Jill French School of Nursing and Midwifery Peninsula Campus

1. Jill French School of Nursing and MidwiferyPeninsula Campus Cross cohort tutoring using PAL to support student learning

2. How nurses and midwives learn skills • Traditionally learn skills in a laboratory environment • Taught by lecturer or sessional nurse/midwife from a hospital • 2 hours per week spent on skill learning • Little opportunity for shared learning experiences

3. Aims of this peer teaching experience • Enhance the knowledge and skills related to the discipline • Foster and improve the teaching skills of the undergraduate student nurse and midwife • Development of “life skills” – communication, confidence, time management • Deeper learning of content taught • Student learner perceptions of the experience

4. Background • According to the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Council competencies, all nurses & midwives are required to teach as part of their role • Teaching students, other nurses (return to practice, overseas trained), orientation of new staff, other health professionals and peers • Most have not had any formal instruction in how to teach • Often heard from staff “I have not been taught to teach so why should I”

5. Unit content • Learning theories • Learner in context • Role of the nurse as a teacher • Developing teaching plans • Writing objectives • Planning a session • Evaluating teaching

6. Assessed practical component (Nursing) • Undertake a teaching session (2 hours) in skills laboratory • Peer teaching first year students • 2 X year 3 students: 2-4 year 1 student ratio • Vital signs – TPR or BP • Prepare own teaching session and teaching aids

7. Assessed practical component (Midwives) • Undertake a teaching session (1hour) in skills laboratory • Peer teaching paramedic students • 2 year 3 midwifery students: 2-4 student ratio • Post delivery decision making • Prepare own teaching session and teaching aids

8. Tutorial sessions • Students worked in self selected pairs • Each tutorial allocated to an aspect of developing the teaching plan and their session • Last tutorial a “dry run” using the equipment • Many developed aids: questionnaires, games, quizzes and posters

9. Teaching session • Year 1 students had theory delivered by academic week before PAL session • Pre-briefing for year 3 students • Year one students prepared for the PAL event • Lecturers present in labs while PAL teaching occurring

10. Teaching session • Both groups debriefed after the teaching event • Year 3 – outcomes of session, how they felt, what went right, what could be improved, would they do it again? • Year 1 – how they felt about the teaching, picking up teaching mismatches – could be corrected at this point

11. Logistics • Difficulty arranging 290 students and matching with 200 year 1 students • Coordination with year 1 curriculum • Coordination with paramedic timetable • Different levels of knowledge • Different levels of preparation • Different approaches to teaching the skill

12. Evaluation - questionnaires • Year 1 students – Clinical Teaching Preference Questionnaire (CTPQ) (Iwasiw & Goldenberg, 1993) • Year 3 students – Peer Teaching Experience Questionnaire (PTEQ) (adapted from Iwasiw & Goldenberg, 1993) Same questionnaires adapted for paramedics and midwives • Demographic data – age, gender, previous study, previous peer teaching or learning

13. Year One students • Follow-up focus groups are being undertaken • CTPQ – Likert scale: 1 (strongly agree) 5 (strongly disagree)

15. Qualitative data - Year one students “I liked the peer teaching, and felt more comfortable performing skills in front of them as a 1st year student. They did a good job and knew what they were talking about. It was good fun and it was nice to meet some of the 3rd years.” “Peers were wonderful. They have been through it all before & understood our feelings and desires to be confident & competent. GREAT program.”

16. Qualitative data – Year one students “I felt less anxious in the nursing assessment with the 3rd years. Much easier to learn because there’s more 3rd years than teachers.” “I believe that the university should not cost cut by making 3rd years do an instructor’s job. In my third year I do not wish to spend time teaching, but learning my 3rd year subjects.”

17. Year Three students • 72% response rate • Follow-up focus groups undertaken • PTEQ – Likert scale: 1 (strongly agree) 5 (strongly disagree)

19. Qualitative data – Year three students “it is AMAZING how much teaching someone can help you reflect on your own knowledge and learning” “I find this subject far more important than some other core subjects studied…. This subject is a “must have” in my book”

20. Qualitative data – Year three students “the unit was extremely worthwhile. Teaching and learning are fundamental to the nursing role. Its great to have the opportunity to learn some basic principles….” “I enjoyed this unit, found it worthwhile, information I learned I will use out in practice..”

21. Qualitative data – Year three students “..I found the peer teaching session very valuable” “invaluable experience, not only have I gained confidence in teaching peers, but also it gave me personal satisfaction that I have learnt something”

22. Qualitative data – Year three students • “Fun, great experience to take into the work field” • “Prepare us towards our professional career” • “I liked it and found it challenging especially the assessment”

23. Midwives and paramedics • “Wonderful experience” • “Enjoyed learning from the midwives” • “I felt comfortable teaching the paramedics” • “Some of the equipment was different” • “I feel that I have learnt something today’

24. Problems encountered • Academics unwilling to “let go” • Nervous and fearful of unknown • Very few had taught before • Many had not attended lectures & this made it hard in tutorials to develop session plan • Working in pairs • Levels of skill knowledge differed significantly

25. Outcomes from program • Unit seen as valuable to undergraduate learning • Tutorials built on lecture content and gave meaning to the theory • Tutorials allowed for structure and sequencing of session development • In 2009 several year 3 students taught into year 1 labs in semester 2 • All sections on CHEQ evaluation >4

26. Leadership program • Leadership program commenced: • Semester 2, 2010 • 12 year three students have been selected • Teach into year 1 laboratories in semester 2 (teaching assistant) • 2 hours per week • Coordination with year 1 unit coordinator • Matched to one lab and one lecturer for consistency • Weekly teaching plans • Bi-weekly leadership meetings • One day leadership symposium

27. At the end of the day…. • The year 3 students: • Enjoyed the unit • Discovered a lot about their own abilities • Found the experience beneficial • Believe it will help them in their graduate year • Raised their self esteem

28. Thankyou • and • Questions