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A Look at How Technology Has Shifted Dental Education

by squintero

October 3, 2023

Image of students with patient.

As technology continues to advance at a rapid pace, it’s no surprise that the field of dentistry has not been left behind. From advanced imaging and diagnostic tools to new techniques for treating oral health issues, technology is transforming the way dentists practice and the way dental students are educated. When considering a career in dentistry, it’s important to understand how these innovations are changing the face of the industry, and how they will shape future education and careers as dental professionals.

With advancements in technology such as multimedia and live video, as well as digital simulations for surgical procedures, students are able to learn more clearly and with a greater level of personal engagement. This can also prepare a dental student to embrace the benefits technology offers their profession in the future, such as efficiency in laser dentistry and AI.

Below, is a detailed look at how technology has shifted dental education, noting a list of benefits of these advancements, in addition to answering some frequently-asked-questions. By the conclusion, it should be clear that any dental school truly preparing its student for the future is training them in these new technologies to make them practice ready!

3 Ways Dental Education Has Evolved with Technology

Technology is an ever-evolving partner in the way we live our lives. It has been used throughout the ages to optimize efficiency in work, play, and, of course, education. Trying to understand how technology has shifted the landscape of dental education can be a daunting task.

We’ve organized the information into a list of 3 ways technology has transformed dental education below:

  1. Learning Material is More Engaging
  2. Multimedia Creates Clarity
  3. Assessment is Accurate

Let’s look more closely at each of these three examples. In doing so, all prospective dental students can understand and get excited about everything a  school on the cutting-edge of technology’s advancements has to offer.

Learning Material is More Engaging

The average dental student needs to learn around 8 years’ worth of curriculum in order to achieve their dental degree. The first semester of dental school alone is generally 30 credit hours. With all of that time and effort placed into filling your head with knowledge, it is vitally important to make learning efficient and engaging.

This is what technology has brought to the table in recent years, especially when it comes to dental school. Students can engage in online group discussion forums, form study groups virtually, and of course, learn from electronic textbooks.

These E-Books often come with exclusive access to online codes leading to additional facts and video tutorials on their subjects. A professor may even use technology to link these textbooks to optional quizzes, making self-assessment easier than ever before for the dedicated student.

Multimedia Creates Clarity

More to the point, not only is the learning material that students directly interact with more engaging, but so are the presentations and methods of teaching that a professor can use.

For example, according to the Journal of Education and Learning published by the Canadian Center of Science and Education, the most common form of demonstrating an operational process to a dental student was with the use of a mannikin with lifelike dental features.

As useful as this was in allowing students to see what their textbooks had described, even this has improved in recent years. Nowadays, professors are capable of using live video feeds to broadcast an up-close look at what they are doing in a patient’s mouth, as the procedure goes on.

Even more helpful are the 3D models used to showcase the anatomy of the jaw and teeth, easily navigated with the use of computer technology in the classroom. This is not to mention the access that a professor has to build an entire presentation, blending PowerPoint with video-graphic examples, for a dental student to learn from more clearly.

Rather than having to memorize a list of facts or a step-by-step procedure on paper, students are now able to see the procedure performed in new ways and walk away with a clearer understanding of how to perform it themselves, all thanks to innovation in technology.

Assessment is Accurate

Finally, a student whose learning and developing skillsets that are not accurately assessed by their professor is not set up for success. In the past, professors have been capable of assessing their students through the limited means of face-to-face interactions and standardized tests.

Now, as previously mentioned, technological advancements have broadened a teacher’s reach when it comes to measuring their student’s progress. Through E-learning, online teaching apps, and even management apps for the classroom, a professor’s ability to assess what their students need gets closer and closer to real-time.

The Benefits of New Dental Technologies

As a student preparing to enter dental school, it will greatly add to the excitement if you understand just what advantages there are to using these new dental technologies. These new dentistry techniques not only help patients, but will provide you, the dentist-in-training, with methods that grow your ability to do your job with excellence!

Let’s take a look at a sample of new dental technologies and their benefits below:

  • Benefits of Digital Dentistry – Digital dentistry is a term that encompasses the use of dental technologies or devices that incorporate digital or computer-controlled components to carry out dental procedures rather than using mechanical or electrical instruments. These new tools can make dental procedures more efficient and precise than using traditional mechanical instruments and tools, both for restorative and diagnostic purposes.
  • Benefits of Laser Surgery – Laser surgery is new, but it has proven itself to be fast, accurate, and much less painful than traditional tools used in dental operations. Laser surgery greatly reduces the risk of infection or even excessive bleeding, as well as anxiety, in a patient.
  • Benefits of Artificial Intelligence – AI may create mixed emotions across humanity, but there is no doubt that artificial intelligence software is making administrative tasks easier across all fields. In dentistry, this means that both appointment management and even detection of dental diseases will be made more efficient.
  • Benefits of Remineralization – According to Med City News, rather than utilizing invasive treatments such as surgery to stop tooth decay, dentists are turning to technology’s remineralization process. Some of these include accelerated mineralization to teeth that are prone to decay! These are, again, less invasive and preventative.

These types of advanced dental treatments are thanks to technology, and their benefits are being taught in great dental schools around the world to develop competent and engaged students.

Frequently Asked Questions

When looking at a topic as vast as education, or technology, you’re bound to have new questions as you learn. To provide as much of the exciting relevance of technology to dentistry as we can, we’ve answered some of the most frequently asked questions of prospective dental students below:

What are some of the changes dentistry has gone through during the 21st century?

There have been a plethora of changes in modern dentistry, especially through the 21st century, as the speed with which technology grows increases its momentum. However, some of the most noteworthy have been the advent of electronically created new materials for filling or crowning teeth. Gone are the days of using amalgam or even gold.

As previously mentioned, a more intense focus on the accuracy of a diagnosis, as well as the accuracy of a surgery or restoration of teeth, has been achieved with technology. This is largely thanks to digital x-rays and, as touched on above, laser surgery.

How has dentistry changed in the last 10 years?

Dentistry has changed in the last ten years by adopting computer-assisted manufacturing, in tandem with computer-assisted design. These software advancements have allowed dentists to design crowns and bridges to perfection, then create them for a perfect fit that greatly benefits patients.

How does technology help you as a dentist?

Though we have covered some of the benefits of the most recent advancements in dental technology, it’s not surprising that a dental student would seek to understand exactly what makes technology helpful to their career.

Perhaps the biggest aid innovation has given to a dentist is in the relationship between a patient and their dentist. Very few people look forward to a trip to the dentist. It is unsurprising that most cite the long amount of time even a simple operation may take and the discomfort associated with the experience as reasons why.

However, time spent in a dentist’s office and the discomfort created by necessary dental tools are both cut down significantly. With laser surgery, patients do not have to feel the vibration of anxiety-inducing drills. With the advent of AI, administrative elements like scheduling an appointment are more streamlined.

The whole process is faster and overall, more pleasant thanks to dental technology advancements, meaning patients can look forward to their time spent with a dentist while experiencing less trepidation.

In Conclusion

Taking a look at how technology has shifted dental education proves that professors are capable of teaching their students with greater efficiency. This can be done by providing engaging learning materials, such as electronic textbooks with built-in quizzes on the plethora of medical information a dental student needs to know.

Not only this information, but anything a professor needs to communicate with clarity can be done using the multimedia technology a dental professor has access to. Presentations can look like anything from a video presentation to a simulation of dental operations to a 3D model of necessary implants.

With more engaging materials to work with, students can learn not only everything they need to become professionals in the field of dentistry; they can also adopt an excitement for new technology, in general. With an efficient and engaging learning experience, your mind will be open to all the benefits laser surgery, digital dentistry, and even AI have to offer a dentist.

Colleges:

College of Dental Medicine

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