IMPLEMENTATION OF DISTANCE TRAINING IN QUARANTINE AT THE DEPARTMENT OF PAEDIATRIC DENTISTRY OF IVANO FRANKIVSK NATIONAL MEDICAL UNIVERSITY

Abstract

Mankind has encountered a previously unknown disease, COVID-19, which has changed and caused a major disruption in nearly all spheres of human life. The COVID pandemic has had a tremendous impact on education, and medical education in particular. In quarantine conditions, distance learning was the only possible option to continue the professional medical training. The educators and education authorities faced a number of issues to be solved immediately including the organization of the course content and delivery for online synchronous and asynchronous format, the improvement of computer operating skills, the stimulation of students’ independent cognitive activity, creativity, nurtures self-awareness, independence and responsibility, etc. Ever-increasing amount of information, rapid progression of communication technologies and online tool applications in recent decades has created a strong ground for overcoming challenges caused by the pandemic. Practical classes on paediatric therapeutic dentistry were conducted in the format of an online conference via the Microsoft Teams program (groups, course schedule were created in advance). Microsoft Teams is a team centre of Office 365 that is a simplified version of learning management systems, but allows the learning team to communicate and share files. The program is convenient as it enables to create conventional work environment, including chat for discussion, file sharing and corporate programs. Students are supplied with instructional materials, guidelines; there has been elaborated the system of the tests for the themes of the discipline to check up students’ knowledge; educators give prompt feedback and grade student’s work. During the online lesson, educators discuss the main issues of a theme, explain the unclear or disputable points, using pre-loaded materials as presentations, videos, photos, radiographs and orthopantomograms that helps to facilitate the material comprehension. Practical training, which includes dealing with patients, improving manual and communication skills, is among the top priorities for dental students. To solve this problem associated with the remote learning, the department staff elaborated situational tasks and algorithms for performing practical skills. Distance learning can be and must be organized as a purposeful process of interaction between educators and students based on applying the latest information and technologies, adequate control and guidance that allows medical educational settings not to stop fostering future healthcare professionals in the pandemic period.