Perception from students regarding online synchronous interactive teaching in the clinical year during COVID-19 pandemic

AIM: The global pandemic of COVID-19 has led to extensive practice of online learning. Our main objective is to compare different online synchronous interactive learning activities to evaluate students’ perceptions. Moreover, we also aim to identify factors influencing their perceptions in these classes. METHODS: A cross-sectional, questionnaire-based study focusing on clinical year medical students’ perceptions and feedback was conducted between February 2021 –June 2021 at the University of Hong Kong. Online learning activities were divided into bedside teaching, practical skill session, problem-based learning (PBL) or tutorial, and lecture. A questionnaire based on the Dundee Ready Education Environment Measure (DREEM) was distributed to 716 clinical year students to document their perceptions. RESULTS: One hundred responses were received with a response rate of 15.4% (110/716, including 96 from bedside teaching, 67 from practical skill session, 104 from PBL/tutorial, and 101 from lecture). For the mean score of the DREEM-extracted questionnaire, online PBL/tutorial scored the highest (2.72 ± 0.54), while bedside scored the lowest (2.38 ± 0.68, p = 0.001). Meanwhile, there was no significant difference when we compared different school years (p = 0.39), age (p = 0.37), gender (p = 1.00), year of internet experience (<17 vs ≥17 years p = 0.59), or prior online class experience (p = 0.62). When asked about students’ preference for online vs face-to-face classes. Students showed higher preferences for online PBL/tutorial (2.06 ± 0.75) and lectures (2.27 ± 0.81). Distraction remains a significant problem across all four learning activities. A multivariate analysis was performed regarding students’ reported behavior in comparison with their perception through the DREEM-extracted questionnaire. The results showed that good audio and video quality had a significant and positive correlation with their perception of online bedside teaching, practical skill sessions, and PBL/tutorial. It also showed that the use of the video camera correlated with an increase in perception scores for lectures. CONCLUSION: The present analysis has demonstrated that students’ perception of different online synchronous interactive learning activities varies. Further investigations are required on minimizing distraction during online classes. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12909-022-03958-8.