Perception of Nepalese dental students and dental school faculty towards effectiveness of online lectures during the COVID-19 pandemic

Introduction The COVID-19 pandemic has affected the academic sector in Nepal immeasurably, forcing lockdowns of many educational institutions and restricting movement across the nation. This has enormously affected personal interaction between academics and students. As a result, online classes have emerged as a safe substitute for traditional face-to-face classes. It is important to check students’ as well as teachers’ perception of the effectiveness of online teaching, and to determine the acceptance of this mode of learning in comparison to traditional face-to face-classes within both groups. The findings of this study will help to ease educational institutions’ transition to online teaching and will give policymakers a clear vision of the effectiveness of such lectures. It may also help to formulate better plans to improve remote teaching in future. Methods This cross-sectional study was conducted among dental students and faculty of Universal College of Medical Sciences (UCMS), Bhairahawa, Nepal. A total of 170 student participants and 20 teachers were enrolled in the study, of whom 169 students and 17 teachers returned completed questionnaires. Descriptive analysis using SPSS software was carried out to determine the results. Results Satisfaction with online classes in comparison in-person classes was ‘much’ or ‘somewhat’ less for 92.3% of students (51.5%+40.8%). The figure for teachers was 40% (38.9% ‘much’ less + 11.1% ‘somewhat less’), but 100% of teachers considered interaction with students in online class to be ‘much’ (88.9%) or ‘somewhat’ (11.1%) less satisfactory compared with in-person classes, and 100% considered online class to be ‘much’ (61.1%) or ‘somewhat’ (38.9%) less satisfactory with regard to their perception of student learning. Conclusion The study records a strong preference, amongst students and faculty of the Nepalese dental school enrolled in this study, for traditional face-to-face lectures, as these are seen to provide students with the best platform to connect with their teachers and fellow students. Perceptions are influenced by workload, perceived learning outcomes, the desire for in-person interaction and opportunities to share knowledge with fellow students.