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14PEDAGOGICAL SCIENCES
THE PROSPECTS OF DISTANCE LEARNING IMPLEMENTATION AT MEDICAL UNIVERSITIES
Zhukovskyi O.
Higher State Educational Establishment of Ukraine "Bukovinian State Medical University ", Chernivtsi
ABSTRACT
The article presents the main advantages and disadvantages of distance learning in medicine. Certain problems and difficulties in introduction of this teaching method at the pre- and post-graduate levels of medical education are outlined.
Keywords: distance learning, medical education.
Digitalization of education, implementation of innovative approaches to the educational process have created conditions for the organization of learning courses, applying distance forms of learning. Nowadays distance learning has considerable spread in the whole world. What does distance learning mean? Distance learning means interrelations between the instructor and student at a distance including all the components peculiar for the educational process (objectives, content, methods, organization forms, teaching aids), and it is realized by means of specific measures of internet technologies or other methods assuming interactivity. Distance learning has been widely applied at the post-graduate training - pre-attestation cycles, advanced qualification and professional courses etc. On the one hand, development of distance learning is stipulated by social requirements - intensive technology changes requiring practically uninterrupted retraining of the staff; introduction of complicated systems and technologies with a limited number of instructors; without giving up work by many professionals for a long period of time; necessity to involve a wide range of population into learning and education. On the other hand, development of distance learning promoted a wide range of up-to-date mobile computer technologies enabling to implement it successfully. Distance learning enables to solve effectively urgent educational issues today: continuous learning for life, uninterrupted professional training, "without boundaries" learning in the interactive mode, and effective educational work.
The issues concerning implementation of distance learning in the medical educational institutions remains disputable. On the one hand, advantages of distance learning are: possibility to study for a great number of learners at a time, making educational process easier for individuals with limited physical abilities, technological effectiveness - learning and teaching using up-to-date software and technical means make this method of education more effective. Material constituent is of no less value. Analysis of functioning of the world educational systems indicates that expenses on distance learning on an average constitute approximately 50% of those on traditional forms of education. The cost of advanced qualification training at a full-time regimen includes: tuition fee, transport expenses, residing at a hotel, meals, as well as wages charged even when an employee is absent at his/her working place. Moreover,
when a professional is not at work his/her job is done by another specialist who receives excess fare for additional load. Expenses on similar training of a specialist by means of distance learning including those on connection, fee for the teaching staff, organization and other expenses mentioned above, are approximately twice as less.
Opponents to introduce distance learning in medicine believe that mastering practical skills, which is the main component in teaching future medical specialists, is not possible in this way. An absolute reasonable question arises: "Is it possible to train an individual to have manual skills distantly?" After all, the profession of a doctor includes performing various operations and manipulations.
Yet, there is another view that introduction of distance learning in medical educational institutions is not only possible, but essential. Naturally, training practical skills require a traditional face-to-face contact, though all the theoretical training and exercises teaching to make decisions can be organized distantly. In order to distribute the time for distance and traditional "phases" the curriculum should be carefully transformed. Thus, for example, certain medical universities have two forms of education: full-time and correspondence one. When the correspondence form of education is applied, which is possible at pharmaceutical faculty, there is a real possibility to use distance learning technology successfully.
Distance learning is an ideal and the most optimal form of post-graduate training and qualification advance, since it helps to solve a number of issues occurring in front of a certified specialist. There are the following variants of distance learning at the post-graduate training courses:
training courses, retraining and re-qualification;
seminars and conferences;
master classes;
lecture cycles;
certificate cycles;
presentations of pharmaceutical agents, medical equipment and technology.
Naturally, it should be noted that medical education has its own peculiarities associated with instructor-student, doctor-patient relations. Though even in such cases distance learning demonstrates its mobility. Distance learning technology can be successfully applied
for the 1-3-year full-time students when they study theoretical courses with a partial presence of an instructor, when practical and laboratory classes are held.
Thus, when minimal human and technical resources are available, distance learning courses are quite possibly organized together with traditional methods of education. Experimental courses organized on the basis of appropriate departments of an educational institution and clinical departments on the basis of therapeutic-preventive establishments can serve as the foundation to introduce the above technology.
Implementation of distance learning technologies promotes the necessity to overview the software and methodical provision of the educational process, to elaborate and introduce a wide range of methods to fulfill such an education, and transformation of a pedagogical vision to teach subjects. The instructor performs new roles and functions within the system of distance learning. Requirements to teaching/learning differ considerably from the traditional ones. The notion "students" is not defined within the system of distance learning. They are often called learners, and the base of their educational process with distance learning is un-supervised work in a comfortable place, rate and time. At the same time, learners are able to communicate with the instructor and with one another both face-to-face and by means of additional technical aids (e-mail, video conferences etc.). In case of implementation of distance learning technologies learners find themselves under new conditions not only because they can be at a long distance, be involved in some kinds of activities, but they are given certain "freedom" in learning. At the same time, they should be competent to use this freedom. High requirements are imposed concerning personal features of learners: self-discipline and organization, persistence, commitment, honesty etc. They should master the fundamentals of methods and techniques of individual work, abilities to work with electron-technical means (computers, computer networks, multimedia systems etc.). Thus, education maintained by distance learning technology requires certain preparation for studies: initial level of knowledge, abilities, skills and material-technical supply of a working place. Sometimes opponents of distance learning indicate this fact as a possibility to create additional "material inequality" in getting education.
There is one more substantial problem of distance learning - lack of a direct contact between a learner and an instructor, certain difficulties in the context of "asking" what and how it should be done, and "to show" and "to explain" how it is done. Due to this fact distance learning requires development of detailed step-by-step instructions for every kind of work. Unfortunately, many students are not conscious enough and often they simply copy ready-made projects of other students. Therefore, there is a need to develop a number of variants of various tasks and send them individually to every learner. It requires much more work intensity and time of an instructor than those for traditional
4. Дистанционное обучение в медицине. http: ресурс].
forms. Development and design of educational materials (video lectures, teaching manuals, textbooks, guidelines, tasks for practical work), methods of control (data base of tests, test papers), their further checking and even virtual communication with learners require much time as well. All the on-line work with learners is individual. After checking the tasks mistakes and remarks are indicated for every student. Undoubtedly, the quality of distance learning depends on material-technical support, since the work is individual with every student. The qualitative and regular work of the website can be provided by highly qualified IT-specialists available, as well as deep technical training of both instructors and learners.
The system of distance learning and advanced professional training of medical specialists should consists of the following constituents: organization of distance lectures, seminars with a comprehensive learning of the lecture material read before; practical classes on various methods of diagnostics, treatment and surgery, as well as individual telemedicine consultations. Though nowadays the problem of lack of instructors able to develop and implement distance learning courses is rather acute. Without doubt, special training is essential to be competent both in technical and methodical issues: for example, the designer of the course should determine succession and correlation of a distance and traditional portion of learning adequately.
While summing up, it should be noted that nowadays proper conditions are created to provide effective distance medical learning and advanced professional training in various fields of diagnostics, treatment or surgery. Most likely, in the nearest future we will be able to say that distance learning technologies are successfully implemented into the educational process in many medical educational institutions.
References
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