Facilitation strategies used in e-learning by nurse educators in Rwanda

Abstract

Knowledge and skills for teachers to deliver course contents in an e-learning environment is essential. Information Communication Technology (ICT) is being increasingly used in tertiary education as it is flexible and offers many possibilities to meet the needs of a large number of learners. The implementation of e-learning platforms in Rwanda in 2012 for nursing and midwifery instruction has had a positive impact on the quality of nursing education. Educators' facilitation skills play an important role in motivating students in the computer-mediated learning environment. The aim of this paper is to explore the facilitation strategies used in e-learning by nurse educators in Rwanda. A non-experimental quantitative design was used, with 44 nurse educators from three campuses completing the research instruments. The results from this study indicated that the majority of the participants (84.1%) had the same vision of integrating ICT in teaching and learning as their colleagues, the institutional administration, and other staff. 97.7% used computers and/or the internet to prepare lesson and deliver instructions 95.5% reported using facilitation strategies of self-directed learning, 93.2% case studies, 88.6% group discussions, 81.8% small group activities, 72.7% formal lectures, 70.5% role play, 68.2% brainstorming, 63.6% situations of integration, and 63.6% videos. An average of 50% reported using research, and 43.2% workbooks. 27.3% used projects, 25% core lectures, and 11.4% Portfolio. E-learning requires a comprehensive approach of incorporating ICT in teaching and learning. The success of e-learning does not only depend on technological tools available, but also on the pedagogical design, with teachers being required to use innovative teaching approaches to deliver their course contents.

E-learning in nursing education in Rwanda: A middle-range theory

“…[41] In Rwanda, e-learning in nursing education was conceptualised as "a mechanism to advance political agenda to integrate technology in higher education, a tool to open access to education for working nurses and midwives, a student-centred approach and a blended learning." [18] Although the implementation of e-learning in nursing education in Rwanda is positively perceived by nurses educators and students, [18,24,33,37,[42][43][44] several challenges have been reported, and they included language barrier, low ICT literacy of nursing students and nurse educators, resource constraints, resistance to change, issues related to the Moodle R interface design, lack of policies and framework to guide the implementation of e-learning. [24,33,37] This study aimed to develop a middle-range theory to guide the utilisation of an e-learning platform in nursing education in the context of Rwanda.…”

Conceptualisation of e-learning in nursing education in the context of Rwanda

“…[1][2][3] Nursing education, like other sectors the technology, is used to respond to numerous challenges at local and international levels. [4][5][6] These challenges include quality of education, shortage of nurses and midwives, an increasing number of students joining tertiary institutions, and empowering the significant number of working nurses with necessary skills. [5] E-learning is regarded as the "use of electronic systems such as computers, internet and multimedia CDs" to enhance teaching and learning.…”

“…[8,10] The popularity of e-learning in education is associated to the flexibility to offer course content irrespective of the time and the location, promoting students' cantered approach, ability to train a significant number of student in a shot-time, and promoting collaboration between the learners and the instructors. [6,7,11] E-Learning plays a vital role in the education of health professionals across the globe. [12,13] According to Walsh, Bhagavatheeswaran, [13] "e-learning is essentially about education, and it is also considered as a social phenomenon as part of the technological revolution" (p.1).…”

“…[27,28] The implementation of e-learning in Rwanda was motivated by the needs to improve the quality of nursing, to train competent nurses and midwives who are capable of responding to the Health need of the Rwandan Population. [6,29] This paper explores the understanding of e-learning in nursing education in the context of Rwanda.…”

Integrating nursing informatics into undergraduate nursing education in Africa: A scoping review

“…The capacity for implementing NI in developing countries is limited (O'Connor et al 2016). There are challenges which hinder the proper integration of NI in undergraduate nursing education in Africa, including lack of infrastructure and ICT tools, inadequate ICT literacy among nurse educators and students, resistance to change and the lack of policies and guidelines (Achampong 2017; Bello et al 2017; Harerimana & Mtshali 2017, 2018a; Murgor 2015). Furthermore, there is a low presence of NI in the undergraduate curriculum, and a lack of standardization of NI competencies to be included in undergraduate nursing education (Achampong 2017; Nishimwe et al 2016).…”