Aim: The aim of this study was to explore the teacher identity formation dynamics of student nurse-educators about the subject matter, pedagogy and didactics.Design: A case study using descriptive quantitative design was employed.Methods: Using a cross-sectional approach, data were collected in 2014 using a selfadministered questionnaire. Participants were asked to self-evaluate their teaching competencies on the nursing subject matter, pedagogical expertise and didactical expertise. Using descriptive analysis we determined the central tendencies of the constructs. Results:The descriptive analysis revealed a very small variance (0.0011) and standard deviation (0.04) among the means of the three constructs, which indicates a fair balance in the contribution of the subject matter, pedagogy and didactics towards teacher identity formation. Nursing student-educators can achieve a balanced combination of subject matter expert, pedagogical expert and didactical expert combination during the formation of their teacher identity. This could be indicative of how effective the training programme is in helping the students achieve a balanced teacher identity. K E Y W O R D Scompetencies, diadactic expert, nursing education, pedagogy expert, student nurse-educator, subject matter expert, teacher identity, teaching and learning, teaching practice | INTRODUCTIONThe quality of education produced by educational institutions depends on the quality of the teachers they possess as students' learning is directly related to their interaction with the teachers (Department of Higher Education and Training, 2014). Effective teaching, therefore, depends on the knowledge, skills and commitment that the teacher brings to the teaching-learning process. In other words, what the teacher knows and can do makes the crucial difference in what the teacher can accomplish (Feiman-Nemser, 2012).Nursing education programmes to train nursing educators (teachers) are aimed at providing competencies that may be achieved by student nurse-educators-nurses receiving teacher training to become nursing educators-on completion of the training programme.These student nurse-educators are expected to focus on grounding themselves in the subject matter acquiring the instructional tools of teaching and classroom management. This requires that the student nurse-educators should acquire competencies of the knowledge of subject matter, knowledge of teaching strategies, and tools to create and sustain an effective learning environment. Apart from achieving these competencies, they are expected to start formulating a professional teacher identity. It is assumed that if the student nurse-educator acquires the above competencies (subject matter, pedagogy and didactics), then developing a teacher identity-how teacher candidates | 109 MUKUMBANG ANd ALINdEKANE negotiate personalized understandings of themselves in programmatic context-becomes possible (Schepens, Aelterman, & Vlerick, 2009). It must be noted, nevertheless, that forming a professional identity is a co...
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