Teaching metaphors of student nurses
Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 22, 2026

Using Learning Outcome Measures to assess Doctoral Nursing Education
Published on: June 21, 2010
1Department of Nursing Practice, Australian Catholic University, Everton Park, Queensland, Australia.
Abstract:
This research focused on exploring the metaphors nursing students use to express their experience of university teachers' practice. A social constructivist approach to meaning underlies the process of interpreting student language in this study. The following evolved as major research questions: What are the metaphors students use to describe teaching? How do these metaphors operate? The research concluded that: students readily use metaphors to describe their experiences of teaching within the nursing degree programme; there is a pattern to the choice of metaphors; some of these images function as incremental or constructive metaphors, extending understanding of what it means to teach; others support current understandings and reflect taken-for-granted notions of teaching. Specific metaphors used by students to describe teaching were contextually analysed. A number of them may offer teachers of nursing insight, into their craft. Metaphors such as teacher as umpire, teacher as student, teaching with distance and teaching the big picture may be useful images for teachers to think about to guide their practice.
Related Concept Videos
Theoretical Foundations of Nursing Practice
Theories provide a perspective to assess patients' conditions and organize data and methods. They also assist in analyzing and interpreting information. They represent a...
Techniques of Therapeutic Communication II: Focusing, Paraphrasing, and Summarizing
This therapeutic technique can also be used when a patient brings up pertinent information during a health-related conversation. The...
Nursing Process for Patient and Caregiver Teaching I: Assessment and Diagnosis
It is critical to determine the patient's learning needs during the assessment. Determination of learning needs compounds data from the...
Nursing Process for Patient and Caregiver Teaching II: Planning and Implementation
The Professional Nurse
Communication skills: These are critical characteristics, especially speaking and listening.
Nursing Implementation
The five steps to implementing effective nursing care include reassessing the patient, reviewing and revising the existing nursing care plan, organizing the resources and care delivery, anticipating and preventing complications, and implementing nursing interventions.

