Evaluation of the quality of virtual education during the COVID-19 pandemic from the student’s point of view of Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences

Due to the importance of the teaching and learning process in virtual space and the necessity of its effectiveness and improving the quality of education, the present study was conducted in 1400 in order to examine the quality of virtual education of Covid-19 from the perspective of students of Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences.

This descriptive-analytical-cross-sectional study was conducted on 205 students in the form of virtual education in the academic year of 2011-2014. The data collection tool was a researcher-made questionnaire containing 20 questions. Amos and SPSS software were used for data analysis.

The mean score of virtual education quality was 61.9±9.17, with a minimum and maximum score of 21 and 79, respectively. Overall, 22.4% of the students gave an undesirable score, 51.2% a relatively desirable score, and 26.4% a desirable score. In addition, the variables of the year of admission, academic level, employment status, faculty, and age were significantly correlated with the virtual education quality score (P-Value < 0.05). Confirmatory factor analysis showed a direct relationship between the three areas of educational content, evaluation, and interaction between the instructor and the student, with correlation coefficients of 0.96, 0.87, and 0.91, respectively.

The average of each of the quality components of virtual education in Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences has been at a relatively favorable level. The highest average was related to the educational content component and the lowest average was related to the teacher-student interaction component.