Attitude and Use of E-Learning, education by medical students in Shiraz, Iran

Abstract

Introduction: This study aimed to explore the use of e-learning in medical education in Shiraz, Iran.Materials and Methods: A convenience sample of 300 medical students of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences was interviewed using a structured questionnaire. The questionnaire contained a series of questions on the demographic characteristics, accessibility to computer and internet, use of internet for medical education and training, familiarity with e-learning, and the reasons for use of computer.Results: A total of 270 participants completed their questionnaires, 30.7% students reported familiarity with e-learning, 21.3% found e-learning beneficial, 57.6% used internet for education, 43.4% considered e-learning useful for medical education, and 57.9% students thought e-learning must be more prevalent in medical education. Most of the students (78.5%) used their personal computer for e-learning, only 6.3% did not use the computer for education.Conclusion: Considering the increasing role of computer and internet in daily life, the current results indicate that the attitude of the participants towards e-learning was positive. However, medical students have to be made aware of the advantages of e-learning. Technological limitations were less compared to reports from the other developing countries.