The nursing educator's role in e-learning: a literature review.

Area of Science:

• Nursing Education
• Healthcare Professional Development
• Educational Technology

Background:

• E-learning is increasingly utilized in nursing and healthcare education.
• E-learning effectiveness for cognitive objectives is comparable to traditional methods when quality criteria are met.
• The nature of e-learning limits spontaneous instructor-learner interaction, impacting affective and psychomotor domains.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate how e-learning transforms the role of nurse educators.
• To synthesize existing literature on the evolving responsibilities of nurse educators in digital learning environments.

Main Methods:

• A narrative literature review was conducted.
• A comprehensive database search utilized keywords such as 'teacher,' 'educator,' 'role,' 'e-learning,' and 'nursing' in English and German.
• Forty sources were included in the review.

Main Results:

• The majority of the literature (30 sources) comprises expert opinions on the theoretical aspects of the educator's role in e-learning.
• Empirical research directly addressing the educator's role is limited (10 sources).
• Only four sources specifically examined the nurse educator's role in e-learning.

Conclusions:

• There is a consensus on the need for a new, more complex role definition for educators in e-learning.
• The literature lacks specific guidance on adapting the educator role for online nursing education.
• Further empirical research is crucial to understand and optimize the nurse educator's role in e-learning.