Smartphone-based evaluations of clinical placements-a useful complement to web-based evaluation tools.

Area of Science:

• Educational Technology
• Higher Education Assessment

Background:

• Web-based questionnaires are the standard for course evaluations.
• High smartphone penetration in Sweden presents opportunities for mobile-based feedback.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the advantages and disadvantages of using a smartphone app as a complement to web-based course evaluation systems.
• To assess the adoption and impact of a mobile app for course evaluations.

Main Methods:

• Developed an iPhone app for course evaluations, integrated with an existing web-based tool.
• Compared evaluations submitted via the app versus the web at Uppsala University's Faculty of Medicine (August 2012 - June 2013).

Main Results:

• 22.8% of 3,340 total evaluations were submitted via the app.
• No significant differences were found in median evaluation scores (app: 4.50 vs. web: 4.60, P=0.24).
• Similar proportions of free-text comments were provided via app (50.5%) and web (49.9%, P=0.80).

Conclusions:

• A smartphone app, as a supplement to web-based systems, achieved rapid adoption.
• Mobile apps show promise as effective tools for course evaluations, offering comparable results to web-based methods.