Effectiveness of applying clinical simulation scenarios and integrating information technology in medical-surgical nursing and critical nursing courses

Background To determine the impact of combining clinical simulation scenario training and Information Technology Integrated Instruction (ITII) on the teaching of nursing skills. Methods 120 4th-year students in a nursing program who were enrolled in medical and surgical nursing courses. 61 received innovative instruction (experimental group) and 59 received conventional instruction (control group). The ADDIE model, systematic method of course development that includes analysis, design, development, implementation, and evaluation,was used to build simulation teaching and clinical scenarios and to create and modify objective structure clinical examination (OSCE) scenario checklists for acute myocardial infarction (AMI) care, basic life support and operation of automated external defibrillator (BLS), and subdural hemorrhage (SDH) care. The modified OSCE checklists were assessed for reliability, consistency, and validity. The innovative training included flipped classrooms, clinical simulation scenarios, ITII and blended learning formats. Results The reliability and validity of the OSCE checklists developed in this study were acceptable and comparable or higher than checklists in past studies and could be utilized as an OSCE performance tool. Students in innovative instruction obtained significantly better OSCE performance, lab scores and improvements from the previous year’s grades. Significant differences were found in situational awareness (SA). No strong correlations were found between OSCE scores and clinical internship scores, and no significant differences were found between the groups in overall clinical internship performance. Conclusions Innovative instruction showed better performance than conventional methods in summative evaluation of knowledge components, OSCE formative evaluation and clinical nursing internship scores, as well as improved situational awareness in nursing students.

Constructing authority: Using the ACRL Framework to connect with underserved students

At the community college level, rethinking library instruction in light of the ACRL Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education often feels like a puzzle. But like many things we do at the library, it all comes back to helping our most vulnerable students. In this column, we outline our library’s outreach efforts to engage with two intersecting and underserved groups: returning adult students and students in the LGBTQ+ community. As job markets become more competitive, older adults are returning to community colleges in order to obtain degrees and earn credentials. As awareness and acceptance of the LGBTQ+ community increases, so does the need to provide supportive services for these students. At our library, engaging with the Framework provided an opportunity to design innovative instruction and programming.

Teachers' and coaches' motivation to participate in training and the implementation of educational innovations

The purpose of the present PhD research was the in-depth examination of Greek teachers’ and youth football coaches’ work specific motivation regarding two work tasks promoting educational innovations; (a) participation in training and (b) implementing innovative practices. Drawing from social-cognitive psychology, two prominent theoretical frameworks of human motivation namely Self-Determination Theory (SDT; Deci & Ryan, 1985; Ryan & Deci, 2002) and Achievement Goals Theory (AGT; Ames, 1990; Dweck, 1986; Nicholls, 1984), guided this investigation in order to better explain and understand various aspects of participants’ intentions, behaviors, beliefs and thoughts in real life situations. In order to examine theoretical hypotheses in diverse contexts and populations, four different purposefully selected samples of educators-instructors were invited to participate in the research. Specifically, participants were youth football coaches (n=15), pre-service physical education teachers (n=52), in-service secondary school teachers (n=287) and physical educators (n=92) who were taking part in independent programs aiming at promoting instructional innovations.To triangulate and to complement findings, multiple sources of data were utilized, such as face-to-face interviews, questionnaires, on-line surveys, open-ended questions, and email interviews. Thus, for the purposes of the present research a multiphase mixed methods design (Creswell & Plano Clark, 2011) was adopted (see Table 2, p. 56) in terms of data gathering and analyses, where multiple studies were conducted sequentially and concurrently, to inform one another and to answer three overarching research questions: (a) Why do some individuals decide to participate in training aiming to promote educational innovation? (b)Why are some educators more engaged than others with educational innovations? (c) How this involvement with instructional innovation might be fostered?Cumulatively, the findings of the studies described below suggest that not only individual motivation plays a very important role in their work behaviors, but the quality of this motivation is the element that makes the difference. From quantitative and qualitative data it was evident that educators (i.e., secondary school teachers, PE teachers and youth football coaches) decide to participate in training programs promoting innovative instruction, primarily for autonomous intrinsic and well internalized extrinsic reasons, while non-autonomous extrinsic reasons may exist but in a much smaller extent and vigor. Furthermore it seems that the most autonomous motivated individuals are those who are mastery/learning oriented in their working behaviors, meaning that they embrace this kind of disposition in a variety of work tasks. In addition, educators’ future intention for engagement with innovations was found to be determined only by their autonomous motivation and mastery goals orientation, and not by controlled motivations and performance goals. Nevertheless, it appeared that teachers may hold different beliefs about their capabilities (i.e., self-efficacy) to implement different aspects of an educational innovation. These findings suggest that during the design phase of an educational novelty/change, it would be meaningful apart from educators’ motivation quality, to take into account their self-efficacy beliefs, as well. Hence, stemming from empirical evidence and the theoretical foundation of the present research, suggestions to foster teachers’ and coaches’ optimal involvement with innovative instruction include the establishment of a work environment for teachers, supporting and enhancing their mastery goals and autonomous motivations. According to the existing theory and research, this work climate must (a) emphasize personal development, effort expenditure and persistence, (b) constantly deliver opportunities for collaboration and experimentation, (c) provide frequently, corrective non-threatening feedback and support (e.g., by colleagues, superiors and experts).