Nursing student perspective of learning in a clinical setting

The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore and describe nursing students' experience of learning in a clinical practice setting where the students learned to provide care for acutely ill infants. Data were collected using the techniques of observation and ethnographic interviewing. The findings included a nursing student perspective of learning in a clinical setting and consisted of six goals: to do no harm to a patient, to help patients, to integrate theory-based knowledge into clinical practice, to learn clinical practice skills, to look good as a student, and to look good as a nurse. Within this perspective, the students also defined roles for themselves, their instructors, and the staff nurses in the clinical setting. The students defined the learning environment and then used that definition to shape their responses to the educational program.