Effectiveness of The Wikipedia Collaboration of Dental Schools' Training Programme: a new Paradigm for Teaching and Learning of Evidence-Based Dentistry

BACKGROUND: The Wikipedia Collaboration of Dental Schools (WCODS) is a student-led initiative that aims to publish high quality scientific, evidence-based dental content on the Wikipedia online encyclopaedia by equipping its members to use research, critical appraisal and writing skills to create accurate content. In 2019, the Collaboration launched a standardised training programme developed by Wikimedia-trained committee members, academic dental school staff and the Cochrane Oral Health global community.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effectiveness of this training programme in ensuring WCODS editors follow the processes underpinning Evidence-Based Dentistry (EBD).

METHOD: A cohort of dental students and staff (n=136) from six dental schools in the UK and Malaysia took part in a standardised and structured training programme at the annual WCODS training meeting. Participants' abilities and their perceived levels of confidence in carrying out critical analysis of the literature were measured using pre- and post-training surveys, and competency assessments.

RESULTS: Participants' skills in conducting literature searches, critical appraisal of the findings and creating and editing a Wikipedia page improved after training.

CONCLUSION: The training programme provided participants with the skill set and confidence to apply best practice to create and edit Wikipedia entries. This Collaboration intends to recruit more contributors to improve global oral health literacy using the free online Wikipedia encyclopaedia.