Paper
Friday, July 13, 2007
Success in Nursing Education: Improving the Teaching/Learning Process for Faculty and International Students
Sherry Warden, BSN, MSN, RN, PhD1, Brenda Ghaelian, BS1, Lee Anne Walmsley, RN, MSN1, Shannon Raymer, RN, MSN2, and Dorothy Brockopp, RN, MS, PhD1. (1) College of Nursing, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY, USA, (2) Nursing Department, Midway College, Midway, KY, USA
| Learning Objective #1: identify approaches to assisting international students to be successful in their adaption to nursing education and the American culture.
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| Learning Objective #2: recognize the obstacles to learning that international students face and strategies to overcome these obstacles.
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The purpose of this two phase project was to promote and sustain the success of individuals from outside of the United States as they pursue nursing degrees in this country. The literature clearly delineates the numerous difficulties faced by international students throughout their education. The overall goals of this project was to and evaluate develop DVDs that would enable students’ success and assist faculty to work with this challenging group of students. Phase I was dedicated to examination of international students’ perspectives on the problems they encounter as nursing students and the resolutions suggested. Participants (n=5) were from China, Jordan, Africa, Thailand, and South Korea. Data from the interviews as well as information derived from the literature formed the basis for the DVDs. The first DVD was for international applicants to the College of Nursing. A DVD was sent to applicants to tell them about the admission process, how to obtain visas and find housing, resources at the University, videotapes of a lecture, a demonstration of a physical exam in class, a seminar, and a research team meeting, a tour of a rehabilitation hospital and a scene of a nurse taking care of a patient in an acute care hospital. There was also advice on how to improve their English, a description of the American culture and the educational system. A comprehensive evaluation of the usefulness of the DVD to students is an integral component of the project.
The second DVD was for faculty who teach international students who have English as a second language. Descriptions of cultural differences in educational systems, barriers that students face, strategies to help decrease the barriers, and the problems they have with adaptation to the culture are presented. All faculty complete a pre and post test evaluating their learning upon receipt of the DVD.