An investigation of dental students' perceptions about the characteristics of effective instructors and their related factors

Background The characteristics of effective teachers can be used to improve student learning, support their academic achievement outcomes and promote faculty development and career advancement. Objectives To assess dental students' perceptions about the characteristics of effective instructors and related factors. Materials and Methods This cross-sectional study analysed data collected from students at a dental college in Saudi Arabia. A pilot-tested questionnaire with satisfactory internal consistency was distributed amongst all students. The questionnaire contained 21 items related to the characteristics of effective instructors on a 5-point Likert-type scale. Student's t test was performed to analyse the association of factors like gender, last year's GPA, academic year, paternal income, education and employment with three highly rated items of the characteristics of effective teachers. Results The response rate was 85.4%. There were 53.6% female and 46.4% male students in the study. The provision of learning resources (mean 4.3 +/- 1.06), demonstration of honesty, ethics and integrity (mean 4.28 +/- 0.99) and showing respect and caring attitude (mean 4.24 +/- 0.94) were three most highly rated characteristics of effective instructors. Using the latest technology, acting as a role model and maintaining class discipline were the least rated traits of good teachers. A significantly higher percentage of female students considered these three items more important than male students (P < 0.05). The students with last year GPA > 4 considered providing learning material as an attribute of effective teacher significantly more important than the students with GPA <= 4 (P < 0.001). In addition, the characteristics of effective instructors (75.1%) were considered more important in providing students with rewarding learning experience than their teaching experience (15.4%) and educational attainment (9.5%). Conclusion The most important attributes of effective teachers included providing learning resources, demonstrating honesty/integrity and showing respect/care.