Interactive Instructional Design Strategies for Online Nursing Education

This portion of the symposium will present successful, online teaching and learning strategies designed to guide practicing nurses to evidence-based solutions in the field that improve patient outcomes. To overcome negative student emotions that may translate into reluctance to use research in practice, course designers created interactive, self-paced learning objects to instruct practicing nurses in the application of the Iowa Model and the Rogers' Diffusion of Innovations Theory. Research by Reilly, Gallagher-Lepak, and Killion (2012) points out that students may feel trepidation given the large volume of required readings in nursing education and desire more of an overview and clearly understandable materials that present content in new ways. Concept maps (ie - visual and text representations) of each research model help demonstrate complex concepts and improve student learning (Pilcher, 2011). By using cognitive maps, graphic art and multimedia, the learning objects featured in this symposium help reduce the cognitive load and negative emotions of students learning research models for the first time and allows them to move more quickly to the applying the model in their practice. The learning objects used were largely self-paced, self-directed, and included graphics, theory and case studies. These features support learners' individual learning preferences and achievement of learning objectives (Cottrell & Donaldson, 2013).

References: 

Pilcher, J. (2011). Teaching and learning with concept maps. Neonatal Network, 30 (5), 336-339. 

Cottrell, S., & Donaldson, J. H. (2013). Exploring the opinions of registered nurses working in a clinical transfusion environment on the contribution of e-learning to personal learning and clinical practice: Results of a small scale educational research study. Nurse Education In Practice, 13(3), 221-227. doi:10.1016/j.nepr.2013.01.014 

Reilly, J. R., Gallagher-Lepak, S., & Killion, C. (2012). "Me and my computer": Emotional factors in online learning. Nursing Education Perspectives, 33(2), 100-5. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/1009642520?accountid=11999