An investigation of dental students' perceptions about the characteristics of effective instructors and their related factors

Undergraduate Students' Experience of Dental Education Programs across Saudi Arabia: An Exploratory Study

Background

Students' satisfaction surveys are valuable tools for assessing and improving the quality of education being imparted. Limited data are available from Saudi Arabia regarding students experience at halfway through an undergraduate dental program.

Objective

To determine students' perception of their halfway experience on various attributes of the quality of dental education programs in public dental schools across Saudi Arabia.

Methods

This exploratory study included all students from four major public universities who had completed their third year of undergraduate dental education during the academic year 2022-23. A previously validated, self-administered, 23-item Students Experience Survey was modified and used to collect data regarding the following five factors: course characteristics, infrastructure and facilities, learning resources, instructor characteristics, and program efficacy.

Results

The questionnaire was administered to 296 students, of which 252 (85.1%) responded. Overall, 84% of the students had a positive experience regarding the quality of the dental education programs. Females reported significantly higher positive experiences than males (mean score: 4.36 vs. 4.21, respectively; P = 0.042). Course characteristics (P = 0.041), instructors' characteristics (P = 0.002), and program efficacy (P = 0.009) were significant predictors of students' overall experience.

Conclusion

This study found that the majority of students had a positive halfway experience with the quality of dental education programs offered in Saudi Arabia. The significant predictors of satisfaction identified in this study can be useful for policymakers to further improve satisfaction levels.

Eleven-year experience implementing a dental undergraduate research programme in a prestigious dental school in China: Lessons learned and future prospects

OBJECTIVE

To summarise the lessons learned from implementing a dental undergraduate research programme over the past eleven years and identify key elements to guarantee the success of dental undergraduate research in the future.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

An overview of 80 research projects from 2007 to 2017 was provided, consisting of 239 participating undergraduates and 47 faculty advisors. Students' academic performance was compared between participating and non-participating undergraduates. An anonymous questionnaire was designed and distributed to participants, with VAS satisfaction assessment, Likert-scale items and open-ended questions. Questions focused on overall satisfaction, motivation, benefits to student career development and essential elements for the dental undergraduate research programme in the future.

RESULTS

The undergraduate participants had significantly better scores of GPAs (3.41 vs 3.21; P < 0.0001), obtained more awards on the honour rolls (0.53 vs 0.30; P = 0.0171) and published more peer-reviewed articles (1.62 vs 1.31; P = 0.0253) than non-participants. Seventy-two undergraduates (75.79%) and thirty-eight advisors (80.85%) responded to the questionnaire. The overall satisfaction was scored as 78.18/100 and 72.36/100 amongst advisors and students, respectively. Interest was considered the best motivation for participation by students (3.81/5.00) and advisors (4.00/5.00). The research programme was beneficial to students' overall career development. Essential roles played by the dental school, faculty and undergraduates were suggested to improve the research environment.

CONCLUSION

The dental undergraduate research programme has positive effects on students' academic performance. The support of the dental school, the engagement of qualified faculty, the interest and autonomy of students and camaraderie amongst these three key elements are essential for the research programme in the future.

The effect of instructors' clinical experience on professional socialization from the perspective of nursing students: A phenomenological qualitative study

Nursing students spend efforts to be familiar with their professional roles and professional values and to understand professional behaviors, functions, and values correctly in clinical practices. First and second-year nursing students are in the early stages of professional socialization in clinical practice. In the third year, students start to reach a level at which they are aware of the professional behaviors of instructors in clinical practice in terms of professional socialization. This study aimed to determine how the effect of instructors on the professional socialization of students in clinical practice was perceived by the students. The study used a qualitative design based on Heidegger's hermeneutic phenomenological approach. First, the content of the questions in the interview form and the aim of the study were explained to the students, and then the interviews were conducted with 10 students who agreed to participate in face-to-face in-depth interviews. The data were analyzed using van Manen's thematic analysis and three themes and seven sub-themes were determined. The themes of the study were as follows: (1) It may make professional socialization easier or difficult (subthemes: "It is important to be aware of my presence"; "Unfair practices related to marks and threat with marks"), (2) Instructors' communication with nurses affects us (subthemes: "Positive atmosphere of care", "Acceptance in the clinic"), (3) I am aware of our instructors with clinical experience (subthemes: "Like someone in the clinic", "Role model with care behaviors", "Like carrying water in your palms"). In light of the results of this study, it has been understood that the clinical experience of the instructors is important. In addition, the importance of clinical experience in the employment of instructors has emerged.