Impact of distance learning in nursing education amidst the covid-19 pandemic: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Background

The COVID-19 pandemic has necessitated a shift to distance learning in nursing education, prompting the need to evaluate its impact on students' performance and satisfaction.

Objectives

This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to assess the effectiveness of distance learning in nursing education amidst the COVID-19 pandemic and discuss the implications of the findings.

Methods

This systematic literature review and meta-analysis study analyze the characteristics and effects of distance learning in nursing education due to the COVID 19 pandemic. The meta-analysis included studies with single-group and those with control groups. Effect sizes were calculated for various outcome measures, including professor-student interaction, professor presence, motivation, problem-solving ability, critical thinking, and satisfaction.

Results

A total of 84 studies were included in the systematic review, and 48 studies were used for the meta-analysis. The effect sizes were statistically significant for all outcome measures in the single-group studies. However, the effect sizes in the control group studies were not statistically significant for nursing performance, motivation, satisfaction, anxiety, and academic score. The heterogeneity was low for professor-student interaction but high for other outcomes.

Conclusions

Distance learning in nursing education during the COVID-19 pandemic showed significant effects on various aspects of students' learning experiences. However, there were limitations in the assessment of the control group studies, warranting further investigation with more rigorous designs. The findings suggest that distance learning can be an effective alternative in nursing education during unprecedented times such as the COVID-19 pandemic.