key: cord-1034101-5wohbnz9
authors: Patterson, Kimberly K.; Ritwik, Priyanshi; Kerins, Carolyn A.; Adewumi, Abimbola
title: Real‐time measurement for effectiveness of novel educational endeavors during the COVID‐19 pandemic
date: 2020-08-14
journal: J Dent Educ
DOI: 10.1002/jdd.12363
sha: c23d4b14aa3c3343fc40759d8967fcc1fd8218bc
doc_id: 1034101
cord_uid: 5wohbnz9

nan

While doors to dental and hygiene institutions close, the minds and educational pursuits of students and residents do not. Being removed from the standard learning environment due to the COVID-19 pandemic posed unprecedented challenges to the educational infrastructure. Virtual classrooms and webinars became the mainstay of conveying didactic information during the shelter-in-place mandate. Several institutions created collaborative webinar sessions using virtual educational systems. Attendees used digital devices to access information during live electronic presentations. The questions become: How effective is electronic conveyance of information measured in real time? And, can information be successfully conveyed to learners at different levels of education? Assessing real-time learner understanding typically relies on facial expression and queries during live classroom interaction, yet virtual education presents barriers to modulating content delivery. Mubayrik 1 surveyed dental graduates who participated in distance learning and described a crucial limitation as difficulty in measuring outcomes and recommended adaptive learning take advantage of technology. The survey noted feedback between educator and student played a significant role in learner understanding. Learning components not yet examined are those of constructive feedback during and value of distance learning.

Four pediatric dentistry residency programs across 3 states and 2 time zones participated in a Zoom (Zoom Video Communications, San Jose, CA, USA) virtual presentation incorporating a Microsoft PowerPoint (Microsoft Corporation, Redmond, WA, USA) lecture. Participants were at varying academic progress within and across their 2-year postdoctoral programs. Mentimeter (Mentimeter, Stockholm, Sweden, www.mentimeter.com) enabled embedding multiple-choice quiz questions during the presentation to assess information knowledge and a series of multiple-choice quiz questions following the presentation to assess information retention. Fifty pediatric dental residents were able to participate in the quizzes that provided real-time feedback yet kept responses anonymous.

Mentimeter is a cloud-based package that allows presenters and recipients to interact in real time during an uploaded presentation by incorporating various formats of quiz questions and polling queries (Figure 1 ). Response anonymity eliminates intimidation while fostering participation for small groups, whereas for larger programs the data collected assists presenters in restructuring real-time content delivery for improved efficacy. Results of the presentation quiz outcomes were discussed in real-time and participants could ask questions using either electronic device microphone or chat box within the presentation. 

Data recorded during the multilocation interactive session showed participants answered 61% of 13 questions queried during the presentation correctly, and 83% of 7 questions following the presentation correctly. One final question inquired if participants felt they learned from the discussion and real-time feedback via incorporated quiz questions and participating pediatric dentistry residents reported a positive learning experience. While audience engagement software has successfully been useful in academic settings, the current application was unique in promoting active learning among different levels of learners in multiple curricular program designs. Incorporating multiple technologies is time-consuming yet resulted in positive outcomes. For future endeavors, constructing parallel pre-evaluations and postevaluations may enhance relevant learning outcomes for both presenter and participants. Involving multiple institutions reduced workload of individual programs during the COVID-19 educational dilemma.

Priyanshi Ritwik DDS MS https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0114-9619

Exploring adult learners' viewpoints and motivation regarding distance learning in medical education

Real-time measurement for effectiveness of novel educational endeavors during the COVID-19 pandemic