The COVID-19 pandemic and related lock downs have accelerated the need for online and remote teaching within university settings. However, due to the abrupt nature of the pandemic, many academic staff were not prepared for this forced transition. This study aimed to understand how the pandemic affected academics at a New Zealand university, with regards to their transition to emergency remote teaching. Specifically, it explores the challenges as well as benefits academics experienced during this transition. Recommendations for future online learning are also made. Academic staff (N = 67) at a New Zealand University completed an anonymous online survey. Quantitative data were analyzed statistically using descriptive and inferential statistics, while qualitative data were analyzed thematically. Major challenges experienced included miscommunication from the university, concerns about student access to technology, finding a quiet space to work, lack of digital competence skills, too much screen-time, managing work hours, and work/life balance. Benefits included enhanced flexibility, enhanced teacher creativity, increasing autonomy of learners, and reduced commute time. Looking forward, academic staff desired future teaching to include blended learning and virtual immersion. New strategies of working remotely are being explored to facilitate teaching and learning while catering to the preferences and skills of both educators and students. Our findings honor the considerable agility of academic staff who sought to sustain and enhance excellence in remote education. At an institutional level our findings point to the need for staff to be supported by their institutions as they further refine their work within new-found spaces.
Simulation as a teaching/learning tool has evolved at an unprecedented pace which some believe has occurred despite a lack of research into pedagogies appropriate to guide this technology-based learning tool. There seems to be some confusion as to what simulation actually is. Some have called simulation a pedagogy, which is incorrect. Simulation is not a pedagogy, but an immersive teaching/learning platform which is a representation of a functioning system or process. Simulation has been used in undergraduate nursing education in a focused manner for nearly 20 years. Its effectiveness in improving clinical reasoning and critical thinking is not certain if overall instructional design principles do not reflect suitable philosophical paradigms. Simulation as a teaching/learning platform is maximized when instructional design includes the inspiration of behaviorism, cognitivism, and constructivism. Behaviorist design principles include rote learning, repetition, modular learning, stimulus-response, and conditioning. Cognitivist design principles include observational techniques, bootstrapping, and equilibration in the form of assimilation and accommodation. Constructivist design principles include new habit formation through experience and interaction with a "mature social medium" in the form of a simulation facilitator. All of these philosophical underpinnings have the potential to maximize simulation when used as underpinnings in the overall design.
The objective of this study is to explore the experiences and effects of psilocybin on patients with depression and anxiety.Method: A qualitative study was conducted interviewing ten participants currently taking psilocybin while experiencing depression and/or anxiety. Ethical approval was obtained from the University ethics committee. Participants were recruited via social media and groups are known to have used psilocybin for the treatment of anxiety and/or depression. Participants were informed of study aims and consent was obtained before interviews commenced. Confidentiality was maintained throughout this study. Interviews began with informing participants that psilocybin may be effective in the management of depression. Initially, information around the way treatment with psilocybin was obtained was sought. This was followed by queries around the effects of the drug in terms of experiences both during and after treatment. Finally, participants were asked to outline the positive effects of psilocybin on their lives. Results:The data were thematically coded using Grounded Theory as an underpinning philosophical paradigm. Emerging themes included enhancement of smell, vision, hearing, and taste sensations. Another theme emerging was the experience of being 'connected with the universe' while on the drug. Additionally, participants reported a stabilization of mood, an increase in optimism and emotional control, and a healthier emotional connection with others. Most also felt an increase in comfort, peace and calmness. Another theme that emerged centered on the mechanism of action of psilocybin. Participants stated that this substance seemed to 'make new connections in their brain,' resulting in new perspectives. Some participants felt this resulted in a calming influence on the mind and body. This aligns with research showing that psilocybin works by changing the thinking and improving information processing. Conclusion:Psilocybin has promising effects on the patients with depression/anxiety even after a single dose. Psilocybin is safe but the administration should be guided by a health professional to yield safe and positive outcomes.
Recent trends in simulation use have necessitated a more considered approach in the use of this teaching/learning tool. The aim of this research is to discover ways to improve simulation as a teaching/learning platform. Action research was used to answer the question, “How can I improve pedagogical practices with undergraduate nurses in simulation?” This study was implemented at a University in Auckland, New Zealand between November 2012 and March 2014. A purposive sample was sought from second and third-year nursing students (n = 161) enrolled in the three-year undergraduate bachelor of nursing program. Methods included focus groups, questionnaires, debriefing sessions, pre- and post-tests, and Lasater clinical judgment rubric analysis. Seven instructional scaffolds emerged which maximized student learning and retention. These scaffolds: 1) helped move students from known into unknown knowledge; 2) provided situated coaching; 3) modeled expected performance; 4) gave opportunity for improvement; 5) reduced confusion; 6) taught effective communication; and 7) promoted new learning through debriefing. These strategies resulted in a simulation experience which improved clinical reasoning in undergraduate nursing students
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