Nursing Students' Brain/MS Immersive Three-Dimensional Learning Activity

This study compared two educational methods. Participants were assigned to participate in a 360-degree experience or a slideshow presentation. The 360-degree video group included a brain and MS program. The comparison group was given a slideshow presentation with the same information. Participants viewed the 360-degree program or the slideshow presentation only once. The online-based materials consisted of a demographic form (age, gender, race and ethnicity, and name of school), knowledge questionnaires, and an experiential learning scale. Pre-intervention, participants were asked about demographic information, whether they had previous experience with MS, the science classes they completed in high school and college, and their knowledge of the human brain and MS pathophysiology. At both pre- and post-intervention, participants completed the Multiple Sclerosis Magnetic Resonance Imaging Knowledge Questionnaire (MSMRIKQ) and the Multiple Sclerosis Knowledge Questionnaire (MSKQ). At post-intervention, participants completed a lesson experiential questionnaire about their experience viewing either the 360-degree video or the slideshow presentation. Permission to use the three instruments was obtained from their respective copyright holders.

This quasi-experimental study assigned participants to a 360-degree video or a slideshow presentation. Outcomes assessed using the MS Knowledge Questionnaire (MSKQ), the MS Magnetic Resonance Imaging Knowledge Questionnaire (MSMRIKQ), and a post-lesson experiential questionnaire. The theory of multimedia learning and interest theory guided this study in predicting learning outcomes. The objective of this study was to design and analyze the differences and/or similarities between two intervention programs based on two different teaching methods: a 360-degree video presentation versus a slideshow presentation. Participants were assigned to participate in a 360-degree experience or a slideshow presentation. The educational content of both programs consisted of lessons on how the brain and MS interact and interrelate via neurological network. The immersive activity, 360-degree group, included a virtual brain and MS program displayed on an interactive computer screen interface. The 360-degree video allowed learners to manipulate the viewing angle of the video to look around the environment. A 360-degree video on the brain and the pathophysiology of MS displayed on an e-learning platform enabled the students to self-learn through a procedure simulation with real time feedback. The slideshow presentation included 12 slides about the brain and MS with content identical to the content of the 360-degree program. Both programs took approximately 10-15 minutes for each student to complete. The Instruments used in this study included: the MSMRIKQ, the MSKQ and a learning experience tool. A systematic convenience sampling method was used based on the students cohorts databases of the nursing schools. The main analyses were general linear regression models testing the effects of group membership, along with age, sex, and whether a participant reported previous exposure to MS. One model was run for each of the three outcomes: total scores for feelings about the program, general MSKQ, and MSMRIKQ scores. All variables were standardized or coded as dummy (0/1) variables for these analyses.

Inclusion Criteria: 1) Adult nursing students ages 18 years and older. 2) All undergraduate nursing students from undergraduate programs at three nursing schools, Hunter College Bellehool of vue School of Nursing, Mount Sinai Phillips School of Nursing, Fairfield University Nursing School. Exclusion Criteria: 1) Nursing students younger than 18 years old. 2) Nursing students from other nursing schools. 3) Graduate program nursing students.