NURS 6351: Role of the Nurse Educator | Week 2
Nursing is a complex profession. As a nurse, you are familiar with the many different duties you are expected to perform. The role of nurse educator likewise encompasses a range of responsibilities, many of which may not be readily apparent to novice educators.
In the first week of this course, you began preparing for your Practicum as an avenue for professional growth and development. As part of your Practicum, you will also develop and implement a Practicum project. Your project will integrate evidence-based teaching and learning principles into the creation of a practical tool for nurse educators. This week, you consult with your Practicum faculty member and preceptor to identify a focus for your project. There is no Discussion this week so that you can concentrate on generating two or three ideas for your Practicum project to discuss during your scheduled phone call.
In addition, this week you reflect on the benefits of creating a professional portfolio and give thought to how you can use an electronic portfolio to showcase your achievements in this MSN program. You examine the guidelines for assembling your professional portfolio, which is due in Week 11.
Learning Objectives
Students will:
- Analyze a Practicum experience in the context of nursing education*
- Construct a detailed Practicum log*
- Analyze issues, responsibilities, and experiences of teachers and learners in the context of nursing education**
- Evaluate evidence that demonstrates professional growth for inclusion in a professional portfolio***
*The Assignments related to these Learning Objectives are submitted in Week 3.
**The Assignment related to this Learning Objective is submitted in Week 9.
***The Assignment related to this Learning Objective is introduced this week and submitted in Week 11.
Assignment 1: Introduction to Practicum Project
For your Practicum project, you will integrate evidence-based teaching and learning principles into the creation of a practical tool for nurse educators, such as a lesson plan or a scenario for a simulation lab. You will also create a bibliography featuring resources on teaching and learning that pertain to, or support, your Practicum project. You will find the Project Presentation Grading Rubric specific to this assignment in the Course Information area.
The following is the proposed timeline for developing your project:
Week 2: In consultation with your Practicum faculty member and preceptor, identify the focus for your project, possible Practicum project objectives, and activities appropriate for your Practicum Experience. (Your faculty member will schedule a day/time for a three-way phone call this week).
Week 3: Review the scholarly literature and professional competencies to support and justify your project; identify the overarching goal for your project; develop two or three objectives that are specific, measurable, attainable, results-focused, and time-focused, and that integrate higher-order verbs (i.e., Application level and above) from Bloom’s taxonomy.
Week 4: Design your methodology and evaluation.
Weeks 5–9: Continue to develop your Practicum project. When appropriate, begin creating one or more scholarly products (i.e., practical tools for nurse educators, such as a lesson plan or a scenario for a simulation lab). Be sure to integrate evidence-based teaching and learning principles. Also create a bibliography featuring resources on teaching and learning that pertain to, or support, your Practicum project.
Week 10: Begin to prepare your Practicum project presentation*, which you will post in the Week 11 Discussion on or before Day 1 of that week.
Week 11: On or before Day 1, post a copy of your Practicum project presentation to the Discussion forum; submit your finalized presentation by Day 5.
Assignment 2: Practicum
Identifying a Focus for the Practicum Project
This week, you discuss your interests with your Practicum faculty member and preceptor and, together, identify a focus for your Practicum project.
To prepare for the phone call
- Review the information related to the Practicum project in the School of Nursing Practicum Manual. The project should account for no more than 24 hours of your total Practicum time, and must be completedon or before Day 5 of Week 11. Projects that require Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval will be difficult to complete on time; therefore, projects should not include surveys, focus groups, collection of data, or any activities that require IRB approval.
- Identify two or three topics for a Practicum project to discuss with your Practicum faculty member and preceptor. Each of these topics should relate to a specific, significant need at your Practicum setting.
- Consider any questions you may have about Practicum guidelines or what the Practicum project entails. Plan to discuss these questions with your Practicum faculty member and preceptor during your phone call this week.
Time Log and Journal
Time Log
Continue to log your Practicum Experience during each week of this course.
Journal Entry 1
Instructions for completing Journal Entry 1 are provided in Week 3.
By Day 7 of Week 3
Submit your Practicum Journal document (including your first journal entry).
Assignment 3: The Courage to Teach
As we learn more about who we are, we can learn techniques that reveal rather than conceal the personhood from which good teaching comes.
—Palmer, 2017, p. 24
Reflect on your experiences as a nurse and your desire to contribute to the field as a nurse educator. As you read this week’s chapter of The Courage to Teach, explore Palmer’s assertion that understanding the teacher’s inner landscape is critical for assessing and improving teaching and learning experiences. Consider how that resonates with your thoughts and beliefs as a nurse educator.
To prepare
- Read Chapter I of The Courage to Teach, as indicated in the Learning Resources.
Reminder:
By Day 7 of Week 9
Submit this assignment.