E-Learning during Covid-19 Pandemic: Experience of Teachers And Students in a Medical Institute in Nepal

Abstract

Introduction: Covid-19 has had a discernible effect on medical education globally. The higher education sector in Nepal was intensely affected by the pandemic. The necessity of educating medical students amidst Covid 19 was a challenge. The main challenges were safety issues against the highly contagious virus and adaptation to new innovative approaches to meet the education demands. Although worldwide e-learning had been well accepted and acclaimed, in Nepal it was not a popular method of teaching-learning until during the covid crisis when almost all of the medical institutions redesigned the pedagogy from physical didactic lectures to e-learning. This phase of crisis will have a long-lasting impact on medical education. Some students may experience drastic turning points in their career progression. This research paper aims to recognize the challenges of education, share the experiences of the teachers and students, and identify the advantages of e-learning in medical education during a crisis.  

Methods: This is an Observational, qualitative, cross-sectional, descriptive, and analytical online survey done using google form at Kist medical college and hospital. The participants were undergraduate medical and dental students (Year I, year II, year III, and year IV) and faculty members. 

Results: E-learning is a novel experience in Nepal, especially in the context of medical education. Only 15.2% of faculty had received formal training on conducting online classes and merely 12.1% of faculty had  conducted online classes before the onset of the crisis. 70 % of the students already had exposure to the pedagogical method in comparison to only 42 percent of the faculties. A majority of faculties seemed to be unaware of this teaching-learning method. 

Conclusion: E-learning cannot replace physical learning as it has its own limitations, however, there are certain advantages of e-learning like time-saving, addressing larger crowds over a wide range of geographical areas, during the situation like covid 19 due to safety issues. E-learning like any other pedagogical method has its norms and system, and requires adequate preparation and training, in regards to administrative, managerial, and technical beforehand to achieve adequate beneficial effects. e-learning encompasses a pedagogical approach that typically aspires to be flexible, engaging and learner–centred (one that encourages interaction )