A DREEM-based Assessment of the Educational Environment as Perceived by Paramedical Students

Background: Assessing the learning environment provides an overview of the current educational status and aids in identifying areas of concern. This study aimed to understand the students’ perceptions of the educational environment at the Paramedical Faculty of Ilam University of Medical Sciences in 2021.Methods: This cross-sectional research was conducted at Ilam University of Medical Sciences, where 300 paramedical students were recruited by census. The Dundee Ready Education Environment Measure (DREEM) was used as the data collection tool. An independent t-test and one-way analysis of variance were used to investigate the relationships between demographic variables and each dimension of the questionnaire. Data analysis was performed using SPSS-26 software.Results: The sample studied included 166 female and 134 male students with an average age of 24.68±7.837 years. The mean and SD of the perception of the educational environment were 112.34 (24.63). There was a significant relationship between marital status, education level, age, and academic semester with students’ understanding of the educational environment (P≤0.05). Twenty percent of the items in the questionnaire indicated a “problematic” situation, while the rest were in a “need of attention” status.Conclusion: The results of this study showed that paramedical students have a positive perception of the educational environment. The lowest mean and SD of the dimensions of the questionnaire were observed in students’ understanding of learning and social self-perception. The other dimensions were in a more satisfactory condition.