Cologne intergrating curriculum dentistry

ISRCTN	ISRCTN14319000
DOI	https://doi.org/10.1186/ISRCTN14319000
Sponsor	University of Cologne
Funder	Quality Improvement Comission (Qualitätsverbesserungskommission) of the Medical Faculty, University of Cologne, Germany

Submission date: 28/09/2026
Registration date: 30/09/2026
Last edited: 29/09/2026

Recruitment status: No longer recruiting
Overall study status: Completed
Condition category: Oral Health

Prospectively registered

Protocol

Statistical analysis plan

Results

Individual participant data

Record updated in last year

Plain English summary of protocol

Not provided at time of registration

Contact information

Prof Anna Greta Barbe
Principal investigator

University of Cologne, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, Polyclinic for Operative Dentistry and Periodontology, Kerpener Strasse 32
Cologne
50931
Germany

Phone	+49 221 478 3156
Email	greta.barbe@uk-koeln.de

Dr Nora Marie Eckhardt
Public, Scientific

University of Cologne, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, Polyclinic for Operative Dentistry and Periodontology, Kerpener Strasse 32
Cologne
50931
Germany

ORCID ID	0000-0003-2730-4103
Phone	+49 221 478 3156
Email	marie.eckhardt@uk-koeln.de

Dr Sonja Henny Maria Derman
Scientific, Public

University of Cologne, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, Polyclinic for Operative Dentistry and Periodontology, Kerpener Strasse 32
Cologne
50931
Germany

Phone	+49 221 478 3156
Email	sonja.derman@uk-koeln.de

Study information

Primary study design	Interventional
Allocation	Non-randomized controlled trial
Masking	Open (masking not used)
Control	Historical
Assignment	Parallel
Purpose	Educational improvement of the clinical dental curriculum
Scientific title	Engaging lecture formats in clinical dental education: a comparative cohort evaluation of student-related outcomes and examination performance
Study acronym	CICD
Study objectives
Ethics approval(s)	Approved 23/03/2026, Ethics Committee of the Medical Faculty at the University of Cologne (Kerpener Strasse 62, Cologne, 50937 Köln, Germany; +49 221 478 82900; ek-med@uni-koeln.de), ref: 25-1290
Health condition(s) or problem(s) studied	Educational improvement in dental clinical curriculum
Intervention	The intervention consisted of an enhanced, blended-learning-based teaching approach implemented in the clinical dental curriculum at the Department of Operative Dentistry and Periodontology, University Hospital Cologne, Germany. The intervention was delivered to dental students in the clinical phase of their education (7th–10th terms) during the winter term 2025/26. The intervention was implemented in 12 of the 15 main clinical lectures delivered during the term. The intervention combined face-to-face teaching with asynchronous online learning and formative assessment. Five lectures incorporated a flipped-classroom approach, in which students were provided with recorded online lectures before the corresponding face-to-face session. Formative assessments were integrated throughout the course and included pre-class quizzes delivered via the ILIAS learning platform and in-class or post-class assessments using an audience response system (Mentimeter). These assessments included multiple-choice questions and word-cloud activities and were used to support self-assessment, reinforce learning objectives and provide opportunities for feedback. During the face-to-face sessions, lecturers used a range of active and engaging teaching strategies selected according to the topic and learning objectives of each lecture. These included video-based learning with subsequent discussion (1 lecture), collaborative buzz-group activities allowing students to discuss topics or clinical cases with neighbouring peers (4 lectures), multisensory learning involving the tasting and comparison of dental toothpastes, mouth rinses and gels discussed during the lecture (1 lecture), and gamification elements (4 lectures). Different methods could be combined within an individual lecture. The intervention was delivered by the lecturers responsible for the respective clinical lectures as part of the regular university curriculum. All teaching took place within the existing clinical lecture programme at the University Hospital Cologne. Students attended the lectures in person, while online preparatory materials and assessments were completed independently before or after the respective sessions where applicable. The intervention was delivered throughout the winter term 2025/26. The total intervention period therefore corresponded to the duration of the winter-term lecture programme, comprising 15 main clinical lectures, of which 12 included the enhanced teaching approach and 3 were delivered in a traditional lecture-based format. Each intervention was implemented during the respective scheduled lecture session, with the flipped-classroom components requiring additional asynchronous preparation before the corresponding face-to-face session. Students were invited to complete an anonymous online questionnaire immediately after each lecture via a QR code. The questionnaire assessed perceived didactic quality, including student engagement, relevance and practical applicability of the content, teaching design and framework conditions, and lecturer behaviour and interaction. The primary comparison was between lectures using the enhanced teaching approach and traditional lecture-based teaching. A historical control cohort from the preceding winter term (2024/25) was additionally used for comparison. Follow-up consisted of the end-of-term written examination, which was completed by all students as part of the regular curriculum. The examination comprised 30 newly developed multiple-choice questions with four answer options. Examination performance was descriptively compared between the intervention cohort (winter term 2025/26) and the historical control cohort (winter term 2024/25). No additional intervention-related clinical follow-up was required.
Intervention type	Behavioural
Primary outcome measure(s)	Students' reactions to the lecture and intervention measured using an online questionnaire evaluating educational/student-reported outcomes, including six items assessed on a 5-point Likert scale (5 = strongly agree, 4 = agree, 3 = neutral, 2 = disagree, 1 = strongly disagree) at the end of each lecture Mean school grade measured using an online questionnaire at the end of each lecture Examination performance measured using the mean passrate of the mandatory written exam at the end of the semester Qualitative feedback measured using free-text comments analysed using a thematic approach informed by Reflexive Thematic Analysis according to Braun and Clarke at the end of each lecture
Key secondary outcome measure(s)
Completion date	06/02/2026

Eligibility

Participant type(s)
Age group	Mixed
Lower age limit	18 Years
Upper age limit	120 Years
Sex	All
Target sample size at registration	200
Total final enrolment	189
Key inclusion criteria	1. Students in the clinical dental curriculum (7th to 10th semester) 2. Aged 18 and older
Key exclusion criteria	Not meeting the key exclusion criteria
Date of first enrolment	01/10/2025
Date of final enrolment	06/02/2026

Locations

Countries of recruitment

Germany

Study participating centres

Results and Publications

Individual participant data (IPD) Intention to share	No

Editorial Notes

28/09/2026: Study’s existence confirmed by the Ethics Committee of the Medical Faculty at the University of Cologne, Germany.