Knowledge, Perceptions and Levels of Utilisation of E-Learning among Medical Students in Nigeria

Globally, electronic learning (e-learning) is being embraced in all spheres, including the field of Medicine, where it has an engrained role in both medical education and practice.

The study aimed to assess the knowledge, perception and factors influencing the utilisation of e-learning amongst medical students in Nigeria.

It was a descriptive, cross-sectional survey. The study involved public and private medical schools across the six geopolitical zones of Nigeria. Five hundred and thirty (530) medical students responded to the online questionnaire (Google forms). Data were analyzed using SPSS version 23.0.

The mean age of the participants was 21.5 ± 3.1 years, with 60.8% being females. About three-fifths (59.5%) of the respondents were in public universities, while the remaining were in private universities. Nearly all the respondents (98.1%) were aware of e-learning. The majority believed that e-learning would be useful for lectures and seminars, but not for laboratory demonstrations, clinical demonstrations, and bedside teaching. Class of study (p = 0.002), school ownership (p = 0.034), institutions having e-learning platform (p <0.001); having received e-learning training (p <0.001)) and institution encouraging e-learning for students (p <0.001) were significant predictors of utilization of e-learning. High cost and poor internet connectivity were the most cited disadvantages of e-learning.

This study showed that e-learning is well known among Nigerian medical students, although some had never utilized it. The high financial costs, poor internet connectivity, and irregular electricity were among the major constraints to the utilization of e-learning.