Dr Kate Young Dr Rosemary Godbold Dr Pat Wood

1. The symbiotic relationship between student nurse’s writing in practice assessment documents to describe how they learn to care in practice settings and the written feedback their mentors give Dr Kate Young Dr Rosemary Godbold Dr Pat Wood

2. PAD description of practice • Mentors work, delegating practice to students as their capabilities determine • Students practice, then document in written form to “prove” they have met essential skills • In theory, this is a virtuous cycle of learning with mentor feedback clearly related to student output.

3. http://theodawson.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/virtuous_cycle_learning.pnghttp://theodawson.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/virtuous_cycle_learning.png

4. “In biology, symbiotic refers to any diverse organisms that live together…. the relationship is not necessarily beneficial to both. Parasites, for example, have a symbiotic relationship with their hosts, but only the parasite benefits.” www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/symbiotic

5. PAD documents show: • There is less linkage between the written work BSc nursing students produce and the feedback they get. • Students with more detailed analysis of practice do not necessarily gain mentor approval • Students with less detailed analysis of practice sometimes gain mentor approval • Sometimes the lack of congruence is explained in the comments by mentors, referring to practice (not always) • Sometimes balancing occurs • Sometimes the mentors and their student appear to engage in confirmatory “mirror writing” • Less good student writing = less good mentor writing • Excellence is shared and reflected • BSc & MSc students / mentors treat the PAD differently • Shared learning • Intensity and urgency

6. MSc pre-reg students (new beast!) • More obvious written links between what is written by students and their mentors. • Mirroring – as previously • Balancing – good student evidence/less mentor feedback, but confirmatory • Correcting – less student evidence / more mentor feedback • Practice Learning is closely monitored and emphasised by both student and mentor BUT • Mentors are not self selecting nor allocated differently according to level of study

7. Questions: • Is this the result of change / heightened concern for fitness to practice on 2yr programme? • Can we discover why student / mentor links are better to improve mentor performance in practice for all ? • Is this the result of the graduate skills pre-existing in students, who negotiate shared approach to learning?