Students' perceptions regarding educational environment in an Indian dental school

Background: As one of India's premier dental schools, the Manipal College of Dental Sciences, Manipal, has strived to be in the forefront of dental education ever since its inception in 1965. But one of our main drawbacks has been the lack of students' perceptions about the educational atmosphere in our institution. Aim: (1) To understand the students' perceptions of the educational environment. (2) To compare the results with those of other dental/medical schools. Methods: Dundee Ready Education Environment Measure (DREEM) was used to gather information about the environment in our institution. The same was administered to first year and final year students (63 each). Results: The main area of convergence of both groups was that the social atmosphere was not very congenial. But the thought provoking finding was that both groups felt that the teachers were authoritarian. Conclusion: The lack of congenial atmosphere in our institution seems to be due to the attitude of the course organizers. A need for makeover in attitudes and approach on the part of the teachers to make the learning experience more pleasant for the students was made obvious by this study.