Effects of virtual reality simulation on medical students’ learning and motivation in human parasitology instruction: a quasi-experimental study

BMC Medical Education

Research

Jingfan Qiu¹  Lin Chen¹  Minjun Ji¹  Fei Gao²  Rong Zhang³  Lan Li⁴ 

[1] Department of Pathogen Biology, Key Laboratory of Pathogen Biology of Jiangsu Province, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China;Department of Visual Communication and Technology Education, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH, USA;National Demonstration Center for Experimental Basic Medical Education, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China;School of Teaching and Learning, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH, USA;

关键词: Virtual reality simulation;    Motivation;    Medical education;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s12909-023-04589-3

 received in 2023-03-27, accepted in 2023-08-14,  发布年份 2023

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundDespite the proven effectiveness of simulation-based learning activities, its adoption in medical education remains limited, and the influence of simulation on student motivation, particularly subjective task values, is seldom explored. This study aimed to investigate the impact of a simulation-based learning activity on student learning and subjective task values in a medical morphology-related course of Human Parasitology.MethodsA quasi-experimental study was conducted with 113 Chinese undergraduate medical students who participated in a Human Parasitology course during April to May 2022. Students were divided into two groups: Simulation Group (n = 55), where students used the simulation, and Lecture Group (n = 58), where students attended an online lecture. Students’ learning was measured prior to the intervention, immediately after the intervention, and three weeks later to assess knowledge retention. The subjective task values questionnaire was administered before and after the interventions. Data were analyzed using one-way ANCOVA and MANOVA.ResultsStudents in the Simulation Group exhibited significantly higher knowledge gain compared to the Lecture Group [F (1,110) = 23.69, p < 0.01]. Additionally, the Simulation Group retained knowledge significantly better than the Lecture Group [F (1,101) = 10.05, p < 0.005]. Furthermore, students in the Simulation Group experienced a significant increase in subjective task values after the intervention [F (3, 52) = 3.57, p < 0.05, ηp2 = 0.17], while students in the Lecture Group reported a significant decrease in subjective task values [F (3, 55) = 2.96, p < 0.05, ηp2 = 0.14].ConclusionsSimulation-based learning not only leads to superior learning but also enhances students’ subjective task values. These findings offer valuable insights into designing effective simulation-based learning experiences in medical education and have significant practical implications for educators and medical professionals.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© BioMed Central Ltd., part of Springer Nature 2023

【 图 表 】

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