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The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on students' academic performance. The effects of the pandemic have varied among students, but some general trends have emerged. One of the primary challenges for students during the pandemic has been the disruption of their study habits. Students getting used to online learning routines might find it even more challenging to perform well in face to face learning. Therefore, assessing various potential risk factors associated with students low performance and its prediction is important for early intervention. As students' performance data encompass diverse behaviors, standard machine learning methods find it hard to get useful insights for beneficial practical decision making and early interventions. Therefore, this research explores regularized ensemble learning methods for effectively analyzing students' performance data and reaching valid conclusions. To this end, three pruning strategies are implemented for the random forest method. These methods are based on out-of-bag sampling, sub-sampling and sub-bagging. The pruning strategies discard trees that are adversely affected by the unusual patterns in the students data forming forests of accurate and diverse trees. The methods are illustrated on an example data collected from university students currently studying on campus in a face-to-face modality, who studied during the COVID-19 pandemic through online learning. The suggested methods outperform all the other methods considered in this paper for predicting students at the risk of academic failure. Moreover, various factors such as class attendance, students interaction, internet connectivity, pre-requisite course(s) during the restrictions, etc., are identified as the most significant features.

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Objective: The variability and opportunistic nature of surgical clinical education is the main problem for effective teaching and training of medical students. Incorporating online mediums including discussion forums, interactive videos/scenarios, static pages, and quizzes is known as blended learning (BL). This study aimed to compare the intrinsic motivation of surgical students enrolled in blended learning to those enrolled in face-to-face teaching (f2f teaching). Methods: A quasi-experimental, cross-over study was conducted in Surgical Unit-I and Surgical Unit-II of Dow University Hospital, Karachi, from March to August 2014. A total of 31 students participated and were exposed to two different teachings. For the first four weeks, Group A was posted in Surgical-I (f2f teaching) and Group B in Surgical-II (BL). Both groups were taught the same contents with the same schedule. The F2F group had clinical exposure to real patients, and small group discussions (SGDs) while The BL group students were exposed to an additional online learning component. Intrinsic Motivation Inventory (IMI) was administered at the end of four weeks and groups were swapped. Exchanged groups were again taught the same contents with the same schedule for another four weeks and IMI was administered. Results: Fifty-eight students completed IMI; 28 in f2f and 30 in BL group. There was a significant difference in all four subscales of IMI between the two groups. In three subscales, students in BL were more motivated as compared to f2f (p<0.01). Students in f2f experienced more perceived tension than in BL (p<0.048). Conclusion: This study concluded that blended surgical learning programs keep medical students more intrinsically motivated to learn. By utilizing online learning, superior educational opportunities for students can be cultivated. It can result in enhanced faculty effectiveness and efficiency as well.

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This study is designed to evaluate students' knowledge and perceptions about the online learning of pharmacy curricula in Iraq during the COVID-19 quarantine. A descriptive, cross-sectional study involving 278 pharmacy students was done between October 2020 and June 2021. About 42.44% preferred face-face lecturers over other modes of delivery for lectures in the pharmacy curriculum. Most participants preferred both active learning and face-face lectures. The results show that 72.66% of responders chose to stay at home as one of the privileges of e-learning. However, the main barriers that associated with e-learning were lack of patient involvement and some technical issues regarding IT equipment, (74.82%) and (62.23%), respectively. E-learning is seen as a lack of social presence, less social contact, and synchronization of connections. However, e-learning undoubtedly benefits students in several ways. Online learning is an essential podium for students to achieve their studies in periods of crisis.

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Purpose: As a result of COVID-19 pandemic, medical education at the Arabian Gulf University was instructed to apply online teaching instead of face-to-face for all phases of teaching at the University. Phase-1 is concerned with basic science courses delivered to year 1 students. We conducted this study to detect if there are any differences in the performance of medical students between online and face-to-face ways of learning. Also, a comparison between male and female performance in scientific courses was carried out in pre and during COVID-19 periods. Methods: The participant were first year students for pre COVID-19 period from 2018 to 2019 and during COVID-19 period from 2020 to 2021. The university used Moodle and Zoom as an online way of teaching. The students' performance in the year 1 (three-semester) -online period of teaching were compared with a three-semester-performance of conventional teaching prior to COVID-19. This is a retrospective study that attempts to shed some light on the efficiency of AGU experience in online learning for year 1 (Phase I) students. This study evaluates the outcome of both, online and face-to-face examinations for scientific courses. Results: The results showed that the mean performance of year one medical students in all basic scientific courses (Phase I) during the coronavirus pandemic was greater than the mean performance before the pandemic with the exception of the Biostatistics course. The results by gender showed that the mean performance of females was better than males across all scientific courses before coronavirus. Also, during the COVID pandemic, the mean performance of females was better than males in all basic science courses. Conclusion: Year -1 students' performance in science courses during the coronavirus period seems better than pre COVID19 era. Females' performance was better than males' in both periods; pre and during COVID -19 periods.

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Background: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic upended the educational system around the globe. During this challenging period, universities and colleges looked for other effective alternative methods of learning, such as Virtual Learning Environments (VL). Besides, Ahlia University has implemented E-learning in response to COVID-19. There needs to be more attention given to the challenges associated with technology adoption facing interior design and architecture programs, where over 60% of courses are practical, especially design studios, which form the core of the curriculum. According to a review of the relevant literature, there needs to be more research on blended learning in interior design and architecture. In order to enhance the teaching and learning of interior design and architecture, further research is required to combine cutting-edge techniques and technology. The aim of this study was to review the classroom materials for Ahlia University's interior design studio. Methods: After completing the INTD 212, INTD 216, INTD 311, and INTD 404 studios in mid-March 2022, a short Qualtrics poll was done to assess the difficulties of e-learning and offer potential consequences. Results: Though students were conveniently attending courses online, there was not much discussion and interaction like in the face-to-face model. Blended teaching in design studio courses offered many benefits. The results showed that blended design studios achieved pedagogical results as students developed their knowledge. Conclusions: Based on the findings, this research concludes that teaching and learning should be shifted from face-to-face and online learning to the best practice of a blended format.

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BACKGROUND: The acceptance of online courses by medical and dental students, especially during the coronavirus disease 2019 crisis, is substantial, as reported in various studies. However, the unfavourable online learning experiences of the students during the pandemic were also highlighted. As the teaching-learning process is returning to the "new normal," it is necessary to identify online learning domains implemented during the pandemic crisis that may be applied in pre-clinical courses in the future. METHODS: A validated Student Online Learning Readiness questionnaire assessed pre-clinical students' online learning competence. Students' academic performance in face-to-face post-pandemic was compared with their performance in online settings during the pandemic crisis. Students' satisfaction with online learning was evaluated using a self-made survey questionnaire. Descriptive statistics, the t-test, and multiple regression analysis were used to analyze the data gathered with a p-value ≤ 0.05 considered statistically significant. RESULTS: Except for social skills with classmates and groupmates, in which 47.5% of respondents indicated unreadiness, most students were prepared for online learning. Theory-wise, online learners outperformed traditional learners, but the difference was insignificant. In contrast, students' practical skills in face-to-face modality are significantly higher (p = 0.029). Students rated their satisfaction with online learning higher for interactions with instructors and staff and lower for interactions with classmates and group mates and skill acquisition. CONCLUSION: Providing high-quality pre-clinical online teaching was achieved for theoretical components but not practical skills acquisition. Students' social engagement with peers is one of the key elements crucial to online learning success. Academic leaders and curriculum developers must recognize potential gaps as they transition to online learning.

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The SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic is in constant evolution, much like the virus, and we must learn to adapt our undergraduate education and learning strategies to enable students to complete their studies. This narrative review focuses on what is currently known about the face-to-face and e-learning strategies of undergraduate medical students in resource-limited settings during the COVID-19 pandemic. The majority of studies, involving health professional students, took place in 2020. Few involved educators. Students have faced challenges with the transition to remote learning, for which a couple of interventions have been devised. Bridging the gap in access and utilisation of remote learning might have required more time, however, the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the learning curve and the transition from in-person to online learning.

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We propose a hyperscanning research design, where electroencephalographic (EEG) data were collected on an instructor and teams of learners. We compared neurophysiological measures within the frequency domain (delta, theta, alpha, and beta EEG bands) in the two conditions: face-to-face and remote settings. Data collection was carried out using wearable EEG systems. Conversational analysis was previously applied to detect comparable EEG time blocks and semantic topics. The digitalization of training can be considered a challenge but also a chance for organizations. However, if not carefully addressed, it might constitute a criticality. Limited research explored how remote, as opposed to face-to-face, training affects cognitive, (such as memory and attention), affective, and social processes in workgroups. Data showed an alpha desynchronization and, conversely, a theta and beta synchronization for the face-to-face condition. Moreover, trainees showed different patterns for beta power depending on the setting condition, with significantly increased power spectral density (PSD) in the face-to-face condition. These results highlight the relevance of neurophysiological measures in testing the e-learning process, in relation to the emotional engagement, memory encoding, and attentional processing.

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The restriction measures put in place during the COVID-19 pandemic posed notable challenges for formal teaching-learning processes because they had to be adapted to ensure health security. An active learning programme applied to three environments (indoors, outdoors, and online) was tested with 273 undergraduate university students in a within-subjects experimental study. Each student was assigned to two indoor and two outdoor seminars, with a subsample (n = 30) also participating in online seminars implemented in response to the university's lockdown protocols. The learning experience and learning conditions were evaluated through six dimensions: learning, evaluative impact, hedonic experience, technical conditions, environmental conditions, and health security. Outdoor seminars were more effective than indoor seminars in terms of the learning experience, with greater differences in hedonic experience, while the indoor seminars were rated more highly than the outdoor seminars in terms of learning conditions, with a larger difference in the environmental conditions. No differences were found between online and face-to-face environments in terms of the learning experience, even though the online environment yielded better scores in the learning conditions. Apparently, this adaptation to both outdoor and online contexts through active methodologies allows overcoming of technical, environmental, and teaching limitations and improves health security, while ensuring a good learning experience and added flexibility to teaching-learning processes. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10984-023-09456-y.

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Social distancing has been essential during the COVID-19 pandemic to slow the spread of the disease. Online learning ensures students can participate in learning activities while also maintaining a physical distance from other students. Although online learning was used to prevent the spread of COVID-19, the development of online learning has also been promoted. Here, we sought to explore the perceptions and responses of students to online learning during the pandemic using a cross-sectional study. Electronic questionnaire was used for data collection. Statistical analyses were performed for 1614 valid questionnaires and P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Overall, COVID-19 had more effect on female students, such as fear of COVID-19 (2.4 times higher than the number of male students) and length of time spent learning (H = 42.449, P < 0.05). However, the higher the students' grades were, the less the impact of COVID-19. For the style of lessons, all students would prefer shorter lessons (P < 0.05). Female and fifth-grade students were more prefer combined online and face-to-face learning, and male and freshmen students were more likely to prefer face-to-face learning after the pandemic. More than 50% of students thought the main advantage of online learning was convenience, with low efficiency being a disadvantage. The main factors negatively influencing online learning were eyestrain, poor network connections, and poor learning environments at home. In conclusion, synchronous online and face-to-face learning may become more common in future curricula, however the efficiency of online learning and the female students more attentions.

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Digital learning is becoming increasingly important in the crisis COVID-19 and is widespread in most countries. The proliferation of smart devices and 5G telecommunications systems are contributing to the development of digital learning systems as an alternative to traditional learning systems. Digital learning includes blended learning, online learning, and personalized learning which mainly depends on the use of new technologies and strategies, so digital learning is widely developed to improve education and combat emerging disasters such as COVID-19 diseases. Despite the tremendous benefits of digital learning, there are many obstacles related to the lack of digitized curriculum and collaboration between teachers and students. Therefore, many attempts have been made to improve the learning outcomes through the following strategies: collaboration, teacher convenience, personalized learning, cost and time savings through professional development, and modeling. In this study, facial expressions and heart rate are used to measure the effectiveness of digital learning systems and the level of learners' engagement in learning environments. The results showed that the proposed approach outperformed the known related works in terms of learning effectiveness. The results of this research can be used to develop a digital learning environment.

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The COVID-19 pandemic required adjustments and limitations in university teaching, thereby challenging teaching concepts in anatomy requiring in-person contact, including the gross anatomy course. Therefore, the present study investigates the impact of COVID-19-associated adjustments on students' perception of the gross anatomy course's importance and quality, students' preferred learning setting and outcome, and their motivation to involve themselves in academic activities, including becoming a future peer-teacher of the course. Using paper-based questionnaires in Ulm, Germany, 397 (response rate: 82.3%) students of the winter term of 2020/2021 were surveyed using quantitative and qualitative items, which were compared with cohorts prior to the pandemic. Students reported a higher global rating on course quality during COVID-19 (pre-COVID-19: 5.3 ± 0.9, during-COVID-19: 5.6 ± 0.7, p < 0.001; 1 = very bad, 6 = very good). Students' perceived importance of the gross anatomy course showed a small but significant increase (pre-COVID-19: 4.2 ± 0.6, during-COVID-19: 4.3 ± 0.6, p < 0.001; 1 = strongly disagree, 6 = strongly agree). Students' motivation to apply as a peer-teacher remained stable, nevertheless, they reported less interest in transferring their knowledge to junior students. Finally, students reported that they spent significantly more learning time alone and their examination grades remained unchanged during the pandemic. Astonishingly, despite radical changes of the teaching environment due to COVID-19, students appreciate the offered teaching and highly valued the gross anatomy course.

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INTRODUCTION: Electronic learning (e-learning) has evolved into a popular educational approach since the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. While this represents an additional model for teaching, traditional classroom learning fosters the development of interpersonal skills and enables students to share and discuss specific topics. However, existing research on the comparison of both these modes of learning in the field of dental education is inadequate. This study aimed to evaluate the perceptions of dental students towards both electronic and classroom learning. METHODS: A cross-sectional questionnaire-based survey was conducted between November 2022 and January 2023 among dental students in Saudi Arabia. Students were questioned on their comparative perceptions of e-learning and classroom learning before, during, and after the COVID-19 pandemic. Questionnaire responses, including demographic data, were collected and tabulated, using electronic data management software. The tabulated data were analyzed to provide descriptive statistics and compare electronic and classroom learning with demographic variables and previous experience with e-learning. RESULTS: Most respondents reported possessing average information technology (IT) skills and prior experience with e-learning. Blackboard Learning Management System (LMS) (Reston, VA: Blackboard Inc.), Zoom (San Jose, CA: Zoom Video Communications Inc.), and Microsoft Teams (Redmond, WA: Microsoft Corporation) were the most commonly used and advantageous e-learning platforms. While the majority of participants found both methods acceptable for problem-based learning sessions and theoretical lectures, they reported e-learning to be less effective than classroom learning for clinical and practical sessions. Regarding e-learning as a preferred method over classroom learning, most responses were "neutral" or "uncertain." Comparing the mean ranks of the ordinal responses for the different teaching methodologies and the nominal responses for e-learning as the preferred method, no statistically significant interactions were observed for demographic characteristics, IT-skill levels, or prior experience with e-learning. CONCLUSION: Although enhanced performance and learning capacity are enabled through e-learning, the advantages of personal interactions and the feasibility of practical and clinical dental sessions are achieved only through classroom learning.

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Blended learning approaches are considered as the most viable for the delivery of training to remote areas and accessing learners at a mass level. Blended learning is a combination of different learning approaches to facilitate the learners' needs. The National Vocational and Technical Training Commission (NAVTTC) conducted an in-service vocational teachers' training program through blended learning approaches in Pakistan. This study aimed to find the appropriate blend of face-to-face, online, and offline learning approaches for the training of in-service teachers in Pakistan. A mixed methods research approach was adopted. A survey collected data from 781 in-service vocational teachers who participated in training programs through blended learning approaches. The ANOVA test was applied to find the difference of the training participants' attitude toward different modes of learning. It was found that trainees had more positive attitude toward a face-to-face learning approach than online and the online learning approach than offline learning. Semi-structured interviews were also conducted with training participants, admission and placement officers, and principals. They also endorsed that face-to-face learning approaches must be given more weight than online, and the online approach should have more weight than the offline approach. This study has practical implications for technical education and vocational training (TVET) institutes in developing countries such as Pakistan to design blended learning approaches for the training of in-service vocational teachers. Future research may be conducted on the effectiveness of in-service vocational education teachers through blended learning.

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Purpose: The COVID-19 pandemic has caused significant disruption to medical education and clinical training and resulted in stressors that impede student learning. This study aimed to assess student satisfaction and self-efficacy in a novel online clinical clerkship curriculum delivered during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: Fourth- and fifth-year medical students completed an online survey in January 2021 covering the following areas: student satisfaction, self-efficacy, and perceived effectiveness of online versus face-to-face learning. Results: Just over half of students (51%) were satisfied with online clerkship delivery. However, fewer than half of students (46%) believed online learning effectively increased their knowledge, compared to 56% of students who believed face-to-face learning was effective. The perception of the effectiveness of online learning and face-to-face teaching for clinical skills was 18% and 89%, respectively (p < 0.0001). Few students perceived online teaching to be effective for developing social competencies (27%) compared to face-to-face instruction (67%) (p < 0.001). In addition, mean self-efficacy scores were higher for persons who perceived online teaching to be effective for increasing knowledge, improving clinical skills, and developing social competencies. Overall, students' perception of online learning was strongly associated with online self-efficacy. Conclusion: Student satisfaction and perceived self-efficacy in online learning were higher than reported acceptance of online clerkship curriculum.

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Purpose: To examine the perception of students regarding an e-learning system adopted by various educational institutions in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methodology: A web-based-survey was conducted among selected university students in Saudi Arabia. A total of 294 students were randomly chosen to determine the utilities and credibility of the adopted e-learning mode of education. The reliability of latent constructs was assessed according to Cronbach's alpha, and confirmatory factors analysis was conducted via AMOS software (version 24) to measure the students' perceptions of online learning. Results: The outcomes of the present study reveal that e-learning has been very useful throughout the pandemic period among selected Saudi Arabian universities. The students have a positive view of the online system of education, which has many benefits, including flexibility, low cost, self-learning, and convenience. Implications: The results of the present study will be beneficial for all educational institutions that are largely dependent on the findings of the online survey.

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We are experiencing a transitional period in education: from the traditional, face to face teaching model to new teaching and learning models that apply modern pedagogical approaches, utilize technological achievements and respond to current social needs. For a number of reasons including the recent pandemic covid-19 situation, technology enhanced distance learning, seems to gain ground against traditional face to face teaching and in fact, in a sharp way. Acknowledging that changes in education need time, research and careful steps in order to be successfully applied and established at large scale, in this paper we attempt to compare face to face ("traditional") teacher training with teacher training through a blended learning approach/ model. The latest combines characteristics of both face to face and distance learning models. The case study is based on a large-scale in-service teacher training initiative which has been taking place in Greece for over a decade to train teachers in the utilization and application of digital technologies in the teaching practice (i.e. B-Level ICT Teacher Training). The B-Level ICT Teacher Training was initially based exclusively on face to face teaching but it was later adapted to a specially designed blended learning model which combined both face to face and synchronous distance sessions, accompanied by asynchronous activities and supported by specific e-learning platforms and tools. The comparison refers to the effectiveness of the two models/ approaches, as it derives from teacher trainees' performance, especially in the framework of the certification procedure that takes place through nationwide, independent exams that follow the training and assesses the relevant knowledge and skills acquired. Research findings point out better performances of a small or marginal scale for the teachers of various specialties who participated in blended learning teacher training programs compared to those who participated in traditional teacher training programs. Actually, it is shown that blended learning model trainees i) feel more comfortable to participate in the exams for the certification of knowledge and skills acquired, ii) have some better success rate and iii) get a bit higher grades in these exams. Thus, it can be argued that learning outcomes of the blended learning application in this teacher training initiative, overstep those of the "traditional" model in a small scale and with some slight differentiations among teacher specialties.

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BACKGROUND: Human pathophysiology is important in undergraduate nursing education to help students develop clinical reasoning skills. Traditionally pathophysiology education in undergraduate nursing is taught face-to-face. However, eLearning in nursing curricula may provide flexible delivery options. OBJECTIVE: With increased inclusion of technology enhanced learning in nursing curricula, a hematology eLearning module was evaluated in a pathophysiology subject to determine whether it was comparable to face-to-face learning. DESIGN: Single-blind randomized pre-test/post-test controlled trial. SETTING: School of Health and Behavioural Sciences, University of the Sunshine Coast. PARTICIPANTS: A total of 271 second-year undergraduate students enrolled in Human Pathophysiology were included in the study. Students were from three bachelor programs: Nursing Science; Paramedic Science; and Clinical Exercise Physiology. Students were randomly allocated to either the experimental group (n = 85) or the control group (n = 186). METHODS: A hematology eLearning module was designed to be self-directed and learner-centered, guided by constructivist learning theories for delivery in the human pathophysiology subject. The experimental "eLearning" group completed the module independently, and the control "face-to-face" group completed equivalent paper-based activities facilitated by a tutor. All students completed a pre-test assessment and two post-test assessments two weeks after the intervention and at the end of the subject. RESULTS: There was no significant difference in assessment scores between the experimental and control groups, or between nursing and other programs. CONCLUSION: eLearning was comparable to face-to-face teaching in this study. We recommend further research to strengthen the links between pathophysiology theory to clinical reasoning skills using eLearning.

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BACKGROUND AND AIM: Traditionally, practical skills are taught on face-to-face (F-F) basis. COVID-19 pandemic brought distance learning (DL) to the spotlight because of the social distancing mandates. We sought to determine the acceptability and effectiveness of DL of basic suturing in novice learners. METHODS: A prospective randomized controlled trial involving 118 students was conducted. Participants were randomized into two groups for learning simple interrupted suturing: F-F and DL-groups. Evaluation was conducted by two assessors using a performance checklist and a global rating tool. Agreement between the assessors was calculated, and performance scores of the participants were compared. Participants' satisfaction was assessed via a questionnaire. RESULTS: Fifty-nine students were randomized to the F-F group and 59 to the DL-group. Satisfactory agreement between the assessors was demonstrated. All participants were successful in placing three interrupted sutures, with no significant difference in the performance between the groups. 25(44.6%) of the respondents in the DL-group provided negative comments related to the difficulties of remotely learning visuospatial concepts, 16(28.5%) preferred the F-F approach. CONCLUSION: DL of basic suturing is as effective as the F-F approach in novice learners. It is acceptable by the students despite the challenges related to the remote learning of practical skills.

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Personal protective equipment doffing is a complex procedure that needs to be adequately performed to prevent health care worker contamination. During the COVID-19 pandemic, junior health care workers and students of different health care professions who had not been trained to carry out such procedures were often called upon to take care of infected patients. To limit direct contact, distance teaching interventions were used, but different trials found that their impact was rather limited. We therefore designed and carried out a randomized controlled trial assessing the impact of adding a face-to-face intervention using Peyton's four-step approach to a gamified e-learning module. Sixty-five student paramedics participated in this study. The proportion of doffing sequences correctly performed was higher in the blended learning group (33.3% (95%CI 18.0 to 51.8) versus 9.7% (95%CI 2.0 to 25.8), p = 0.03). Moreover, knowledge and skill retention four to eight weeks after the teaching intervention were also higher in this group. Even though this study supports the use of a blended learning approach to teach doffing sequences, the low number of student paramedics able to adequately perform this procedure supports the need for iterative training sessions. Further studies should determine how often such sessions should be carried out.

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