The goal of any learning program is that students learn. How that process happens is up for debate by many professionals. Each discipline has individual expectations of graduates. In nursing, our students are prepared to care for patients in a variety of settings. In addition, they are prepared to take a national examination given to all nursing graduates. Teaching and learning occur in both the clinical and classroom setting.
So the question here is what does teaching mean to me? Teaching for me, is freely sharing knowledge acquired through training and experience. On a day to day basis, lectures are provided to students everywhere and knowledge is gained. This is one way to share information and certainly one way in which I provide general knowledge to the group. However, I believe teaching really takes place when questions are asked during lecture, after class, or in the clinical site. This is the moment when students are verbalizing questions after assimilating some knowledge. This is when experience and training in the teacher are critical. At this moment, a teacher can tease out that which the student understands and provide a deeper understanding or clarification of the material. This is the time when I am no longer just throwing out facts regarding a particular subject, but when I am actually deepening the student’s understanding of what they are to learn.
The role of the teacher is to facilitate learning. Specifically, the role of the nursing teacher is to facilitate learning on the technical and cognitive level. Nursing students are highly invested in the outcome of the learning process and as a result motivation is not generally an issue. What is at issue, however, is a vast amount of material is taught and learned over a prescribed length of time. It is up to the teacher to ensure that learning is effective. Nursing instructors need to be creative in their ability to blend the classroom with the clinical. Sensitivity to the learning styles of student is important. Case scenarios and story telling help to clarify concepts taught in the classroom. In addition, they add to the student’s ability to visualize a client scenario. Once in the clinical setting our responsibility is to encourage the student to see the concepts taught in the classroom and apply to the individual client. Generally, this is accomplished through communication throughout the clinical day and during post conference.
It is my belief that each student comes to the learning environment willing to learn. In some cases, that learning is hampered be external forces such as home life or job demands. In others, it is hampered by lack of preparation, for example the student is far distanced from their Anatomy and Physiology course or has weak math skills. In any case, teachers receive the student as they are and the success or failure of that student relies heavily on whether teachers want to spend their time lamenting over students’ frailties or attempting to build their strengths.
I do not believe that it is possible or reasonable to believe that teaching and learning occurs in a vacuum without the influence of personal lives. In nursing, the prevailing philosophy is to assess the situation fully and gather all information before planning any intervention. I try to apply that same philosophy to teaching. If a student is having problems in the course, it is important to me to find out why. This can only occur if a student feels comfortable talking with an instructor. A teacher should show mercy where appropriate and set limits when needed. These are factors that I think build the student’s trust in an instructor’s willingness listen.
Once trust is established, students are more willing to ask questions and communicate with me. Communication is critical but not the only tool that I employ in teaching. I believe in our fast paced world that teachers need to be able to integrate technology in teaching. Using the computer for research is a critical skill that nurses must be able to master. I incorporate an internet activity and several computer-assisted learning situations in Pharmacology in Nursing (1141C). These techniques appeal to many students and serve as a challenge to others. Power Point as an aid in the classroom is helpful to the visual learner. The notes that Power Point provides to the student allow them to keep up with the lecture and hear the words. The visual value of images is priceless to the visual learner. In addition, I believe that story telling and humor in the classroom are very important to maintaining interest in material. I have found that these techniques are helpful when trying to meet the needs of many learning styles.
I have seen my Pharmacology students progress through other courses and I believe that they have learned and retained much of what was taught during that first term of nursing school. Nursing, unlike many subjects is a curriculum that is interdependent on all of the coursework. Each course reinforces principles taught in prior courses. I do not believe that the credit can be given to any one instructor. Students gain strength from the expert experiences of all of their instructors.
It is difficult for the novice teacher to evaluate outcomes of teaching. As I grow more experienced, I will likely change some of my strategies that I use to teach. However, I believe that my philosophy regarding my belief in respect, trust and compassion are fundamental in nature and are likely to remain unchanged.