Pharmacy student perceptions of educational media tools

User perception is an important consideration when assessing the educational value of multimedia resources. A media tool may be proven educationally, but if the users (normally the students) perceive it as anything less than helpful, they are unlikely to obtain maximum utility from it. The aim of this study is to assess the perceived educational value of multimedia tools currently available to MPharm students (i.e. DVD, CD-ROM, handouts/practical schedules and internet resources, including streaming video media) and the factors that influenced students’ perception. MPharm students from all four cohorts of the Brighton MPharm degree pathway participated in this study. Respondents identified handouts and schedules for workshops and laboratory classes as the most useful resource, followed by internet-based resources and DVD/CD-ROM resources. Printed resources were perceived as more reliable and trustworthy compared to multimedia resources. DVD-based resources were perceived to captivate attention and maintain focus more than other resources and respondents favoured a combination of printed and electronic resources to be available. Generally, although electronic resources (particularly those which are internet-based) were positively perceived, the use of printed media, such as laboratory schedules and lecture notes, was preferred in conjunction with multimedia resources.