scholarly journals The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Dental Education: An Online Survey of Students’ Perceptions and Attitudes

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (10) ◽  
pp. 116
Author(s):  
Ana Badovinac ◽  
Matej Par ◽  
Laura Plančak ◽  
Marcela Daria Balić ◽  
Domagoj Vražić ◽  
...  

Purpose: Dental education institutions worldwide experienced disruptive changes amid the COVID-19 pandemic, with a rapid switch to the online learning format. Thus, this study aimed to assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on dental education and evaluates the perceptions and attitudes of students towards the introduction of online learning in the School of Dental Medicine in Zagreb, Croatia. Methods: A survey was conducted on a population of undergraduate students. It was comprised of perceptions and attitudes of students on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on their psychoemotional status, changes introduced in the educational system, and online learning in particular. Results: Of the 352 students that completed the survey, 66.2% of students reported being psychoemotionally affected by the lockdown. The most significant impact of the switch from in-person to online learning was observed in terms of missing contact with lecturers (60.3%) and peers (90.3%) and loss of practical courses, regarding which 65% of students agreed that they could not be compensated. While only 36.1% reported that online teaching fully met their expectations, the majority of the students (61.9%) agreed that online lectures were as valuable as in-person lectures and that the theoretical courses could be carried out online in the future as well (69.9%). Conclusions: Students reported relative satisfaction with changes in the learning format and a positive attitude towards online learning; however, several challenges and obstacles were identified.

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (10) ◽  
pp. 633
Author(s):  
Nastaran Peimani ◽  
Hesam Kamalipour

Students’ learning experiences and perceptions are markedly influenced by the use of digital technology during the COVID-19 pandemic. Exploring students’ perception of blended online learning, amid the adaptations of the higher education sector in the wake of uncertainty, has become more critical than ever. This paper reflects on the experience of learning and teaching the Research Methods and Techniques subject in the postgraduate programme of MA Urban Design at Cardiff University during COVID-19 in the UK. To do so, we designed and carried out an online survey to explore students’ perception of online teaching and learning activities, feedback and assessment, and digital platforms based on their experience during the subject delivery period in the 2020–2021 academic year. One of the significant findings of this paper was that students agreed with the impact of eye contact on their virtual learning experience but as long as this was aligned with their rights to see others, including their peers and instructors, rather than reciprocal rights to be seen. In addition, students felt that facilitating synchronous communication through effective interaction among diverse peers has been quite challenging in small-group online reading seminars. The majority of respondents also reported that attending live online lectures was more helpful than watching pre-recorded lectures. Online formative feedback and synchronous interim reviews also allowed students to reflect on their progress and develop their projects further before their summative assessment. The outcomes of this paper can effectively assist educators who consider delivering programmes, adopting a blended online learning environment design model, in the post COVID-19 era. The findings of this study can also provide guidance for further developments and improvements in using digital technology and blended online learning in urban design education and pedagogy.


2021 ◽  
pp. 009862832110439
Author(s):  
Olufunmilayo Telli ◽  
Lindsey Mountcastle ◽  
Brianna L. Jehl ◽  
Angel Munoz-Osorio ◽  
Lynnda M. Dahlquist ◽  
...  

Background The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in an abrupt transition from in-person to online learning in Spring 2020. Objective The purpose of this study was to identify the impact of the transition on undergraduates during the period following the campus closure. Method 131 psychology undergraduate students completed an online survey of how the COVID-19 closure had impacted their academics, online learning environment, and traumatic stress symptoms (using the Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist for the DSM-5). Results Most participants reported increased academic difficulty compared to before closure. Approximately 30% reported elevated traumatic stress symptoms. Greater traumatic stress was associated with greater difficulty completing assignments, more limited access to the internet and quiet places to study, and greater sibling-care responsibilities. Conclusions The acute transition to online instruction posed academic and emotional challenges to many students, especially those from environments with competing demands or less access to academic supports. Follow-up evaluation is needed to determine whether these difficulties have persisted in subsequent semesters of online instruction. Teaching Implication Instructors should anticipate the emotional and academic needs of students who are relatively unfamiliar with online instruction and consider ways to minimize negative environmental impacts and increase access to mental health resources.


PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (9) ◽  
pp. e0257729
Author(s):  
Claudiu Coman ◽  
Luiza Mesesan-Schmitz ◽  
Laurentiu Gabriel Tiru ◽  
Gabriela Grosseck ◽  
Maria Cristina Bularca

Prior to the COVID 19 pandemic, discussions about online learning referred to the use of e-learning platforms and social networks as auxiliary tools in the educational process. Due to the pandemic, universities were forced to adopt an exclusive online teaching process and most universities today use platforms dedicated to online learning such as Moodle platforms. In this context, we were interested in analyzing the attitude of students regarding the way social networks could be integrated into the educational process, and if the positive attitude of students towards social networks and their use for academic purposes, proven in previous studies, remains positive under the conditions generated by the pandemic. In this regard, the present study aimed at identifying the attitude of Romanian students towards the use of Facebook and Instagram as educational tools and the circumstances in which students believe these platforms could be used by them and their teachers. An online survey was conducted on 872 students from public higher education institutions in Romania. Based on the exploratory factor analysis and the parametric test, the empirical results show that students have a slightly positive attitude towards using Facebook in the educational process, but they have a more reticent, less positive attitude towards using Instagram. Thus, the most appropriate contexts in which these platforms could be used are represented by extracurricular activities. A higher preference for the use of Facebook rather than Instagram, was identified among master and PhD students. No major differences were revealed in student subgroups sorted by gender or study domain.


2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 245-255
Author(s):  
Salina Khatri ◽  
Santosh Kumar Gurung ◽  
Ram Krishna Chapagain ◽  
Sunita Sharma ◽  
Nim Bahadur Dangi

   Background: COVID-19 pandemic has forced educational institutions throughout the world to shut, putting academic calendars in jeopardy. To continue the academic activities, most educational institutions have switched to online mode of learning. Objective: Against this backdrop, the study aims to identify the perception and attitude of the undergraduate students towards e-learning during Covid-19 pandemic, to determine the online learning characteristics of the students across different academic year, and to explore the factors that influence the online learning activities of the students. Method: The study employed a descriptive cross-sectional research design. The self-administered questionnaire was developed after a thorough assessment of the literature and consultation with topic specialists, and it included demographic information about the research participants, as well as their perceptions and attitudes regarding online classes. The questionnaire was created on Google Forms, and the link was distributed to the students of all the four schools through Viber and Messenger groups. Data was collected online from 300 undergraduate students at Pokhara University in Nepal. Descriptive statistics (frequency, percentage) and inferential statistics were used to examine and interpret the data. The Chi-squared test was employed to analyze the link between the student’s online learning characteristics and academic year. To discover the characteristics that impact online learning activities, exploratory factor analysis was performed. Result: The results indicated statistically significant association of online learning characteristics of students of different academic year with availability of alternative power source, internet service, digital platform used and availability of basic computer skill and continuation of online class. Majority of the students evinced a positive attitude towards online classes. Online learning was deemed advantageous since it offered learners with flexibility and convenience. Furthermore, teachers devote appropriate time to studying, motivate students to learn, and emphasize student-centered learning. However, students are dissatisfied with the teachers’ online teaching skills owing to a lack of training and familiarity with modern information technology. Conclusion: The study concluded that although students reported positive attitude towards online classes, there are serious challenges of power backup or alternative power supply, poor connectivity, unfamiliarity of digital platforms and poor ICT skills among students. Teachers need to be trained properly for the effective and productive teaching and learning along with proper handling of digital platforms. The school/ college/ university must have a well-established IT infrastructure for the smooth operation of online classes.  


The Physician ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-11
Author(s):  
Meemansa Jindal ◽  
Anshuja Singla ◽  
Amir Maroof Khan

Background and Aims: With the implementation of the COVID-19 lockdown, conventional teaching had to be replaced with online teaching, to ensure the continuity of medical education. This has impacted the clinical training of medical undergraduates. We aimed to explore their perceptions and differences before and during the COVID-19 lockdown. Methods: A cross-sectional online survey using a self-administered, retrospective pre-post questionnaire, was conducted among students from pre-final and final year between December 2020 and March 2021. Agreement scores with 15-items about the various domains of clinical training were recorded. Open-ended question was asked to know about the reasons for the students’ preferences. Chi-square test and Wilcoxon signed rank test were used to compare the proportion and medians respectively. Results: We received 1000 responses from students of 191 medical colleges {Median (IQR): 6 (2,10) per college}. Most (81.6%) opined that their experience with clinical training was better before COVID-19 lockdown, irrespective of the mode of teaching in clinical skills (P<0.001). In addition, despite being more comfortable, focused, and interactive, online clinical training could not offer interaction with patients, residents and colleagues. Students who had gone through in-person training during lockdown period also perceived disadvantages like limited exposure to patients, limited time for faculty to teach, and less time for clinical practice. Conclusion: The learning experiences of clinical training during COVID-19 lockdown were perceived as inferior than that before lockdown by the medical undergraduate students, irrespective of the mode of clinical training.


Author(s):  
Nancy J. Stone

To evaluate students’ online learning environments, the relationship between personality and online learning success, and students’ perceptions about online proctoring during mandatory remote delivery due to the pandemic, students responded to an online survey. Learning environments generally included houses and rarely included on-campus housing. The specific room type was predominantly the bedroom. Only conscientiousness was related positively to anticipated semester GPA. The positive relationship between anticipated and overall GPA supports the notion that more conscientious students tend to be successful in online learning situations, as online education was rated as slightly ineffective. A majority of students did not see a need for online proctoring due to the inability or time required to search for materials, which would only harm one’s performance. There is a need to research further the impact of the study environment, relationship of the students’ personality to learning success, and consequences of online proctoring during remote learning.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kochu Therisa Karingada ◽  
Michael Sony

PurposeThe COVID-19 pandemic lockdown has caught many educational institutions by surprise and warranted an abrupt migration from offline to online learning. This has resulted in an education change, without any time for due consideration, as regards its impact on musculoskeletal disorders (MSD) on students. The purpose of this study is to investigate MSD related to online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown.Design/methodology/approachA cross-sectional study was conducted on undergraduate students in India. In total, 261 students participated in this online survey.FindingsThe study finds that around 80% of students have reported some symptom in the head, neck and eyes since they started online learning. In total, 58% have reported MSD symptom in the right shoulder and 56% in the right hand fingers. Besides, more than 40 % of students experienced some MSD symptoms, in almost all the body parts studied, due to online learning. Correlation analysis is conducted between time spent on online learning per day and MSD symptoms.Originality/valueThis is the first study conducted on MSD and online learning during COVID-19 pandemic.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Min Yi Sum ◽  
Sherry Kit Wa Chan ◽  
Gloria Hoi Yan Wong

BACKGROUND Adolescence and young adulthood is a period of heightened risk of mental disorders onset. The Covid-19 pandemic may have impacted the daily lives and learning of students, exposing them to risks of emotional distress. Understanding factors associated with individual differences in distress can inform remedial strategies for schools. OBJECTIVE To investigate the impact of Covid-19 on undergraduate students’ lifestyle and learning, and explore relationship between depressive symptoms, resilience, and optimism/pessimism bias in undergraduate students in Hong Kong. METHODS Cross-sectional online survey of undergraduate students in a university (n=1020) before and during the third wave of Covid-19 outbreak in Hong Kong between May and August 2020. Changes in habits and family conflicts, depressive symptoms (measured using Patient Health Questionnaire-9), resilience (measured using Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale), optimism/pessimism towards Covid-19 risks, and knowledge about Covid-19 were recorded. Multivariable linear regression and mediation analyses were used to explore relationships with depressive symptoms. RESULTS 61.7% of respondents have mild to severe depressive symptoms. The regression model found that 18.5% of the variance in depressive symptoms was explained by resilience, pessimism bias, changes in sleep, decrease in study at home, and increase in family conflict. Mediation analysis showed that resilience is indirectly related to depressive symptoms through its relationship with pessimism (ab = -0.042, CI = -0.057 to -0.013). Higher resilience was associated with lower depressive symptoms even after accounting for resilience’s indirect effect through pessimism (c’ = 0.311, P < .001). CONCLUSIONS The findings highlight the mental health vulnerability of undergraduate students. Measures to reduce family conflict, maintain healthy daily habits, adjust optimism/pessimism bias, and enhance resilience may be useful for improving the mental wellbeing of undergraduate students during the pandemic.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 90
Author(s):  
Shita Lusi Wardhani ◽  
Manggar Wulan Kusuma

<em>The Covid-19 outbreak and the enactment of restrictions on community activities have had many impacts, one of which is the change in teaching methods from offline learning or face-to-face activities to online learning or distance learning</em><em>. These changes can affect the learning process, especially subjects related to business practices, such as entrepreneurship. In online learning, several factors contribute to the successful delivery of online courses. However, little is known about the impact of these factors on Indonesian students' interest in entrepreneurship. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine the effect of personal attitude and e-learning on interest in entrepreneurship in the Covid-19 pandemic era. Data was collected through an online survey of 190 students who were taking entrepreneurship courses at selected universities in Yogyakarta. Data collected through online surveys were analyzed using Smart Partial Least Square (SmartPLS) 3.0. The results of this study found that interest in entrepreneurship is significantly influenced by personal attitude and e-learning. This study also found that perceived learning was not able to moderate the effect of e-learning on entrepreneurial interest.</em>


2022 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Reham Hassan ◽  
Ayman R. Khalifa ◽  
Tarek Elsewify ◽  
Mohamed G. Hassan

Objectives: To evaluate the perceptions of clinical dental students on the role of online education in providing dental education during the COVID-19 crisis.Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional online survey was sent to four Egyptian dental schools from the 20th of January 2021 to the 3rd of February 2021. Survey questions included the demographics, uses, experiences, perceived benefits, and barriers of distance learning in dentistry during the COVID-19 pandemic. Responses were collected from the clinical dental school students. Categorical data were presented as frequencies (n) and percentages (%) and were analyzed using Fisher’s exact test.Results: Three hundred thirty-seven clinical dental students across four Egyptian dental schools responded. Most students used either Google Classroom or Microsoft Teams to access the online content. The data showed that the COVID-19 pandemic affected the academic performance of most participants (97.4%) with varying degrees. On average, students were neutral when asked to rate the online lectures, but did not find online practical education as effective (81.3%) as online theoretical teaching. The commonly described barriers to online teaching included loss of interaction with educators, inappropriateness in gaining clinical skills, and the instability of the internet connection.Conclusion: Despite the reported benefits, clinical dental students in Egypt preferred the hybrid approach in dental education as distance learning represented a prime challenge to gain adequate clinical dental skills.


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