INFLUENCE OF CLASSROOM & CLINICAL LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS ON THE MASTER ADAPTIVE LEARNER CHARACTERISTICS IN PHYSICAL THERAPY STUDENTS

Abstract

Recent healthcare literature has called for physical therapy (PT) education to more intentionally cultivate Master Adaptive Learners (MAL), experts in ill-structured problem-solving, who demonstrate curiosity, growth mindset, resilience, and motivation. Developing these characteristics requires deliberate design of learning environments, yet little is known about how PT students experience the differing historical curricular ideologies embedded within classroom and clinical settings, how they navigate transitions between these environments, or how these experiences shape their MAL development.This mixed-methods study explored how PT students at one university perceived the influence of classroom and clinical learning environments, and the transitions between them, on their MAL characteristics. Qualitative data were collected through longitudinal focus group interviews conducted as students moved from the classroom to clinical education and back again. Supplementary data used for triangulation included longitudinal measures of students’ MAL characteristics, focus group interviews with academic faculty and clinical instructors, and observations of students’ MAL-related behaviors in the clinical environment. Results revealed distinct motivational orientations shaped by context. The classroom environment was marked by external demands, performance pressures, and a high-stakes mindset, contributing to heightened extrinsic motivation and burnout. In contrast, the clinical environment fostered intrinsic motivation, persistence, and a growth mindset through personal responsibility for patient care and meaningful relationships with patients and instructors. Transitions between these environments posed challenges but also demonstrated students’ adaptability as their motivational orientations shifted. These results highlight the contextual nature of motivational characteristics and suggest that relatedness may be essential for fostering engagement in independent learning and ill-structured problem-solving. Future research should further examine how environmental transitions influence PT students’ motivation to support the development of pragmatic instructional approaches that maximize MAL characteristics.