Students' learning environment perception and the transition to clinical training in dentistry

The learning environment (LE) influences students' behaviour, and predicts academic achievement, satisfaction and success. Measuring students' perception of the LE provides relevant information for curricular quality assurance. In this study, a LE assessment was used to observe variations in students' LE perception throughout the curriculum, to illustrate the possible influence that preclinical training (Pt) and clinical training (Ct) have on students' learning experience.

All students in the six-year undergraduate dental programme (n = 849) at the Academic Centre for Dentistry Amsterdam (ACTA) were approached and divided into Pt and Ct groups according to their training phase in the curriculum. The LE was assessed using the Dundee Ready Educational Environment Measure (DREEM), and the results were evaluated using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) software for distribution (Kolmogorov-Smirnov normality test), internal reliability (Cronbach's alpha) and comparative analysis (one-way ANOVA).

The questionnaire was completed by 216 (response rate=65%) Pt students and by 379 (response rate=75%) Ct students. With a general DREEM score of 124.3, significantly higher scores were found during Pt (DREEM=133.4) in comparison with the Ct phase of the curriculum (DREEM=119.2). DREEM scores steadily decreased throughout the 6-year curriculum, with the highest drops in LE perception observed in the second and third years of the programme. Significant differences in all DREEM domains were observed, with lower scores for Ct.

Students' LE perception deteriorates throughout the curriculum, especially within the Pt-Ct transition, during the second and third years of the programme. An inferior LE perception was observed in every domain of the LE questionnaire within this transition showing a learning experience, which requires an educational intervention. Further research is required to better understand the educational needs of the Pt-Ct transition at this school.