Web 2.0 Education for Dose Calculation: An RCT

Web 2.0-Supported Education to Improve Medication Dose Calculation Learning Outcomes in Nursing Students: A Randomized Controlled Trial

This randomized controlled trial aims to examine the effect of Web 2.0-supported education on first-year nursing students' medication dose calculation knowledge, skills, perceived learning, and instructional material motivation. Safe medication administration is a core quality indicator of nursing care, and dose calculation errors remain a significant threat to patient safety. Nursing students frequently experience difficulties in understanding basic concepts, converting units, and performing accurate calculations.

In this study, students enrolled in the Fundamentals of Nursing course at a university in Istanbul, Türkiye, were randomly assigned to either an intervention group or a control group. The intervention group received medication dose calculation education supported by interactive Web 2.0 tools (Canva, Quizizz, Miro, Wordwall, and Socrative), while the control group received the same curriculum content through traditional lecture-based instruction. Both groups also received hands-on medication preparation skills training in the professional skills laboratory.

The primary outcomes are medication dose calculation knowledge and skill levels; secondary outcomes are perceived learning and instructional material motivation. The investigators hypothesize that students receiving Web 2.0-supported education will achieve higher scores on all outcomes compared with students receiving traditional education.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Education, Nursing; Medication Errors; Student Nursing; Web Based Education
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Web 2.0-Supported Education; Behavioral: Traditional Lecture-Based Education

Detailed Description

Background: Medication administration is among the nursing practices with the highest risk of error, and preventable medication-related harm creates a substantial clinical and economic burden worldwide. Nursing education plays a decisive role in equipping students with the mathematical knowledge and calculation skills required for safe medication management; however, studies indicate that students often perform at moderate or insufficient levels in dose calculation. Web 2.0 technologies - interactive, participation-oriented digital tools that support collaborative learning - have been increasingly integrated into nursing education, yet evidence on their effectiveness specifically for medication dose calculation competency remains limited.

Design:This study is a randomized controlled trial with a posttest-only design, conducted with first-year nursing students. A posttest-only design was chosen because participants received their first formal instruction on medication dose calculation within the scope of this study and had no prior knowledge of the topic. The study is reported in accordance with the CONSORT (Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials) guideline.

Setting and Participants:The study was conducted between February 2025 and April 2025 in the nursing department of a university in Istanbul, Türkiye. Inclusion criteria were: being a first-year nursing student admitted through the national university entrance examination, being enrolled in the Fundamentals of Nursing course, having no prior experience with Web 2.0-supported education, and being an active smartphone user. Eligible students were randomly allocated to the intervention or control group using an online random team generator. Four students (two per group) who could not maintain attendance were excluded, and the study was completed with a final sample of 96 students (intervention: n=49; control: n=47). A post-hoc power analysis using G*Power (effect size 0.60, alpha 0.05) yielded a statistical power of 88.59%.

Intervention Group: Students received a two-hour medication dose calculation education delivered through Web 2.0 tools, structured across pre-education, in-education, and post-education phases. Before the session, a digital education brochure prepared with Canva and a quiz-format assignment created on Quizizz were shared with the students, following a 15-20 minute orientation to the Web 2.0 tools. The theoretical instruction was delivered through Miro, an interactive shared-board concept-mapping tool. Following the theoretical instruction, three educational games of progressively increasing difficulty were implemented via Wordwall ("Find the Match," "Gameshow," and "Win or Lose"), and the three highest-scoring students received certificates and rewards. After the theoretical education, students received one hour of medication preparation skills training in the professional skills laboratory based on the "10 rights" of medication administration. The posttest knowledge assessment was administered via Socrative, and the scales were completed through Google Forms.

Control Group:Students received a two-hour theoretical education with identical curriculum content delivered through traditional lecture-based instruction, preceded by a paper-based preparatory assignment. The content covered the concept of medication dose, the importance of dose calculation for patient safety, the nurse's role and responsibilities, conversion of basic units of measurement, ratio-proportion, calculation of dose amounts, drop-rate calculation, weight-based dosing, dose calculations for different drug forms, and dry powder volume calculation. Students subsequently received one hour of medication preparation skills training in the professional skills laboratory based on the "10 rights" of medication administration. All posttest instruments were completed in paper-and-pencil format.

Outcome Measures: Medication dose calculation knowledge was measured with a 10-item scenario-based multiple-choice knowledge test developed from the literature, reviewed by five nursing experts (content validity index: 0.96), piloted with six students, and demonstrating a Kuder-Richardson 20 coefficient of 0.68. Medication dose calculation skill was assessed in the professional skills laboratory using two three-stage evaluation forms (tablet and ampoule/vial), scored on a standardized 0-100 scale (content validity indexes: 0.96 and 0.95, respectively; Cronbach's alpha: 0.72). During the skill assessment, each student randomly selected a numbered card corresponding to a case scenario (content validity index: 0.97) and a treatment tray, calculated the dose, prepared the medication according to standard preparation steps, and labeled it according to instructions; performance was rated by education and development nurses using the skill evaluation form. Perceived learning was measured with the 9-item Perceived Learning Scale (cognitive, affective, and psychomotor subdimensions; total score range 9-63; Cronbach's alpha in this study: 0.76). Instructional material motivation was measured with the 14-item unidimensional Instructional Material Motivation Scale (total score range 14-70; Cronbach's alpha in this study: 0.92).

Statistical Analysis: Data were analyzed using IBM SPSS Version 22.0. Descriptive statistics were used for participant characteristics. As skewness and kurtosis coefficients were within ±2, parametric tests were applied: Student's t-test and one-way analysis of variance with Bonferroni correction for group comparisons, and Pearson correlation analysis for relationships between variables. Statistical significance was set at p < 0.05.

Ethical Considerations: The study protocol was approved by the Non-Interventional Research Ethics Committee of Istanbul Medipol University (E-10840098-202.3.02-7806). Written institutional permission and written informed consent from all participants were obtained.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 96
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• Turkey (Türkiye)
  • Istanbul
    • Beykoz, Istanbul, Turkey (Türkiye), 34760
      • Istanbul Medipol University

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Adult; Older Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Being a first-year nursing student admitted through the national university entrance examination
• Being enrolled in the Fundamentals of Nursing course
• Having no prior experience with Web 2.0-supported education
• Being an active smartphone user

Exclusion Criteria:

• Failure to attend all stages of the study

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Other
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: Single

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Web 2.0-Supported Education Group; Participants received a two-hour medication dose calculation education delivered through Web 2.0 tools (Canva, Quizizz, Miro, Wordwall, Socrative), followed by one hour of medication preparation skills training in the professional skills laboratory based on the "10 rights" of medication administration.	Behavioral: Web 2.0-Supported Education; Participants received a two-hour medication dose calculation education delivered through five Web 2.0 tools (Canva, Quizizz, Miro, Wordwall, and Socrative), structured across pre-education, in-education, and post-education phases. Before the session, students received a 15-20 minute orientation to the Web 2.0 tools, a digital education brochure prepared with Canva, and a quiz-format assignment created on Quizizz. Theoretical instruction was delivered through Miro, an interactive shared-board concept-mapping tool. Following the instruction, three educational games of progressively increasing difficulty were implemented via Wordwall. Students then received one hour of medication preparation skills training in the professional skills laboratory based on the "10 rights" of medication administration. The posttest knowledge assessment was administered via Socrative.
Active Comparator: Traditional Education Group; Participants received a two-hour medication dose calculation education with identical curriculum content delivered through traditional lecture-based instruction, followed by one hour of medication preparation skills training in the professional skills laboratory based on the "10 rights" of medication administration.	Behavioral: Traditional Lecture-Based Education; Participants received a two-hour medication dose calculation education with identical curriculum content delivered through traditional lecture-based instruction, preceded by a paper-based preparatory assignment. The content covered the concept of medication dose, the importance of dose calculation for patient safety, the nurse's role and responsibilities, unit conversions, ratio-proportion, dose amount calculation, drop-rate calculation, weight-based dosing, dose calculations for different drug forms, and dry powder volume calculation. Students then received one hour of medication preparation skills training in the professional skills laboratory based on the "10 rights" of medication administration.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Medication Dose Calculation Knowledge Level	Knowledge was measured with a 10-item scenario-based multiple-choice knowledge test developed by the researchers (content validity index: 0.96; Kuder-Richardson 20 coefficient: 0.68). Knowledge level was evaluated based on the mean number of correct answers. Higher scores indicate better knowledge.	Immediately after the completion of the education intervention (posttest only)
Medication Dose Calculation Skill Level	Skill was assessed in the professional skills laboratory using two three-stage evaluation forms (tablet and ampoule/vial) developed by the researchers (content validity indexes: 0.96 and 0.95; Cronbach's alpha: 0.72). Scores were standardized on a 0-100 scale. Students calculated the dose according to a randomly selected case scenario, prepared the medication, and labeled it; performance was rated by education and development nurses. Higher scores indicate better skill performance.	Immediately after the completion of the education intervention (posttest only)
Perceived Learning Level	Measured with the 9-item Perceived Learning Scale, consisting of cognitive, affective, and psychomotor subdimensions. Items are rated on a 7-point scale (1: Definitely false, 7: Definitely true); total scores range from 9 to 63, with higher scores indicating higher perceived learning (Cronbach's alpha in this study: 0.76).	Immediately after the completion of the education intervention (posttest only)
Instructional Material Motivation Level	Measured with the 14-item unidimensional Instructional Material Motivation Scale. Items are rated on a 5-point scale (1: Strongly disagree, 5: Completely agree); total scores range from 14 to 70, with higher scores indicating more positive motivation (Cronbach's alpha in this study: 0.92).	Immediately after the completion of the education intervention (posttest only)

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Istanbul Medipol University Hospital

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): February 24, 2025
• Primary Completion (Actual): April 21, 2025
• Study Completion (Actual): April 21, 2025

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: July 14, 2026
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: July 14, 2026
• First Posted (Actual): July 17, 2026

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): July 17, 2026
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: July 14, 2026
• Last Verified: July 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Nursing education; drug dose calculation; learning outcomes; Web 2.0 supported education
• Other Study ID Numbers: 1234567

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No