Online and Face-to-Face Anatomy Dissection Labs: A Comparison of Levels of Achievement in Learning Outcomes and Perception of Learning and Satisfaction

This quantitative study examined levels of achievement in learning outcomes when using a face-to-face dissection lab compared to an online dissection lab. Constructivist theory and Understanding by Design learning framework were at the core of this research study design. Data was collected from 24 health science students at a private Midwestern university during an anatomy course. Two assessment tools were utilized to examine the research questions. The first assessment tool was three exams and the second assessment tool was a cross-sectional personal assessment perception of learning and satisfaction survey. Data was collected on learning outcomes of the exams and results of the survey. Data analysis consisted of a one-way ANOVA with a post-hoc tukey on the learning outcomes of the exams and a series of Pearson correlation coefficients were used to analyze results of the personal assessment survey. Results of the three exams revealed there was significant differences between face-to-face learning and online learning, but the results did not favor one learning modality over the other. Instead, the results implied a multi-modal learning style is successful in learning anatomy. The results from the personal assessment survey indicated significant differences in the perception and satisfaction of online learning. However, the results were diverging as they implied there is still a need for face-to-face learning in anatomy, but there is also place for online cadavers in understanding and learning anatomy.