Medical Students’ Attitudes and Learning Outcomes Regarding Virtual versus Traditional Teaching Methods in a General English Course

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Department of General Courses, School of Medicine, Gonabad University of Medical Sciences, Gonabad, Iran

2 Student Research Committee, Faculty of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran

3 Department of General Courses, Faculty of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran

Abstract

Background: Virtual education methods are rapidly increasing as the most prevalent approaches to teaching and learning globally. This study investigated medical students’ attitudes and learning outcomes regarding virtual versus traditional teaching methods in a general English course.
Method: This cross-sectional study was conducted at Mashhad University of Medical Sciences during 2022-2023. The sample (n=107) consisted of all students enrolled in a general English course and selected through convenience sampling. Fifty percent of the English lessons were delivered virtually via Adobe Connect, the NAVID system, and, to a lesser extent, WhatsApp and Telegram App. The remaining lessons were presented in-person. Then, students completed an attitude questionnaire comparing virtual and traditional teaching methods. The collected data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics with SPSS software V.21.
Results: The results showed the mean attitude score towards traditional and virtual education methods were 96.30±11.11 and 96.66±11.74, respectively. There was no significant difference in attitude scores between male and female students in both methods (p<0.05). Similarly, there was no significant difference in English test scores between genders (p=0.59). The Wilcoxon test indicated no significant difference between students’ attitudes towards virtual and traditional education (p=0.52). Additionally, no significant correlation was found between students’ grades and their attitudes towards either of the teaching methods (p=0.63).
Conclusion: The findings suggest that students’ attitudes towards virtual education were slightly more favorable than towards traditional education although the difference was not statistically significant. Therefore, virtual education can be considered a viable option for teaching theoretical courses.

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References

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Future of Medical Education Journal
Volume 16, Issue 1
March 2026
Pages 23-31

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