Abstract
Dear Editors:
E-learning has revolutionized medical education, with medical students turning to online networks to enhance their learning. 1 Meducation is the largest free Web site that provides online quizzes, tutorials, videos, and peer-to-peer problem-based learning to a worldwide population of medical students. Our aim was to investigate the proportion of medical students in Wales who use online learning resources.
Meducation provided anonymous data from Google Analytics for the number of users accessing the site from Wales over the past 3 years. Cardiff and Swansea Schools of Medicine supplied us with the figures to calculate the total number of medical students studying in Wales.
Over the past 3 years the number of students who access the Web site from Wales has been increasing. In 2010, a total number of 623 medical students from Wales used Meducation, compared with 771 in 2011 and 1,220 in 2012. This compares with a total of 1,534 Cardiff medical undergraduates and 210 Swansea medical undergraduates as of the 2012–2013 academic year. Thus, the percentage using Meducation in 2012-2013 was a staggering 70%.
This small poll is the first of its kind and provides vital information to medical educators. It proves e-learning is used by the majority of students and that this usage is still increasing year upon year. This reflects an increase in use of community e-learning sites such as Meducation by the “computer generation.” 2
In conclusion, online tools heighten and augment the knowledge and understanding of medicine for students. 3 Interactive resources surpass generic educational sites by providing peer-to-peer discussions and work contribution, which leads to more effectual learning. 4