Final learning plan

Flexible Learning Plan Template and Guidelines 

IntroductionProvide an overview of what will be covered in the presentation. 

What?  What is FL in nursing?

Why? Why use it?

How? How will I use principles of flexible and adult learning in teaching my BN 509 course?

Define Flexible Learning in your context.

The School of Nursing uses ‘blended learning, a mixture of ‘stand up’ teaching and technology (Ireland et al., 2009). Blended learning provides the best of both conventional and online worlds (Heinz & Proctor, 2004). Technology provides the tool for flexibility.  Learning involves face to face lectures, tutorials and workshops, classroom instruction, skills laboratories, simulations, role plays and on-line lectures. 

Application of the five dimensions of flexibility (Casey and Wilson, 2005; Collis & Moonen, 2001).

Time: Relates to individual choice of time use – why, when, where, how, how much?

Some students have restricted study time – may be full-time parents and part-time workers.  Having a course available online makes it easier to access materials and study when it is convenient to the individual person. 

Content – Content can be presented in easily manageable chunks of work.  Activities can be sequenced so that the learning progresses logically.  A quiz can be built into the learning to check mastery of facts.  Different media can be used to augment learning

Entry requirements – The BN programme has specific entry requirements. The minimum level of entry is a pass in three NCEA level 3 science subjects..

Instructional approach and resources: Flexible learning is student-centered.  The student takes control over the time, pace and span of learning.  The role of the instructor is to scaffold learning activities so that the learning outcomes can be achieved. 

Delivery and logistics – Otago Polytechnic provides Moodle, en electronic learning platform.  It is accessed by a student logon and password.  It can be accessed on campus (for free) and from other places using (preferably) high speed broadband. The student has use whenever they desire.  Teachers have to plan and prepare learning materials in advance so they are available when students need them. 

AimState what you intend to achieve with the plan, in one or two sentences.

In this flexible learning plan I will develop an on-line learning module. The module will run over three weeks and include a range of learning activities. It will end with a classroom actitivity where students complete a role-play. 

Background Describe the learning environment you work in.

The School of Nursing is working towards all staff and courses using ‘blended learning, a mixture of ‘stand up’ teaching and technology (Ireland et al., 2009). Blended learning incorporates aspects of flexible learning.  It involves face to face lectures, tutorials and workshops, classroom instruction, skills laboratories, simulations, role plays and on-line lectures. 

Each course In the Bachelor of Nursing (BN) degree programme provides factual and theoretical learning that is applied to clinical practice in a range of settings (e.g. medical, surgical, mental health nursing).

Nursing curricula and content is directed by the New Zealand Nursing Council and nurses must achieve vocational competencies.  Courses are reviewed every three years to ensure they are meeting national standards.  Learning outcomes for each course are reviewed as part of the external moderation process.

Outline the reasons flexibility is necessary, and the factors which have stimulated change.

The idea behind my plan is to reduce the number of face to face class time from five hours to a one and a half hour class at the end of the module.  This was prompted by a number of factors:

Time: full-time students are completing 7 full-time courses over the first year of study.  Three of these a ‘theory’ course and four involve regular 2 hour skills laboratory and clinical placement time.  Clinical placement involved shift work and often travelling, sometimes out of Dunedin.  Students become very tired and stressed during the times of clinical placement and often do not keep up with work on their theory paper.

The rationale for using a modular approach to learning is to allow students to time bank hours so that they can complete the module either in small parts, or in a larger block of time to suit themselves.

I see this as a win-win solution as it reduces the cost of using classrooms to the School of Nursing and provides a summative assessment of learning in the end of module activity.  It also fits with EDC encouragement to use online tools and create more interactive and diverse resources of online learning.  It fits with the Otago Polytechnic’s strategic vision of inspiring capability and life-long learning. 

Concepts of Flexible Learning – Access and Equity, Diversity and Inclusivity

Provide a definition for each concept and the relevance in your professional context.  .

Access and equity – means that all students, regardless of their diversity (differences in gender, age ethnicity), have an equal chance (inclusivity) to learn. 

In practical terms this means that we need to take all these factors into account to ensure all students are included. 

Explain how you will ensure all your learners can access the learning environment you have created

All students have access to Moodle.  Training and IT support is available through student support services.  Support is also available for students with visual or hearing disabilities. I will ensure that my Moodle site is easy to read, uses a large font, has clear instructions, contains a mix of visual and aural media files and meets the standards defined by the Otago Polytechnic. 

I will use research on learning to inform my practice.  In a recent study of nurses and midwives learning preference styles, it was found that kinesthetic learning was the most preferred and aural learning the least preferred learning mode (James, D’Amore & Thomas, 2011).  This means educators should use as many kinds of kinesthetic learning methods as possible.  These include – hands-on, lab work, demonstrations, interactive simulations, role plays.  (I will use role plays in my end of module classroom activity). 

Aural learning was the least favoured meaning that traditional lectures and tutorials involving speech and listening may not be the best methods.  No significant differences for gender or age were found but visual learning was important for those who had no healthcare experience.

Concepts of Flexible Learning: Open Education and SustainabilityProvide a definition for each concept and the relevance in your professional context. 

Open education is about the open (usually free) use of resources.  Some examples include YouTube videos, Massive Online Learning Courses, Blogs, and Wikis. In nursing, short instructional DVDs are used to demonstrate clinical skills.  These have been made by School of Nursing staff and are on a shared OP site for nursing students to access.  They may also purchase a DVD.  I am thinking about developing video resources for demonstrating and role modeling therapeutic communication skills.  For example, the situation of a nurse establishing good rapport when taking a person’s health history. 

Sustainability is development which meets the needs of the present without compromising the needs of the future.  It is about protecting and preserving resources particularly, self, time, money and technology. 

Outline the strategies you intend to use to ensure these concepts are addressed.

I will use appropriate YouTube content and will encourage students to use a course wiki where they can place information and resources related to course work.  We will also set up a course glossary.  I will use resources provided with the text book and any other free on line material.

Online resources are cost effective and reusable.  There is however a set up cost (staff time) and ongoing maintenance and evaluation of the course.

I will try to conserve money, resources and time when setting up my course.  I can save time by getting help with IT parts of the course, e.g., setting up a quiz or game.  I can reuse resources that are already there and I can look for other resources such as those available on TED, online TV sites (the ABC has some good short social science TV shows that I have used before).  I have found a wide range of other psychology sites with helpful interactive resources.  These include online personality and emotional intelligence tests which students may find interesting to do. 

I also read an article by Goodman (2011) about teaching the concept of sustainability – particularly climate change, in the nursing curriculum. This topic could be part of a group research topic.

Overview of Strategies Summarise the approach you will use to ensure flexibility in the learning environment, and the importance for your organisation.

As a teacher I will embrace technology and make greater use of online free resources.

I will develop the second part of my course into modules – same content organised into module topic and each module spread over a longer time.

Each module will end with a classroom role play activity and debrief.   

Adult educational theory Outline the adult educational theory on which you have based your plan.

Role pay in nursing is a kind of simulation which is underpinned by Kolb’s experiential learning (Peddle, 2011).

Experiential learning theory promotes that learning results from the coming together of experience of a certain quality with meaningful reflection.  Simulation allows students to make safe mistakes, they can practice in a situation that replicates form real-life situation (being told your child has been in a car accident and is seriously injured) or process (e.g., grief, coming to terms with having cancer). Through experiential learning, the simulation activity can be used to bring students to higher levels of expertise in nursing practice (Kilmon, Brown, Ghosh, & Mikitur, 2010). 

Experiential learning is underpinned by adult learning principles on which the learning is active and engaging.  It uses the personal lived experience of the learner and has real work place relevance. 

The use of simulation is further supported by constructivist theory where learners create their own meaning through interaction with the environment. 

Learning is focused on the student and the student is immersed in the activity and though interaction and conversation within a community of practice, the student modifies, develops and grows knowledge of what to do in this kind of situation. 

The resultant learning is the transformation of that experience through guided debriefing that explores and examines the experience.  This provides the foundation for new learning which is active and holistic.   

Role-plays are a well established way of teaching basic therapeutic communication skills and interventions in nursing (Chunta & Katrancha, 2010; Kuipers & Clemens, 1998: Zsohar & Smith, 2008).  

Nurses can write case studies or scenarios are usually derived from nurses’ own clinical experiences.  Scripts are drafted out and then revised to a detailed script that includes verbal exchanges, behaviours and non-verbal actions.  Next the role-play is developed in a context (e.g., a clinical or community situation) with or without props.  Educators should then practice the role play until it can be done without a script.  The role-play can then be done by the educators in class - or for consistency of content and emphasis, a DVD can be made of them performing the roles for students to watch. 

Alternatively, a number of different roles (client, nurse, relative) can be written and given to students who then act out the role-play in small groups.  One or more students may observe the interactions.  All members then should go through a guided debrief so that the learning outcomes form the activity can be evaluated.  Role plays can be developed and reused during the course.  New material or situations can be added to provide variety.  After initial set up time, this is sustainable practice.

The content could be assessed in a number of different ways. (Thanks for feedback from Bronwyn Hegarty)

Each group could work on one of the scenarios and report back to the other groups on the discussion forum.

Groups could video their role plays and invite feedback from another group. 

The videos (or pre recorded) videos could be put on Play.op.ac.nz and critique and feedback could be done on the discussion forum.

Assessment – a written reflection or a verbal reflection – the group discussing the feedback and recording it on an mp3 recorder.  Alternatively, the audacity programme could be used on a laptop computer. 

Concepts of Flexible Learning: Cultural Sensitivity & Indigenous Learners
Provide a definition for this concept and the relevance in your professional context. 

Indigenous people are ethnic groups (e.g the Maori people) who live in a geographical area (in Aoteroroa) with which they have the earliest known connection.  In the contemporary context, indigenous people, often have lower socio-economic status, higher unemployment, lower health status and educational attainment.  Because of colonization and the disenfranchisement of indigenous people, as educators, we should strive to provide equal opportunity for learning for those identifying as Maori.

Outline aspects of the Maori Strategic Framework which underpin your approach.

Flexible learning allows the teacher to provide flexibility for all students.  However, indigenous learners may need more help and support in certain areas.  Kate Timms-Dean presented a model of learner centred discourse Te Whare Tapa Wha that is applicable to understanding the needs of Maori students.  It represents a holistic model of learning comprised of the following four parts:

Wairua (Spiritual) – do I believe that I can do this?  Make course outlines explicit, explain the learning environment and support systems that may help a student – e.g in affirmative action or educational assistance in gaining entry to a programme.

Tinana (physical) - do I have the resources?  As course coordinator I can point out specific support systems – Maori and Pacifica Services on campus.  I can ask or arrange for senior students to mentor junior students in my course and in the BN programme. 

Hinengaro (cognition) – can I cope?  I can provide positive reinforcement, prompt feedback, constructive reviews of written work; provide opportunities’ to submit work in oral or visual media. 

Whanau (family and social support) – do I have the support of my family to do this course?  I will maintain confidentiality about student progress and direct enquiries and issues to the appropriate liaison people in the School. 

Neal and Collier (2006) in their paper on Maori in e-learning note the importance of educators and students working together, using wikis, blogs and discussion forums to build an online forum and community whose aim is to generate greater knowledge.  This fits in with the ideal goal of sustainability in education.   Role plays may also work to achieve this aim.

Conclusion: Round off the presentation with a concluding remark and a “where to from here” statement

Using Zsohar and Smith’s (2008) principles for management of online courses, I will remember that:

Developing and managing online course are time-intensive activities – one module at a time!

I will evaluate the first module before moving on.

I must provide:

clear guidelines and deadlines

individual and group activities

immediate relevant and continuous feedback

exciting ways to engage the learner to promote active learning.

Above all else, I must look after myself!

Module 1, second semester this year, Module 2 at the end of year prep time……

References:

Casey, J. and Wilson, P. (2005).  A practical guide to providing flexible learning in further and higher education.

Collis, B. and Moonen, J. (2001). Flexible learning in a digital world. Open and distance learning series. London: Kogan Page ltd.

Chunta, K. and Katrancha, E. D. (2010).  Using problem-based learning in staff development. Strategies for teaching registered nurses and new graduate nurses.  The Journal of Continuing Education in Nursing, 41(12), pp 557-564.

Goodman, B, (2011).  The need for a ‘sustainability curriculum’ in nurse education. Nurse Education Today (2011), doi:10.1016/j.net.2010.12.010.

Heinze, A. & C. Procter (2004). Reflections on the use of blended learning. Education in a Changing Environment. University of Salford: Salford, Education Development Unit.

Ireland, J., Martindale, S., Johnson, N., Adams, D., Eboh, W., and Mowatt, E. (2009).  Blended learning in education: effects on knowledge and attitude.  British Journal of Nursing, Vol. 18(2), pp 124-130.

James, S., D’Amore, A., Thomas, T. (2011).  Learning preferences of first year nursing and midwifery students : Utilising VARK.  Nurse Education Today, 31, pp 417-423.

Kilman, C. A., Brown, L. Ghosh, S., Mikitiuk, A. (2010).  Immersive virtual simulations in nursing education.  Nursing Education Perspectives, 31(5), pp 314-317.

Kuipers, J. C., Clemens, D. L (1998).  Do I dare?  Using role-play as a teaching strategy.  Journal of Psychosocial Nursing. 36(7), pp 12-16.

McGuiness, T. M. (2004) Top 10 reasons to take your graduate program in psychiatric nursing ONLINE.  Journal of Psychosocial Nursing & Mental Health Services. 42(12), pp 33- 38.

Neal, T., and Collier, H. (2006).  Weaving kaupapa Maori and e-learning.  Journal of Maori and Pacific Development, 7, pp 68-43.

(Peddle, M. (2011).  Simulation gaming in nurse education: entertainment or learning? Nurse Education Today (2011). Doi:10.1016/j.net.2010/12/009. .

Zsohar, H. and Smith, J. A. (2008).  Transition from the classroom to the Web: Successful strategies for teaching online. Nursing Education Perspectives, 29(1.) pp 23-28.    

'Cultural safety' in nursing practice

Critical refection on professional responsibilities (Cultural safety)

During the Competency Assessment Programme (CAP) course, I learned about the Treaty of Waitangi (TOW), its historical significance and its relevance to the health of the indigenous Maori population of New Zealand/Aoteoroa. From lectures and the reading that I did, I know that there is a difference in socio economic and health and outcomes between Maori and non-Maori New Zealanders.  For example, data indicates that compared to non-Maori, Maori have a lower median income, reduced life expectancy, a higher youth suicide rate, higher incidence of breast cancer in women (Kingi, 2007, Rapata-Hanning, 2010).  I learned that the burden of disease and ill-health experienced by indigenous populations happens when people have been dispossessed of land and resources by the dominant group in a society (Wilson, 2006).  This was the experience of the New Zealand Maori as a result of early British colonisation.   

As an outcome of learning about the TOW, and as a European New Zealander I am now fully aware of the injustice and social discrimination in our society and, as a health care professional, wish to do something about it.  The TOW establishes the rights of Maori and the nature of their relationship with the government.  A useful way forward is to think of the treaty as a model for effective relationships between clients and nurses, between nurses, and between nurses and other interdisciplinary teams.  The treaty principles of participation, protection and partnership are a useful framework for caring for any person in a culturally safe way (Kingi, 2007, NCNZ, n.d.).

So what is cultural safety? A great deal has been written about cultural safety in nursing.  The earliest articles identify cultural safety in terms of Maori health and ethnicity (Ramsden, 1990).  In 1993 the concept was widened to include what Ramsden (1993) referred to as ‘categories of difference’. More recent research shows that culture in nursing refers to people who differ from you in terms of attitude, belief, culture, values, roles within society, age, disability, gender, socio-economic group or sexual orientation (NCNZ, n.d.; Papps, 2005).

We can take this that cultural safety is about acknowledging that people are different, and therefore valuing and respecting difference, with nursing care based on those differences, not regardless of them.  Being culturally safe requires nurses to be aware of the assumptions that we hold about others and not to base nursing care on or socially and culturally based assumptions. In practice, cultural safety means being able to engage within a socio-political context of beliefs about family (whanau). It means understanding what is forbidden (tapu) in a range of health care practices from washing someone, through to physical examinations or handling biological specimens (ODHB, n.d.). 

In professional practice, the central tenant of cultural safety is that rather than the nurse determining what is culturally safe, it is the recipient of that care who decides whether they feel safe with the care that is given. This client-centred philosophy is in contrast to traditional nursing education which was founded upon the idea that all people should be treated the same rather than recognise their differences.  Today cultural safety requires that nurses provide care mindful of those things that make people unique (Hughes & Farrow, 2006).   

Having returned to clinical nursing after 26 years, I have seen the treaty principles of partnership, protection and participation applied in everyday clinical practice. In particular, I have observed that nurses no longer ‘do procedures’; rather they explain, describe, then gain the client’s consent to carry out their work.  Part of this is due to legislative changes such as the Code of Health and Disability Services Consumers’ Rights (1996), but it is also obvious that professional education and curriculum changes that encourage and facilitate an understanding of difference have had an effect.    

In my clinical practice I took care of a resident (P) with input (participation) from her daughter, niece, General Practitioner, dietician, physiotherapist, occupational therapist, other nurses, caregivers and unit manager.   On her third day in the ward P decided that she was too sore (due to bone pain from a fractured vertebra) to get out of bed each day.   She first mentioned this to her GP (who she greatly respected) and asked his permission to ‘stay in bed’.  P told us she discussed it with him first (as she said, because he had the power to authorise her to stay on bed rest) because the nurses were not listening to her and, even though she was shouting out with pain, they were insisting that she get up out of bed each day.  

Her daughter was upset to see her mother in pain but knew (from her experience as a part-time care giver) that if P stayed in bed all day, she would be more susceptible to bed sores. The physiotherapist was encouraging P to stand up and use a walking frame to manoeuvre and use the commode but she was also finding this too painful.  Through a process of discussion and explanation of the possible complications of being on total bed rest, balanced with her desire to stay in bed because it was less painful, it was agreed by all health care professionals involved in P’s care that she should stay in bed, unless she wished to get up.  This was documented in her notes and signed by the family. As a concession to personal grooming, P agreed to have one shower a week so that her hair could be washed. 

The outcome of this agreement meant that P’s care was different from that of other residents.  The discussion that was part of the decision making helped everyone involved understand what she wanted (participation).  It also showed that there was a conflict in values and professional duty of care between what nurses believed was good care (e.g., getting her out of bed each day) and what she wanted (to stay in bed).  P’s decision was based on her personal needs and preference to be comfortable.   As a team of healthcare providers we worked together (partnership) to prepare a plan of palliative nursing care that provided safe and effective nursing care (protection) and that the client was happy with (culturally safe).

References

Hughes, T and Farrow, T. (2006).  Preparing cultural safety assessment.  Kai Tiaki Nursing New Zealand, February, pp 12-14.

Kingi, T. R. (2007). The Treaty of Waitangi: A framework for Maori health development.  New Zealand Journal of Occupational Therapy, 54(1), pp 10.

Otago District Health Board (no date). Tikaka: Best practice guidelines.

Nursing Council of New Zealand (no date). Guidelines for cultural safety, the Treaty of Waitangi and Maori health in nursing practice. Wellington: Nursing Council of New Zealand.

Papps, E. (2005).  Cultural Safety: Daring to be different.  In Wepa, D. (Ed.): Cultural safety in New Zealand/Aotearoa.  (pp 20-29).  Auckland: Pearson Education, New Zealand.

Ramsden, I. (1990). Kawa Whakarurhau: Cultural safety in nursing education in Aotearoa. Wellington: Nursing Council of New Zealand.

Rapata-Hanning, M. (2010). Professional Nursing Practice: Maori Health Focus, Lecture 6 May.

Ramsden, I. (1993) Kawa Whakarurhau: Guidelines for Nursing and Midwifery Education in Aotearoa. Wellington: Nursing Council of New Zealand.

Activity 12

How can you include examples of New Zealand's indigenous culture in the design of your eLearning courses - language, society, history, political issues etc.?

We do this as a School of Nursing in our week long introductory course (as in previous blog).  We covered the history of colonization in New Zealand and looked at why the indigenous people of New Zealand have a worse health outcome than non-indigenous people. 

The competencies for Registered Nurses require all nurses to practice according to the Treaty of Waitangi principles of partnership, participation and protection. 

Student nurses must demonstrate how they meet this competence on all of their clinical placements.

I will post an example of how I think I met this competency while I was on clinical placements.

What approaches can you utilise to meet the needs of indigenous learners?

Allow time for one on one instruction. 

Have flexible deadlines. 

Provide mentoring (by other students) and support services available at OP. 

Provide alternative means of instruction and assessment including oral presentations and use of other audio visual media.

Outline any experiences you have had working with indigenous learners.

I worked in Wuhan, China for 4 weeks teaching on a MBA programme.  I taught in English which was the second language for all students. 

I used a microphone to speak through so that I could be clearly heard and I wrote English works on the blackboard so that student’s could see how the words were spelled. 

I had taken videos to use in class but found that once the video started, the whole class (52 adult students) would fall asleep.  

I then used case studies from the text book and set up a competition which the students greatly enjoyed!

I used short breaks where we sang children’s nursery rhymes (with hand actions) just for fun.  After singing a song such as “Three Blind mice” (if you don’t knoe it, have a listen and imagine the hand actions!) with hand actions, we would walk quickly around the building and then start class again as the teaching sessions were timetabled to run over 4 hours (8am- 12).  This kept them engaged and active.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y8nzXl6tFec

What were some of the challenges that you and the learners faced?

Staying engaged…(and awake).  For me, maintaining interest and stamina to live in a huge campus as the only white European woman in sight. 

The assessment was a written one (part of the course structure that I couldn’t change).  My expectations about the content and scope of the assignment were changed to meet the student’s ability to write in English.

How did this affect their learning?

We spent considerable amount of time in class discussing the assignment and I arranged for them to work in peer support groups so they could help one another with the written part of the assignment.  This worked really well and all students learned (and passed the exam).

Organisation, School and course policy and strategy

Activity Ten 

How do your ideas and strategies for flexible learning fit with your organisation?

The Otago Polytechnic institutional vision (in red).

To inspire capability: 

Nursing is a vocation.  Staff teach collaboratively in papers and across years of the BN programme.  Modules (topics) if clinical papers are designed so that students have appropriate theoretical knowledge and instruction before entering a clinical skill practice area.  While they are on a clinical placement, their work is supervised by a RN preceptor who has been trained to oversee the work of a student nurse.  The student’s knowledge development is facilitated by School of Nursing staff meeting weekly regularly with the student and preceptor.

My course:

·         The majority of the learning outcomes of my course relate to the development of oral, and to a lesser extent written communication skills.  We have a course textbook which describes the basics of therapeutic communication skills for health professionals.  It contains a number of classroom activities and case studies that can be used to explore the kind of communication skills that a nurse might use in situations, such as working with a young child who is afraid of being left alone in hospital. 

·         Much of the face-to-face tutorial time and activities are designed to practice communication skills in a safe learning environment.  I use case studies and scenarios from the textbook that have been designed to develop critical thinking and communication skills.  I organise student into small groups (3 or 4) so that they can read the case study and answer the associated questions.  Answers are pooled and reported back to the class.  Different approaches are presented and we discuss different aspects of communication in the feedback.  Positive feedback is given for participating. 

·         Sometimes I use role plays.  Students are paired up and given a communication activity to perform. This might involve interviewing one another about their own health status.  The emphasis is on essential skills such as giving consent when providing personal information, and about keeping the information confidential.    

To build capability:

Nurses are definitely ‘work ready’.  By the end of the degree programme each student will have completed a minimum of 1160 supervised clinical hour’s work in a variety of healthcare settings.  A new graduate has a large portfolio of evidence of competency to do the job!

·         My course is part of the first year nursing programme.  It is a theory paper with an applied communication focus.  The communication skills learned and developed over this and subsequent years are an integral part of the degree programme.  Communication skill and the ability to apply theory to a wide range of nursing situations in part of the life long learning of a nurse.

To be a learner centered organisation:  

Flexible pathways to entry are provided. A formal selection process for the three year Bachelor of Nursing (BN) degree programme is held at the end of each year.  This year 110 students were selected from 300 applicants. (The number is restricted to 110 due to the limited number of clinical placements in the Otago region). The majority of students enter the BN programme at the end of their secondary schooling

The BN entry requirements are a minimum of 14 NCEA level 3 credits in science.  Entry can also be gained by the successful completion of the Certificate in Health Sciences programme run by Otago Polytechnic.  Graduates from other disciplines may receive a cross credit for equivalent papers in the BN degree programme.

There is also a pre-entry numeracy and literacy test.  Students must declare their health and immunization status.  Criminal convictions must also be reported.

During the degree programme, some students may opt to study part-time and take longer to complete their degree.  Blended delivery offers a variety of learner centered options (e.g., access to written resources, video, quizzes, etc. by way of Moodle).

·         My course uses a blended learning approach.  Technology is used as the repository of reading material and learning activities.  Students have the opportunity to practice skills face to face in tutorials.  Other work can be completed in the student’s own time and place via Moodle.  I am always available by email to answer student queries.

To act with integrity and be guided by respect for people, environment, Kai Tahu:

The degree programme begins with a week-long Treaty of Waitangi course.  During this week students become familiar with the cultural safety requirements of nursing and learn about the history of and colonization of Aotearoa.  Through this discussion and learner engagement, we are able to gain a deeper understanding of the structural determinants of contemporary Maori health issues.

·         In my course we use the Treaty of Waitangi principles of participation, protection and partnership to guide our learning.  We talk about different cultural beliefs and how we can honour and respect others in our nursing practice.  I have students from different cultural backgrounds and we discuss their experiences and include it in our learning.  For example, a student explained how she massaged her baby with mustard seed oil to soothe him when he was unsettled.  She described the importance of therapeutic effect of massage and touch in India.  A Maori student explained the importance of her pounamu stone necklace (and why it should never be removed) to the class.   

WHAT EDUCATION MUST BE FOR

..... a quick review of David Orr’s ideas about the six new principles of education from
http://www.context.org/ICLIB/IC27/Orr.htm

First, all education is environmental education

If found this interesting as I came across an article by Goodman (2011) highlighting the need for a 'sustainability curriculum' in nurse education.  The focus of this paper was not about sustainable education, but about addressing the topics of sustainability and climate change in nurse education curricula.  Goodman pointed out that sustainable living is about not endangering the physical environment for future generations.  Over lunch I discussed with a colleague the fact that sustainable working is about having balance in work and living (and how we were both working over a lunch break...).  Sustainable health practices are vitally important in nursing as health care costs increase.  Sustainable practice and differentail fuinding can also been seen in the move away from hospital level care to increased support in the community and the provision of Primary Health Organizations. 

A second principle comes from the Greek concept of paideia. The goal of education is not mastery of subject matter, but of one's person.

This is not just about teaching “the curriculums” it is about learning about oneself and how one fits in the world.  This is an essential part of being a nurse.  You cannot care for others, unless you first care for yourself!

Third,  knowledge carries with it the responsibility to see that it is well used in the world.

We should use our knowledge responsibly.  Registered Nurses must act within their scope ofpractice and use their nursing knowledge appropriately. 

Fourth, we cannot say that we know something until we understand the effects of this knowledge on real people and their communities

This is very pertinent to the nursing curriculum.  Over the degree programme students spend time working with real people and in different communities.  They gain a wide range of experience from this and write about the health needs of different groups.

The fifth principle follows and is drawn from William Blake. It has to do with the importance of "minute particulars" and the power of examples over words.

Nursing uses case scenarios and real-life examples in all teaching and learning contexts.   This places learning in a meaningful context.

Finally, the way learning occurs is as important as the content of particular courses.

Learning occurs and develops over the three years of the BN degree programme and for nurses, continues in every nursing context.  Providing blended learning fits in with the Polytechnic’s institutional vision of life-long learning. 

Reference:  Goodman, B. (2011).  The need for a ‘sustainability curriculum’ in nurse education.  Nurse Education Today, doi: 10.10.1016/j.nedt2010.12.010.

Sustainability

·         How can you become a more sustainable practitioner?

By recycling teaching material.. I just did it!  I used previous years’ lecture presentations with full acknowledgment of the original author.  Up to now, I would have felt uncomfortable doing this as I would have felt an obligation to write my own version of the lecture material.

I also had a discussion with some students who apologized for using text book material to explain moral development theory.  The students thought that they should have used a wider range of resources to complete their assignment.  However, what they did was the best option because they were able to use material that was relevant and appropriate for their topic. 

·         What sort of learning and teaching strategies meet your philosophy of sustainability?

Using existing textbook resources – in my course I have an online learning tool comprising quizzes which I could set up.  I already use the classroom activities provided by the book. 

Cut down on photocopying and paper waste.  Maybe use electronic submission although I hate reading on screen! 

Making the student workload more manageable for them by closer coordination with other theory and clinical papers.