Educational Policy of Dental School（Bachelor's Degree Courses）
Fundamental Educational Goals
The Dental School emphasizes “providing advanced dental care to the public” and “research and development of cutting-edge dental care.” Our goal is to nurture dental professionals of the highest international standards through education and research. Based on our past exceptional research achievements and our record of international and domestic exchange activities, we promote students' voluntary efforts and a researcher’s mindset toward the development of dental science and the resolution of its problems. Additionally, we aim to cultivate professionals with high ethical standards and a true sense of humanity through dialogue, discussion, and collaboration with students from domestic and international backgrounds, as well as with faculties and staff from related departments. Not only do we train dentists who can contribute to local communities, but we also provide education aimed at developing future leaders who can play central roles across diverse fields - including educational, research, and administrative positions, as well as opportunities abroad - and who will be capable of leading the next generation.
Exemplary Students
We recognize the following abilities as outlined in our Fundamental Educational Goals:
〇 Specialized Ability and Inquiry Ability: Students' voluntary efforts and a researcher’s mindset toward the development of dental science and the resolution of its problems.
〇 Communication Ability: Dialogue, discussion, and collaboration with students from domestic and international backgrounds, as well as faculty and staff from related departments.
〇 Liberal Arts Ability: A rich humanity with high ethical standards.
〇 Implementation Ability: Playing a central role in a wide range of fields and leading the next generation.
Through this approach, we aim to cultivate practical dental professionals who possess the ability to actively engage and collaborate in various settings.
Practical dental professionals who possess the ability to actively engage and collaborate in various settings.
We will foster individuals to develop the following five abilities:
〇 Implementation ability to actively engage in various settings and lead teams.
〇 Inquiry ability to continue exploration by leveraging scientific literacy.
〇 Communication ability with advanced information gathering and dissemination skills to build good human relationships.
〇 Specialized Ability to promptly respond to advancing dental science.
〇 Liberal arts ability with a multifaceted and comprehensive perspective to engage in continuous learning.
Policy for Graduation Certification and Degree Awarding (Degree Policy)
In order to develop the aforementioned exemplary students, the Dental School awards degrees to students who have studied for the prescribed period of time, earned the credits required for graduation, and acquired the following abilities:
Abilities acquired: Implementation Ability, Inquiry Ability, Communication Ability, Specialized Ability, Liberal Arts Ability
【Implementation Ability】Implementation Ability to actively engage in various settings and lead teams.
The ability to engage actively in a wide range of fields based on dental medicine.
【Inquiry Ability】Inquiry Ability to continue exploration by leveraging scientific literacy.
The ability to identify and solve problems based on scientific knowledge and continue self-improvement.
【Communication Ability】Communication Ability, with advanced information gathering and dissemination skills, to build good human relationships.
The ability to voluntarily gather and analyze information on various issues in dental medicine, effectively communicate the results, and build satisfactory interpersonal relationships with others.
【Specialized Ability】Specialized Ability to promptly respond to advancing dental science.
The ability to swiftly respond to society's demands for healthcare and advancements in dental medicine with acquired specialized knowledge, skills, and attitudes, and to become a key contributor to advanced medical and welfare services.
【Liberal Arts Ability】Liberal Arts Ability with a multifaceted and comprehensive perspective to engage in continuous learning.
The ability to maintain an interest in the diverse issues within the natural and social sciences, and to continue learning with a strong sense of ethics to solve these problems.
Policy for Curriculum Planning and Implementation (Curriculum Policy)
In order to cultivate individuals who have acquired the abilities outlined in the policy for graduation certification and degree awarding (Degree Policy), the Dental School will structure and implement the curriculum based on the following policies and principles.
Education Implementation Policy
The Dental School provides education that helps students develop the ability to continue to learn independently toward creating sustainable societies.
The Dental School's education is conducted through a six-year integrated program, designed not only to prepare students to pass the national dental examination required for obtaining a dentist's license after graduation but also to equip them with the undergraduate competencies outlined in the Dental School's Degree Policy. This education aims to develop healthcare professionals and researchers capable of addressing various global challenges through a distinctive curriculum.
Education Principles
The following educational contents are provided, from the perspective of proactive and interactive deep learning, with emphasis on what students have become able to do, rather than what has been taught.
【General Education】
General education aims to develop general knowledge and skills, and provides practical activities for learning with other students, while growing and creating together.
In order to develop a broader range of knowledge, including the student's specialized area of study and its related fields, the curriculum provides courses on interprofessional collaboration, which is essential in the fields of healthcare, medical care, and public welfare.
【Specialized Education】
Specialized education provides students with opportunities to deepen understanding of their specialization by offering systematically designed curricula and helping students to integrate and create knowledge from different fields of expertise.
The curriculum provides clinical specialized education courses to acquire the knowledge, skills, and attitudes necessary to become a dentist. It also offers foundational specialized education courses that serve as the basis for these clinical studies. Major parts of the courses are based on the Model Core Curriculum for Dental Education.
［Progression of Specific Course Enrollment］
In the first year, the curriculum provides an “Introduction to Dental Science,” unique to our university, which encourages students to develop an early awareness of their roles as healthcare professionals. Various active learning courses, including tutorials, are incorporated from the beginning of the first-year education. In the third year, students have the opportunity to take the elective course “Practice in Dental Sciences,” where they can study research themes from various fields, participate in actual research activities, and present their research findings.
From the first to the fifth year, foundational and clinical specialized educations are offered through parallel lectures and practicum sessions, designed to deepen students' knowledge and develop practical abilities. In the fourth and fifth years, a course titled “Adjunctive Medicine” is offered to provide knowledge not only on dental fields but also about systematic medicine and diseases.
Toward realizing a healthy longevity society, students will learn about lifestyle-related diseases, acute medical care, and home care medicine through “PBL exercises at nursing care facilities” in the 3rd year and as a “Lecture Series” in the 4th and 5th years, utilizing e-learning. These lectures cover topics such as lifestyle-related diseases, acute care, and home care medicine, with the support of e-learning. The fifth-year course “Awakening to EBM and Professionalism” is provided to acquire the professional ethics and clinical judgment skills that form the foundation of lifelong education as a dentist through interdisciplinary collaboration with professionals outside of the dental field. Additionally, the sixth-year course “Death and Life Studies, Dementia” focuses on developing the knowledge and attitudes needed to empathize with patients during terminal care and dementia, based on philosophical and ethical perspectives essential for healthcare professionals.
From the fifth to the sixth year, the curriculum includes “Clinical Dental Training,” where students receive direct supervision from instructors at Okayama University Hospital. The curriculum also offers “Clinical Dental Training in Hospital Dentistry,” where students experience the acute medical field, and “Training for Dental Visiting Care,” where they participate in home dental care under the guidance of clinical instructors active in community healthcare settings.
The specialized education courses begin in the first year, with foundational and clinical specialized courses based on the Model Core Curriculum for Dental Education being completed by the fourth year, and advanced clinical specialized courses by the first half of the fifth year. After completing preliminary clinical practicum, students will engage in clinical practicums from the fifth to the sixth year. Additionally, as part of an integrated learning approach, the “Final digest of diagnosis and treatment of oral disease” is conducted to consolidate the six years of dental education.
To advance to the “Clinical Dental Training,” students must pass the Common Achievement Tests as defined by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (Computer Based Testing; CBT, Pre-Clinical Clerkship Objective Structured Clinical Examination; Pre-CC OSCE). Furthermore, passing the Common Achievement Tests (Post Clinical Clerkship-Performance Examination; Post-CC PX) is also a mandatory requirement for completing the “Clinical Dental Training.”
【Language Education】
Language education is provided to enhance the varied language abilities necessary for living in a global society and to offer opportunities for multilingual education.
The curriculum provides opportunities for first- and second-year students to study languages through courses in intercultural understanding and English, aimed at developing well-rounded skills in listening, reading, speaking, and writing. There are also introductory foreign language courses and Japanese language courses offered to international students. In the third year, the curriculum offers a mandatory elective course, “ODAPUS Program for Undergraduate Students,” which allows students to audit courses at overseas universities. Additionally, opportunities to learn languages are created not only within the formal curriculum but also through extracurricular activities.
Educational Methods
The previously described educational content will be provided through the following methods.
(1) Implementing educational methods that actively expand students' potential.
Through common education that fosters interpersonal connections, specialized education that fosters the exchange of knowledge, and language education that fosters communication, the Dental School will implement educational methods that enable students to understand others, challenge themselves, and broaden their own possibilities.
(2) Providing an educational system that leverages the strengths of a comprehensive university.
While respecting their own specialization, students will be exposed to various other disciplines, fostering an educational system where they think, act, create, and grow together with others.
(3) Providing practical educational programs tailored to students' growth.
This includes offering learning opportunities connected to the community and the world, such as off-campus practicums and study abroad programs.
(4) Offering appropriate teaching formats that align with the educational content.
To encourage active participation in class, the Dental School will incorporate active learning methods in some courses and utilize various teaching formats, including in-person lectures, seminars, practicums, and online lectures, depending on the objectives of each course.
Academic Performance Evaluation Policy
Regarding the evaluation of academic performance in courses, the criteria and methods will be clearly defined in advance, and learning outcomes will be assessed based on these standards. Each course will be evaluated using various methods to accurately measure the objectives of the course and the abilities being developed. Specifically, knowledge that forms the foundation of undergraduate competencies will be assessed through exams and reports, while more challenging-to-quantify aspects such as performance and attitudes will be evaluated comprehensively using rubrics, peer assessments, 360-degree evaluations, and other methods. In lecture courses, summative evaluation will be primarily emphasized, while formative evaluation will be the focus in seminar courses. The evaluation will mainly be conducted using an A+, A, B, C, F grading system, with a 'C' set as the minimum standard for adequately achieving the learning objectives. The evaluation methods for each course will be communicated to students through the syllabus and other resources.
Extracurricular Education Policy
We provide extracurricular opportunities that allow students to experience personal growth beyond what they learn in the classroom.