Umeå University's logo

Background Drawing on Donald Schön’s concepts, this article investigates the links between computer simulation training and the concepts of reflection-on-action and reflection-in-action while participating in dental and nursing trainingAim This article explores how collaborative simulation training and collaborative conventional training affect students’ reflection processes when learning to interpret radiographic images.Method This qualitative study uses interviews from 11 nursing and 18 dental students to compare the experiences of conventional training (CON-dental students) with intra-oral radiography simulation (SIM-dental students) and cervical spine simulation training (nursing students).Results The analysis showed that the simulation and conventional training influenced reflective thought processes in different ways. The SIM students concentrated on the visual information before and after they made their choices, whereas the CON students, in the absence of three-dimensional characters and reference points, focused on discussions and mutual agreements within the group to achieve a solution. The visual feedback and opportunities for manipulation provided by the simulation training encouraged the SIM-students to examine their assumptions and actions (to reflect-in-action) while solving the task. Prior knowledge served as a theoretical and methodological scheme guiding the learners’ actions and directed their reflection on their existing anatomical knowledge.Conclusions SIM and CON training provide different conditions for students’ reflective thought processes, and these differences influence how well the groups learn radiological principles.

INTRODUCTION: A simulator for virtual radiographic examinations was developed. In the virtual environment, the user can perform and analyze radiographic examinations of patient models without the use of ionizing radiation. We investigated if this simulation technique could improve education of radiology technology students. We compared student performance in the assessment of radiographic image quality after training with a conventional manikin or with the virtual radiography simulator.

METHODS: A randomized controlled experimental study involving 31 first-year radiology technology students was performed. It was organized in 4 phases as follows: (I) randomization to control or experimental group based on the results of an anatomy examination; (II) proficiency testing before training; (III) intervention (control group, exposure and analysis of radiographic images of the cervical spine of a manikin; experimental group, exposure and analysis of the cervical spine images in the virtual radiography simulator); and (IV) proficiency testing after training.

RESULTS: The experimental group showed significantly higher scores after training compared with those before training (P < 0.01). A linear mixed-effect analysis revealed a significant difference between the control and experimental groups regarding proficiency change (P = 0.01).

CONCLUSIONS: Virtual radiographic simulation is an effective tool for learning image quality assessment. Simulation can therefore be a valuable adjunct to traditional educational methods and reduce exposure to x-rays and tutoring time.

This study compares the influence of two learning conditions – a screen-based virtual reality radiology simulator and a conventional PowerPoint slide presentation – that teach radiographic interpretation to dental students working in small collaborative groups. The study focused on how the students communicated and how proficient they became at radiographic interpretation. The sample consisted of 36 participants – 20 women and 16 men – and used a pretest/posttest group design with the participants randomly assigned to either a simulation-training group (SIM) or conventional-training group (CON) with three students in each collaborative group. The proficiency tests administered before and after training assessed interpretations of spatial relations in radiographs using parallax. The training sessions were video-recorded. The results showed that SIM groups exhibited significant development between pretest and posttest results, whereas the CON groups did not. The collaboration in the CON groups involved inclusive peer discussions, thorough interpretations of the images, and extensive use of subject-specific terminology. The SIM group discussions were much more fragmented and included more action proposals based on their actions with the simulator. The different learning conditions produced different results with respect to acquiring understanding of radiographic principles.

This study analyses how changes in the design of screen-based computer simulation training influence the collaborative training process. Specifically, this study examine how the size of a group and a group’s composition influence the way these tools are used. One case study consisted of 18+18 dental students randomized into either collaborative 3D simulation training or conventional collaborative training. The students worked in groups of three. The other case consisted of 12 nursing students working in pairs (partners determined by the students) with a 3D simulator. The results showed that simulation training encouraged different types of dialogue compared to conventional training and that the communication patterns were enhanced in the nursing students ́ dyadic simulation training. The concrete changes concerning group size and the composition of the group influenced the nursing students’ engagement with the learning environment and consequently the communication patterns that emerged. These findings suggest that smaller groups will probably be more efficient than larger groups in a free collaboration setting that uses screen-based simulation training.

The aim with this study was to explore how computer assisted simulation training mediates dialogue and if there is a relationship between group size and the groups´ dialogue patterns. It is based on two cases, one consisted of 18+18 dental students randomized into either collaborative 3D simulation training or conventional collaborative training, performed in triads. The other case consisted of 12 nursing students working in self-made pairs with the 3D simulator. The results showed that simulation training encouraged different dialogue patterns in comparison to the conventional training and that these characteristics were enhanced in the nursing students´ dyadic simulation training.

This article is about collaborative learning with educational computer-assisted simulation(ECAS) in health care education. Previous research on training with a radiological virtual reality simulator has indicated positive effects on learning when compared to a more conventional alternative. Drawing upon the field of Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning, we investigate collaborative patterns, their causes, and their implications for learning. We investigate why the extent of application of subject-specific terminology differs between simulation training and more conventional training. We also investigate how the student-simulator interaction affordances produce collaborative patterns and impact learning. Proficiency tests before and after training, observations during training, and interviews after training constitute the empirical foundation. Thirty-six dentistry students volunteered for participation. The results showed that not only the task but also the medium of feedback impacts the application of subject-specific terminology. However, no relation to proficiency development was revealed.We identified turn-taking as well as dominance patterns of student-simulator interaction but again found no relation to proficiency development. Further research may give us deeper insights into if and how these collaborative patterns, in other respects, impact collaborative learning with ECAS in health care education.

The purpose of this project was to investigate the long-term effects on skill to interpret spatial information in radiographs after conventional and simulator-supported training. The study was a follow-up of a previously reported randomized experimental study. The original study population was comprised of fifty-seven dental students. Forty-five individuals agreed to participate in a follow-up study eight months after completion of the original study. During the time interval between completion of the previous study and the follow-up study, the participants underwent an examination in oral radiology and had theoretical and clinical training in other topics than oral radiology. Skill at interpreting spatial information in radiographs was assessed with a previously used test instrument. The test instrument was identical with the instrument used for baseline assessment in the original study. The results showed that the skill to interpret spatial relations in radiographs eight months after completion of simulator-supported training was significantly better (p=0.01) than before training. The conventional training showed almost the same pattern, but the difference was smaller and not statistically significant (p=0.11). It is concluded that simulator-supported training is a valuable adjunct to conventional educational methods in oral radiology.

Abstract Introduction: A radiology simulator has been developed. We tested the simulator with students in an oral radiology program for training interpretation of spatial relations in radiographs utilizing parallax. The aim of the study was to compare learning outcome regarding interpretative skill after training in the simulator vs. after conventional training.

Methods: Fifty-seven dental students voluntarily participated in a randomized experimental study. The participants' proficiency in interpretation of spatial information in radiographs and their visual-spatial ability was assessed. Proficiency was assessed by a test instrument designed by the authors and visual-spatial ability with the Mental Rotations Test, version A (MRT-A). Randomization to training group was based on pre-training proficiency test results. The experimental group trained in the simulator and the control group received conventional training. Training lasted for 90 minutes for both groups. Immediately after training a second proficiency test was performed.

Results: The proficiency test results were significantly higher after training for the experimental group (P <= 0.01), but not for the control group. Univariate variance analysis of difference in proficiency test score revealed a significant interaction effect (P = 0.03) between training group and MRT-A category; in the experimental group there was a stronger training effect among students with low level of MRT-A.

Conclusions: Training in the simulator improved skill in interpreting spatial information in radiographs when evaluated immediately after training. For individuals with low visual-spatial ability simulator based training seems to be more beneficial than conventional training.