Paper
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
585
Improving Student Outcomes: Shifting the Focus from Teaching to Learning
Kathaleen C. Bloom, PhD, School of Nursing, University of North Florida, Jacksonville, FL, USA
| Learning Objective #1: discuss the advantages and disadvatages of self-directed learning. |
| Learning Objective #2: identify postive student outcomes associated with self-directed learning in an undergraduate health assessment course. |
Changes in nursing education are not easy for either faculty or students. This is especially true when the change results in dissonance. This study examined the effects of a change in an undergraduate health assessment course from a standard lecture-lab format to a format using faculty-designed self-directed learning modules combined with faculty-facilitated laboratory practice sessions. The focus, then, shifted from an emphasis on "teaching" (faculty-focused) to one of "learning" (student-focused). The dissonance lies between faculty and student expectations of their respective roles in the teaching-learning process. Purpose: The purposes of this study were to: 1) examine student outcomes associated with the change, 2) examine student attitudes toward self-directed learning, and 3) examine advantages and disadvantages of the change from the faculty perspective. Method: This was a Level II design comparing quiz averages, final exam grades, practical (walk-through) performance and course evaluations from 8 cohorts taught in the new format (n=428) with those of the previous 8 cohorts taught in the traditional format (n=312). Focus groups with students and interviews with clinical faculty were also held. Results: Student outcomes were as good or better for those in the self-directed format. Initial differences in student course evaluations have again risen to their previous levels over time. Student discussions revealed positive and negative perceptions of self-directed learning. Clinical faculty are greatly satisfied with the outcomes and believe that clinical assessment skills and critical thinking are more advanced with students taught in the self-directed format. Conclusions: This self-directed, student-focused teaching-learning format had a positive effect on student outcomes in both the short and long-term. Initial negative effects on faculty and course evaluations turned around as faculty became more comfortable and competent with the self-directed modality and, perhaps more importantly, better at articulating the way the course operates.