Surface and deep learning styles and their relationship to the quality of academic life among a sample of Open Learning students at the Faculty of Education / Damascus University

Abstract

The aim of the research was to investigate the correlation between the two learning styles (surface, deep) and the quality of academic life among a sample of students registered in the Open Learning system at the Faculty of Education at Damascus University; as well as to identify the type of learning style most commonly used (surface, deep), the level of quality of academic life, and to reveal the differences in the two learning styles (surface, deep) and the quality of academic life according to the variable of the academic year. Two research tools were applied, namely the modified study operations questionnaire with two factors (R-SPQ-2F) prepared by Biggs et al. (2001), which was translated into Arabic by Al-Dardir 2004, and the quality of academic life questionnaire prepared by Suleiman and Murad 2022. The sample consisted of (323) male and female students. The following results were reached: It was found that there is a positive correlation between the deep learning style and the quality of academic life, and an inverse relationship between the surface learning style and the quality of academic life. It was also found that the surface learning style is the most used style compared to the deep learning style. Also, it was found that the level of the academic quality of life was average at a rate of (67.49%). Differences appeared between the two learning styles (surface - deep) according to the variable of the academic year, which was in favor of the first and second years in the surface learning style, and in favor of the third and fourth years in the deep learning style. Moreover, the results showed the existence of differences in the quality of academic life, in favor of the higher years (third and fourth).