Paper
Thursday, July 12, 2007
Creating an Online Training Center for Faculty in a College of Nursing
Carole R. Eldridge, DNP, RN, CNAA, BC, Bachelor of Science in Nursing, Southwest Baptist University, Springfield, MO, USA
| Learning Objective #1: describe the process of developing and implementing a virtual faculty education center to provide a cost-effective means of training nursing instructors how to teach online. |
| Learning Objective #2: use survey instruments and assessment tools to evaluate the quality and effectiveness of online courses and the proficiency of nursing educators in online teaching. |
This paper presents the process and results of developing and implementing a virtual faculty-training center in a college of nursing. Facing a shortage of experienced online instructors in an online RN-to-BSN program, an assistant professor instituted and led the project to help new full-time and adjunct instructors learn how to teach online. The project leader first used survey instruments to assess nursing faculty members’ proficiency with technology and online education. A team of nursing faculty and instructional technology experts then developed an online training program and Virtual Instructional Center in response to the survey findings. The team trained experienced faculty members as virtual mentors. New and inexperienced online faculty completed the online training and worked with virtual mentors, who guided participants as they taught an online course. Project participants and virtual mentors completed an evaluation process, and students and experienced instructors evaluated the online courses for quality and effectiveness. The project resulted in a pool of trained full-time and adjunct online instructors, and the ability to accept additional students and open more course sections in the RN-to-BSN program. Other outcomes included increased faculty retention and improved online course quality. Using readily available resources within the institution, the team implemented the Virtual Instructional Center at minimal cost. The center continues to operate as a resource for all nursing faculty.