Journal of Medical Education Development
Volume:14 Issue: 42, Summer 2020

The necessity of virtual learning during the COVID-19 epidemic has caused serious challenges due to the lack of preparedness of educational centers, regarding the provision of appropriate educational infrastructure and the unfamiliarity of teachers with virtual learning methods. Over time, some educators have turned threats into innovative opportunities in learning and have improved education in some cases. Without a doubt, studying these challenges and understanding teachers’ experiences in this field can help better arrangement for the growth and excellence of virtual learning.

In this qualitative research, 11 semi-structured interviews were made with the faculty members of Alborz University of Medical Sciences in 2020. The texts of interviews were analyzed by conventional content analysis method using MaxQDA software.

In this study, two main classes of “individual barriers to virtual learning efficiency” were extracted, which encompassed the sub-classes of personality traits and family factors, and “organizational management”, comprised of the sub-classes of infrastructure provision, management and leadership, training and supervision, ethics and law and evaluation.

Given the continuity of the Corona crisis, each university must specifically evaluate teachers’ challenges and experiences in the field of virtual learning during the COVID-19 pandemic in order to find effective solutions to tackle them.

Today, the development of human resources is the most important part of the strategic planning of organizations. In addition, human resource empowerment is a key factor for the success of corporations. In this regard, good governance has been introduced as the solution for the development problem. The present study aimed to design and validate a human resource development model based on good governance in universities of medical sciences affiliated with the ministry of health.

The present mixed study included two qualitative and quantitative stages. The qualitative stage was carried out through conventional content analysis and by assessing relevant texts and conducting semi-structured in-depth interviews with 12 experts in the field of human resources at the ministry of health and the universities of medical sciences. Following designing the human resource development model, its validity and goodness of fit were assessed in the quantitative stage by filling a questionnaire by 162 experts of the field using confirmatory factor analysis and the SWARA technique.

In this study, the human resource development model based on good governance included 10 factors of responsiveness, transparency, capacity building, attitude and identification, coordination, consequentialism, the effectiveness of roles and responsibilities, sociocultural development, individual development, and educational development, which were classified into six categories of causal conditions, axial phenomenon, underlying factors, confounding factors, strategies, and outcomes. The relationship between the mentioned factors was presented in the model. Furthermore, the prioritization of main criteria revealed the higher significance of attitude and identification, coordination, sociocultural development and educational development, respectively, compared to other criteria.

According to the results of the study, responsiveness, transparency, attitude and identification, coordination, consequentialism, and effectiveness of roles and responsibilities on the path of human resource development based on good governance led to sociocultural, individual and educational development.

Faculties attend medical education workshops to gain knowledge and skills. A need was felt to assess the sustainability and type of motivation status of the participants and whether they brought about a change in their workplace over a period of 6 months after the training.

A longitudinal prospective, analytic, questionnaire based follow up study was conducted in 60 faculty volunteers who attended a revised basic course workshop on medical education technology. The motivation status was recorded post workshop baseline (0 months), at 2 and 6 months after the workshop. They were also asked to report any innovations initiated in their workplace.

The motivation parameters of External regulation increased from Mean (SD) of 1.89(1.14) to 2.84(1.59), p=0.001 and 3.07(1.55), p<0.001 at 2 months and 6 months. Amotivation increased from 2.37(1.43) to 3.15(1.47), p=0.012 and 3.10(1.53), p=0.020 at 2 and 6 months respectively. Work self-determination index (WSDI) decreased from baseline to 6 months from 17.69(7.65) to 14.02(8.51), p=0.046. Work non self-determined motivation (W-NSDM) increased from baseline, 2.86(1.09), to 3.56(1.24) p=0.004 at 2 months and 3.63(1.19), p=0.001 after 6 months. There was significant correlation between innovation scores and Intrinsic Motivation, Integrated Regulation, Identified Regulation, Work Self-Determination Index and Work Self-Determined Motivation at 2 and 6 months and Introjected Regulation at 2 months.

The faculty’s change in motivation status suggests that it was related to goals, targets and awards. Perceived changes related to teaching and assessment methods in workplace was also reported.

Regarding the changes in the process of education and conducting e-learning system in the context of the Corona epidemic, there is an essential role of evaluating the education programs in improving its quality and effectiveness. This descriptive study was conducted to investigate the virtual education status from the perspective of students in Alborz University of Medical Sciences.

The statistical population of the study included 364 students studying at Alborz University of Medical Sciences in the second semester of the 2019-2020 academic year. A researcher-made questionnaire having four domains (lesson introduction, educational content, feedback and interaction, assessment and evaluation) was used as the instrument and 20 items were prepared based on a four-point Likert scale. The questionnaire validity was reviewed and confirmed based on the opinion of a 5-member panel with relevant experts. The reliability of the questionnaire was assessed using the test-retest method and Cronbachchr('39')s alpha was 0.902.

The results showed that the virtual education status in the domains of course introduction, educational content, interaction and feedback, assessment and evaluation is relatively favorable from the studentschr('39') point of view. Comparing the level of satisfaction in different schools, the School of Pharmacy, and among the different levels, master students showed the highest level of satisfaction with the virtual education program among the schools based on the domains under study. There was no significant difference in the level of satisfaction between students from different schools and levels.

Generally, the level of satisfaction in terms of various domains was relatively favorable for students participating in the virtual education classes at Alborz University of Medical Sciences.

Studies show that students lack sufficient clinical skills during the nursing apprenticeship course despite their strong theoretical knowledge. Feedback-based education is one of the teaching methods used for this group of students. The present study aimed to determine the effect of feedback-based education on first-semester nursing students’ skill of IV insertion.

In this clinical trial, the subjects were selected by convenience sampling and randomly divided into two 20-member intervention and control groups. While feedback-based education was provided to the subjects in the intervention group, the participants in the control group received conventional education. A researcher-made checklist was filled by all participants immediately after the education process and at the end of the semester and the two groups were compared in this regard. Data analysis was performed in SPSS version 19 using paired t-test and independent t-test. In addition, a P-value of 0.05 was considered statistically significant.

In this study, the results revealed a significant difference between the intervention and control groups immediately after the education process (t=2.71, P=0.04). However, this difference was not significant at the end of the semester (four months later) (t=1.79, P=0.12).

According to the results of the study, while feedback-based education significantly improved the nursing students’ skill of IV insertion in short term, this improvement was not permanent. It is recommended that more studies be conducted in this area.

Implementing faculty empowerment programs is an important strategy to make a change in the higher education system. This study aimed to identify and explain the faculty members’ experiences of educational empowerment programs held at Tabriz University of Medical Sciences.

This was a qualitative study performed with the conventional content analysis method and by using the Graneheim and Lundman approach for data analysis. Data were collected using in-depth, semi-structured interviews. The statistical population included the faculty of clinical and basic sciences. Data were collected from 29 interviews with 26 faculty members attending academic skills courses, who were willing to share their experiences in this regard.

The interviews were classified in more than 276 open codes, 55 subclasses, four classes, and two main classes. According to the results, the main classes had themes of “individual factors” and “organizational factors”. In addition, the theme of individual factors was divided into two categories of motivational and inhibitory factors while the theme of organizational factors was classified into two categories of structural and process factors.

By correcting the inhibitory factors (individual, environmental, process and organizational) and eliminating barriers through involving faculty members in the courses and using their opinions, academic skills course planners and managers could improve these programs.

learning style is a method preferred by learners over other styles in learning lessons. Therefore, knowledge of students’ learning styles is crucial for educational programs. This study aimed to evaluate the relationship between learning style and academic achievement of dental students at Alborz University of Medical Sciences.

This cross-sectional research was performed on all dental students in the second semester of 2019-2020. Data were collected using Kolb’s Learning Style Questionnaire. In addition, students’ GPA was an indicator of their academic achievement. Data analysis was performed in SPSS version 24 using descriptive and inferential statistics such as Chi-square and one-way ANOVA.

In this research, 205 out of 360 dental students completed the questionnaire. Most participants used a converging learning style (32.7%), and the rest of the subjects applied an assimilating (31.7%), diverging (31.7%) and accommodating (9.3%) learning style. There was no significant difference in students’ learning styles based on gender, year of admission, age and place of residence (P>0.05). However, a significant correlation was reported between learning style and academic achievement (P=0.04), in a way that convergers achieved higher GPAs, compared to divergers.

According to the results of the present study, most students applied converging and assimilating learning styles. Therefore, it is recommended that educational methods that match these styles (e.g., visual content presentation, diagrams, teacher’s handouts, lectures and self-study) be applied in this regard. It is notable that students with a converging learning style obtained higher GPAs, compared to those with a diverging learning style.

Critical thinking development in healthcare professions is a necessity for making effective decisions in high-risk situations. The present study aimed to evaluate the effect of reflective writing with Gibb’s cycle on students’ critical thinking disposition.

This was an interventional research with a pretest-posttest design and a control group. The anesthesia students in the clinical education course were selected, and those entered into the control group received conventional education such as clinical conferences, performing actions and giving performance reports under the supervision of a clinical instructor. On the other hand, a structured reflective writing activity was implemented in the intervention group. Moreover, a critical thinking disposition questionnaire was applied to evaluate the difference in the level of critical thinking disposition and its subscales before and after the intervention.

In the present study, the total mean score of critical thinking disposition and the innovativeness subscale were significantly higher in the test group after the intervention, compared to the control group (P<0.05).

Findings suggested the positive effects of reflective writing as a part of students’ learning activities on the development of critical thinking disposition during a clinical education course. It is recommended that reflective writing be used as a part of students’ assignments when planning clinical education courses.