What we do and why
Our aim
Our aim is simple: to help dental professionals practice to the best of their abilities with the ultimate goal of better patient care.
Why E-learning?
Dentistry is rapidly evolving with constant advances and changes in biological science, clinical management, dental technologies and regulatory requirements. Keeping abreast with these developments is not a simple matter. Most dentists have traditionally used face-to-face methods of training, in particular lectures, in combination with journals for their postgraduate education. However there are not enough courses and teachers to service the growing demand, and as educational activities they have some shortcomings: how much do you remember from the last lecture you attended?
E-learning has some significant benefits. Perhaps the most immediate are the removal of geographical and time barriers because e-learning courses are delivered using your computer (and that includes some of the latest mobile phones). There’s no need to travel and you can learn when it suits you and not the course organiser. They also tend to be considerably less expensive. One criticism sometimes levelled at e-learning is that it is a solitary endeavour and can leave the learner isolated when interaction with peers would be beneficial. However it is now possible to participate in virtual meetings for live training along with others who may be down to road or on another continent. Barriers are falling.
Whilst these logistical and financial benefits are important e-learning also offers important pedagogical ones. Wouldn’t it be useful to listen to that lecture again? Or test your knowledge with interactive quizzes complete with feedback? How about 3D graphics to illustrate complex anatomy, or videos seen from the operator’s point of view?
We believe that e-learning should harness the unique attributes that the technology offers and not simply a facsimile of traditional methods. It should be flexible, informing and engaging, putting the learner in control. This is why we offer a range of e-learning resources to suit different needs: journal CPD quizzes, peer-reviewed courses on CD-ROM and online together with live and on-demand webinars. These may be used in their own right or integrated with face-to-face training (“blended learning”) as part of formal training programmes.
CPD: Verifiable and General
All of our e-learning resources comply with the General Dental Council’s requirements for verifiable CPD. Courses have specified learning aims, objectives and outcomes, and a certification to show completion of a course is available. Feedback may be provided formally using the evaluation forms or informally.
Our site may also be used for general CPD, in particular the discussion forums.
Meaningful CPD
The General Dental Council does not quality assure verifiable CPD; responsibility for this lies with the consumer of the training, the dental professional. This means that there can be considerable variation in what is available and it can be much easier to obtain certification from some providers than others.
Our CD-ROM titles have been through an exhaustive peer-review process and our webinars are presented by subject matter experts. Taking time to reflect on a learning experience is recognised as an integral part of the educational process. Our evaluation forms assist this and are required before a certificate is issued for any of our live webinars. On-demand courses require completion of the entire course as well as passing the integral quizzes – but don’t worry - we provide the answers to questions once a quiz has been completed so you can review your answers and re-submit if required. What this means is that our certificates confirm that you have engaged with your learning and participated in meaningful CPD; you should complete our courses knowing more than you did when you started!
Summary
E-learning has much to offer dentists and dental care professionals in making the most of their chosen career. Our products have received consistent independent recognition from the profession as well as the audio-visual and e-learning industries. We hope that you will join our ever-growing “Community of practice”, whether it is to earn an hour of CPD or to join our band of live “webinarers”. You can find out what an on-demand webinar is like free of charge and if you look out for our emails you might even get your first live webinar free too.
We look forward to welcoming you.
