Investigating the Impact of Virtual Education and Small Group Instruction on Dental Student (Preprint)

BACKGROUND The aim of this article is to investigate the impact of two teaching methods, virtual education and small group instruction, on learning outcomes and student satisfaction in the Research Methodology 2 course for dental students at Shiraz University of Medical Sciences. Choosing an appropriate instructional method is fundamental for enhancing meaningful learning, abilities, skills, and competencies. OBJECTIVE Determining the effect of training using two methods of virtual training and training in small groups A lesson on research methods Learning and satisfaction Dental students Shiraz university of medical sciences METHODS This study employed an intervention-based and semi-experimental design. Forty percent of the course content was delivered to the 1396 cohort of students using virtual education (online and offline), while the 1397 entry cohort received small group instruction (6 to 8 students) through private tutoring under supervision. RESULTS According to the results, the mean pre-intervention awareness scores of students in the virtual education group and small group instruction groups were 3.55± 1.53 and 3.60 ± 1.54, respectively (p = 0.854 ) no statistically significant difference was observed between the two groups. After the instructional intervention, the mean awareness scores of students in the virtual education group and small group instruction groups were 16.52 ± 1.28 and 17.20 ± 1.91, respectively (p = 0.040). The level of student satisfaction with the virtual education method was also higher than that of small group instruction. CONCLUSIONS Both virtual education and small group instruction interventions can lead to an improvement in students' learning outcomes. Therefore, it is recommended to use diverse instructional methods based on the target group's conditions and student-centered approaches. CLINICALTRIAL