Purpose: Competency in physical assessment is an important component of nursing practice. However, some physical assessment skills are not being utilized within the current teacher-centered, content-heavy curriculum. This study was conducted to identify the effects of student-centered, self-directed learning in the physical assessment class. Methods: An experimental study with a post-test only control group design was used to compare an intervention group that was provided self-directed

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... classes and a control group that was provided traditional lecture and practice classes. Competency in physical assessment, academic self-confidence, and learning satisfaction were evaluated. Collected data were analyzed using x 2 -test (Fisher's exact test) and independent t-test. Results: Competency in physical assessment was significantly higher in the experimental group. However, academic self-confidence and learning satisfaction were not significantly different between the groups. Conclusion: The findings in this study indicate that self-directed learning can improve nursing students competency in physical assessment and that self-directed learning is a good education method to improve nursing students' competency in physical assessment during clinical practice and perform quality patient care by making active use of physical assessment skills.