Understanding Professional Graduate Athletic Training Students Experiential Learning Process

Abstract

Background: Experiential learning is a key learning process for athletic training students. Researchers have identified how undergraduate athletic training students process information through experiential learning, but not how professional graduate athletic training students do so. Purpose: The study aimed to gain an in-depth understanding of the experiential learning process of professional graduate athletic training students. Method: The researchers conducted semistructured interviews with students enrolled in Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education-accredited athletic training education programs. An inductive approach to data analysis was used to identify themes to support students’ experiential learning process. Findings: Data analysis revealed two key themes for how students perceive experiential learning: being able to apply learning and the feeling of confidence. Students also expressed a structured learning process effectively in the clinical environment centered on the themes of observation, hands-on learning, and feedback. Implications: Understanding how students learn can better prepare educators and preceptors to provide them with an environment that supports learning and affords students the ability to recognize when learning has occurred.