, international professional experience, work/professional experience
(both prior to immigration and in Canada), family background, and income levels.

Data analyses
Survey data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS
version 17). Norms of the Learning Styles Inventory were applied in determining
IEPs’ learning styles and the evaluation was completed by taking the percentage and
frequency for the distribution of learning styles. Summary scores for the Self-Directed
Learning Readiness Scale were also calculated. Descriptive and correlation statistics
were completed. Reliability of the self-directed learning inventory was evaluated by
calculating a Cronbach’s a.
Results Bridging
Sample characteristics education
A total of 138 IEPs, 73 pharmacists, 38 teachers, and 27 nurses participated in the
study. The majority of the respondents were young to middle-aged adults, that is, programs
between 20 and 35 years old, who were recent immigrants having resided in Canada for
less than five years. They all possessed professional qualifications and work
experience obtained in their countries of origin. 157
The participants were a highly multicultural group, consisting of IEPs from a
variety of countries. The Philippines contributed the largest number of respondents
(50, 36.2 per cent)[1] followed by India (21, 15.2 per cent) and Egypt (10, 7.2 per cent).
The largest group of respondents consisted of nurses (18, 66.7 per cent) and
pharmacists (32, 43 per cent) from the Philippines. The teachers emigrated from a
variety of countries, the largest group (13, 34.2 per cent) from India.
The majority were working far below their previous levels of employment and
income levels. The pharmacists and teachers were more likely to be working at lower
levels of employment than the nurses but the differences were small. For the combined
sample, approximately half were working in the same or related profession. The
remainder were working in unskilled or in unrelated professions.

LSI
None of the programs in this study used learning styles inventories. The most
significant finding of this research is that all three professions were found in the
divergent quadrant of the Kolb’s LSI. The scores illustrating the divergent learning
style type for each of the professions within the Learning Style Type Grid is displayed
in Table II. The learner who has a divergent style of learning prefers observation rather
than action and is able to view concrete situations from multiple perspectives
(Kolb, 2005).
These learners value concrete experience and reflective observation, suggesting
that they tend to consider a situation from differing perspectives. By diverging from
conventional solutions, they explore alternative possibilities. The career characteristics
of this learning style include gathering information, being sensitive to values, and
dealing creatively with ambiguity.
An additional finding of interest is that the KLSI scores for all three groups tended
to be located close to the intersection of the two axes. Pharmacy students had scores
closest to the two axes. The further the individual score is from the intersection of the
two axes, the more that individual prefers that particular learning style and the less apt
they are to use the other three styles. Therefore, all three group scores indicate that
while they may have a predominant style, these students have the ability to use and
move easily between the four different learning styles during learning.
The location of each profession on the Kolb Learning Style Grid is displayed
in Figure 1.

Profession Learning style Vertical axis (AC-CE) Horizontal axis (AE-RO)

Nurses Divergent 2.23 2.88

Pharmacy Divergent 6.69 3.81 Table II.
Teachers Divergent 5.41 1.64 Learning style type by
Total sample Divergent 4.77 2.77 profession (N-128)
HESWBL Learning style type grid
1,2 0 –22
–18
–15

–10
10 –9
–8
–7
–6
158 20
–5
–4
–3
Accommodating –2 Diverging
–1

30 0
1
2 Nurses
3
40 4
Teachers
5
Pharmacists
28 24 22 212019 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 –1 –2 –3 –4 –5 –6 –7 –8–9–10 –13–15–21
AE-RO 50
8

60 10

11
12

70 13
14

Converging 15 Assimilating
16
80 17
18
19
20
90 21
22
24
26
30
100
100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0
Figure 1. Percentiles
Kolb learning style grid AC-CE

Further analyses of our sample suggested that their learning styles are not influenced
by their age, gender, educational level, number of languages spoken, or country of
origin. Eastern and southern European IEPs may have different preferences but the
subsamples were too small to be of statistical significance.

Guglielmino SDLRS-ABE
The total score reported on the SDLRS represents the learner’s current readiness for
self-direction in learning. Research has suggested that persons with high SDLRS
scores usually prefer to determine their learning needs and plan and implement their
own learning which may or may not include structured learning situations
(Guglielmino, 1989).
The results highlighted that IEPs tend to be highly self-directed learners. The
total score reported on a 34-item scale represents the learner’s current readiness for
self-direction in learning. The average score for adult learners completing the
questionnaire is 126. The standard deviation is 19.21. In our sample, the average score
was 134.15 for the total group. Teachers reported the highest level of self-directness, Bridging
followed by nurses and pharmacists. No significant differences were found to education
exist between the group scores. SDLRS scores for each profession are reported
in Table III. programs
The scale was found to be reliable with a Cronbach’s a of 0.895. The reliability of the
original SDLRS was calculated to be 0.916 for 740 cases. The SDLRS modified version
was found to be a reliable measure of IEPs’ readiness for self-directed learning within 159
bridging education programs.
It is interesting that all three professions demonstrated a high readiness for
self-directed learning. Research has suggested that persons with high SDLRS
scores usually prefer to determine their learning needs and plan and implement
their own learning, which may or may not include structured learning situations
(Guglielmino, 1989).

Limitations of the results

The generalizability of these results must be treated with caution due to the small
sample size. Several factors influenced the results such as difficulties in accruing a
larger and more representative sample and self-selection of the participants. Country
of origin information was biased due to funding differences and foreign policies
concerning admission criteria; for example, pharmacy programs actively recruit
pharmacists directly from source countries. This explains the relatively high
concentration of participants from the Philippines. In addition, a self-selection process
existed since all participants in the study had to be at a certain level of English
language skill to participate in the bridging programs, and therefore their responses
represent a certain segment of the IEP population that “made the cut”. Although three
of the largest groups of immigrant professionals are represented in this research,
generalizing the implications to other professions should be made with caution.

Discussion
The major result of this research is the identification of a learning style preference,
which is common to three distinctly different groups of professional students
(pharmacists, nurses, and teachers). This demonstrates that IEPs prefer self-directed
approaches to learning and have a divergent learning style. Despite any potential
methodological limitations, the Kolb’s LSI appears to be a valid measure. These results
are discussed in terms of learner benefits and their implications for teaching and
course design of future bridging education programs in higher education institutions.

Cultural contexts of bridging education

There is a dearth of literature discussing how organizational context and cultural
background of learners influence learning style preferences. IEPs face the dual
challenge of integrating into a new society and professional practice. That is, they

Profession Sample size Mean score Standard deviation

Nurses 38 134.29 14.14

Pharmacy 73 131.47 16.33 Table III.
Teachers 37 139.15 16.39 SDLRS scores for each
Original SDLRS sample 734 126.63 19.2 profession
HESWBL must make multiple levels of cultural adaptation to educational programming and
1,2 Canadian professional standards. Despite their differences in cultural, professional, and
personal backgrounds, the common demographic characteristic of these three groups
of students is that they all are recent adult immigrants. The fact that the immigrant
experience can transcend demographic or professional determinants of learning styles
has not been previously reported in the research literature.
160 Austin (2005) concluded that within the context of health professions, the issue
of culture shock is of particular significance. He identified the notion of the “double
shock”; that is, the need to not only adapt to a new culture at a personal level, but a new
culture at a professional level, where professional practice is significantly different
than in the home country. Failure to adapt to professional culture brings both personal
and professional risks. For IEPs, success with bridging education is paramount. These
programs are designed to ensure that they can demonstrate the competencies in
knowledge and skills required by their professional regulatory body. The divergent
learning style preference identified in this study suggests that the experiential and
reflective approaches to new learning may be the most effective for IEPs attempting to
make these cultural adaptations.
The results illustrate that educational approaches in professional education may
also determine learning style preferences. Research on learning styles has been
fragmented since most of the literature has tended to focus on one specific profession.
For example, nursing students have tended to report accommodating or assimilating
learning styles (Smedley, 2007 and Li et al., 2008). Teachers have also been found to
prefer an assimilating style of learning. Austin (2004) illustrated in his study of
pharmacists that they tend to place themselves on two learning axes involving
structured learning and experimentation through action. Research by Garvey et al.
(1984) and Adamcik et al. (1996) tended to locate pharmacy students as convergers.
In order to understand the inter-professional aspects of learning styles, further
research is needed.
The nature of bridging education programs may also impact learning style
preferences. It is important to note that these students are not enrolled in initial
qualifying programs. IEPs are usually highly educated from their home countries;
therefore, bridging education focuses upon upgrading their initial credentials and out-
of-country experiences. The emphasis is upon skill-based, competency-oriented
education. The nature and purpose of the bridging education programs may determine
the dominant learning style of IEPs. Since bridging education emphasizes practice-
based education, an experiential learning approach is preferred in this type of
program. Desmedt and Valchke (2003) showed that in a study of both medical and
education students, students were more interested in specific work-related skills
such as client assessment than the broader goals of learning. If this trend is also
evident in the way IEPs prefer to learn, these results have demonstrated that they
have adopted a style of learning which is most likely to be successful within the
bridging education context.

Benefit to the learner

The participants in this study recognized differences in the teaching styles within
bridging education programs that emphasized more collaborative effort and
individualistic values. But they were largely unaware of their own learning style
and its influence on their educational success. Austin (2005) has emphasized the
importance of self-awareness as a means to achieving professional acculturation. He
stressed that bridging education must provide opportunities for social networking and Bridging
reshaping social identity in addition to knowledge and skill acquisition. education
Having an awareness of preferred learning styles can enhance the quality of IEPs’
educational experience within bridging education programs and in future employment. programs
Students can improve their way of learning only if they know how they prefer to learn
and that there are multiple ways of learning. Therefore, in order to improve their
profession-related learning, IEPs should gain an awareness of their learning styles 161
within the Canadian classroom and practice context. Self-awareness is the “degree to
which people comprehend their own strengths and weaknesses and what they could
become” (London, 2003, p. 276). Having this awareness can empower IEPs to make the
most of these opportunities and to examine their successes and failures so that they can
engage in meaningful changes in learning behaviors for the future. IEPs have reported
a preference for self-directed learning. Thus, being aware of their learning styles
enables them to actively self-direct their learning, reflect on learning strategies of
their choice, make learning outcomes sharable, and make critical learning possible
(Coffield et al., 2004).
Recognizing that one has a preferred learning style has also been argued to increase
job efficiency (Berings and Poell, 2005). Employees can benefit from being aware of
the consequences of their learning styles and of the alternative modes available to
them. Job efficiency increases when employees, their colleagues, and managers are
aware of their own and each other’s learning styles and of the opportunities provided
by their job. Being aware of their on-the-job learning styles offers employees the ability
to articulate individual differences in their learning behavior.
This comprehensive way of dealing with awareness of learning styles promotes an
“adaptive flexibility”, which is particularly important to IEPs adjusting to a new
professional culture (Berings and Poell, 2005). Adaptive flexibility describes the degree
to which one changes his or her learning style to meet the varying demands of
different situations (Kolb, 1984). Learners such as IEPs need to make substantial
adaptations in short periods of time. If they have a broad repertoire of learning
strategies and are flexible in using these strategies, then they are more self-directed,
more able to adapt their attitudes, and behaviors to new situations and thus become
better learners.

Implications for teaching and bridging education

These results point to specific implications for program development and
teaching. Teachers recognize that there are challenges associated with the
multicultural nature of bridging education classrooms, but currently there is a lack
of a systematic approach to addressing learning style preferences. This research
illustrated that for three professional groups of IEPs, accommodating a divergent style
of learning is essential. In order to do so, teachers need to recognize that divergent
learners prefer to learn through reflective observation combined with concrete
experience (Kolb, 1984).
According to Kolb and Fry (1975), the perceptual learning environment is one in
which the main goal is to identify and understand relationships among concepts
and is particularly relevant to divergent learners. The perceptual environment
emphasizes the process of problem solving rather than coming up with the best
solution. Learners are required to collect relevant information for researching
questions and are expected to approach problem situations through different
perspectives (own opinion, expert opinion, and literature) by listening, observing,
HESWBL writing, discussing, and personal pondering. In this environment, the teacher’s role is to
1,2 act as a facilitator of the learning process, to be non-evaluative, and to act as a mirror
by reflecting back student observations and comments. Learning processes may
include reflective exercises such as keeping journals, writing reflective essays, or
engaging in dialogue with other students. Such practices are incorporated into each
class session, which emphasizes the importance of reflection on learning.
162 Divergent learners are reflective and are more likely to engage in experiential
learning. Reflective observers rely on patience, objectivity, and careful judgment. They
depend on their own thoughts and feelings in creating their opinions. They carefully
observe before making decisions. Learners at this stage need to be provided with
opportunities for reflective exercises in the form of self-assessment assignments or
group discussion of common experiences. Divergent learners also tend to rely on
feelings rather than on a systematic approach to situations. They learn from specific
experiences relating to people and are sensitive to their feelings. This learning style is
particularly important to service professions, such as teaching, nursing, and
pharmacy, requiring a high degree of judgment and interpersonal skills.
A strategy proposed by Armstrong and Parsa-Parsi (2005) in reference to divergent
learners within a classroom of medical students includes the activation of prior
knowledge. This is a strategy that could be used with other health disciplines such as
nursing and pharmacy. The learning goal is for instructors to understand the
experience base of the students and can be accomplished by activating, articulating,
and reflecting on what the IEP already knows and values. It is from this basis that the
students can reflect upon new information and form creative responses. Certainly from
the perspective of IEPs, who prefer to use a self-directed learning style and who bring
prior knowledge and experience, an opportunity to explore personal meaning and
motivation is more likely to result in a richer experiential learning experience.
Optimally, a teacher uses various types of learning strategies even if there is a
dominant learning mode in a class. Retention is most likely to be increased when a
teacher addresses all learning modes. Kolb’s model offers a method for teachers who
are attempting to accommodate a variety of learning styles. The value of aligning
learning and teaching styles has been discussed widely in the literature. It has been
noted that such alignment does not imply that each student is to be taught exclusively
to their personal learning preferences; rather, instructors must work toward balancing
numerous teaching styles. When this balance is optimized, students will have an
opportunity to learn in a style that they find comfortable and will lead toward
increased willingness to learn (Austin, 2004).
For example, teachers can lecture on the theory or concepts related to a specific
profession (abstract conceptualization) and then have students personally reflect on the
content, ask questions, and discuss the content (reflective observation). Assigning
related homework, fieldwork or practicum, and laboratory practice would provide an
opportunity for active experimentation. Providing concrete examples and discussion of
personal experiences provide opportunity to share experiences. Inclusion of case
studies or discussion of vignettes or observational experiences would be of benefit to
this learning mode.
Sugarman (1985) concluded that although learners may always prefer to learn
through particular processes, they can develop their capacities in other fields. Many
of the IEP students reported learning through didactic teaching methods in their
home countries. Bridging education provides them with opportunities to engage in
additional and different ways of learning. Based upon IEPs’ scores on Kolb’s LSI and
Gugliemino’s Readiness for Self-Directed Learning Scale, it is evident that IEPs Bridging
already possess a strong potential for adaptive flexibility in the classroom and future education
employment. This potential could be further enhanced by responding not only to a
divergent style of learning but also by providing opportunities for learning that programs
includes active experimentation and abstract conceptualization.

Benefits and limitations of Kolb’s learning style model 163

This study has not attempted to address all of the criticisms of the statistical properties
such as reliability or validity reported in the literature concerning Kolb’s LSI. The
authors acknowledge that there may be limitations to the generalizability of these
results. For example, the long-term stability of the divergent style reported by IEPs
in this study may not be maintained. As the learning and employment context for
IEPS changes over time, their learning style preferences may change as well. It may
not be desirable to maintain the same style of learning over long periods of time.
Kolb acknowledged that learning styles change as a function of changes in career
paths and life experiences. Nevertheless, the results demonstrate that while
these professional students are enrolled in bridging education, divergent learning
preferences appear to be effective for IEPs. These results are sufficiently robust to
conclude that self-awareness of a preferred style of learning could assist IEPs in
adapting to the dual culture of being a new immigrant professional and adult learner
in Canadian higher education.
The theoretical foundation of Kolb’s model has received much less criticism and
could provide a conceptual basis for better understanding IEPs’ learning processes
in bridging education programs. At present, there is an over emphasis upon the
outcomes of bridging education with little attention directed to learning processes of
the learners. Experiential learning supports the logic of lifelong learning, especially in
the case of adults, suggesting that students will become more motivated to learn by
knowing more about their own strengths and weaknesses as learners. If teachers and
course designers can respond to their needs retention and achievement rates are likely
to rise within programs and also into employment (Coffield et al., 2004).
Whether or not a teacher completely subscribes to Kolb’s theory of experiential
learning is not as important as becoming aware of the mix of student learning styles in
a classroom and the need to adapt instruction styles to student need. If the primary
goal of higher education is to maximize student achievement, then deliberately
selecting and combining various teaching styles, as opposed to staying with the style
that the teacher prefers, is an important component in the design and delivery of
bridging education. Teachers also need to recognize variations in the educational and
professional context of learners and adapt their teaching accordingly.
Kolb’s experiential learning model enables teachers to adequately adapt their
instruction to the unique learning needs and behaviors of their students by integrating
the cognitive and socio-emotional factors. Promoting an experiential learning approach
to the delivery of bridging education has been demonstrated to have benefits for IEP
students. Kolb’s LSI is an easily administered assessment tool that can be used to
develop students’ awareness of the diversity of styles in which people learn. This
knowledge can be used to increase students’ learning potential.

Conclusion
The increased presence of IEP students in Canadian higher education has led to new
challenges for both students and educators. These results are particularly important
HESWBL for those who design programs and teach in bridging education programs. Utilizing
1,2 the LSI to assess the learning needs of a multicultural group of students has been
shown to be effective. Since learning is a continuous process inherent within the
settlement experience, educational success is particularly important for new adult
immigrants since it is a major contributor to employment and social integration
(Annisef et al., 2009).
164 The research results confirm the importance of designing flexible student-centered
learning in bridging education courses and programs based on democratic student-
centered adult education principles. These programs need to build on learner strengths
and value their learning styles as assets, desired by employers, and an advantage
in Canadian workplaces. Individual professionals who choose to uproot and relocate
in new countries are a unique group of individuals. The characteristics and skills
required for successful immigration to a new country are most likely those who are
self-directed and divergent learners. Since migration requires problem-solving
and change management abilities, it is no surprise that IEPs display these kinds of
skills and preferences especially during the early stages of the settlement process.
Bridging education should not be based on assumptions that negatively view
immigrant professionals in a deficit position in relation to the local population but to
value them as assets who are desired and required in today’s professional workplaces
and knowledge-based environments.
Further testing of the psychometric properties of major learning styles instruments
using longitudinal, large-scale designs is recommended. In order to gain deeper
understanding of how professional and cultural factors influence learning styles,
research exploring larger IEP samples across multiple, regulated professions,
particularly engineering, accounting, and law, would be useful in validating this
construct.
This study has demonstrated that the Kolb’s learning style model is promising
if used as an educational tool for promoting learner awareness of their own learning
styles and providing direction for the improving the quality of bridging education
programs. The authors of this study are in agreement with Kolb’s original
recommendation, regarding his model, and other major learning style models, that
these should be applied judiciously. He stated that his model provides an “interesting
self-examination and discussion that recognizes the uniqueness, complexity and
variability in individual approaches to learning. The danger lies in the reification of
learning styles into fixed traits, such that learning styles become stereotypes used to
pigeonhole individuals and their behaviour” (Coffield et al., 2004, p. 64).

Note
1. The relatively high concentration of participants from the Philippines in this sample
is due to the fact that the pharmacy program actively recruits young pharmacists
directly from that country. Although the Philippines is in the top five immigrant source
countries, this is not the reason for the higher numbers of participants from the country in
this sample.

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in medical education”, paper presented at the American Educational Research Association
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Further reading
Guild, P. (1994), “The culture/learning style connection”, Educational Leadership, Vol. 5 No. 8,
pp. 16-21.
HESWBL Kolb, A.Y. and Kolb, D.A. (2005), “Learning styles and learning spaces: enhancing experiential
learning in higher education”, Academy of Management Learning and Education, Vol. 42
1,2 No. 2, pp. 193-212.
Lum, L. (2006), “Internationally educated health professionals: a distance education multiple
cultures model”, Education Training, Vol. 48 Nos 2/3, pp. 112-26.
Richmond, A.S. and Cummings, R. (2005), “Implementing Kolb’s learning styles into online
168 distance education”, International Journal of Technology in Teaching and Learning, Vol. 1
No. 1, pp. 45-54.
Statistics Canada (2009), “The 2008 Canadian immigrant labour market: analysis of quality
of employment”, available at: www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/71-606-x/71-606-x2009001-eng.pdf
(accessed August 1, 2010).

Corresponding author
Lillie Lum can be contacted at: lum@yorku.ca

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