Technology-Supported Guidance Models to Stimulate Nursing Students' Self-Efficacy in Clinical Practice: Scoping Review.

BACKGROUND: In nursing education, bridging the gap between theoretical knowledge and practical skills is crucial for developing competence in clinical practice. Nursing students encounter challenges in acquiring these essential skills, making self-efficacy a critical component in their professional development. Self-efficacy pertains to individual's belief in their ability to perform tasks and overcome challenges, with significant implications for clinical skills acquisition and academic success. Previous research has underscored the strong link between nursing students' self-efficacy and their clinical competence. Technology has emerged as a promising tool to enhance self-efficacy by enabling personalized learning experiences and in-depth discussions. However, there is a need for a comprehensive literature review to assess the existing body of knowledge and identify research gaps. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study is to systematically map and identify gaps in published studies on the use of technology-supported guidance models to stimulate nursing students' self-efficacy in clinical practice. METHODS: This scoping review followed the framework of Arksey and O'Malley and was reported according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR). A systematic, comprehensive literature search was conducted in ERIC, CINAHL, MEDLINE, Embase, PsycINFO, and Web of Science for studies published between January 2011 and April 2023. The reference lists of the included papers were manually searched to identify additional studies. Pairs of authors screened the papers, assessed eligibility, and extracted the data. The data were thematically organized. RESULTS: A total of 8 studies were included and four thematic groups were identified: (1) technological solutions for learning support, (2) learning focus in clinical practice, (3) teaching strategies and theoretical approaches for self-efficacy, and (4) assessment of self-efficacy and complementary outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: Various technological solutions were adopted in the guidance models to stimulate the self-efficacy of nursing students in clinical practice, leading to positive findings. A total of 7 out of 8 studies presented results that were not statistically significant, highlighting the need for further refinement of the applied interventions. Nurse educators play a pivotal role in applying learning strategies and theoretical approaches to enhance nursing students' self-efficacy, but the contributions of nurse preceptors and peers should not be overlooked. Future studies should consider involving users in the intervention process and using validated instruments tailored to the studies' intervention objectives, ensuring relevance and enabling comparisons across studies.

Technology-enhanced simulation-based learning in orthodontic education: A scoping review

ABSTRACT Introduction: Technology-enhanced simulations seem to be effective in dentistry, as they can support dental students to improve competencies in simulated environments. However, implementation of this technology in orthodontic education has not been reviewed. Objective: This scoping review aimed to comprehensively summarize the use of technology-enhanced simulations in orthodontic practice. Methods: A systematic search was conducted to identify literature on technology-enhanced simulation-based learning in orthodontic education published from 2000 to 2021. The search was conducted up to September 2021 to identify articles from Scopus, Embase, PubMed, ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global, Google Scholar and the reference lists of identified articles. Results: The search identified 177 articles. Following the inclusion and exclusion criteria, 16 articles of 14 digital simulators were included in this review. The findings demonstrated an increasing use of technology-enhanced simulations in orthodontic education. They were designed in several formats, including three-dimensional virtual format, augmented reality, virtual reality, automaton, haptic, and scenario-based simulations. These simulations were implemented in varied areas of orthodontics including diagnosis and treatment planning, bracket positioning, orthodontic procedures, facial landmark, removable appliance and cephalometric tracing. Most included articles demonstrated the development process without outcome evaluation. Six studies provided outcome evaluations at reaction or learning levels. None of them provide the evaluation at behaviour and results levels. Conclusion: Insufficient evidence has been generated to demonstrate the effectiveness of technology-enhanced simulations in orthodontic education. However, high-fidelity computer-based simulations together with robust design research should be required to confirm educational impact in orthodontic education.

RESUMO Introdução: Simulações aprimoradas por tecnologia parecem ser eficazes em Odontologia, pois podem ajudar os estudantes a melhorar suas competências em ambientes simulados. No entanto, a implementação dessa tecnologia na educação ortodôntica ainda não foi revisada. Objetivo: A presente revisão de escopo teve como objetivo resumir, de forma abrangente, o uso de simulações aprimoradas por tecnologia na prática ortodôntica. Métodos: Uma busca sistemática foi realizada para identificar publicações de 2000 a 2021 sobre aprendizado na educação ortodôntica baseado em simulação aprimorada por tecnologia. A busca foi realizada até setembro de 2021 para identificar artigos na Scopus, Embase, PubMed, ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global, Google Scholar e nas listas de referências dos artigos identificados. Resultados: A busca identificou 177 artigos. Foram incluídos nessa revisão 16 artigos, com 14 simulações digitais, que atenderam aos critérios de inclusão e exclusão. Os resultados demonstraram um uso crescente de simulações aprimoradas por tecnologia na educação ortodôntica. Elas foram projetadas em vários formatos, incluindo formato tridimensional virtual, realidade aumentada, realidade virtual, autômato, háptico e simulações baseadas em cenários. Essas simulações foram implementadas em diversas áreas da Ortodontia, incluindo diagnóstico e planejamento de tratamento, posicionamento de braquetes, procedimentos ortodônticos, identificação de pontos de referência faciais, aparelhos removíveis e traçados cefalométricos. A maioria dos artigos incluídos demonstrou o processo de desenvolvimento, sem avaliar os resultados. Seis estudos forneceram avaliações de resultados em níveis de reação ou aprendizado. Nenhum deles forneceu a avaliação em níveis de comportamento e resultados. Conclusão: Não foram geradas evidências suficientes para demonstrar a eficácia das simulações aprimoradas por tecnologia na educação ortodôntica. No entanto, simulações de alta fidelidade baseadas em computador, juntamente com pesquisas robustas de design, são necessárias para confirmar o impacto educacional na área ortodôntica.

Design of a communication skills course in dentistry: Applying active-learning strategies to improve educational outcomes.

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVE: Effective communication, between patient and dentist, is a core clinical skill that commands dedicated pedagogy similar to that of developing scientific knowledge and psychomotor skills. This study aimed to describe active-learning strategies in a dental communication skills course, which sits within a broader foundation dental course and evaluate students' educational outcomes. METHODS: This is a two-phase retrospective, mono-centred study, completed in 2019 at an Australian dental school. Phase I, a case report, describes the Communication Skills for Oral Health (CSOH) course design and its active-learning strategies. Phase II analysed data from the course using Kirkpatrick's evaluation model to objectively measure the impact of the course and provide feedback to education designer. Students' perception (Level 1) was evaluated with an institutional, validated online survey. Descriptive and statistical analysis, included paired tests and Spearman's correlation analyses, used to investigate learning effect (Level 2) and student behaviour change (Level 3). To assess the impact of the CSOH course design (Level 4) the student grades from the course were analysed. RESULTS: The CSOH course encompasses three major topics: Essentials of Communication Skills, Professional-Patient Relationship and Managing Difficult Situations. Each topic included didactic content complimented with a variety of active-learning strategies to teach and assess students. Positive outcomes were recorded across all Kirkpatrick levels. CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests an efficient communication skills course design, which may assist in the development of communication skills courses in other dental education institutions.

Interactive virtual scenarios as a technological resource to improve musculoskeletal clinical reasoning skills of undergraduate physiotherapy students.

BACKGROUND: Clinical reasoning is a fundamental competency in the learning process of health professionals. Since learning with traditional methods presents difficulties, teaching with interactive virtual scenarios is a good alternative. OBJECTIVE: To describe the impact of a blended training with interactive virtual scenarios for the development of clinical reasoning skills in undergraduate physiotherapy students. METHODS: A sample of 92 students solved eight storylines. Assessment error percentage, clinical pattern recognition, satisfaction, and the perception of difficulty were obtained. A proportions test was used to compare baseline and final assessments. To analyze the relationship between the variables, multilevel univariate logistic regression models were built. RESULTS: A significant difference was observed in the error percentage between baseline and final assessment (p < .001). Comparing the last storyline to the first one, there were 2.63 times more possibilities to correctly recognize the pattern. The error percentage was associated with the opportunity to recognize the pattern precisely (p < .001). Thus, for each increasing unit in the error percentage, the possibility to correctly recognize the pattern decreased by 11% (OR = 0.89). CONCLUSIONS: The use of this innovative blended training with virtual scenarios allowed students to systematically improve their recognition abilities of clinical patterns and decrease mistakes in the decision-making process.

Use of an Adaptive e-Learning Platform as a Formative Assessment Tool in the Cardiovascular System Course Component of an MBBS Programme.

BACKGROUND: Technology-enhanced learning includes the adaptive e-learning platform, a data-driven method with computer algorithms, providing customised learning enhancing critical thinking of individual learners. "Firecracker" - an online adaptive e-learning platform, and assessment software, promotes critical thinking, helps prepare students for courses and high-stakes examinations, and evaluates progress relative to co-learners. The objectives of this study were to determine the usage rates of Firecracker, examine the performance of Firecracker formative quizzes, identify the correlation between Firecracker use and performance with that of performance at summative course assessments, and assess students' satisfaction with Firecracker usage. METHODS: Study participants were Year-2 MBBS (Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery) students (n=91) of the Faculty of Medical Sciences, The University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus, Barbados. The Firecracker Administrator uploaded quizzes covering basic science content in the Cardiovascular System course. Access, usage, and performance on Firecracker formative quizzes were retrieved from the Firecracker dashboard. A questionnaire sought the views of study participants. RESULTS: Seven sets of quizzes were administered over nine weeks, with weekly student completion rates ranging from 53% to 73%. Mean quiz scores ranged from 52% to 72%. Students completing >4 quiz sessions compared to those completing ≤4 demonstrated significantly better performance in Firecracker quizzes (P<0.01), final examinations (P<0.01) and in-course assessment plus final examination (P<0.05) scores. Correlations between overall Firecracker performance and in-course assessment marks (P<0.05); between total overall Firecracker performance and final examination (P<0.01); and overall Firecracker performance and total course marks (P<0.01) were all significant. Most students (70%) were happy using Firecracker and felt it complemented coursework (78%) and prepared them for course exams (58%) (P<0.01). CONCLUSION: Overall, Firecracker was perceived very positively and welcomed by the students. Students were satisfied with the Firecracker as a formative assessment tool, and its use correlated with improved performance in the course examinations.