Effectiveness of Online Education and Learning Support for Medical Radiation Science Students

Human Physiology is a course integrated into the curriculum for educating students in Medical Radiation Sciences. The subject is the basic foundation for further study in the program and is essential for professionals in this health care sector. However, the subject is also considered to be conceptually demanding even for students that take the course in the traditional in-class lecture setting (Rangel, 2010). Moreover, due to the explosion of user-friendly web applications, the student population is becoming increasingly literate in technology. Thus the student population in online courses and programs has expanded beyond just distance education but to include pre and current health care professionals (Tapsott, 2009). With this in mind, the incorporation of an online course for medical radiation sciences students was a natural evolution. The Online Basic Human Physiology Course provides more student flexibility in terms of time and location to learn the material and more support to facilitate student success. Course material (36 didactic lectures) was delivered to students in a video format that is available 24 hours a day for streaming. There are several sources of support for students in the course such as a 24/7 discussion board that is monitored by lecturers and teaching assistants (an academic and peer support network), virtual tutorials with a teaching assistant (java applet chat) and email to lecturers. Frequent online quizzes were effective in both enhancing the learning experience and improving student performance (Rao and Dicarlo, 2000). Analysis of course data, student surveys and course evaluations from the online course are comparable to the in-class course, suggesting that the online course is just as, or perhaps, more effective than the in-class course. Two cohorts of students (approximately 130 students per cohort) have completed the online Human Physiology course. Data from the 2009 online student cohort will be presented and compared to the in-class data. The framework of this course is flexible enough that it can be easily adapted in creating courses in other content areas and disciplines.