Anat Biol Anthropol.  2023 Jun;36(2):51-58. 10.11637/aba.2023.36.2.51.

Learner Experience on Anatomy Learning with Virtual Reality in a Medical College

• Jeong H
• Kang WS
• Kim J
• Yoon SP

• KMID: 2549038
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.11637/aba.2023.36.2.51

Abstract

As traditional face-to-face educations have been threatened under Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, variant and more flexible teaching and learning methods should be considered in anatomy education with cadavers. We received a grant from “University Innovation-Support Project” in Jeju National University with a title “Education improvement with virtual reality (VR) in medical science”, and MDBOX VR with head-mounted display was introduced in 2022. In the University, students had learned anatomy with textbooks, lecture notes, cadavers, E-anatomy (e-anatomy.or.kr), and applications (including Complete Anatomy and Human Anatomy Atlas) as well as MDBOX VR. Students used the MDBOX VR without teachers’ intervention during the regular course of “Human Body: Structure and Function-I” (gross anatomy and neuroanatomy), and learner experience was freely answered on lecture evaluation questionnaire. Learners preferred textbooks, lecture notes, and cadavers to MDBOX VR for anatomy learning. Learners agreed to that MDBOX VR is able to make them understand each movement or 3-D structures, but disagreed to that MDBOX VR will eventually replace the dissection course. Despite the pros and cons of MDBOX VR, learner experience was summarized as “less realistic than cadavers, less convenient than the applications”. Although this survey on VR showed conflicting results in anatomy learning, the era requires integrating virtual teaching and learning in medical education. Anatomists should consider the proper teaching methods using the technology-based blended learning with VR.

Keyword

Anatomy; Cadaver; Education; Questionnaire; Virtual reality