The impact of complete denture making instructional videos on self-directed learning of clinical skills

PurposeThe aim of this research was to evaluate the effectiveness of a clinical instructional video with a structured worksheet for independent self-study in a complete denture program.Methods47 multilingual dental students completed a task by watching an instructional video with subtitles regarding clinical complete denture procedures. After completion, students evaluated their learning experience, and 11 students participated in focus group interviews to gain further insight. A mixed-methods approach to data collection and analysis provided descriptive statistical results and a grounded theory approach to coding identified key concepts and categories from the qualitative data.ResultsOver 70% of students had favorable opinions of the learning experience and indicated that the speed and length of the video were appropriate. Highly positive and conflicting negative comments regarding the use of subtitles showed both preferences for subtitles over audio and vice versa. The use of a video resource was considered valuable as the replay and review functions allowed better visualization of the procedures, which was considered a good recap tool for the clinical demonstration. It was also a better revision aid than textbooks. So, if the students were able to view these videos at will, they believed that videos supplemented their self-study. Despite the positive response, videos were not considered to replace live clinical demonstrations.ConclusionsWhile students preferred live demonstrations over the clinical videos they did express a realization of these as a supplemental learning material for self-study based on their ease of access, use for revision, and prior to clinical preparation.