Research into experiential learning in nurse education

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Pedagogy in Higher Education
• Clinical Skills Training

Background:

• Traditional teaching methods may not fully engage students in complex clinical skills.
• Higher education institutions require effective professional development modules for lecturers.
• Understanding student learning styles is crucial for optimizing educational outcomes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To redesign and evaluate a continuing professional development module on advanced history taking and physical examination.
• To explore the impact of experiential learning and teaching styles on student outcomes.
• To assess the effectiveness of a redesigned module in enhancing clinical reasoning and skill acquisition.

Main Methods:

• Literature review on teaching and learning styles in higher education.
• Redesign of the 'advanced history taking and physical examination with clinical reasoning' module.
• Implementation and student-led evaluation of the redesigned module, focusing on experiential learning.

Main Results:

• Experiential learning and teaching styles were key themes in student evaluations.
• The redesigned module positively impacted module delivery and student pass rates.
• Students reported positive feedback, increased engagement, and improved teacher-student interaction, indicating deep learning.

Conclusions:

• Experiential learning is a successful pedagogy for clinical skill acquisition in higher education.
• The redesigned module effectively improved student engagement and learning outcomes.
• The study highlights the benefits of innovative teaching approaches for professional development in healthcare education.