Evaluation of Distance Anatomy Education During the COVID-19 Pandemic Based on Student Feedback

Aim: Following the COVID-19 pandemic, anatomy courses, previously taught in person at the Faculty of Medicine and Faculty of Dentistry, were offered remotely through the Selçuk University Distance Education Center starting March 16, 2020. Anatomy courses given to first and second-year students of the Faculty of Medicine and the Faculty of Dentistry were conducted face-to-face before the pandemic and remotely after the pandemic. The aim of this study is to evaluate student opinions regarding anatomy theoretical and practical courses conducted face-to-face and distance education. Materials and Methods: 227 first-and second-year students from the Selçuk University Faculty of Medicine and 130 first-and second-year students from the Selçuk University Faculty of Dentistry, who received face-to-face education before the pandemic and distance education during the pandemic in the 2019–2020 academic year, participated in our study voluntarily. A three-part survey, prepared using Google Forms, was sent to the volunteers, and the data were analyzed using SPSS 22.0 software program. Results: 79% of the students who participated in the study stated that they followed the courses using a computer. 87% of the students from the Faculty of Dentistry and 89% of the students from the Faculty of Medicine expressed a preference for practical anatomy education to be conducted face-to-face. Regarding theoretical anatomy education, 50% of the students from the Faculty of Dentistry indicated that they would prefer online video lectures, while this rate was 44% among the Faculty of Medicine students. Conclusion: Despite the technologies that enable online distance learning, acquiring anatomical knowledge through hands-on experience with models and cadavers in the laboratory is considered the ideal learning method. In our study, it was concluded that, when conditions allow, face-to-face education is the preferred method for both theoretical and practical anatomy courses in terms of learning effectiveness.