The transition out of the military into civilian life is often described as complex and stressful as veterans adjust to new cultures, personal and professional roles, and establish new support networks (Anderson & Goodman, 2014; Elliott, Chargualaf, & Patterson, 2016). College enrollment is one approach commonly used by veterans to reintegrate into the civilian culture (Naphan & Elliott, 2015). Due to vast differences between military training and higher education, barriers impacting the veteran transition to higher education may create unforeseen learning challenges (Dyar, 2015; Jenner, 2017). Specifically, Dyar (2015) argued that veterans in nursing education may encounter difficulties learning due to a “transition from highly structured and repetitive training to more independent learning” (p. 3). Dual family and student responsibilities, increased age, difficulty relating to peers, and deployment experiences are commonly reported obstacles encountered by student veterans in higher education (Dyar, 2015; Jenner, 2017). Research supports that faculty and staff in higher education lack knowledge related to military culture and experience, impacting an understanding of how to facilitate learning (Bichrest, 2013).
The ability of veterans to transfer learning and knowledge from their prior military service is imperative to successful matriculation and degree completion. López, Springer, and Nelson (2015) suggested academic success for student veterans relies on teaching and learning practices that build on life experiences, classroom environments that promote socialization, accommodation of diverse learning styles, curricular coherence allowing for transfer of prior knowledge, and timely and relevant feedback to students. Research validates that learning transfer is not merely the result of individual characteristics but rather depends on educational design, the learning and clinical environments, and the collaboration between academic and workplace institutions (Botma & McKenzie, 2016).
Approaches to enhance nursing education to better meet veterans’ needs have been proposed (Allen, Armstrong, Saladiner, Hamilton, & Conard, 2014; Morrison-Beedy & Rossiter, 2018). Exemplars include a dedicated military liaison support position in the school of nursing, educational events for faculty and staff to increase veteran cultural competency, academic advising by faculty with knowledge of the military, and accelerated programs to propel motivated students into the workforce faster (Allen et al., 2014; Morrison-Beedy & Rossiter, 2018). Prior learning assessments are one approach colleges and universities are able to acknowledge prior learning in the military (Bergman & Herd, 2017). In one nursing program, a competency-based education (CBE) model was developed to award college credit for prior military training and skill development (Sikes, Francis-Johnson, Jones, Opton, Casida, & Allen, 2017). However, no study published to date could be located that specifically addressed faculty perspectives and experiences with veteran students in the nursing classroom. This study seeks to fill that gap in understanding the faculty role in meeting student veterans’ needs and success in nursing education.
Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine faculty perceptions of facilitating veterans’ transfer of learning and knowledge from their military experience to their Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) education.
Methods: A descriptive, qualitative design guided the study. Following institutional review board approval, participants were recruited from accredited nursing programs in military centric areas of the United States. The sample included 10 nurse faculty; 5 teaching in Veterans’ Bachelor of Science in Nursing programs (VBSN) and five teaching in non-Veteran affiliated BSN programs. Although more than half of participants did not serve in the military (70%); 60% had someone in their immediate family who did. Participants were predominately female, greater than 50 years of age (M = 50.7) and worked as nurse faculty for a decade (M = 10.8).
Nurse faculty participated in a single, semi-structured interview of varying duration. Using principles of content and thematic analysis, members of the research team individually and collectively analyzed verbatim transcripts to derive initial themes. Data collection concluded when saturation was achieved.
Results: The data suggests that the unique perspective and life experience that veterans bring to the BSN classroom challenge nurse faculty to move beyond traditional pedagogies to enhance learning. Opportunities to optimize contextual knowledge and traits can help veterans draw connections, understand the “why,” and recognize how these may be applied to nursing practice. Finally, awareness and sensitivity of student needs and outlying struggles may help faculty decipher student’s issues from veteran-related issues capable of interfering with degree attainment. Recommendations provided by faculty to facilitate the transfer of knowledge and skills align with published literature and include participation in veteran related professional development, get to know students to understand needs and potential barriers to success, and be amenable to nontraditional teaching modalities that generate opportunities to use prior knowledge in a new context.
Conclusion: Veterans bring a wealth of expertise and life experience to the BSN classroom. Assisting veterans to repurpose knowledge and skills from the military for use in new contexts is essential for successful matriculation and integration into the profession. Recommendations for faculty teaching veterans focus on bridging gaps in understanding of military and veteran culture through professional development and exploring innovative pedagogies to facilitate the transfer of prior learning and skills.