Modification of national OSCE due to COVID-19 - Implementation and students' feedback

Hanna Hytönen; Ritva Näpänkangas; Terhi Karaharju-Suvanto; Taina Eväsoja; Anu Kallio; Anne Kokkari; Tiina Tuononen; Satu Lahti

doi:10.1111/eje.12646

Modification of national OSCE due to COVID-19 - Implementation and students' feedback

Eur J Dent Educ. 2021 Nov;25(4):679-688. doi: 10.1111/eje.12646. Epub 2021 Jan 6.

Authors

Hanna Hytönen¹, Ritva Näpänkangas^{2

3}, Terhi Karaharju-Suvanto^{4

5}, Taina Eväsoja^{4

5}, Anu Kallio⁶, Anne Kokkari⁷, Tiina Tuononen¹, Satu Lahti⁶

Affiliations

¹ Institute of Dentistry, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Eastern Finland, Kuopio, Finland.
² Research Unit of Oral Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland.
³ Medical Research Center Oulu, Oulu University Hospital and University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland.
⁴ Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Diseases, Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland.
⁵ University Dental Clinic, Helsinki, Finland.
⁶ Department of Community Dentistry, Institute of Dentistry, University of Turku, Turku, Finland.
⁷ Institute of Dentistry, University of Turku, Turku, Finland.

PMID: 33369812
DOI: 10.1111/eje.12646

Abstract

Aim: The aims were to describe the development of a modified national online OSCE during COVID-19 and assess related student feedback.

Material and methods: The modified online OSCE comprising of eight question entities was organised simultaneously in all four dental institutes of Finland using the Moodle virtual learning environment. All fourth-year students (n = 179) attended the examination online at home. Student feedback was collected via an anonymous questionnaire with multiple-choice questions and open-ended questions concerning attitudes towards the modified online OSCE, as well as content and usability of the question entities in the examination. Means and standard deviations were calculated for multiple-choice questions. Content analysis was used for open-ended questions.

Results: Of 179 students, 119 (66%) consented to the study. Students experienced they had received adequate information (mean 3.8; SD 1.2), had a positive attitude before the examination (4.0; 1.0) and found the practice test useful (3.7; 1.1) (range 1-5). Technical implementation (2.7; 0.7) and the difficulty of the questions (2.9; 0.6) (range 1-4) were found to be good. The teaching students received during their studies was sufficient (3.2; 0.5) (range 1-4). Content (mean 3.2; 0.4) and usability (2.9; 0.4) of the question entities were good (range 1-4). The themes arising from open-ended questions were importance and practicality of the topic (in questions) in relation to the work of a dentist and gratitude for the rapid conversion of the OSCE into an online examination despite COVID-19. The themes arising from negative experiences included difficulties in completing the examination within the time allocated, and dissatisfaction with the model answers provided after the examination.

Conclusion: The positive student feedback towards the modified online OSCE encourages including an online examination to complement the traditional OSCE.

Keywords: OSCE; assessment; online learning.

MeSH terms

COVID-19*
Clinical Competence
Education, Dental
Educational Measurement
Feedback
Humans
SARS-CoV-2
Students