Art as a scaffolding teaching strategy in baccalaureate nursing education

Although the use of art in nursing education is well highlighted, most of the literature is anecdotal or focuses on development of a reflective nursing practice with clients. In this study, art was used as a scaffold to infuse liberal nursing education by helping baccalaureate nursing students (n = 91) create a personal expression of nursing and move toward greater self-awareness. Scaffolding is a metaphor for supporting learners as they develop higher levels of thinking. Using naturalistic inquiry to analyze students' written responses in a course activity, four themes emerged from the data: art and creativity, teamwork, boundaries and horizons within self, and boundaries and horizons in the profession. Student's individual expressions of art served as the "calling forth" of processes that opened the door to each student's personal expression.