An evaluation of online learning to teach practical competencies in undergraduate health science students

• Limited objective evidence regarding online learning and practical skills.
• We measured outcome variables in 2 groups (classroom based and online).
• Classroom based were more effective at complex, technical elements of the skill.
• Online learning was a comparable delivery modality for all other assessed elements.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the use of online delivery as a pedagogical approach to teach the practical and theoretical skills required for resting ECG electrode placement and interpretation.ResultsComparable results were found for all variables between the two groups, apart from electrode placement, whereby students in the classroom based group were significantly more accurate than their counterparts in the online group (p < 0.05). The effect size of this difference was large (0.91), whereas the effect size for all other measured variables were classified as small (0–0.49).ConclusionOnline learning is an effective study mode in both theoretical and practical application; however consideration must be taken of the types of practical skills which it is used for. More complex practical skills requiring haptic awareness may best be delivered within a classroom setting if feasible, whereby the instructor can provide immediate feedback.