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The Impact of E-Learning in Medical Education
Abstract
The authors provide an introduction to e-learning and its role in medical education by outlining key terms, the components of e-learning, the evidence for its effectiveness, faculty development needs for implementation, evaluation strategies for e-learning and its technology, and how e-learning might be considered evidence of academic scholarship. E-learning is the use of Internet technologies to enhance knowledge and performance. E-learning technologies offer learners control over content, learning sequence, pace of learning, time, and often media, allowing them to tailor their experiences to meet their personal learning objectives. In diverse medical education contexts, e-learning appears to be at least as effective as traditional instructor-led methods such as lectures. Students do not see e-learning as replacing traditional instructor-led training but as a complement to it, forming part of a blended-learning strategy. A developing infrastructure to support e-learning within medical education includes repositories, or digital libraries, to manage access to e-learning materials, consensus on technical standardization, and methods for peer review of these resources. E-learning presents numerous research opportunities for faculty, along with continuing challenges for documenting scholarship. Innovations in e-learning technologies point toward a revolution in education, allowing learning to be individualized (adaptive learning), enhancing learners' interactions with others (collaborative learning), and transforming the role of the teacher. The integration of e-learning into medical education can catalyze the shift toward applying adult learning theory, where educators will no longer serve mainly as the distributors of content, but will become more involved as facilitators of learning and assessors of competency.
... Pre-clinical and clinical medical education is rapidly evolving due to factors such as the exponential growth of biomedical knowledge, the implementation of new pedagogical methods for adult learners, the impact of artificial intelligence, and the widespread adoption of digital technologies [1]. In addition to traditional resources like course lectures, practical skills lessons, tutorials, and textbooks, medical students are increasingly turning to external online educational materials, referred to as e-learning resources, which are available through paid subscriptions. ...
... Medical students' perception of paid E-learning or poorly understood subjects and can provide individualized study strategies, enabling better time management by focusing on specific learning outcomes [1,11]. More research describing institutional experiences with different platforms is necessary to investigate the effectiveness of various blended learning design variants. ...
... More research describing institutional experiences with different platforms is necessary to investigate the effectiveness of various blended learning design variants. The incorporation of e-learning into medical education has already initiated a change toward using adult learning theory, in which educators take more active roles as facilitators of learning and evaluators of competency rather than just information providers [1,12]. Additionally, medical students are expected to be self-directed lifelong learners as medical education shifts toward competency-based models. ...
Background
In addition to the medical school curriculum, medical students often take the initiative to incorporate external paid digital educational resources, especially during the pandemic. In this study, we organized an exemplary questionnaire method to enable evidence-based decisions before providing paid e-learning resources to medical students.
Methods
An online form was distributed to all registered medical students at a Turkish medical school, and the compiled responses were subjected to statistical analysis. The participants were queried about their general background, post-graduation plans, use of study materials, purpose and perceived benefits of utilizing paid e-learning resources, as well as any financial burden or opinions regarding the associated costs.
Results
A total of 119 medical students participated in the online form. The findings revealed that 87% of the participants reported using paid e-learning resources for school exams, with 71.5% of them indicating an improvement in their exam scores. Approximately 26.1% of the participants did not specify any change. When asked to rate the cost of using paid e-learning resources on a scale of 1 to 10, the average score was 8.6 ± 1.58. Furthermore, 40% of the participants relied on repeated free demo sessions, while only 27% reported paying the fees associated with these resources.
Conclusions
With the evolution of medical education, particularly in the aftermath of the pandemic, medical students are increasingly seeking to supplement their medical curriculum, pursue self-interests, and engage in extracurricular research by utilizing paid e-learning resources. However, the costs associated with these resources often prevent some students from fully benefiting from them. Therefore, it is essential for medical schools to make evidence-based decisions to support their students, recognizing that digitally available resources play an integral role in the assimilation of medical education.
... Different types of online contents, e.g. prerecorded lectures, animated videos, podcasts, and interactive cases, allows students to acquire new information at their own speed, without any constraints of time or location [1,[9][10][11][12][13]. This has been shown to improve learning in numerous studies [1,9,[14][15][16]. ...
... prerecorded lectures, animated videos, podcasts, and interactive cases, allows students to acquire new information at their own speed, without any constraints of time or location [1,[9][10][11][12][13]. This has been shown to improve learning in numerous studies [1,9,[14][15][16]. Hence, medical educators who often belong to digital immigrant generations, have to learn using innovative teaching methods to motivate and attract the attention of younger students [10,11,13,[17][18][19]. ...
... Videos may transmit information in a very expressive way, resulting in vastly improved learner experiences, knowledge retention, and understanding of the lecture's content [6,13,16]. Furthermore, students consider video materials very engaging [6,9,12,14,15]. The challenge for medical educators is to use these new technologies effectively to transform learning into a more collaborative and personalized experience [10]. ...
Background
The ever-expanding field of surgery requires novel tools to teach surgical pathologies and their management. Basic knowledge must already be acquired on a pre-graduate level at medical school. The SARS-CoV-19 pandemic has pushed students to explore digital online platforms to complement their medical education. This study aimed to assess the utility of short educational videos and the importance of digital learning methods to teach abdominal surgery.
Methods
A literature review was performed for a thorough understanding of educational videos. Short videos were then created covering different topics of abdominal surgery. To evaluate the utility of such videos, three consecutive cohorts of medical students were compared. The first cohort comprised students studying without the videos (V0), whereas the second and third cohorts had access to the videos (V1, V2). Between the three groups, the general demand for videos, subjective study habits, and objective examination scores were compared. In the V1 and V2 group, satisfaction and engagement regarding the videos were also assessed.
Results
This study included 746 medical students over a three-year period, with similar demographics. The demand for videos was high (90% in V0, 88% in V1 and V2 each) in all three groups. In total, 23 short videos were produced. Students recognized the benefits of videos in understanding the basics of surgical pathologies and their management. On average, 95.5% of the students found that videos were successful in summarizing the lectures’ key points. Moreover, 96.5% found that the videos helped them to better recall the lecture content. A median overall improvement of 12.5% between V0 and V1 examination results was observed.
Conclusions
This study emphasizes the importance of implementing innovative teaching methods in modern medical education. Students expressed a strong demand for short educational videos. In the future, this project could expand to other surgical and non-surgical specialties.
... Blended learning mixes different learning styles and environments, combining the traditional classroom with modern computer-assisted and multimedia methods [7,8]. Therefore, these techniques allow for improved collaboration, flexibility, interest and mobility of students [9,10]. ...
... The questionnaire proposed to the students to evaluate the efficacy of the investigated teaching tools enlists a series of possible features belonging to the investigated concept: utility (items 2, 3,4,15,16,17), scientific rigor (items 5,6,8,11,12), capacity for synthesis (item 7), clarity (items 9, 10) and ability to arouse interest (items 13,14). The classic oral presentations, as well as the PowerPoint presentations and the educational videos are rated by the students mainly for their utility, while the online documentary sources are rated mainly for their capacity for synthesis and scientific rigor. ...
The success of blended learning programmes, based on digital tools, depends on several factors that significantly influence students’ performance, of which demographics (gender and age group) are the most common. Other factors play an important role too. Among these, we focused on the students’ general attitude towards the digital environment and the importance they attach to it in their daily activities. We investigated a sample of five hundred fifty-one students from four Medical Universities in Romania, mostly females (76.2%), from years 1 and 2 of study (63.7%) and aged between 18 and 20 years (53.9%), and we recorded their general opinion about the effectiveness of four types of teaching tools and the intensity of using Internet services in their daily activities. We conducted univariate (hypothesis testing) and multivariate (two-step clustering) analyses of the recorded responses, and we found that the students’ general behaviour as the users of Internet services significantly influences their choices for certain teaching tools over others. Students who prefer classic oral presentations and PowerPoint presentations are predominantly females, aged between 18 and 20, who use Internet services mainly for communication. Students who prefer educational videos are also mainly females, evenly distributed by age groups; they enjoy using multimedia resources during learning and use Internet services for communication, information or entertainment. Students who prefer the use of online documentary sources are evenly distributed by gender and are over 20 years of age; they also enjoy using multimedia resources during learning and use Internet services mainly for communication and information. The obtained results show that, to optimally combine the teaching tools used in blended learning, it is useful to assess in advance the attitude towards the digital environment of the students to whom it is addressed.
... Distance learning is a mode of learning that takes place remotely. According to Ruiz et al. (2006), it is a method that uses information technologies to deliver courses to learners located far from a central site. However, it is not necessarily online, and it does not always rely on technology. ...
... • "E-learning is defined as an educational intervention delivered electronically via the internet in an asynchronous manner" (Sinclair et al., 2016). • "E-learning is the use of internet technology to enhance knowledge and performance" (Ruiz et al., 2006). ...
In the last decade, research on e-learning and m-learning has grown significantly, reflecting the increasing importance of these approaches in the field of education. However, a careful review of the literature reveals a lack of consensus on the precise definitions of these two approaches. Terms like 'Digital learning,' 'Distance learning,' and 'Online learning' are often used interchangeably to refer to e-learning, which can create some confusion and a lack of clarity in academic and practical discourse. This ambiguity not only complicates research efforts but also creates challenges for policymakers and educators who seek to apply these approaches effectively. Our study adopts an exploratory documentary methodology to develop a comprehensive and contemporarydefinition of e-learning and e-learning through a detailed analysis of existing literature. In this article, we clarifythe key distinctions among the terms 'Digital learning,' 'Distance learning,' and 'Online learning'. Additionally, we propose an updated definition of e-learning that that goes beyond the simple transmission of knowledgethrough digital tools, the use of the internet for learning, or the integration of information and communication technologies (ICT) in education. Instead, our definition highlights an integrative approach that considers these three dimensionswhile prioritizing pedagogical interactions between teachers and students within a virtual environment. In parallel, we position m-learning as a more advanced concept than e-learning, characterized by its capacity to facilitate learning in diverse contexts, including offline scenarios.This article proposes contemporary definitions for e-learning and m-learning, offering a more nuanced and consistent view of these two concepts. These new definitions will contribute to better alignment in research, educational policies, and teaching practices, allowing for the full benefits of learning technologies to berealized.
... This is particularly beneficial for medical students and professionals who often face demanding schedules. By facilitating access to learning materials anytime and anywhere, these platforms enable learners to engage with educational content at their own pace, fostering a personalized learning experience that caters to individual needs and preferences (Cook et al., 2008;Ellaway & Masters, 2008;Ibanez et al., 2023;Ruiz et al., 2006). ...
This cross-sectional study explored the experiences, perceptions , and challenges of using virtual education among faculty members at Hamadan University of Medical Sciences during the COVID-19 pandemic. Data were collected through qualitative interviews (n = 21) and questionnaires (n = 295) administered to university officials and faculty members, respectively. The strategies implemented included technological and infrastructure enhancements, human resource training and empowerment, and the regulation of procedures and guidelines. Challenges were not solely due to weaknesses in ICT infrastructure. Therefore, it is essential to provide special privileges and incentives for professors, empower all personnel involved in virtual education, and establish new guidelines and rules.
... Synchronous delivery of educational contents refers to a tutor-led, real-time education where all learners are taught at the same time and can interact among themselves, through a virtual classroom platform. In asynchronous delivery, however, educational contents are transmitted and received at different time points, and can include pre-recorded lectures, podcasts or simulation (Ruiz et al. 2006). It enables learners to participate in educational activities at any time and from any geographical location (Ruggeri et al. 2013). ...
This is the protocol for a Campbell systematic review. The objectives are as follows. The primary objective of this systematic review is to evaluate and synthesise both published and unpublished literature on the effectiveness of sexual and reproductive health blended learning approaches for capacity strengthening of healthcare practitioners in LMICs. Within this context, sexual and reproductive health interventions refer to any of the following four key interventions or services aimed at improving maternal and newborn health (Starrs et al. 2018): (a) antenatal, childbirth and postnatal care, including emergency obstetric and newborn care, (b) safe abortion services and treatment of the complications of unsafe abortion, (c) prevention and treatment of malaria, tuberculosis, HIV and other sexually transmitted infections in pregnant women and d) family planning. In this systematic review, blended learning is defined as any teaching and learning method that combines face‐to‐face learning with e‐learning or online learning. The component of face‐to‐face and online learning may include any of the components identified by Alammary (2019): (1) face‐to‐face instructor‐led, where students attend a class and an instructor presents teaching and learning materials, with little engagement from students; (2) face‐to‐face collaboration, where students work together in class, for example, in discussion groups; (3) online instructor‐led, where instruction is delivered online and facilitated by an instructor who sets the pace (e.g., virtual classrooms); (4) online collaboration, where students work together online with their peers, for example, online learning communities; and (5) online self‐paced, where students study at their own pace and time, and from their chosen location, for example, watching videos, online reading. Specifically, this systematic review will answer the following research questions: (1) What sexual and reproductive health blended learning approaches have been used in LMICs? (2) Does participating in sexual and reproductive health blended learning interventions alone (i.e., compared with no intervention) improve the effective provision of care among healthcare workers in LMICs? (3) Does participating in sexual and reproductive health blended learning interventions compared with non‐blended learning approaches (such as conventional face‐to‐face learning or pure e‐learning) facilitate the effective provision of care among healthcare workers in LMICs (measured by, e.g., self‐reports of effective maternal and neonatal care)? (4) What is the cost‐effectiveness of sexual and reproductive health blended learning compared with non‐blended learning approaches (i.e., face‐to‐face learning or e‐learning)? (5) What factors affect the effectiveness of sexual and reproductive health blended learning interventions (e.g., characteristics of participants, type of intervention, course content, setting and mode of delivery)? (6) Do sexual and reproductive health blended learning interventions targeted at healthcare practitioners working in LMICs lead to improvement in patient outcomes (e.g., reduced maternal and neonatal mortality, patient satisfaction reports)?
Background: Although digital technologies are increasingly being incorporated into medical education, there is still a lack of substantial evidence comparing the effectiveness of E-learning video modules with traditional lectures in psychiatry education remains limited. This is chiefly significant in the areas such as the Doctor-Patient Relationship and Breaking Bad News. Aims and Objectives: This study aims to develop, implement, and evaluate an E-learning video module designed to enhance psychiatry competency within the Attitude, Ethics, and Communication (AETCOM) framework, with a particular emphasis on the Doctor-Patient Relationship and the process of Breaking Bad News. Materials and Methods: Forty medical students were randomly assigned to one of two learning methods: Traditional lecture-based instruction (Group A, n=20) or an E-learning video module (Group B, n=20). The training focused on Psychiatry competency and the AETCOM module on the Doctor-Patient Relationship, with a special emphasis on Breaking Bad News. Knowledge acquisition was measured using standardized pre-tests and post-tests administrated two weeks after the intervention. In addition, student perceptions were assessed through a semi-structured feedback questionnaire. Results: Both groups demonstrated equivalent baseline knowledge (pre-test scores: 55%). Post-test results revealed significantly higher scores in the E-learning group (93%) compared to the lecture group (77%), representing a mean difference of 16% (P<0.0001, Cohen’s d=1.82). Correlation analysis showed strong positive relationships between perceived engagement and post-test performance (r=0.73, P<0.001). Most students (80%) reported feeling “much more prepared” after completing the E-learning module and valued its self-paced nature (80%). The flexibility for repeated viewing and high engagement levels were identified as key advantages of the E-learning approach. Conclusion: E-learning video modules demonstrate superior effectiveness compared to traditional lectures in psychiatry education particularly in areas such as the Doctor-Patient Relationship and Breaking Bad News, withsignificantly higher knowledge acquisition and positive student perceptions.
The concept of blended education, which refers to the intensive integration of digital resources into the teaching process and its mixed online and on-site delivery, combining as much as possible the advantages of both methods in an optimal way, is becoming increasingly popular among teaching tools. There is no universal recipe for designing a successful blended course; the success of such courses is measured entirely through their degree of acceptance among students, defined by their emotional motivation to learn and the obtained practical results. Our study aimed to evaluate the motivational persistence degree (MPS) of medical students in connection with the students’ acceptance of different didactic tools involved in blended-learning approaches. Materials and Method: We investigated a sample comprising 523 students in Dental Medicine or General Medicine, belonging to all years of study, from four main Universities in Romania; we classified them according to their motivational persistence profile (using k-means data clustering) and we comparatively investigated the main relevant features of students in each cluster—gender, age group, opinions about the general usefulness of multimedia resources in the learning process, and their degree of acceptance of specific types of instructional materials involved in blended learning. Results: We found that the students who mostly enjoy the traditional learning style have average motivational persistence skills; they are perseverant and competitive, but they are not so good at planning their daily tasks. They enjoy external directions, set by teachers. The students who most enjoy PowerPoint presentations and those who enjoy instructional videos show similar behavior, both belonging to the cluster with the highest MPS score. They have the best motivational persistence skills amongst all categories; they are particularly excellent at planning and fulfilling daily tasks, as well as following their goals in the long term. The students who mostly enjoy online documentary sources belong also to a cluster with above average MPS score; they excel in fulfilling daily tasks, but exhibit weaker performance in recalling unachieved goals. These results are similar to those already reported in the literature; the strength of our study is in that it provides much more specific evaluations oriented to the motivational persistence degree, which is highly significant in the case of medical students, because it is a measure of their commitment in fulfilling certain tasks. Conclusions: Our results have the potential to highlight reasons for academic success or failure according to a student’ s profile, and will prove helpful in selecting the most appropriate didactic tools.
Web 2.0 tools consist of a series of internet-based applications that allow users to create and share content interactively across many different disciplines. In chemistry education, Web 2.0 tools are frequently used because they help concretize concepts that are difficult to grasp at the particle level, provide an interactive learning environment, encourage students to collaborate, and, most
importantly, overcome time and space limitations by granting students access to resources from anywhere, at any time. This study focused on pre-service chemistry teachers (PCTs) and aimed to examine their knowledge and experiences with Web 2.0 tools. The study was conducted using a qualitative approach with 62 PCTs during the spring term of the 2023-2024 academic year. Data were collected through open-ended questions and interviews. The findings revealed that more than half of the PCTs had heard of Web 2.0 tools, especially Kahoot, and that they were mostly introduced to these tools through field education courses. When examining their views on the advantages and disadvantages of using Web 2.0 tools, it was found that they suggested fewer disadvantages compared to the advantages. The most commonly mentioned advantage was the tools' facilitation of learning,
while the most common disadvantage was the need for technological equipment. Additionally, it was found that they referred to the potential for Web 2.0 tools to cause misconceptions in chemistry education as a possible disadvantage. It is recommended that future research focus on the knowledge and experiences of PCTs, particularly in relation to Web 3.0, which offers artificial intelligence support,
and Web 4.0, which includes both artificial intelligence and augmented reality support, especially in the context of chemistry teaching and learning.
Digital multimedia, such as images and videos, are playing an increasingly important role in health sciences education. Educators, however, often do not have the time or resources to create high-quality materials. The authors describe the development of a new Health Education Assets Library (HEAL), a freely accessible, national library of high-quality digital multimedia to support all levels of health sciences education. HEAL's primary mission is to provide educators with high-quality and free multimedia materials (such as images and videos) to augment health science education. In addition, HEAL is working with other organizations to establish a network of distributed databases of high-quality teaching resources. By using state-of-the-art Internet technologies HEAL enables educators across the country to efficiently search and retrieve teaching materials from a variety of sources.
The present article is the second in a series of Background Papers prepared as part of the AAMC's Medical School Objectives Project (MSOP). This report provides information about and insight into U.S. medical schools' use of educational technology in 1998. The authors define educational technology as the use of information technology to facilitate students' learning. They note that in the last two decades, a number of reports have recommended that medical schools incorporate educational technology into their teaching programs. To gain insight into the effects of these recommendations, particularly those of the ACME-TRI Report in 1992, the authors analyzed the responses of administrators at 125 U.S. medical schools to relevant items of the 1997-98 Liaison Committee on Medical Education Part II Medical School Questionnaire and students' responses to relevant items of the 1998 AAMC Medical Student Graduation Questionnaire. In addition, site visits were made to six medical schools believed to be among the more advanced ones in the use of educational technology, to see what was happening on the "cutting edge" of educational technology applications. Data from 20 other schools were also used. The authors found that by 1998, medical schools as a group had made limited progress in accomplishing the recommended educational technology goals, and that there was a much greater use of such technology in basic sciences courses than in clinical clerkships. However, great variability existed across schools in the use of such technology and in the administrative arrangements for it. They observe that the use of educational technology in medical schools is increasing rapidly, and recommend that each school develop a strategic approach that will guarantee that it can meet the future educational technology needs of its students.
Technological innovations have spurred exponential use of electronic resources for learners of all ages over the last decade. These global developments also require continual advancement of electronic e-learning evaluation. Evaluation is the process of clarifying what should be and comparing that to what is, to facilitate evaluative decisions about success and ways to achieve it. This article outlines a process for doing evaluations of e-learning and identifies common critical-evaluation elements. An extended case vignette of an e-learning evaluation and references to others and related literature illustrate the use of these critical elements and associated emerging results.