Reliability and validity of an Arabic version of the revised two-factor study process questionnaire R-SPQ-2F

How students accomplish their learning and what they learn is an indicator of the quality of student learning. An insight into the learning approaches of a student could assist educators of the healthy profession in their planning for the first year of study. The aim of this study was to develop a reliable and valid Arabic version of the revised two-Factor Study Process Questionnaire [R-SPQ-2F] into Arabic was done by an established forward-backward translation procedure. The Arabic version was then distributed to high school graduates applying for a place in the medical program at King Fahad Medical City. A total of 83 students voluntarily completed for a place in the medical program at King Fahad Medical City. A total of 83 students voluntarily completed the questionnaire. The internal consistency and construct validity of the Arabic version of the R-SPQ-2F were computed. The exolratory factor analysis revealed two components. The two factors were similar to the main scales described in the original English questionnaire. The main scales were the deep and surface approach. The items for the subscales [deep motive, deep strategy and surface motive, surface strategy] had a high internal consistency of more than 0.80. The results of this study should provide a valid and reliable instrument for the evaluation of the study approaches of Arabic speaking students

ability of the pre-admission criteria to predict performance in a Saudi medical school

To evaluate the ability of preadmission criteria used in most health professional schools in Saudi Arabia to predict the in-program performance. This retrospective cohort study was conducted at King Fahd Medical City, Faculty of Medicine, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia between July and September 2008. Four sets were used to examine the predictive power of preadmission variables. The variables are the academic abilities [high school grades], aptitude test, achievement test, and an interview. The criterion variables were the undergraduate grade point averages' [GPAs] of medical college students [n=193]. The correlation between admission variables and the GPA was examined using Pearson's correlation coefficient and regression analyses. Inclusion of all 4 admission tools in a regression analysis as predictors of GPA performance revealed that only the achievement test was statistically predictive of the GPA. Approximately 6.5% of variance in the GPA can be accounted for by the current admission criteria. The current admission criteria provide some insight into the predicted future performance of students. The inclusion of other valid and reliable admissions tools, such as the multiple mini-interviews and the questionnaire for candidate's suitability to follow a problem-based learning curriculum, should be considered