Exploring the Learning Experience of High-Performing Preclinical Undergraduate Dental Students
A Qualitative Study
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 22045116 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Galvin Sim Siang Lin (0000-0002-3996-5470, AIMST University, corresponding author), Wen Wu Tan (0000-0002-6260-7348, AIMST University), Kelvin I Afrashtehfar (0000-0002-6053-8967, University of Bern, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2022 |
| Volume | 12 |
| Issue | 11 |
| Pages | 801 |
| Publication date | 2022-11-10 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Education Sciences (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 2227-7102 • E-ISSN: 2227-7102 |
| Publisher | MDPI AG (PUBLISHER • IT) |
| DOI | 10.3390/educsci12110801 |
| OpenAlex | W4308786321 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 1 |
| References cited | 23 |
The current study aimed to explore the perceptions of high-performing undergraduate dental students in learning dental materials science. One-on-one semi-structured interviews with high-performing students who scored 80 marks and above in dental materials were conducted using an online video-chat platform. A purposeful sampling method was employed, and six students fulfilled the criteria. The interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed qualitatively using a thematic approach. Three major themes were identified: (1) Learning strategies, (2) Learning enablers and barriers, and (3) Coping with learning challenges. Six sub-themes emerged from the “learning strategies” theme: memorizing and repeating, peer learning, seeking learning resources, study planning, paying attention during class, and mnemonics. The enabler sub-themes include motivation, lecture notes, teachers, and hands-on, whereas the barrier sub-theme is content understanding. Moreover, family support and de-stress appeared as the sub-themes in coping with learning challenges. In short, the present exploratory study identified several major themes and sub-themes that can help dental educators comprehend the complexity of learning dental materials science and how it affects students’ academic performances. The current findings also offer learning recommendations for low-performing students to improve their academic achievements in the dental materials science course
Enabling · Mathematics education · Medical education · Memorization · Pedagogy · Perception · Qualitative research · Thematic analysis · Computer Science · Dental Research and COVID-19 · Innovations in Medical Education · Medicine · Psychology · Radiology practices and education
| Citations per year | 0.33 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2023 - 2023 (1) |
| Highly cited | No |