2017 Spring Dental Assistant Student SLO Assessment Survey
Dental Assistant Spring 2017 Student SLO Report Spring 2017 - Dental Assistant July 27th 2017, 8:49 am MDT Q3 - What did you like about this program? What did you like about this program? I liked that we were able to experience dental specialties vs. only being offered spots in general dentistry office. Variety of ways we learned. I liked the instructors teaching us in class, giving us activities to complete and then completing hands on in lab. XXXXX especially spent more time with us in the lab making sure each of us understood what we were learning. I liked the combination of lab, lecture, and clinical that you get when you are in this program. The time period is long enough but also hits all the necessary requirements for our technical degree. Before I started this program I knew the very basic about the mouth and now I can name all of the numbers of the teeth, 10+ procedures, 75+ instruments, and post op instructions for all general dental procedures. You learn so much in a such a short time it can become overwhelming but the program is set up really well. I enjoyed learning about the dental field and what kind of procedures dental assistants work with. I also enjoyed learning about everything a dental assistant may be able to help with. I liked the clinical experience and I think that is important; hands on learning is really the best way people would be able learn and get to understand the dental field. I think it was highly beneficial to have the clinic we were able to work with to get that hands on experience as well. I loved getting to know everyone in the program and it was nice to make lifelong friends. I think I learned adequate information to get a good understanding of the dental field and what we might expect. What I liked about this program was all of the hands-on experience I was given. This helped me out a lot with getting to learn and really know the different procedures and tasks that I need to know as a dental assistant working out in an office. It was hands on and you get a feel for how many dental offices do procedures different way. I really think it is a strong program and I have learned quite a bit. I really enjoyed the hands on experience I was able to have during this program. I feel so much more confident now at the end of the semester compared to the beginning of the semester because of all the hands on learning I experienced in lab and out in clinical. I love that we get the chance to go out into clinical throughout the program. the fact that we were able to actually participate in activities that were set up in the lab. Even though we were not working on actual patients, we were able to make it feel real and I think that this was a great learning tool It was something completely new and not what I expected at all. lots of hands on I liked the material that was taught and my instructor Lisa. Lots of hands on learning Q4 - What would you change about this program? What would you change about this program? I think it would be nice if distance between the clinical sites and a students home were taken more into consideration. When you live more than an hour away from the clinical site, and they open at 6:30am, this can present dangerous driving conditions for the students, especially during the winter and for those who live in rural settings. I also feel that clinical sites who do not allow or offer students the chance to assist during procedures should NOT be clinical sites anymore. Observing for 10 hours in a day, for 7 out of 8 weeks is not the most beneficial use of the students time, nor an adequate setting in which to learn and PRACTICE chairside assisting. If the DDS or Dental Assistants are unwilling to provide a learning environment, then that clinical site should not be utilized. This puts an unnecessary burden on the student is who not receiving the proper experience and opportunity to practice chairside assisting and procedure techniques. I personally feel like 70 hours of my clinical experience was wasted, due to the unwillingness of the DDS/DA's to allow me to assist during clinicals. XXXXX was less approachable, I felt more comfortable talking with XXXXX one on one. XXXXX make us all feel valued as students. The only thing I would change would maybe do a course from the fall and put it in the summer term before you start in the fall, that way students wont feel so overwhelmed in the fall semester. That time is when you are learning so much new information that 7 courses is a lot to handle. Maybe putting one of the fall courses into the summer course along with the dental health and safety would be a good idea. I think that the radiography class could have a few more changes for first semester. I believe that it would be beneficial to practice placements on our peers more often. The mannequins were helpful, but practicing on a live patient is more realistic. I learned a lot in that class, but I felt that I was not very confident in taking x-rays. I would hope that for future classes, practicing on peers jut for placements, would help them feel more confident. I enjoyed dental chairside class as well, however I wish that we would have gotten to be able to practice procedures a bit more, and suctioning on mannequins or even our peers. I feel like that would have helped me be more confident in the clinical field. The lab experience in that class was more beneficial I think than most lectures. The lectures were definitely helpful, however, the hands on learning is really what helped me. I think communication between the instructors was good, however I sometimes felt that we always had things from all classes due on the same day. As I understand that it is college and it isn't going to be made easy, for me to really focus on one project, its hard to do that when I am focused on other things as well. I just sometimes felt stretched for time in the sense that everything was due on the same day. More practice sitting chairside I do feel like we rush through a lot of things, and with that I did not pick up on things as good. There are things that we were taught or learned that I still feel like I do not understand the best because we did not spend enough time with it. I feel like I could know more then what I do. none Unnecessary things that were taught in different classes that could have served a purpose somewhere else. spend more time in lab One more instructor. Q6 - As a result of this program: I have learned effective communication skills. # Answer % Count 1 Strongly Disagree 7.14% 1 5 Strongly Agree 78.57% 11 3 Neither Agree nor Disagree 0.00% 0 2 Disagree 0.00% 0 4 Agree 14.29% 2 Total 100% 14 Q7 - Provide any comments you have on effective communication skills you learned. I think it would be beneficial to teach students how to explain procedures, dental instruments, and operatory equipment to young children who are visiting the dentist for the first time. We were constantly being reminded correct terminology! I learned how to talk professionally. Q8 - As a result of this program: I am able to apply mathematical concepts. # Answer % Count 1 Strongly Disagree 7.14% 1 5 Strongly Agree 71.43% 10 3 Neither Agree nor Disagree 7.14% 1 2 Disagree 0.00% 0 4 Agree 14.29% 2 Total 100% 14 Q9 - Provide any comments you have on mathematical concepts you learned. every class we used Math I use it when mixing cements or impressions. I don't think we did a lot of mathematical things in this program. Q10 - As a result of this program: I learned how to transfer social and natural science theories into practical applications. # Answer % Count 1 Strongly Disagree 7.14% 1 2 Disagree 0.00% 0 3 Neither Agree nor Disagree 0.00% 0 4 Agree 21.43% 3 5 Strongly Agree 71.43% 10 Total 100% 14 Q11 - Provide any comments you have on transferring social and natural science theories into practical applications. Taking dental anatomy and learning oral pathology in depth has really helped me out in understanding more procedures that are performed, what's expected to be normal and abnormal in the oral environment, the different complications a patient could have, and getting to know the anatomy of the mouth. Q12 - As a result of this program: I learned critical thinking skills. # Answer % Count 1 Strongly Disagree 7.14% 1 2 Disagree 0.00% 0 3 Neither Agree nor Disagree 0.00% 0 4 Agree 14.29% 2 5 Strongly Agree 78.57% 11 Total 100% 14 Q13 - Provide any comments you have on critical thinking skills you learned. Critical thinking ALL the time We are constantly thinking critically through it this program and it really prepares us while out on the job because we will be thinking critically everyday. Q14 - As a result of this program: I have learned to use technology effectively. # Answer % Count 1 Strongly Disagree 7.14% 1 2 Disagree 0.00% 0 3 Neither Agree nor Disagree 0.00% 0 4 Agree 21.43% 3 5 Strongly Agree 71.43% 10 Total 100% 14 Q15 - Provide any comments you have on what you learned about using technology effectively. we used open dental for dental office management and both chairside courses. Really like going to local dental office learning about implants. A lot of what we do in the field as dental assistants is work on the computer. There are a handful of different dental programs that we see at our clinical sites. However the program that we use on campus in our clinic is different than any other clinical site that anyone has been to. I think we should invest in updating our system to a more popular one such as eaglesoft or dentrix. Q16 - As a result of this program: I have learned to value myself and work ethically with others in a diverse... # Answer % Count 1 Strongly Disagree 7.14% 1 2 Disagree 0.00% 0 3 Neither Agree nor Disagree 0.00% 0 4 Agree 14.29% 2 5 Strongly Agree 78.57% 11 Total 100% 14 Q17 - Provide any comments you have on what you learned about valuing yourself and working ethically with others in a diverse population. Yes, we did a lot of project, looking at working with diverse population and how to treat them in a dental office. Q18 - As a result of this program: I am able to make decisions that incorporate the importance of sustainability. # Answer % Count 1 Strongly Disagree 7.14% 1 2 Disagree 0.00% 0 3 Neither Agree nor Disagree 0.00% 0 4 Agree 35.71% 5 5 Strongly Agree 57.14% 8 Total 100% 14 Q19 - Provide any comments you have on what you learned about incorporating the importance of sustainability in decisions you make. Q21 - As a result of this program, I learned to: perform a variety of advanced supportive dental procedures. # Answer % Count 1 Strongly Disagree 7.14% 1 2 Disagree 0.00% 0 3 Neither Agree nor Disagree 0.00% 0 4 Agree 28.57% 4 5 Strongly Agree 64.29% 9 Total 100% 14 Q22 - Provide any comments you have about learning this program outcome. yes, Chairside courses we learned and had hands on activities with all the speicalities Clinical was great for this! You really learn a lot! Q23 - As a result of this program, I learned to: manage infection and hazard control. # Answer % Count 1 Strongly Disagree 7.14% 1 2 Disagree 0.00% 0 3 Neither Agree nor Disagree 0.00% 0 4 Agree 7.14% 1 5 Strongly Agree 85.71% 12 Total 100% 14 Q24 - Provide any comments you have about learning this program outcome. Use your UTILITY GLOVES!! In the beginning of the program you are required to take a dental health safety class, and this really helped out with learning infectious control and being able to apply what we learned in this class out working in a real office. Q25 - As a result of this program, I learned to: produce diagnostic intraoral and extraoral radiographs on a variety of patients. # Answer % Count 1 Strongly Disagree 7.14% 1 2 Disagree 0.00% 0 3 Neither Agree nor Disagree 0.00% 0 4 Agree 21.43% 3 5 Strongly Agree 71.43% 10 Total 100% 14 Q26 - Provide any comments you have about learning this program outcome. I feel confident taking radiographs. Now I need daily practice to perfect my skills. Although this class was difficult for most, getting the hands on experience right away for exposing radiographs was a huge help in my learning for taking dental radiographs. Transitioning from a manikin to a real person was the hardest, but being able to take radiographs during the second semester in clinical really helped me learn how to take radiographs on different kinds of people. Q27 - As a result of this program, I learned to: perform advanced dental laboratory procedures. # Answer % Count 1 Strongly Disagree 7.14% 1 2 Disagree 0.00% 0 3 Neither Agree nor Disagree 0.00% 0 4 Agree 28.57% 4 5 Strongly Agree 64.29% 9 Total 100% 14 Q28 - Provide any comments you have about learning this program outcome. Q29 - As a result of this program, I learned to: demonstrate professional behaviors, ethics and appearance. # Answer % Count 1 Strongly Disagree 7.14% 1 2 Disagree 0.00% 0 3 Neither Agree nor Disagree 0.00% 0 4 Agree 14.29% 2 5 Strongly Agree 78.57% 11 Total 100% 14 Q30 - Provide any comments you have about learning this program outcome. That ethics class is a good course. Q31 - As a result of this program, I learned to: perform dental office business procedures. # Answer % Count 1 Strongly Disagree 7.14% 1 2 Disagree 0.00% 0 3 Neither Agree nor Disagree 0.00% 0 4 Agree 35.71% 5 5 Strongly Agree 57.14% 8 Total 100% 14 Q32 - Provide any comments you have about learning this program outcome. It was hard to have an accelerated course but great in other ways. Yes, we learned a lot! Again, XXXXX was great at meeting with us to explain a concept we didn't get or talk further in class about something. She has lots of experiences she talked about which really help us all I do agree to the business procedures, but we really do go over that stuff while out in clinical. Q33 - CONCLUSION Please use this space to share any other feedback, comments, or suggestions about your experience at Western Technical College. Western has 2 amazing instructors teaching the DA program I think that since we pay so much for our education that we shouldn't be giving the instructors the option to kick us out of the program. We have had many students this past year get kicked out of our program due to test scores not meeting instructors standards or clinical offices not having the best reviews. However I don't believe that the instructors should have the power to kick anyone out of the program due to not receiving a 75% or having one clinical office not like them. Although I have not had any trouble with keeping my grades up or not getting along with my clinical site I think by giving the instructors this power they are taking advantage of it. I understand there are rules that you must follow and certain criteria you must meet but certain requirements made up by the instructor should be changed. It was an awesome experience and I have learned a lot! Instructors are great, can be a little hard on you but that is only for the better. I am so happy to be completing my degree here at Western. I have been a student here for a few years trying to figure out what I want to do. I took this program and I am so happy I did. Course was great and the instructors made it fun. Learning a lot over the course of 9 months but the instructors did a great job to help us learn all the information. It was obvious that both instructors would have favorites in classes and give them more of their time during class. Good job! Q30 - Topics Answer Total % Count 100% 0
