Evaluation of Virtual Education Experiences of Nursing Students: A Qualitative Study

During the last two decades, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, virtual teaching methods have been widely utilized in nursing education.

To investigate the effectiveness of this method, this study was conducted to explore the experiences of nursing students regarding virtual education.

This qualitative study employed a content analysis approach at Zanjan University of Medical Sciences over two academic semesters in 1400. Purposeful sampling included 20 nursing students from various academic semesters, both male and female. Data collection was conducted through semi-structured and in-depth interviews. Conventional content analysis was used to analyze the interviews, and data analysis was performed manually.

A total of 151 initial codes were extracted. After merging similar codes, 123 semantic units were ultimately organized into 21 subcategories and six main categories: Advantages and disadvantages, emotional reactions, teaching-learning process, responsibility and procrastination, motivation, and organizational factors related to virtual education based on the students' experiences.

Given the widespread use of virtual education, it is essential to identify the strengths, problems, and inhibiting factors associated with this type of education, especially in the training of medical students. Educational planners should strive to enhance the effectiveness of virtual education.