Supporting nursing students who fail: a review of lecturers' practice

This small qualitative study explored how lecturers (also referred to as personal supervisors) supported nursing students who failed academically. It is acknowledged that failure on a nursing course may relate to failure in practice and theory (Marland & McSherry 1997). For the purpose of this study, only failure associated with assessment of theory was explored. The aim of the research was to establish whether there was consistency in the way that lecturers within the same department managed failure. A t present, guidelines are in existence within the department to assist the lecturer in supporting the student who has failed. A sample of five nurse lecturers from a range of clinical backgrounds and programmes took part in the study. A semi-structured i nterview was employed to gather data from respondents, incorporating both open-ended and closed questions formulated with reference to the literature review. Results demonstrated that there was inconsistency in the way that academic support was provided to students who failed. The findings of this small study suggest that schools of nursing may need to produce specific protocols addressing the area of student support and the management of student failure. It is suggested that too diverse an approach in relation to managing student's academic failure could result in students appealing against the support process. It is, therefore, important that lecturers understand that: The aim in providing support ... is to ensure that the student derives maximum benefit from their course (Earwaker 1992, p. 11).