There are few concerns arising about the acceptability and usability of online learning for dental students. Online learning could be a helpful auxiliary tool along with traditional dental educational methods; and implementing successful online learning model(s) needs subjective and objective evaluation of learning outcomes.

Online learning could have some benefits such as saving learning time and cost as well as offering multimedia learning styles that eliminate the instructor-based educational strategies. There are several factors that govern the success of online learning process; most importantly are the quality of online content/design, ease of access to online learning courses and students’ evaluation methods. Dental schools need to be well set to host online learning structures and tools at least for preclinical courses.

Students should possess good technical skills to efficiently use the online educational content; in addition, they need to have suitable hardware, software and navigation tools to work on virtual classrooms, using emails and social networks and mobile apps. Students need to train on delivering online tutorials, receiving course announcement, giving feedbacks and involving in educational discussions or voting.

Online learning includes flash lectures, procedural videos, live demonstrations and/or combination of 2-3 methods. Students’ learning preference is influenced by gender/age as well as academic achievement(s) and creative thinking. Many students considered online learning to have significant advantage over traditional courses but the majority of them still see online learning as a supplementary, rather than a replacement, to the traditional methods. That is, students find variations in research methods and learning environments that influence their perception to online learning. Online tutorials need to be carefully modified to align with learning objectives so that the students can more easily achieve their learning goals.

In conclusion, successful dental online learning is influenced by availability of technology, the connectivity, the design/content interface and layout and the quality of assessment methods.