Thinking Unleashed

Abstract

As the nursing profession continues to expand, the tendency to think based on the medical model also seems to be increasing. The thinking that is currently taught in nursing curricula is well known as critical thinking. However, over the years, the numerous attempts to revise and redefine critical thinking indicate awareness, by educators and members of the profession, of its limitations. The author of this column discusses some of these limitations, while proposing a more open and transparent way of thinking for nurses based upon humanbecoming ontology involving the emerging now, the resurrection of listening and silence, and contemplative thought.

Writing From the Edge

“…That said, I dove in with the goal of keeping the column informative and scholarly. One of my first columns was one of my favorite; it was called “Thinking Unleashed” (Condon, 2012), and in it I discussed the limitations of critical thinking in nursing education. I know you had asked Sandra about the AACN and CCNE stances on topics such as critical thinking and clinical thinking and how content in this column will sometimes offer alternate viewpoints.…”

More Than Words? Embracing a Practice–Care Distinction for Nursing Practice Education

“…The character and composition of practice experience hours are among a multitude of factors that influence the quality of pre-licensure education, nursing practice, and nursing care. There is support for integration of nursing theory in pre-licensure education (Condon, 2012) and explicitly in all educational settings (class, lab, clinical) (Drummond & Oaks, 2016; McCarthy & Jones, 2019; Parse, 2021). Amid calls to “reconceptualise, reorganize, and rethink” (O’Flynn-Magee et al, 2021, p. 3) practice education and practice experience hours (Holowaychuk, 2018), this is the first paper to emphasize and explore in-depth an association between nursing theory and practice experience hours.…”

Imagination

“…As described earlier, imagination was found by Fleer (2013) to be important in scientific knowledge development in children. In addition, Condon (2012) discussed the need for a more open means of thinking in nursing education. Use of, or encouragement of imagination in nursing teaching-learning pedagogies may be one means of unleashing thinking.…”