ERIC Number: EJ1323201
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2021
Pages: 19
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: EISSN-2227-7102
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Available Date: N/A
Quality, Effectiveness and Outcome of Blended Learning in Dental Education during the COVID Pandemic: Prospects of a Post-Pandemic Implementation
Al-Fodeh, Rami S.; Alwahadni, Ahed M. S.; Abu Alhaija, Elham S.; Bani-Hani, Thikrayat; Ali, Kamran; Daher, Saba O.; Daher, Hasan O.
Education Sciences, v11 Article 810 2021
Background: Blended learning is growing in popularity particularly following the emergence of COVID-19 pandemic. One of the fields that the pandemic has substantially affected is dental education. Purpose: The aim of this study was to evaluate the quality and effectiveness of the online dental education. Students' perceptions and experiences of blended learning were also investigated. Methods: A 28-question online survey was designed to gauge students' perceptions of the effect of blended learning on their academic performance. Results: 314 participants in preclinical and clinical years completed the questionnaire (223 females and 91 males). The majority of students (89%) believed that clinical and practical courses cannot be given by the internet. In terms of students' opinion in the assessment process, more females (65.8%) preferred traditional exams than males (50.5%) (p < 0.05). Most clinical students (83%) preferred a combination of online and traditional teaching compared to 72% of preclinical students (p < 0.05). Clinical year students were more willing to communicate electronically with their classmates and instructors. The majority of dental students (65%) reported that future dental courses should be blended. Conclusions: In the pandemic era, blended learning, should become the preferred method of education whereby theoretical knowledge is delivered through online tutorials and clinical training is resumed on-site, to ensure competency of dental graduates while maintaining safety of the dental team. Current facilities and course designs should be improved in order to improve students' experiences with blended learning.
Descriptors: COVID-19, Pandemics, School Closing, Online Courses, Dental Schools, Dentistry, Blended Learning, Student Attitudes, Medical Education, Foreign Countries, Educational Technology, Electronic Learning, Teaching Methods, Program Effectiveness, Gender Differences, Lecture Method
MDPI AG. Klybeckstrasse 64, 4057 Basel, Switzerland. e-mail: education@mdpi.com; e-mail: indexing@mdpi.com; Web site: https://www.mdpi.com/journal/education
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research; Tests/Questionnaires
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
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Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Jordan
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