The Effect of Virtual Three-Dimensional Stereoscopic Middle and Inner Ear Models on First-Year Dental Students' Short-Term Retention

Several studies in virtual three‐dimensional (3D) anatomy have shown either no difference in traditional and 3D learning among dental students or disadvantages in 3D learning over traditional learning. There are few studies in the literature that explore the effectiveness of virtual stereoscopic 3D anatomy models on dental students' learning. This study aimed to determine if virtual 3D stereoscopic anatomical models of the middle and inner ear could improve first‐year dental students' short‐term retention. This study also aimed to determine if there was a correlation between first‐year dental students' spatial abilities and their learning gains from virtual 3D anatomy exposure. During the fall 2018 semester, the first‐year dental students were invited to participate in 3D learning sessions pertaining to the middle and inner ear. Students (n=18) attended to a 3D learning session featuring virtual stereoscopic middle and inner ear models. During the learning session, the student participants completed a pre‐test before and a post‐test after the virtual 3D learning experience. At the end of the 3D learning sessions, students completed a mental rotation test (MRT) for measuring their spatial abilities and a survey for assessing their perceptions of 3D learning. The average scores on all of the students' performance measures, pre‐tests, post‐tests, and MRT's, will be analyzed using a repeated measures ANOVA. In addition, the pre‐ and post‐ knowledge test performances, respectively, of the students with high and low spatial ability will be compared using a one‐way ANOVA. The results of the statistical analyses will determine whether there is a significant difference between the pre‐ and post‐3D test scores of the first‐year dental students and whether there is a significant relationship between first‐year dental students' spatial abilities and learning. Overall, the first‐year dental students perceived the 3D learning sessions of middle and inner ear anatomy to be a positive learning experience. The use of virtual stereoscopic 3D anatomy has the potential to improve first‐year dental students' learning of the anatomy of regions as complex as the middle and inner ear when used as a supplement to traditional instruction. This abstract is from the Experimental Biology 2019 Meeting. There is no full text article associated with this abstract published in The FASEB Journal .