Attitudes and Satisfaction of Medical Sciences Students with Electronic Exams at Birjand University of Medical Sciences

Abstract

Background: Assessing student attitudes and satisfaction with electronic exams (e-exams) is crucial to evaluating e-learning. Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate students' attitudes and satisfaction regarding e-exams during COVID-19. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 620 volunteer students of Birjand University of Medical Sciences (BUMS), who were selected based on random sampling method. The data collection tool was a researcher-made questionnaire with three sections of demographic information, attitude (including six dimensions and 19 questions), and satisfaction (including nine dimensions and 19 questions). A 5-point Likert scale was used for scoring, and the data were analyzed using t-test, ANOVA, and Pearson correlation coefficient at the significant level of 0.05. Results: In this study, 620 students (56% women and 44% men) participated from June to September 2020. The mean age was 21.97 ± 3.27, and the mean students' attitude and satisfaction score was 59.18 ± 7.99 and 65.73 ± 10.05, respectively. The mean attitude and satisfaction scores by gender were not significantly different. The mean attitude and satisfaction scores regarding academic semester (P-values = 0.001 and 0.019, respectively), faculty (P-values = 0.001 and 0.002, respectively) and degree (P-values < 0.001 and = 0.006, respectively) were significantly different. A positive and significant correlation was found between students' attitudes and students' satisfaction, as well as between students' age and attitudes. Conclusions: According to the results, overall attitude and satisfaction were excellent and above average. Better attitudes toward e-exams were associated with a higher satisfaction level. E-exam validity and reliability concerns should be addressed in order to improve students' attitudes.