Development of the learning outcomes is promoted through the following teaching and learning methods:
Courses are divided into theoretical and practical courses. Theoretical courses are taught on a lecture-based method supplemented with assignments and self-readings. Students are usually given notes for the topics covered and they are provided with extra resources and reference textbooks in English language.
Practical courses are based on group discussion and are divided into pre-clinical and clinical, and students are provided with guidelines and manuals to cover and explain the basics of the courses.
Pre-clinical courses include basic medical and dental sciences. Basic medical practical courses are taught during the first three years of the curriculum. The teaching takes place in laboratories where students perform experiments and simulations on the basic medical principles and phenomena relevant to dentistry.
The teaching of the pre-clinical dental courses in restorative dentistry, endodontics, prosthodontics, orthodontics, and pediatric dentistry involves explanations, demonstrations, and direct applications and simulations on models and phantom heads, as well as assignments and homework.
The start of clinical courses is from the summer semester of the 3rd year, to continue during the 4th and 5th years according to the curriculum. They involve all the applied specialties of dentistry as well as general surgery and internal medicine. In the clinical sessions, students are grouped to perform clinical procedures on patients. Students’ groups are composed of 8 students in the departments of oral diagnosis, radiology, oral surgery, oral medicine, periodontology, and, orthodontics. They are scheduled for one clinical session every 2 weeks. Groups are composed of 10 students for pediatric dentistry and 12 students for endodontics and are scheduled for one clinical session per week. The groups are composed of 24 students for conservative dentistry and 16 students for prosthodontics and are scheduled for 2 clinical sessions per week and one session every 2 weeks respectively.