New vs. old - A randomised cross over study on the effectiveness of digital and analog learning methods for learning anatomical structures in physiotherapy education

Abstract

Abstract Background According to the German Physiotherapy Education and Qualification Regulations, teaching of anatomical structures is one of the fundamental subjects of physiotherapy education. Besides exhibits and models, anatomy atlases are usually used as teaching and learning tools. These are available in both analog form as printed books or in digital form as a mobile application. Furthermore, the use of digital teaching and learning tools is steadily increasing within the education of health professionals. Aim To assess the efficacy of a digital educational tool in contrast to an analog anatomical atlas in acquiring knowledge about anatomical structures. Material and method: Data collection took place in the context of an anatomy tutorial for students of the bachelor's degree program in physiotherapy. In a cross-over design, the students completed two learning assignments, each with different learning materials provided, either with an anatomy app on a tablet or with an anatomy atlas as a book. The tests to assess knowledge immediately after the task, consisted of questions about the anatomical structures of the knee as well as the shoulder. In addition, the students' satisfaction with the learning materials provided, their assessment of the learning success and their affinity to digital learning materials were surveyed with a questionnaire using a 5-point Likert scale and a free-text field. The data was analysed descriptively and the group differences were calculated using t-tests. Results Thirty students participated. The group comparison showed a significantly better outcome for the group that prepared with the analog anatomy atlas for the questions on the knee than the comparison group that used the anatomy app (t(28) = 2.6; p = 0.007). For the questions concerning the shoulder, there was no significant difference between the digital and analog groups (t(28) = 1.14; p = 0.26). The questionnaire showed that satisfaction with the analog anatomy atlas was significantly higher than with the anatomy app. 93.34% rated at least "somewhat satisfied" in the question about the analog learning tool. In contrast, 72.67% of students partially or fully agreed that they "enjoy learning with digital learning tools”. Discussion Learning anatomical structures with digital learning tools does not offer a clear advantage over learning with analog learning tools. The results of the questionnaire also show greater satisfaction with the analog anatomy atlas than with the anatomy app. Whereas most students stated that they also learn anatomical structures themselves with digital learning tools. Satisfaction with the learning tool seems to play a central role in their effectiveness. In addition, sufficient time must be provided for users to familiarize themselves with the user interface as well as the digital applications in order to use them effectively.