Abstract

*S. S. N. Kowmudi, P. Radhakumari and R. Nageswara Rao

ABSTRACT

Background: Educational environment of an institution affects learning and has a significant role in determining student’s academic achievement. The World Federation of Medical Education, in 1998, highlighted the learning environment as one of the targets for the evaluation of medical education programs. Students’ perception of learning environment is important aspect for evaluation and improvement of the educational program. To determine the perception of medical graduates about the educational environment Dundee Ready Education Environment Measure (DREEM scale) which was originally developed by Dundee and has been validated as a universal diagnostic inventory for assessing the quality of educational environment of different institutions. The present study aims to assess the perception on education among medical students in Guntur medical college using DREEM scale. Materials and methods: A descriptive cross-sectional questionnaire-based study was conducted among fifth (137) and seventh (183) semester medical students in Guntur medical college, Guntur. The 50-item DREEM questionnaire was used to collect the data. The items were scored based on a 5-point Likert scale. Analysis was done using MS excel and SPSS. Results: The mean total DREEM score was 121/200(121.76±26.20).The mean total DREEM score for fifth semester was 118/200 (118.78±26.06) and for seventh semester was 123/200 (123.99±26.71) .The interpretation of the overall scores is as follows: 0–50: very poor; 51–100: plenty of problems; 101–150: more positive than negative; and 151–200: excellent. 20.3% (65) of study population said plenty of problems, 69.7% (223) said more positive than negative,10% (32) said excellent .The general perceptions of students in all five sub scales were positive. Conclusion: The students’ perception of learning, their teachers, atmosphere, and their academics and social self-perception were found to be satisfactory, not excellent. A better support system from the staff and senior students would help to overcome most of the deficiencies in the institution.