Revolution in modern teaching in dentistry since the appearance of the COVID-19 pandemic: A review

Abstract

Dentistry schools have attempted to overcome the challenges imposed by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic through teaching via the Internet with the use of virtual platforms, designed to simulate face-to-face interaction and counteract the social isolation affecting the integral development of students. This review searched the main health databases, including MEDLINE via PubMed, Scopus and LILACS, and selected 31 articles to proceed with the research. During the pandemic, platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Zoom, Google Meet, and other similar tools allowed teachers to develop dynamic slides and dental models to simulate procedures, which played an important role in the course of mainly theoretical classes. In addition, applications such as WhatsApp allowed the rapid acquisition and sharing of useful information on a specific topic. While virtual resources facilitate the learning process through generating interest as well as providing accurate, necessary, valuable, and easily accessible infor-mation, which is constantly updated, the disadvantages of remote learning include the lack of instruments, infrastructure and materials, apart from supervision, to promote personal development and progressive evolution to directly treat patients. Another issue with regard to virtual learning is whether within a short period of time students can achieve a comparable level of practical skills as in the case of the conventional learning. In conclusion, the current pandemic has changed not only the use of technology in education, but also educational strategies for the future.