One academic year under COVID-19 conditions: two multicenter cross-sectional evaluation studies among medical students in Bavarian medical schools, Germany students' needs, difficulties, and concerns about digital teaching and learning.
Christopher Holzmann-Littig, Nina L Zerban, Clara Storm, Lilian Ulhaas, Mona Pfeiffer, Alexander Kotz, Marjo Wijnen-Meijer, Stephanie Keil, Johanna Huber
Author Information
Christopher Holzmann-Littig: TUM Medical Education Center, Faculty of Medicine, Technical University of Munich, Munich, Germany. christopher.holzmann-littig@mri.tum.de.
Nina L Zerban: Institute of Medical Teaching and Medical Education Research, University Hospital of Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany.
Clara Storm: Institute for Medical Education, University Hospital, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität Munich, Munich, Germany.
Lilian Ulhaas: Faculty of Medicine, Dean's Office and Department of Medical Education Augsburg DEMEDA, Augsburg University, Augsburg, Germany.
Mona Pfeiffer: Institute for Medical Education, University Hospital, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität Munich, Munich, Germany.
Alexander Kotz: Faculty of Medicine, Office of the Dean for Student Affairs, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Erlangen, Germany.
Marjo Wijnen-Meijer: TUM Medical Education Center, Faculty of Medicine, Technical University of Munich, Munich, Germany.
Stephanie Keil: Faculty of Medicine, Dean's Office, University of Regensburg, Regensburg, Germany.
Johanna Huber: Institute for Medical Education, University Hospital, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität Munich, Munich, Germany.
BACKGROUND: Since March 2020, COVID-19 has created a need for adaptation in many areas of life. This study explores medical students' perspectives on digital teaching under conditions of the COVID-19 pandemic. It focuses on expectations and concerns about digital teaching, the evaluation of specific aspects of teaching, and requests for future teaching. METHODS: Six German faculties have joined forces within the Bavarian network for medical education to develop and deploy a common core questionnaire. Cross-sectional surveys were conducted at the end of the summer semester 2020 and winter semester 2020/21. Medical students from different semesters participated in the online survey. Data was analyzed descriptively and/or inferentially. Item differences across semesters were examined using contingency tables and Chi tests. Mean values were compared using the independent samples t-test; answer frequencies in retrospective and prospective concerns were compared using contingency tables and Chi tests with Yates' correction. RESULTS: In the summer semester 2020, 1565 students and in winter semester 2020/21, 1727 students took part in the survey. Students' main prospective concern was lack of social exchange between fellow students (70%), but also with teachers. Second and third most often concerns were a lack of practical training (68%) and lack of integration of on-site digital teaching (50%). Approximately 7% of the students lacked sufficient access to technical equipment.. Approximately 39% of the students lacked a sufficient internet connection for synchronous digital teaching, 17% for asynchronous digital teaching. On-site teaching was the preferred form of teaching (60%), and there was a preference for asynchronous (24%) over synchronous (15%) digital teaching. Teaching recordings (79%) were particularly popular to complement future on-site teaching. CONCLUSIONS: The following areas of education under COVID-19 conditions are highly important to medical students: adequacy of information sharing, integration of opportunities for exchange with fellow students and teachers, possibility to perform practical trainings. After the normalization of the pandemic situation, on-site teaching should be supplemented with blended learning concepts such as the inverted classroom model. Percentages of results are rounded averages from summer and winter semesters.
