Education Horizon-Scanning Bulletin - March 2021 Compiled by John Gale, JET Library - Mid-Cheshire NHS Foundation Trust and edited by Michael Reid ...
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Education Horizon-Scanning
Bulletin – March 2021
Compiled by John Gale,
JET Library – Mid-Cheshire NHS
Foundation Trust and edited by
Michael Reid - Blackpool
Teaching Hospitals
1
Contents
General Healthcare Education ....................................................................................... 4
Great expectations in higher education .............................................................................. 4
Personality types and motivation ....................................................................................... 4
What do teachers think about motivating students? ........................................................... 4
Interprofessional Education ........................................................................................... 5
Teaching health professions a common language ............................................................. 5
Medical Education ............................................................................................................ 5
The moral development of junior doctors ........................................................................... 5
Volunteering in the fight against Covid-19: Captain Tom, Gareth Southgate or Private
Walker? ............................................................................................................................. 5
“I only went in for a rash and now I’m doing 50 star jumps” ................................................ 6
Distance learning. A long way from being effective? .......................................................... 6
What do junior doctors know about anaphylaxis? .............................................................. 6
Longitudinal integrated clerkships ...................................................................................... 7
When learning and practice come together ........................................................................ 7
Getting ready to go on-call ................................................................................................. 7
Which flavour feedback do students prefer? ...................................................................... 8
What do medical students think about the humanities? ..................................................... 8
Serious games for serious cases ....................................................................................... 9
Nurse Education ............................................................................................................... 9
Can role-play reduce stigma? ............................................................................................ 9
The Queen’s English? Not in South Dakota ....................................................................... 9
What do student nurses make of patient-safety incidents? .............................................. 10
Mindfulness and the nursing student. Part 241 ................................................................ 10
Nursing students on the couch......................................................................................... 10
The four domains of preceptorship .................................................................................. 11
Making a drama of talking to patients............................................................................... 11
Going for growth – mindset and the nursing student ........................................................ 12
How do nursing students look after themselves during the pandemic? ............................ 12
How to get nursing students to be kinder to themselves .................................................. 12
Peer support and graduate students ................................................................................ 12
Clinical learning environments: a review of the evidence ................................................. 13
The learning experiences of international students .......................................................... 13
What makes compassionate care for older people? ......................................................... 13
Virtual reality in nurse education ...................................................................................... 14
Can badges get bums on seats? ..................................................................................... 14
Online learning ................................................................................................................ 15
2Why feedback still matters in your bedroom..................................................................... 15
Cyberloafing – the best thing since sliced bread? ............................................................ 15
How goals help people stay the course on MOOCs ......................................................... 15
Staying the course with online learning ............................................................................ 15
3General Healthcare Education Great expectations in higher education Source: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health In a nutshell: Expectancy theory suggests that people behave or act in certain ways because of what they expect the result of that selected behaviour will be. It’s a useful theoretical underpinning to explain such mysteries as why people jump out of planes with parachutes and drive the right way down the M5. In this study, Adela Descals-Tomá from the University of Valencia, studied 267 university students in an attempt to link family-and-teacher support on intention to learn (including expectancy) and – via intention to learn – on engagement. The researchers found that family-and-teacher support improved the students’ expectancy, value beliefs, and achievement goals which, in turn, increased their academic engagement. You can read the abstract of this article at http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18052606 Personality types and motivation Source: International Quarterly of Community Health Education In a nutshell: Beer is made up of five main ingredients: barley, malt, hops, yeast, and water yet the permutations possible are almost endless and – for some of us at least – endlessly satisfying. In the same way psychologists talk about five measures of personality: openness to new experiences, conscientiousness, extroversion/introversion, agreeableness and neuroticism. In this study a team of researchers led by Ahmad Ahmadi from Allameh Tabataba’i University in Tehran, examined the effects of these personality factors – and some other psychological variables – on academic motivation in students studying to become paramedics. They found that extroversion, openness to experience, conscientiousness and self-efficacy all predicted increased academic motivation whereas neuroticism and academic alienation predicted reduced motivation. You can read the abstract of this article at http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0272684X211004948 What do teachers think about motivating students? Source: BMC Medical Education In a nutshell: It can be hard to get other people to do things which is why the sensible half of humanity gives up and decides to do what they’re told for the sake of a quiet life. University lecturers don’t have the option though – if they want their students to pass their exams that is. In this study, Abigail Grover Snook, from the University of Iceland, led a team of researchers asking lecturers what strategies they used to motivate their students. Principles related to usefulness, interest and caring were rated significantly higher than principles related to success and empowerment. Factors affecting the lecturers’ ability to use empowerment included the students lacking skills such as critical thinking and problem-solving; a lack of confidence in their abilities to use this strategy; passive students; and large lecture-type courses. Factors hampering the use of success strategies included: difficulties providing feedback in large courses; lacking time and assistant teachers; limited knowledge of technologies; and lacking the skills related to guiding effective student peer feedback. You can read the whole of this article at https://bmcmededuc.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12909-021-02599-7 4
Inter-professional Education Teaching health professions a common language Source: BMC Medical Education In a nutshell: In ‘Allo Allo’ French civilians spoke English with a French accent, German soldiers spoke English with a German accent and English airmen spoke pidgin English to give the impression they were hopeless at speaking French. As another comedic character – Herr Lipp from The League of Gentlemen – might ask “Alles klar?” Different healthcare professions often have a similar experience working together on wards which is why the World Health Organisation developed the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) to provide a common language to facilitate communication between them. In this study, Jean Baptiste Sagahutu from the University of Rwanda, led a team of researchers investigating whether a training programme in ICF would improve communication in four district hospitals. Doctors, social workers, physiotherapists, nutritionists, psychologists and mental-health nurses all took part in the study which found that the one-day training course improved the health professionals knowledge of, and attitude towards, interprofessional working You can read the whole of this article at https://bmcmededuc.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12909-021-02537-7 Medical Education The moral development of junior doctors Source: BMC Medical Education In a nutshell: Young people are full of energy and idealism and tend to see the world in black- and-white terms whereas those of us more mature in years realise that the moral high ground is a lonely place, full of rocky choices, not at all suitable for a picnic featuring a Scotch egg, packet of Quavers and a nice cup of tea. This process is known among the cognoscenti as “moral judgement development” and in this article Jenny McDonald, from Western Sydney University in Australia, interviewed 35 medical students from years three to five about it. The interviews revealed themes of early confusion, followed by defensiveness, characterized by desensitization and justification. As students approached graduation, some were planning how they would make moral choices in their future practice. These themes were mapped to the stages of self-authorship: External formulas; Crossroads and Self-Authorship. You can read the whole of this article at https://bmcmededuc.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12909-021-02572-4 Volunteering in the fight against Covid-19: Captain Tom, Gareth Southgate or Private Walker? Source: BMC Medical Education In a nutshell: One might argue there are two salient factors in volunteering: one’s willingness and capacity to do it. Thus Captain Tom Moore was willing and able to do 100 laps of his garden for the NHS; Gareth Southgate was willing, but unable, to score in the penalty shoot- out in Euro 1996 and Private Walker – from Dad’s Army – was able, but very much unwilling, to volunteer himself for combat in World War Two. In this study, Gilbert Lazarus, from Universitas Indonesia, led a team of researchers investigating these two factors in Indonesian medical students during the Covid-19 pandemic. 4,870 medical students took part in the study of whom just under half expressed their willingness to volunteer but of whom only 18.6% had adequate readiness to practise. Men and students who had volunteered elsewhere were more likely to be ready and willing to volunteer. Students from less well-off backgrounds were less 5
likely to volunteer although they were more ready, technically, to do so. Shortage of doctors, a sense of duty and “solicitation by stakeholders”, were the main reasons increasing the students’ willingness to volunteer whereas fear for one’s own health, absence of a cure, and fear of harming patients were the main reasons why they were reluctant to. You can read the whole of this article at https://bmcmededuc.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12909-021-02576-0 “I only went in for a rash and now I’m doing 50 star jumps”. Source: Family Practice In a nutshell: “Television is more interesting than people”, said Alan Coren “If it were not, we should have people standing in the corners of our rooms”. Given the propensity of doctors to dole out advice on diet, infection prevention, and sleep it’s probably only a matter of time before every household has a doctor in the corner; let’s just hope we have a mute button when they start droning on about “five a day”. In this study, Taylor McFadden, from the University of Ottawa, led a team of researchers investigating what factors made 221 medical students more, or less, willing to give advice on physical activity. Women were more motivated than men to counsel patients on physical activity and refer them to a specialist and second- year students were keener on this idea than third- and fourth-year ones. Students who were intent on becoming GPs were more confident about assessing and counselling people than those planning a career in paediatrics. You can read the abstract of this article at https://doi.org/10.1093/fampra/cmz034 Distance learning: A long way from being effective? Source: BMC Medical Education In a nutshell: The Covid-19 pandemic has meant that many students have gone from being bored and losing the will to live in face-to-face tutorials to being bored and losing the will to live doing distance learning in their bedrooms - without even the consolation of a coffee and a slice of cake with your friends afterwards. In this study, Chi-Chung Foo, from the University of Hong Kong, led a team of researchers comparing one group of students grappling with problem-based learning remotely to another group experiencing it in face-to-face tutorials. They found that the students who had used distance learning had significantly lower scores for participation, communication, preparation, critical thinking and group skills. You can read the whole of this article at https://bmcmededuc.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12909-021-02575-1 What do junior doctors know about anaphylaxis? Source: BMC Medical Education In a nutshell: “Does Magna Carta mean nothing to you? Did she die in vain?” asked Tony Hancock. Judging from this study led by Chandrani Nirmala Wijekoon from the University of Sri Jayewardenepura in Sri Lanka, many junior doctors might have a similar reaction to anaphylaxis - “I’ve never met Anna, but I’m sure she’s a lovely girl.” 385 junior doctors took part in the study, and only 16.4% correctly identified all anaphylaxis triggers. Only 7.3% correctly diagnosed all ten of the scenarios they were asked about although nearly all of them knew that adrenaline was the right thing to give people. Over 20% of them did not know the correct adult dose for adrenaline and 44% of them didn’t know the correct children’s dose. The researchers concluded that “knowledge, perception and self-confidence in the diagnosis and management of anaphylaxis was sub-optimal”, in this group of doctors. 6
You can read the whole of this article at https://bmcmededuc.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12909-021-02588-w Longitudinal integrated clerkships Source: BMC Medical Education In a nutshell: Clerkships might conjure up images of Bob Cratchit in his fingerless gloves, scratching away with a quill pen and wondering how a dead mouse is going to feed a family of four for a week but in many countries it’s just what they call clinical placements. Rather than having students spending weeks getting lost on the way to the cafeteria and making awkward small talk with new patients and supervisors longitudinal integrated clerkships aim to give continuity of care, placements and curriculum. In this study, Yaw-Wen Chang from the National Defence Medical Centre in Taiwan, led a team of researchers who interviewed 16 patients and nine family members who had been cared for by medical students on a longitudinal integrated clerkship. The interviews showed that the students acted as a bridge between doctors and patients by reminding, consulting, tracking disease progression, and researching solutions for problems. They provided companionship by accompanying patients, listening and providing a presence and they provided empathy by showing sincere concern for their patients’ experiences, feelings and moods. You can read the whole of this article at https://bmcmededuc.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12909-021-02553-7 When learning and practice come together Source: BMC Medical Education In a nutshell: As any number of driving instructors – weeping as they contemplate their less- promising pupils while trying to find a layby with a Portaloo and a snack bar – will tell you, doing isn’t always the same as learning. In this study, Ulf Teichgräber from Friedrich Schiller University in Germany, led a team of researchers investigating the effectiveness of a new structured work-based learning (WBL) programme for students undertaking a half-day radiology immersion experience. 228 students did the course which was based on “a novel structured WBL concept that applied established didactic concepts including blended learning, the FAIR principles of feedback, activity, individualization and relevance, and Peyton’s four- step approach. The students’ satisfaction with structured WBL was very high (99%); their expectations were exceeded and they felt taken seriously at the professional level. Their teachers rated the achievement of “learning outcomes regarding cognitive and psychomotor competences as excellent for all students,” and interviews with the students revealed “achievement of affective competence in some students”. You can read the whole of this article at https://bmcmededuc.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12909-021-02592-0 Getting ready to go on-call Source: BMC Medical Education In a nutshell: However much young footballers practise nothing, one presumes, can prepare them for a wet night in Burslem; being hacked to pieces by a hard-bitten 30-year-old while playing against Port Vale. In much the same way junior doctors often struggle in their first few weeks working on the wards. In an attempt to soften the blow a bit Nichola Hawkins from Imperial College London, led a team of researchers investigating students’ experiences as they took part in an on-call simulation lasting an hour-and-a-half. Afterwards the students had an hour-long interview with a qualified doctor who had been observing them. Six themes emerged when the medical students were interviewed which were: 7
Information overload
The reality gap
Making use of existing knowledge
Negative feelings and emotions
Unfamiliar surroundings
Learning on the job
You can read the whole of this article at
https://bmcmededuc.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12909-021-02605-y
Which flavour feedback do students prefer?
Source: BMC Medical Education
In a nutshell: “Freud”, Ken Dodd once observed “said that “laughter is a release of psychic
energy” but, then he never played Glasgow Empire on a Friday night”. Whether you’re one of
the all-time greats like Doddy or a newcomer dying a death in the upstairs room of the Rose
and Crown feedback in live entertainment is usually instant and uncompromisingly honest.
Feedback for medical students taking OSCEs (objective, structured, clinical exams) can be
rather more measured than a standing ovation or a hail of bottles and in this study, a team of
researchers led by Chin Fang Ngim from Monash University in Malaysia, compared the effects
of face-to-face and written feedback in a study of 96 medical students. Most were comfortable
with receiving feedback with extended written feedback being associated with higher comfort
levels. Most students felt that both types of feedback improved their performance, although
this perception was significantly stronger for written feedback. The students who preferred
written feedback had lower scores than those who preferred face-to-face feedback although
the tutors felt that both methods of feedback were equally beneficial.
You can read the whole of this article at
https://bmcmededuc.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12909-021-02585-z
What do medical students think about the humanities?
Source: BMC Medical Education
In a nutshell: After years of being derided at school swots have the last laugh as they get to
spend three years lounging around at university while their erstwhile tormentors have to go
and work for a living. In much the same way medical students get over having to spend hours
studying - while humanities graduates discuss politics, the meaning of life and their record
collections - by turning into golf-playing Roller-driving consultants leaving their arts equivalents
processing insurance claims or honing their barista skills. Doctors often get to dabble –
willingly or not – in the humanities though and in this study, Loukia Petrou from Imperial
College London, asked them what they made of it. Men and women had the same levels of
engagement with the humanities and all the students felt that they shouldn’t be assessed on
their work in this area. The students were fairly equally divided as to whether humanities
should be elective or not although most of them wanted more humanities to be incorporated
into the curriculum, preferably in the first three years. Younger medical students were more
likely to see empathy as a highly desirable attribute than senior students.
You can read the whole of this article at
https://bmcmededuc.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12909-021-02555-5
8Serious games for serious cases Source: BMC Medical Education In a nutshell: In the days when loading a computer game meant convoluted arrangements with tape recorders, leads and television aerials books that allowed you to make decisions and choose your own adventure (usually involving orcs rather than girls) were popular. Medical simulations work on the same principle, creating a virtual world – albeit one involving rather more-sophisticated technology – where action x has consequence y. In this study, Tobias Raupach from Göttingen University Medical Centre in Germany, led a team of researchers investigating the use of serious games to teach 178 fourth- and fifth-year medical students how to cope with non-ST segment elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI), pulmonary embolism (PE) and hypertensive crisis. The researchers found that the game led to an improvement in the students’ overall performance which remained stable over one-and-a- half years. Those students who had taken part in the game were more than twice as likely to correctly diagnose NSTEMI and PE and showed significantly greater adherence to recommended guidelines. You can read the whole of this article at https://bmcmededuc.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12909-021-02591-1 Nurse Education Can role-play reduce stigma? Source: Nurse Education in Practice In a nutshell: Some tasks – keeping a front-room tidy in a house with two small children, for instance – are unlikely ever to be wholly successful but are still worth attempting. One such is reducing the stigma around mental illness and in this study, Libin Gu from Nanjing University in China, led a team of researchers assessing the effectiveness of role-play and “real-world contact,” in doing just that. 343 students took part in the study which found the two interventions reduced stigma and increased students’ willingness to care for patients with mental illness. You can read the abstract of this article at https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nepr.2021.103009 The Queen’s English? Not in South Dakota Source: Nurse Education Today In a nutshell: Reading academic writing is a bit like observing the Charge of the Light Brigade from a hot-air balloon. You can make out all the units involved but their positioning and deployment make no sense whatsoever. Following (ig)nobly in this tradition is Melynda Ann Thelen from South Dakota University who examined “the effects of nursing pharmacology synchronous online scrabbling active learning classroom design with simulated clinical immersion experiences on the students’ self-efficacy and perceived pharmacological knowledge acquisition.” Which, roughly translated into the Queen’s English, means “Did a bunch of nursing students using computers to pretend to do things with drugs learn anything useful?” 34 nursing students took part in the study which was found to improve their self- efficacy and knowledge. “The … results [showed] … that the students perceived that simulated clinical immersions were promoting authentic learning and confidence.” You can read the abstract of this article at https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nedt.2021.104833 9
What do student nurses make of patient-safety incidents?
Source: Nurse Education Today
In a nutshell: A patient-safety incident can cover anything from a paper cut from the Times
Literary Supplement to having the wrong leg amputated, with – it can often seem – as much
time and effort devoted to preventing the former as the latter. In this study, Sarah Morey from
Northumbria University, led a team of researchers who held focus groups with nursing
students to talk about any patient-safety issues they may have come across on their student
placement. Three themes emerged from the focus groups which were:
The benefit of reporting and patient involvement
The barriers experienced by the students in reporting
The support needed to ensure they do the right thing in practice
You can read the abstract of this article at https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nedt.2021.104831
Mindfulness and the nursing student. Part 241
Source: Nurse Education Today
In a nutshell: Views on mindfulness vary from Jon Kabat-Zinn’s Wherever You Go, There
You Are to Elvis Costello’s take in Oliver’s Army of “I would rather be anywhere else / than
here today”. Unlikely as it might seem on a wet Thursday morning in March; Jon Kabat-Zinn’s
view is rather better supported by the evidence, although I for one would be first in the queue
to volunteer myself for any research projects on the benefits of daydreaming. Weighing in on
the side of mindfulness are a team of researchers led by Xiaxin Wu from Yangzhou University
in China. They reviewed the literature on this topic finding seven studies which met their
quality criteria. Four themes emerged from their analysis which were:
Stress conceptualisation and management
Nurses’ valued aspects of mindfulness-training strategies
Self-care awareness and strategies
Challenges of mindfulness training
The researchers concluded that “conducting mindfulness-based interventions among nursing
professionals helps to reduce work-related stress and has positive effects on work and life”.
You can read the abstract of this article at https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nedt.2021.104830
Nursing students on the couch
Source: Nurse Education Today
In a nutshell: As if it wasn’t bad enough dealing with the thoughts one is actually conscious of
for a certain type of psychologist these are only the equivalent of swans paddling down the
Manchester Ship Canal. They might look all fine and dandy on the surface but look below and
there are all sorts of tin cans, shopping trolleys and dead dogs to pull to the surface. Putting
41 nursing students on the couch were a team of researchers led by Landa Terblanche from
Trinity Western University in Canada. After interviewing the students the researchers
concluded “unconsciously, the nursing students experienced difficulty in effectively taking up
their professional role. They defended against their discomfort by splitting their experiences
into what they introjected and projected. They introjected incompetence in coping with the
emotional demands of the role and projected their anger onto authority figures. Their
professional role identity got stuck in a de-authorised position where they could survive but not
10develop their selves in their new role. These experiences inhibited their authenticity and
learning ability”. You can read the abstract of this article at
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nedt.2021.104834
The four domains of preceptorship
Source: Nurse Education in Practice
In a nutshell: When domains aren’t cropping up in Game of Thrones or as things your
computer can’t log into they’re liberally sprinkled around academic research as a synonym for
categories. In this study, Lina D. Kantar from the American University in Beirut, observed 18
clinical preceptors while they were teaching students on clinical placement and interviewed
them later. The teaching practices of the preceptors fell into four domains which were:
Partnership
Confidence building
Nurturing
Meaning making
The researchers concluded that “while the focus of instruction was on competence-building of
students, the meaning-making domain was found subordinated by most preceptors. The
findings support prior recommendations that expertise and proficiency must not be the sole
agents for selecting preceptors”. You can read the abstract of this article at
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nepr.2021.103010
Making a drama of talking to patients
Source: Nurse Education in Practice
In a nutshell: It’s a long-standing joke about men out “on the pull” - I can’t vouch for women’s
experience of this – that person X is only there to make person Y look good. Despite Casualty
and Holby City fulfilling the same role for the rest of the BBC’s drama output there are quite a
few lecturers who think drama is a good way of teaching nursing students how to
communicate with patients. In this study, Cecilia Ljunggren from the University of Malmo in
Sweden, led a team of researchers interviewing 15 nursing students who had taken part in a
drama workshop designed to “practically illustrate communication in nurses’ work”. Four main
themes emerged from the interviews which were:
Conceptions in relation to the development of empathy
Conceptions in relation to “my,” learning
Conceptions in relation to personal development of professional identity
Conceptions in relation to the understanding of applying pedagogy through drama as a
method
The researchers concluded that “this study illustrates that the use of drama in nursing
education can increase nursing students’ understanding of professional communication
relating to the care of patients. To use drama as an educational method provides opportunities
to develop nurses’ professional identity and professional role. Moreover, drama can act as a
teaching strategy that increases the understanding of theory through practical exercises”.
You can read the abstract of this article at https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nepr.2021.103022
11Going for growth – mindset and the nursing student Source: Nurse Education Today In a nutshell: A fixed mindset involves saying to oneself “I’ll never be any good at x”. This can save a lot of splinters and wasted glue when it comes to marquetry but can also lead to an unnecessary lifetime of standing around in wet bus shelters when applied to driving lessons. Recognition of one’s capacity to develop one’s skills and talents – even in, at first glance, rather unpromising directions – is called a growth mindset and in this study, Cheryl A. Williams from Salem State University and Lisa Lewis from Duke University (both USA) reviewed the literature on it. They found 22 articles that met their quality criteria which found that students with a fixed mindset avoided constructive feedback, hid errors and expressed “negative maladaptive behaviours that threaten their learning”. The researchers concluded that “to cultivate an adaptive lifelong learning health professional, the growth mindset model shows promise and should be integrated into curricula. You can read the abstract of this article at https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nedt.2021.104863 How do nursing students look after themselves during the pandemic? Source: Nurse Education Today In a nutshell: Looking after oneself during the pandemic can mean different things to different people. For media types in Islington it’s some green tea and a bit of yoga whilst for nurses in critical care it can mean a quick dap of hand cream, a chocolate and curling up in the foetal position while sobbing in the “wellbeing” room. In this study, K.R. Brouwer, from the University of Kentucky College of Nursing, led a team of researchers investigating self-care practices and psychological distress among nursing students during the pandemic. They found that school grade had a significant effect on nurses’ propensity to look after themselves. Graduate students had the lowest self-care-practice score, compared to all the other grades. And self- care, or rather lack thereof, was significantly and negatively associated with psychological distress. You can read the abstract of this article at https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nedt.2021.104864 How to get nursing students to be kinder to themselves Source: Nurse Education in Practice In a nutshell: People often speak to themselves far more harshly than they do to other people – one could argue that doing the opposite is a good reason to give someone a wide berth, rather than, say, electing them to the leadership of the free world. But self-criticism can go too far and being kind to oneself – self-compassion – has been identified as an important protective factor for mental health. In this study, Yasuhiro Kotera from the University of Derby, led a team of researchers who studied 182 nursing students to find out what qualities and factors led to self-compassion. The researchers found that self-compassion was positively related to resilience, engagement, intrinsic motivation and mental well-being and negatively related to amotivation. Resilience and motivation were both identified as “significant”, predictors of self-compassion. You can read the abstract of this article at https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nepr.2021.102989 Peer support and graduate students Source: Nurse Education in Practice In a nutshell: Graduate students can find things harder than bright young things who come straight from school; they may have family responsibilities to contend with and things are just harder to get to grips with as you get older as evidenced by my father-in-law trying to get to grips with London Transport’s ticket machines. In this study, Mikyoung Lee from Kwangju 12
Women’s University in South Korea led a team of researchers looking into the effects of peer
support on graduate nursing students. The researchers found that peer support “correlated
positively with positive-achievement emotions and learning satisfaction and negatively with
negative emotions”. Positive emotions were also linked to improved nursing satisfaction.
You can read the abstract of this article at https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nepr.2021.103003
Clinical learning environments: a review of the evidence
Source: Nurse Education Today
In a nutshell: It sometimes seems as though academic researchers investigating clinical
placements are a little bit like supervisors sweeping their office on a landfill site. However neat
and tidy things look like from their perspective the main business of the day is, inevitably,
messy, complicated and – if the purveyors of TV drama are to be believed – liable to involve
the odd dead body. Latest to have a go were a team of researchers led by Sunita Panda from
Trinity College Dublin. They reviewed 32 studies into this topic, involving a total of 853 nursing
and midwifery students, clinical teachers, and clinical nurses and midwives. The researchers
found that the attitude of clinical staff, instructors, and significant others had a major influence
on students’ clinical learning. Lack of a sense of belongingness and self-motivation to learn
and fear of making mistakes were demotivating factors. Other challenges included: lack of
resources to facilitate need-based training; staff shortages; workload and inconsistencies
between theory and practice.
You can read the abstract of this article at https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nedt.2021.104875
The learning experiences of international students
Source: Nurse Education in Practice
In a nutshell: It’s hard to believe now that a trip to B&Q to buy some drill bits and a can of
primer counts as a trip of a lifetime but people still travel to other countries to train as nurses
and midwives. In this study, Amye [sic] Eden from the University of South Australia, led a team
of researchers reviewing the evidence on the learning experiences of international students in
nursing and midwifery programmes. The researchers found eight studies which met their
quality criteria from which five themes emerged:
Language and culture
Isolation and segregation
Teaching and learning
Services and support
Resilience and growth
The researchers concluded that “there is a need for increased language and peer support,
socialisation and specially-educated support staff”.
You can read the abstract of this article at https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nepr.2021.103027
What makes compassionate care for older people?
Source: Nurse Education Today
In a nutshell: Rather like a sense of rhythm at a disco compassion is easy to spot but rather
more difficult to acquire. In this study, Sanj Nathoo from the University of Buckingham, led a
team of researchers interviewing eight nurse educators, eight clinical mentors and 23 pre-
registration nursing students about “the determinants of compassion in the care of older
people”. Three themes emerged from the interviews which were:
13 The meaning of compassion
Extrinsic determinants of compassion in care
Intrinsic determinants of compassion in care
The researchers concluded that “nurses and students think that compassion speeds up older
people’s recovery and enhances the quality of care. NEs [nurse educators] consider its
application in clinical practice a demonstration of competence”.
You can read the abstract of this article at https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nedt.2021.104878
Virtual reality in nurse education
Source: Nurse Education Today
In a nutshell: Virtual reality can be used for any number of things; not all of them involving
naked people, rollercoasters, or unicorns. In this study, Christian Plotzky from Furtwangen
University in Germany, led a team of researchers reviewing the evidence on the use of virtual-
reality in nurse education. The researchers found 22 articles that met their quality criteria and
classified them into four main educational objectives:
Procedural skills training to improve technical knowledge and proficiency
Emergency-response training that focuses on confidence
Soft-skills training that teaches empathy
Psychomotor-skills training
The researchers concluded that “in order to make full use of VR [virtual reality], designers
should consider including haptic [touch] devices to practise psychomotor skills and include
social interaction to teach soft skills”.
You can read the abstract of this article at https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nedt.2021.104868
Can badges get bums on seats?
Source: Nurse Education in Practice
In a nutshell: Despite the undoubted charms of Hey Duggee and the character-forming
benefits of scouting and guiding one would have expected most people to have grown out of
badges by the time they get to 18. Given that many people’s goal in life seems to be avoiding
growing up for as long as possible* badges are due a new lease of life though and in this
study, Mickael Antoine Joseph from Sultan Qaboos University in Oman, led a team of
researchers investigating the effectiveness of digital badges at encouraging nursing students’
attendance at lectures. They found that using digital badges to reward students for going to
lectures improved their attendance and increased their motivation and satisfaction. They
concluded that “awarding digital badges is a simple and positive way to combat nursing
student absenteeism, increase attendance-related motivation, and showcase regular class
attendance”.
*Some might say this is a bit rich coming from someone who only properly left home at 27
You can read the abstract of this article at http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.nepr.2021.103033
14Online learning Why feedback still matters in your bedroom Source: Social behaviour and personality: an international journal In a nutshell: Drinking coffee and admiring the crenelations in Old Court has long been the goal of any right-minded academic, with marking the badly written garbage churned out by undergraduates coming a very poor second. Rather like small children, even when they discover things with enthusiasm they’re hardly likely to tell you things you don’t know. It’s tempting therefore, when things move online, to delegate this process to an algorithm but what effect does this have on the students? In this study, Xiaoquan Pan and Huijuan Shao from Zhejiang Normal University in China, examined the effects of “teacher online feedback”, on learning motivation and learning engagement in a sample of 312 university students. They found that giving students feedback online “was positively related to both learning motivation and learning engagement”. You can read the abstract of this article at http://dx.doi.org/10.2224/sbp.9118 Cyber-loafing – the best thing since sliced bread? Source: International Journal of Educational Technology in Higher Education In a nutshell: Sit reading a newspaper in a computerised tutorial and you’re liable to get a flea in your ear; spend the time on Facebook and everyone thinks you’re solving Fermat’s Last Theorem, or finding a cure for cancer. Wasting time online is known as cyber-loafing and in this article, Sacip Toker and Meltem Huri Baturay from Atilim University in Ankara, investigated the factors affecting it. They found that students cyber-loafed mainly for socialization, followed by personal business and catching up with the news. Men cyber-loafed more than women, especially for personal business and news. As students’ internet skills increased, they were more likely to cyber-loaf. A lack of instructor norms and student motivation were associated with increased cyber-loafing, whereas instructors’ respect for students and negative attitudes to cyber-loafing were associated with decreases in cyber- loafing. You can read the abstract of this article at https://educationaltechnologyjournal.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s41239-021-00250-5 How goals help people stay the course on MOOCs Source: British Journal of Educational Technology In a nutshell: When I first moved in with my now wife our flat in South London looked on to the A23, the route for the London-Brighton vintage-car rally. Even by Streatham the layby outside the flats had become a battlefield casualty station with ancient vehicles – some of them steered, I kid you not, by rudders – pulling over with steam coming out of their bonnets. MOOCs (massive open online courses) have a similarly high drop-out rate and in this article Kun Li from Duke University, North Carolina, led a team of researchers investigating this phenomenon. The researchers asked people enrolling in a MOOC to write down what they wanted to get out of it at the start of the course. When the participants’ writing included either “learning or performance goals; those participants achieved more and engaged in learning longer than participants whose written responses did not fall into either of those categories”. You can read the abstract of this article at https://bera-journals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/bjet.13068?af=R Staying the course with online learning Source: International Journal of Educational Technology in Higher Education 15
In a nutshell: Also investigating the issue of people dropping out of online courses were a team of researchers, led by Sawsen Lakhal from the Université de Sherbrooke, Canada. They found that the main drivers for persistence in online courses where: anxiety, satisfaction, effort expectancy, engagement, behavioural intention, employer encouragement, facilitating conditions, and performance expectancy. Sex, age and whether people had done online courses before were also factors. You can read the abstract of this article at https://educationaltechnologyjournal.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s41239-021-00251-4 16
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