The impact of three learning methods on dental students' satisfaction and knowledge acquisition.

Abstract

Health professionals' education presents unique challenges including clinical application of knowledge and interprofessional collaboration. Additionally, institutions suffer from faculty shortages while class sizes increase. Therefore, educators seek innovative andragogical techniques utilizing minimal resources. Several active learning methods have been introduced as a solution. The aim of this study is to assess the impact of lecture (LBL), case (CBL), and team (TBL) based learning on the students' satisfaction and knowledge attainment. A total of 134 sophomore dental students are taught pediatric dentistry course using LBL, CBL, and TBL techniques. At the end of the course, students are invited to participate in a satisfaction survey. Statistical analysis is conducted using a two-sided chi-square goodness of fit test. Students' comments are used for qualitative analysis. Final exam analysis is administered via Examsoft software. A total of 98% of the students participated in the survey out of which 83% met the inclusion criteria (N=110). Students chose LBL as the method that helped them learn in a comprehensive way, provided the most comfortable environment, and presented the overall highest satisfaction with statistically significant difference (p value=0.001). LBL questions scored the highest point biserial and discrimination index. The percentage of correct answers and difficulty level was highest for TBL. Students preferred LBL over the other learning methods. Final exam psychometrics showed favorable results for LBL and TBL. Students could potentially benefit from combining both techniques. However, more research is needed to assess the effectiveness of various teaching methods on the short- and long-term learning outcomes.