According to Aust (2012), clinical education gives medical students an opportunity to progress in order to obtain versatility through past experiences after interaction with clients and their difficult situation. Clinical education is necessary for future professional goals and practices, fuse students with different health care groups and implement clinical lecturers to partake in role modelling. In this paper, our main focus will be precisely on discussing the five strategies used to enhance clinical education along with the theories that co-enhance it.
According to Erstad (2018) a clinical educator or in other words a health care professional specialist has a great amount of liability for training and task performance in the health settings. They have a lot of roles to ensure that it is done to the best of their ability but assisting students in getting a better understanding of the information in preparation of new information making it easier to relate existing occurrences or thoughts is a major priority for them. Their communication skills increase as per visit as it is necessary for them to liase with head nurses and nurse managers locating areas of teaching and reinforcements of skills needed for coaching
Clinical educators are not their only for participation in teaching but they uplift or encourage students to go forward by recommending continuous education programmes and locating effectual programs necessary in their fields of study. An educator also plays and essential role in ensuring staff is always safe and comfortable, as an uncomfortable work environment may deter work abilities (Erstad, 2018)
According to Gray and Smith (2010), a clinical instructor should have the following qualities. They must be patient and calm with a sense of understanding lending an open ear if a situation or issue arise, students must not be afraid to communicate with their clinical educator as they must be easily approachable and friendly. Students should be appraised when improvement in skills or activities is observed and with the same breath all errors must be pointed out with the same enthusiasm. A clinical educator must illustrate trust and confidence while teaching and encourage students to be convincing and persuasive in anything they do.
Demonstration are a light-hearted pleasure. It can be classified as an efficacious method of teaching. With the use of demonstration technique, it stimulates involvement allowing motivation and a student interest to increase overtime. This causes a student to be more excited to learn making learning more fun and enjoyable. The literature of nursing fully explains a few reasons why demonstration may be an excellent technique for students, these reasons contains continuous learning, being able to think critically, understanding that learning can be done in a fun way and being able to link demonstration to real life situations.
However, demonstration collaborated with lectures are more fruitful than solo lectures. Demonstration and lectures go hand in hand assuring an orderly environment to learn. Compared to the different teaching techniques, lectures are considered a strategy that has aged overtime being the most prevalent in today’s society. Lectures are done frank and straight to the point which deliver students’ knowledge quickly and effortlessly. Choosing this technique has many advantages, which comprises of the capability to obtain relevant information to a vast number of students during a specific time frame set out for class. Lectures can be a style to instigate up to date information, pursue trending topics and rationalise materials for a course.
Moreover, few may view lecturers as boring and laid back, but it is one of the simplest yet effective technique for instructors to proceed. To make lecturing more fun and exciting it can be combined with role play and demonstration. With the combination of these techniques, student’s education can be improved.
Role playing is an exaggeration of an incident or situation. This incident focuses on an issue that may arise where more than one person plays a role to explain the situation. Being unscripted from the different strategies it differs from the rest. In role playing everyone is given a personality and portray an act based on it. This technique is applicable mainly in the clinical setting as it enhances communication skills. Role playing is very potent in cases where episodes of one’s culture and being aware of it is involved, as it gives students enumerate amount of knowledge, becoming passionate and obligatory in cross cultural learning.
Role playing is used to relay communication in educational courses. Before role playing commence, the aim of the activity must be stated. Debriefing is a major part involved in role playing. This is where clinical instructors and students discuss each participant role and exactly what was portrayed.
Brainstorming is a technique that permits students to be knowledgeable about the correlation between plans by designing visual sketch with connections. Brainstorming gives students the chance to see ideas and thoughts they have created and allow new ideas to flow logically being able to connect both old and new forming one complete vision.
Brainstorming techniques encourages students to represent each thought visually putting them in a mind frame of analysing and improving their critical skills. The aim of this technique is to assist students to learn by being a critical thinker and connecting old concepts to new ones. Brainstorming is an excellent technique as it relates to a nursing care plan. With brainstorming students can explore their thoughts and ideas for better patient care. Care plan textbook are no longer a necessity anymore.
Debating entails two sub headings (‘pro’ and ‘con’) these subheadings arises when there is a disagreement, hypothesis, declaration or resolution to an issue. This technique allows students to learn in a fun and exciting manner. Debating allow students to be more accounted for in participation and learning of a required course. It activates cognitive thinking, improves one verbal communication skill and ensure one is fully trained and equipped for evaluation of an event. It improves students visual and writing skills. Debating is used during contentious issues or consultation of a direction in the education of nursing. It is the student’s responsibility to investigate the topic being suggested. All debaters should scrutinize literature and data, producing a suitable hypothesis for the topic with appropriate ideas in a logical sequence. Debating encourages feedback and increase student participation, team work anticipation and collaboration.
According to Tabbers and Paas, (2010) videos and illustration are used to show contents of a particular subject. Comprehensive videos are used to instruct students about psychomotor skills needed in demonstration (Smith et al, 2011). Being able to obtain an increase knowledge in motor skills by viewing a demonstration is identified as a prosperous detailed oriented strategy for the past thirty years (Wouterset al, 2010).Demonstrable learning and being able to follow others have been observed to be a simple yet sturdy technique for students to execute (Paas 2010). A student skill is acquired based on one’s techniques, thoughts, ideas and after observing experts performing a particular task or duty (Wouters et all 2010).
In addition to this, demonstration technique has been developed with three theories (behaviourism, cognitivism and constructivism) learning theory (Alonso et al, 2010). Cognitivism focuses on undetectable behaviour (subjectivity) while constructivism focuses on acquired knowledge and occurrences that are remembered by the learner (Kala et al, 2010). Behaviourism technique focuses on results that are observed and distinguish. It does not consider one’s emotions but relies mostly on stimuli that evokes a certain reaction and respond. Behaviourist believes if students receives the right stimuli, then their response will be one that was expected (Mcleod 2017).
Even though it is mainly recognised that both (cognitive and constructivist) approaches has a great influence on the evolution of learning theories, behaviourism remains more relevant to the foundational asset of psychomotor efficiency. Lectures is another great technique which makes learning for student easier. Students can enhance their knowledge by communicating with instructors and colleagues (Barnett, 2010). Kuh 2010 notes that involving oneself and asking legitimate question is a great way of learning. Being involve has many for a student to benefit from, student’s feel a sense of self fulfilment, classroom bravery increases along with one’s motivation (Hunt 2011).
Consultation is one of the most frequent and common technique for contemplation which helps improve lectures (Wade, 2011). Classroom interactivity is persuaded both by a student characteristics and thoughts. In some students, the way they think and feel influence participation and communication in the classroom (Weaver 2015).
According to McLeod 2015, Lecturing approach has been developed with the cognitivist teaching theory. One of its main goal is to accommodate students in the acquiring process of relevant information combining statistics that was known to statistics newly acquired. Despite, cognitivists authorize the usage of “skill and drill” physical activity, they are more interested in helping student to be knowledgeable enough to express and understand current information on their own. Moreover, when students are provided with question to arrange study material, it becomes a lot easier for them as they are given an opportunity to point out important segment of the lecture housing new information read, observed and learnt.
Piaget proposal rejected the thought of accepting learning as a cognition. Alternatively, he believed that learning is done with a particular procedure entailing steps of adjustment to actualization. This process helps learners improve understanding differentiating new knowledge from stored ones. Piaget theory consist of four leading phases of cognitive development which makes learning simple easier and effective. According to Clapper role play is another approach that makes learning easier. Role play can facilitate preparedness to expand and advance one’s expertise which is important for upcoming achievement by involving reality or actual situations that occur around the world. Role play is gradually used to increase a student critical thinking ability mainly used in concurrence with interrogation strategies of an organizer.
In order to be viewed as part of the crowd who is usually active, Clapper believes that there is no need to be directed by the teacher who tells you where to sit and whom to listen to but instead motivates you to partake in a desired role. This technique allows for interaction of particulars at different extent. According to Jensen, the need for role play approach is insightful allowing learners to utilize a vast amount of intelligence, being focused enough to create ideas and thoughts of both the organizer and the student. Activity encourages the left and right side of the brain to move which increases the strength of both motor and cognitive performance.
Role plays offers a considerable amount of comprehension focusing on gaining enough critical capability for in the workplace. This technique promotes an ever-lasting perception. In role play, observing has a major post as children are like sponges, they learn exactly what are being shown. Learning being a complex task for many, Bandura came up with the social theory describing ways in which people learn. Bandura propounded social theory which focuses on emulation, inspection and mimicking, which plays a vital part in this activity. Bandura’s theory connected a sense of social strand, debating the fact that an essential way student learn is by noticing the behaviour of others (observational learning). Learning by observation is used to assist others in understanding an extensive amount of behavioural pattern.
Furthermore, the brainstorming technique introduced by Dunns (2010) is commonly used in uplifting students’ skills. This technique was established approximately between twenty-five to thirty years. Being such a powerful technique, it improved students academic performance especially the unsuccessful accomplishment took a toll on becoming a successful one (DeBello 2011). According to Dunns (2010) the technique of learning is a method in which students begin to focus, interiorize and acquire current educational material. Everyone is unique in their own way, on the other hand learning techniques may not be the same for everyone. Hence some methods and means of learning may be effective for some and may be to no avail to the others.
In addition to this, lecturers introduced methods to make learning understandable and regurgitative and observed students learnt faster with participation in preference to listening. Lecturers computed floor activity for volatile students and distracted students learnt through routine drilling. After a while student began being their own role model after learning through these conniving technique (Dunns 2010).
Lecturers found that this strategy improved students grades and performance. Students attitude directed to learning and their peers changed after learning adapted toward their technique chosen and accomplishment. School came as a type of enjoyment to these students after they mastered and understood the art of learning. Students test score increased drastically as they outlined the love they had for learning, their ability to remember came as easy as reciting the alphabet and they knew which technique was suited for them, using this learning strategy to do their assignments and studies (Dean 2012). It is proven that this technique improves students academic and cognitive skills worldwide (Debello 2011). Brainstorming co-enhances with the cognitive theory as this theory deals with the gathering of information from one’s minds. This theory works by orginising information from the mind in a strategical, logical way. As the mind acquire information it either charts it as new information or recover it as a past memory or idea.
Although brainstorming can sometimes make people feel as though they are crazy, it allows independent thinking and ideas to be formulated, without one’s thought being criticized, but yet evaluated with the best idea being used to explore issues. Brainstorming can be classed as a participative approach. One advantage of this technique is that ideas are being constructed quickly with fair contributions from everyone involved. Brainstorming enhances team work participation in effect. Being a well-known strategy, there are immense reviews pertaining the technique’s success.
Finally, Hajime and Sawamura states that debating is an important part in our everyday life since arguments is unavoidable in societies, legislature and assemblies. Debating is important in the area of education, dispute and a persuading method for providing and encouraging rationales for claims. These claims give students the opportunity to highlight each point in a logical and sequential manner. Arguments need to be precise and strait to the point to avoid students from straying. Lectures mentor students to explore arguments strengthen on theories or pass experiences due to evidence researched.
Debating can be viewed as a fun exercise for students. It allows students to listen attentively and think before they speak. It improves cognitive and social skills, strengthening team work ability and persuasion to convey the judges, listeners and opposing team that their point is valid. This strategy is surely a fun way for students to learn (Sawamura N.D.) In addition to this, debating is closely related to the social theory. The theory entrenches ideas about societal differences and growth about procedures describing one’s conduct pertaining sex, potentiality, novelty and sophistication (Harrington 2015).
In this paper, we allowed lecturers to partake in the proposition of being a part of student’s journey as they excel in changing into a professional in the health care settings. Knowledge obtained from one’s background over a period, helps clinical educators simplify learning making it easier for students (Boyers, 2010). These educators channel their work with different strategies making it easier for students to adapt. With a significant amount of research and credible sources, one’s experiment can be explored. After exploring different practices, the ideal teaching practice is commonly taught and noted.
To maintain a certain amount of standard through teaching, it can be stimulated through the analysis of all the strategies which makes learning fun and consistent. After feedback is given from lecturers it helps less motivated students to become motivated highlighting weak areas and areas that can be improved. These strategies improve critical thinking and reflexiveness for both students and nurses. The urging need of health care for the public has made a toll for the best since students were introduced to learning from a different perspective (demonstration, lectures, role play, brainstorming, debating).
In completion of this, it is wise that clinical experience be initiated in advance involving all training required and putting all strategies in place. The regurgitation and repetition of the teaching process is essential in enhancing quality of care, learning and teaching. This paper entails new knowledge with different techniques showing how a novice can be taught moving up the chain of commands from novice to expert. Demonstration on how learning can be thought are fully explained above improving critical skills and one’s participation.
Lastly the theories discussed in this paper was essential as it linked different practices. These theories helped us to understand the society that we live in today. These theories have great effect on students as they link it to their everyday life at home and in the work place. Linking these theories to the approaches or illustrating on how it co enhances one another makes it easier for students not only to learn but to remember. In conclusion to this, with all the different techniques used in the clinical settings to enhance knowledge and make learning easier for students, demonstration, lecturing, role play, brainstorming and debating remains the five on going ones that are used daily in the health settings. Its purpose is for collaboration, participation, peer support and self-fulfilment (Ragins N.D.).
