MATERIALS AND METHODS: A questionnaire consisting of eight domains with 43 questions was sent to all the Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia's (UKM) dental graduates of 2019 and 2020 cohorts. The domains were as follows: (A) gathering information at chairside, (B) diagnosis, (C) treatment planning, (D) treatment and prevention, (E) community-based, (F) management and administrative, (G) communication and (H) personal management and professional development. Three additional questions were included to assess satisfaction on clinical teaching and supervision, requirements and assessment and cross-infection control.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this study, mapping of the physiology curriculum of three batches of BDS programme was conducted retrospectively. The components of the curriculum used for mapping were expected learning outcomes, curriculum content, learning opportunities, assessments and learning resources. The data were gathered by reviewing office records.

RESULTS: Descriptive analysis of the data revealed reasonable alignment between the curriculum content and questions asked in examinations for all three batches. It was found that all the expected learning outcomes were addressed in the curriculum and assessed in different assessments. Moreover, the study revealed that the physiology curriculum was contributing to majority of the programme outcomes. Nevertheless, the study could identify some gaps in the curriculum, as well.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted at a private university in Malaysia. A total of 188 undergraduate dental students were interviewed using a pre-tested and self-rated questionnaire. Data collected from participants were analysed using SPSS version 18.0. Chi-square test, Fisher's exact test and multiple logistic regression analyses were applied to study the relationship between explanatory variables and excessive Facebook use and excessive mobile texting.

RESULTS: The prevalence of excessive Facebook use and excessive mobile texting amongst undergraduate dental students was found to be 33.2% and 33.0%, respectively. According to a multivariate analysis, texting habits, such as the presence of daytime sleepiness after texting late at night (aOR = 2.682, 95% CI = 1.142-6.301) and the presence of anxious feelings if students failed to receive a timely response (aOR = 3.819, 95% CI = 1.580-9.230), were determined to be significant predictors of excessive mobile texting. Excessive Facebook use was found to be significantly related to three variables as follows: fewer numbers of close friends (aOR = 2.275, 95% CI = 1.057-4.898), the checking of updates on the Facebook walls of their friends (aOR = 2.582, 95% CI = 1.189-5.605) and the absence of active and vigorous feelings during Facebook use (aOR = 3.401, 95% CI = 1.233-9.434).

METHODOLOGY: An audio-recorded, semi-structured qualitative phone interview was conducted with the heads of 42 nursing schools across Australia (n = 35) and Malaysia (n = 7) during the 2015 academic year. Qualitative data were analysed via thematic analysis. Quantitative data, wherever appropriate, were measured for frequencies.

RESULTS: The response rate was 34.2% (n = 12) and 71.4% (n = 5) for the Australian and Malaysian subjects, respectively. Findings revealed that although all the nursing schools measured provided didactic and clinical training in oral health, curriculum content, expected learning outcomes, amount of clinical exposure and assessment approach lacked consistency. Most nursing educators across both countries perceived an overloaded curriculum as a barrier to providing oral health education. Whilst educators demonstrated their support for training in this area of care, they expressed the need for an established national guideline that highlights the educational requirement for future nurses in oral health maintenance and their scope of practice.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: A descriptive analysis was carried out using Laurie Brady's four-stage strategy. First, available curriculum materials were collected from four different institutions' electronic webpage: AIMST (Malaysia), GU (Australia), UO (New Zealand) and CMU (United Kingdom), and then compared based on three key domains: curriculum contents, teaching and learning strategies and assessments. Following that, the similarities and differences between various curricula were identified. Future recommendations and a curriculum framework were then proposed.

RESULTS: The core BDT curriculum content is concurred upon by all four universities, with an emphasis on basic sciences, laboratory materials, practical sessions and research projects. However, the credit weightage for each course or module varied across the four institutions, with some offering unique subjects and implementing different teaching methods and assessments. A simple BDT curriculum framework with a proposed syllabus was designed based on the three key domains and future recommendations for curriculum improvement were explored.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: An online search was conducted in Nov 2021 of all the dental schools in ten English-language speaking countries (U.S., Canada, U.K., Ireland, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Malaysia) to identify departments/divisions in the disciplines of periodontology, cariology, and conservative/restorative/operative dentistry. The results were then compared against the findings of a similar investigation that was conducted from July to October 2008.

RESULTS: Of the 126 dental schools identified in 2021, information was available for 93 dental schools. Of these 93 schools, only 10 listed departments/divisions/disciplines of cariology, whereas 83 and 86 schools had listed periodontology and conservative/restorative/operative dentistry, respectively. Despite a doubling of the number of dental schools with a department/division/discipline of cariology from 2008 to 2021, the absolute gap in the number of departments/divisions/disciplines in the other two disciplines compared to cariology had widened during the thirteen years. In 2008, there were 70 more departments/divisions/disciplines in periodontology compared to cariology departments/divisions/disciplines. In 2021, there were 73 more departments/divisions/disciplines in periodontology. Additional information on research output was available for 90 dental schools in 2021, where 30 schools self-identified as undertaking cariology research, whereas 68 and 47 schools undertook research in periodontology and conservative/restorative/operative dentistry, respectively.

METHODS: All second-year undergraduate Bachelor of Dental Surgery (BDS) students were invited to participate in a TBL-CBL session. These participants were randomly allocated to six different groups of 10-12 students, and the session was conducted by one lecturer as the facilitator. A 23-item questionnaire assessing four domains (perceptions of effectiveness, teacher, team interaction and learning environment) was administered at the end of the TBL-CBL session.

RESULTS: The response rate was 91.9% (n = 68). Mean scores for the questionnaire items ranged from 4.13 to 4.60 suggesting a positive perception among the students towards the hybrid TBL-CBL approach. Regarding the open-response questions, students emphasised that the TBL-CBL session was effective for team interaction and group discussions. However, students wished to have a better venue for future sessions.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: The module was developed based on the ADDIE (Analyse, Design, Develop, Implement, Evaluate) model. First, a need analysis was conducted, followed by designing the module to address the needs. Next, the module sought experts' feedback and was piloted. The revised module was implemented among all second-year undergraduate dental students. Finally, a validated questionnaire (5-point Likert scale items and open-ended questions) was used to evaluate students' learning experiences. The questionnaire Likert scale items were analysed descriptively, whereas open-ended responses were analysed using content analysis.

RESULTS: In the analysis phase, a slight misalignment in cognitive competency levels was observed, alongside a need for the inclusion of more hands-on activities. In the design phase, learning objectives and resources were listed. Subsequently, a module consisting of four teaching sessions (3 h each) was developed, and the pilot test showed favourable feedback. The module was then implemented in small groups of 10-12 students. In the evaluation phase, 72 students (97% response rate) completed the questionnaire. The majority of students agreed with all items, with mean scores ranging from 4.53 to 4.72. Open-ended responses highlighted that hands-on activities and reflective feedback sessions were useful.

METHODS: In this cross-sectional study, 30 undergraduate dental students were shown a CEREC demonstration video. Each operator then captured a digital impression using the intra-oral scanner, and a crown was subsequently milled. All participants underwent a training course before repeating the process. Marginal discrepancy for each crown on its abutment tooth was measured before and after training using a stereomicroscope and was evaluated using Wilcoxon signed rank test. The duration taken for the process was recorded before and after training and evaluated using paired t-test.

METHODOLOGY: A paper-based survey was conducted, classroom-style, on all dental students (Year 1 to Year 5, n = 336, response rate = 84.5%) using a validated questionnaire, developed from previous literature. For each BG technique, students used a visual analogue scale to mark their acceptability score; this figure was later categorised into different acceptance levels. Students' mean acceptability scores and acceptance of each BG technique were consecutively analysed via independent t test and chi-square test (significance level, P  0.01). Percentages of those who accepted communicative techniques involving parents demonstrated significant differences across subjects of different academic years, between pre-clinical and clinical groups of respondents and amongst clinical students. Other techniques with such significant differences, along with low acceptance, included modelling, voice control and disallowing the child to speak.

METHODS: Final-year dental undergraduate students from six dental public universities in Malaysia were invited to participate in an online study using a validated Dental Undergraduates Preparedness Assessment Scale DU-PAS.

RESULTS: In total, about 245 students responded to the online questionnaire yielding a response rate of 83.05%. The age range of the respondents was 23-29 years with a mean age of 24.36 (SD 0.797). The total score obtained by the respondents was ranged from 48 to 100 with a mean score of 79.56 (SD 13.495). Weaknesses were reported in several clinical skills, cognitive and behavioural attributes.

METHODS: Fifty-four dental students enrolled in 2018 were recruited as participants and assigned to two groups. Both groups were given the same lecture and asked to watch the same video in either the enhanced or non-enhanced version. The enhanced video was modified with the contemporaneous subtitle of the presenters' dialogue, text bullet points and summary text pages. The knowledge acquisition from the two types of video was subjected to pre- and post-tests one month after the students watched the video. A questionnaire was used to evaluate the students' perceptions of the learning experience and a performance test on practical skills was performed after six weeks. All the students responded to the test (100%).

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Master of Science postgraduate students in endodontics, prosthodontics, periodontics, oral surgery and implantology participated in a questionnaire-based cross-sectional study. The dental specialties were further categorised into restorative and surgical dentistry. A multiple-choice questionnaire with three clinical cases was distributed to the students. Data were analysed for trends using descriptive statistics.

RESULTS: There was a 44% response rate; the majority of respondents were from restorative dentistry specialties. Cases 1 and 2 were rated as moderate to high difficulty, and Case 3 was predominantly rated as high difficulty with procedure predictability being the main factor affecting their clinical decision-making in three cases. Endodontic retreatment was selected as the preferred treatment in Cases 1 and 2 and periradicular surgery in Case 3. The students were fairly confident in managing Cases 1 and 2, but not in Case 3. Referral patterns were consistent in Cases 1 and 2 with endodontists being the first choice of referral except for Case 3 where 48% preferred to refer to oral surgeons and 35% choosing endodontists. Some indication of differences between specialties were noted throughout. Years in practice appeared to be related to the importance of predictability in Case 3 only.