Learning Critical Thinking in Virtual Medical Education: A Qualitative Study of Faculty Member's and Student's Experiences

Background and Critical thinking is a high priority outcome of higher education. With the ever-increasing spread of virtual courses, enhancement in the critical thinking in distance learning has become the center of attention for the stakeholders. The present study was conducted to qualitatively examine the experiences of teachers and students in teaching and learning critical thinking in medical education. Methods and Materials: In this qualitative study, 7 E-teachers and 11 postgraduate E-students of medical education were interviewed using a semi-structured method. All interviews were tape-recorded, transcribed and then analyzed through constant comparison based on Strauss and Corbin's method. Three themes were identified in this study; nature of critical thinking, critical thinking within the framework of medical education discipline; and the teaching-learning process of critical thinking in the virtual environment. The participants’ experiences indicated that the learning-teaching of critical thinking in virtual education is affected by teaching strategies, the features of course management software, creation of a learner-centered environment and the role of critical thinking as one of the objectives of curriculum and evaluation.