Developing and Piloting an Online Graduate Nursing Course Focused on Experiential Learning of Qualitative Research Methods

Abstract

Despite the turmoil of a worldwide economic crisis, the health sector remains largely understaffed, and the nursing shortage represents a major issue that jeopardizes graduate nursing education. Access to education remains a challenge, particularly in rural and remote areas. This article reports the process of developing an asynchronous online qualitative research course. This online course was piloted among 16 interdisciplinary students. Participants agreed that experiential learning was useful to understand the intricacies of qualitative research. Within this constructivist approach, students were immersed in real-life experiences, which focused on the development of skills applicable to qualitative research. Based on the findings, we suggest that constructivism and the Four-Component Instructional Design (4C/ID) model (a four-part approach for fostering the development of complex skills) represent valuable ontological and pedagogical approaches that can be used in online courses. Triangulating these two approaches is also congruent with the student-centered philosophy that underpins nursing graduate programs.

“It takes a village” to raise research productivity

“…After several meetings to network, learn the respective professional cultures, and immerse ourselves in the group mission, members decided that, based on the principals of problem-based learning, 17,18 we could best mentor research skills through a funded research project.…”

One Size Does Not Fit All: Toward an Evidence-Based Framework for Determining Online Course Enrollment Sizes in Higher Education

“…Few students are capable of complex learning without focused facilitation from knowledgeable experts. Arbaugh & Benbunan-Fich, 2005;Bain, 2004;Benbunan-Fich et al, 2005;Bozkurt et al, 2015;Chu, Zhang, Chen, Chan, Lee, Zou, & Lau, 2017;Curriculum Committee, 2012;El Tantawi, Abdelsalem, Mourady, & Elrifae, 2015;Holtslander, Racine, Furniss, Burles, & Turner, 2012;Holzweiss et al, 2014;Jones, 2015;Kim, 2013;Legg, Adelman, & Levitt, 2009;Mandel & Sussmuth, 2011;Maringe & Sing, 2014;Picciano, 2017;Ravenna, 2012;Schellens & Valcke, 2006;Schwartz, 2014;Taft et al, 2011;Williams, Jaramillo, & Pesko, 2015 Bloom's taxonomy: A classic in education theory, categories of learning level align in a pyramid, from simple/concrete (lower levels) to complex/abstract (higher levels). Each category contains subcategories.…”

Distance Learning: Effectiveness of an Interdisciplinary Course in Speech Pathology and Dentistry

“…Actions directed to this training modality are found in some areas of health, especially in nursing (Campbell et al, 2008;Edwards, 2005;Holtslander et al, 2012;Teles Filho & Cassiani, 2008;Xelegati & Evora, 2011), and in some specialties of medicine (Gardella et al, 2003;Llambí et al, 2007;Pinto et al, 2008;VanLue et al, 2007).…”

“…Reports on distance learning are found in literature in the medicine field (Gardella, Guarin, & Vive, 2003;Llambí et al, 2007;Pinto et al, 2008;VanLue et al, 2007) and, mainly, in the nursing field (Campbell, Gibson, Hall, Richards, & Callery, 2008;Edwards, 2005;Holtslander, Racine, Furniss, Burles, & Turner, 2012;Teles Filho & Cassiani, 2008;Xelegati & Evora, 2011). The quality of the service of tele-education and tele-assistance has been proved by different authors (Eskenazi, Martins, & Ferreira, 2013;Hersh, Junium, Mailhot, & Tidmarsh, 2001;Rafiq & Merrell, 2005;Roine, Ohinmaa, & Hailey, 2001;Shaikh, Lehmann, Kaleida, & Cohen, 2008;Vucković et al, 2003); however, the cost-effectiveness relation still deserves investigation (Soirefmann, Blom, Leopoldo, & Cestari, 2008).…”