Online problem-based learning in clinical dental education: Students’ self-perception and motivation

The physical closure of higher education institutions due to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) shed a brighter light on the need to analyze, explore, and implement strategies that allow the development of clinical skills in a distance learning situation. This cross-sectional study aims to assess dental students’ self-perception, motivation, organization, acquired clinical skills, and knowledge using the online problem-based learning method, through the application of a 41-item questionnaire to 118 senior students. Answers were subjected to descriptive and inferential statistics analysis. Further, a principal component analysis was performed, in order to examine the factor structure of the questionnaire. Results show that online problem-based learning can be considered a relevant learning tool when utilized within the specific context of clinical dental education, displaying benefits over the traditional learning strategy. Overall, dental students prefer a hybrid system over the conventional one, in a distance learning context, and assume self-responsibility for their own learning, while knowledge thoroughness is perceived as inferior. This online active learning method is successful in improving information and clinical ability (visual/spatial and auditory) advancement in the scope of dental education, with similar results to presential settings. Further studies are required to assess clinical skill development through active learning methods, in a distance learning context.