Studying the knowledge and attitude of students of Torbat Heydariyeh University of Medical Sciences toward e-learning

Electronic learning as one of the new educational methods has the potential to enter the field of medical education and continuing education.Therefore, it is necessary to evaluate the level of knowledge and attitude of individuals towards this educational method in order to improve the quality and quantity level of universities. The purpose of this study was to determine the knowledge and attitude of students of Torbat Heydariyeh University of Medical Sciences towards e-learning in 2016. In this descriptive-analytic study, 190 students of Torbat Heydariyeh University of Medical Sciences were assessed in 2016.The data collection tools included demographic, access and use of information technology, knowledge assessment and Mishra’s E-Learning Attitude Scale questionnaires. Data analysis was performed by means of SPSS software Version 16 using descriptive statistics and Mann-Whitney, Kruskal-Wallis and Spearman correlation tests. The mean score of knowledge and attitude of the subjects towards e-learning were 8.77 ± 4.35 (0 to 30) and 38.77 ± 6.87, respectively.There was also a significant relationship between gender, educational semester and the experience of passing courses in electronic format with the student's knowledge score. Students of Torbat Heydariyeh University of Medical Sciences had a poor level of knowledge buta positive attitude toward e-learning.Therefore, it is recommended that, after providing e-learning platforms such as improving people's knowledge, this method be used alongside traditional learning methods.