Enhancing nursing students' moral sensitivity through the World Cafe and ethical decision-making simulation to...

Teachers' instructional strategies and students' learning styles are key determinants of learning effectiveness. This study examined whether the World Cafe teaching strategy and the Four-Topic Approach to ethical decision-making could enhance outcomes in nursing ethics education. A total of 250 nursing students participated in this study. Two instructional strategies were implemented during the semester: (1) the World Cafe teaching strategy and (2) the Four-Topic Approach. Pretests and post-tests were administered. Learning-style classifications included visual (n = 106), auditory (n = 96), and kinesthetic (n = 124). Additionally, 50 students demonstrated a single learning style, 54 demonstrated two learning styles (eg, visual-auditory, auditory-kinesthetic, or kinesthetic-visual), and 56 demonstrated all three learning styles (visual, auditory, kinesthetic). Eighty-eight students could not be assigned to any learning-style category. Overall, 110 students (44%) exhibited two learning styles. Significant correlations were observed between the use of multiple teaching strategies and nursing students' learning styles (r = 0.352, p = .01), as well as between teaching strategies and moral sensitivity (r = 0.329, p = .01). Both learning styles and instructional strategies were associated with improved moral sensitivity scores. The findings suggest that integrating diverse teaching strategies - such as the World Cafe and structured ethical decision-making - can effectively enhance nursing ethics education. Tailoring instruction to accommodate students' learning styles may contribute to improved moral sensitivity among nursing students.