Exploring the clinical nurse educator's ability to foster student reflection

The purpose of this study is to understand how Clinical Nurse Educators use reflective practices with students. While the value of reflective practice has been vigorously discussed in both nursing and educational literature, studies to support its benefits remain strangely elusive. The appeal of reflective practice has arisen out of a sustained conviction that life experience offers a legitimate and rich form of knowledge. If captured, it may narrow the gap between the non practical nature of theories and the complexities of everyday practice problems. The research question for this study is: "How do Clinical Nurse Educators foster student reflection?" The primary source of data for this qualitative study was generated from in-depth interviews with five clinical nurse educators at the University College of the Cariboo school of nursing. Participants were selected on the basis of their interest in reflective practice which was in part determined by their attendance at a seminar presentation on this topic. The data collected from the interviews were categorized into predominant emergent themes outlined below and explored within the context of current literature. As a result of the findings, practice recommendations follow. These were further developed to offer suggestions for fostering reflective thinking in students. The themes outlined in this study are as follows: Reflection is deliberate and purposeful Reflection triggers a critical response to any situation whether good or bad Affect and reflective practice are strongly linked Reflection occurs on a continuum Reflection provides increased awareness of problems and issues Fostering reflection with students requires time and an open and caring environment

Grantor dc:publisher

Edith Cowan University, Research Online, Perth, Western Australia

Year dc:date

2004

Author dc:creator

• Johnson, Jessie M.

• Nursing
• Study and teaching.
• Other Education

Repository record dc:identifier

https://ro.ecu.edu.au/theses/767

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:ro.ecu.edu.au:theses-1768