ABSTRACT

Netiquettes are general rules and customs governing social and professional interactions that are considered acceptable.

Objectives: To explore Teachers' perceptions of netiquette practices by undergraduate dental students during online classes in COVID-19 pandemic.

Study Design:  Descriptive cross-sectional Study.

Methodology: Research was conducted in two leading private dental colleges of twin cities. Convenience sampling was done to obtain data. A self-constructed questionnaire comprising of open and close ended questions was disseminated to the dental faculty of both colleges through What’s App groups.

Statistical analysis: SPSS software, v 21 analyzed data.

Results:  Responses from ninety-seven participants showed that students exhibited a casual attitude in online classes and showed lack of interest and motivation. Issues like absenteeism, distraction during classes and use of unfair means during exams were prevalent. Teachers were of the opinion that students should be guided properly on how to attend online classes and provided with constructive feedback. Faculty had a general idea about "netiquettes., however, there was a significant lack of formal knowledge regarding netiquette rules and standards. On account of this, most of the participants reported the lack of institutional guidelines for netiquette standards and practices.  Therefore, a need for documented netiquettes policy in educational institutes was suggested.

Conclusion:  We concluded that accrediting bodies and medical institutions should formulate a policy of netiquette practices. Implementation of netiquette practices in the undergraduate curriculum is the need of time.