Blended learning compared to traditional learning for the acquisition of competencies in oral surgery by dental students: A randomized controlled trial

Objective To determine whether blended learning results in better educational outcomes compared to traditional learning in the acquisition of oral surgery technical skills for 4th‐year undergraduate dental students. Materials and Methods Seventy‐three students participated in this two‐arm parallel randomized controlled trial. Only students in the blended learning group had access to the online preparation platform for oral surgery practical work (PW) on a pig's jaw and to the debriefing. Kirkpatrick's four‐level model was used to assess the educational outcomes directly after (levels 1 and 2) and 6 months later, after the start of the students' clinical activity (levels 3 and 4). Results For level 1, higher global satisfaction scores were found for students in the blended learning compared to the traditional learning group ( p = .002). For level 2, blended learning resulted in an increase in knowledge score ( p < .01), comparable to that observed in the traditional learning group. For level 3, students in the blended group made more progress in 6 months than those in the traditional group in terms of feeling able to assess and perform anaesthesia ( p = .040) and surgical tooth extraction ( p = .043). No difference in level 4 was found for the 6‐month clinical surgical activity between groups, but students in the blended group felt more able to assess and perform the surgical management of a failed extraction requiring bone removal ( p = .044). Conclusion Blended learning for oral surgery PW had a positive impact on three of the four Kirkpatrick levels (level 1, 3 and 4). Efforts should focus on the procedures that are perceived as the most difficult.