Abstract
BackgroundThis study aimed to compare the effect of virtual and traditional education on theoretical knowledge and reporting skills of dental students in radiographic interpretation of bony lesions of the jaw.MethodsThis experimental study evaluated 39 dental students who had not received any instruction regarding radiographic interpretation of bony lesions of the jaw. They were randomly divided into two groups of virtual (n = 20) and traditional education (n = 19) and matched in terms of their grade point average (GPA). The virtual group received a virtual learning package while the traditional group received traditional classroom instruction for 6 one-hour sessions. Similar contents were taught to both groups by the same mentor. All students participated in a theoretical test with multiple-choice questions and an objective structured clinical examination (OSCE). Similar exams were also held 2 months later to assess knowledge retention. Data were analyzed using independent sample t-test and repeated measures ANOVA.ResultsThe mean scores of theoretical test (P < 0.05) and OSCE (P > 0.05) in the virtual education group (16.60 ± 0.91 and 15.13 ± 0.78) were higher than those in the traditional education group (14.89 ± 0.99 and 14.71 ± 0.92). In both methods of instruction, the mean scores of theoretical test and OSCE at 2 months were lower than the scores acquired immediately after instruction but this difference was not statistically significant (P > 0.05). Type of education had a significant effect on the theoretical test score (P < 0.001) but had no significant effect on the clinical score (P = 0.072).ConclusionsVirtual learning was superior to traditional lecture-based method for enhancement of knowledge acquisition in radiographic interpretation of bony lesions of the jaw. However, to improve our students’ reporting skills, we need to revise our virtual educational program so that the students have more opportunities to engage in reporting skills.
Highlights
This study aimed to compare the effect of virtual and traditional education on theoretical knowledge and reporting skills of dental students in radiographic interpretation of bony lesions of the jaw
The results showed that the mean scores of theoretical test and objective structured clinical examination (OSCE) in the virtual education group were higher than those in the traditional education group
In both methods of instruction, the mean scores of theoretical test and OSCE at 2 months were lower than the scores acquired immediately after instruction but this difference was not statistically significant
Summary
This study aimed to compare the effect of virtual and traditional education on theoretical knowledge and reporting skills of dental students in radiographic interpretation of bony lesions of the jaw. Mentors play a pivotal role in education, and their quality of instruction can significantly affect the students’ learning. Advances in medical and dental sciences in the recent decades have significantly increased the load of new topics to learn, and sufficient time is not available for this purpose in the traditional model of classroom education. The educational method has gradually changed to lecture-based instruction of theoretical topics, which is not interactive. Regarding the differences between the two methods of traditional and virtual instruction, a review by Potomkova et al [6] discussed that medical students mainly preferred web tutorials compared with traditional lecture-based classes due to advantages such as easy accessibility, easy use, the freedom of navigation, the high quality of images and the possibility of repeating the practice
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