Effective Clinical

Teaching in Nursing
by: Jose Luis Antonio S.
Calatrava, RN
Fact or Fiction?
1. Lessons learned in the clinical area is more
significant than lessons taken up in the
classroom
 Nursing is a professional practice discipline
 Provide real life experiences
 Application of knowledge to practical
situations
Fact or Fiction?
2. Mutual trust and respect is important in
clinical teaching
 Faculty members must respect students as
learners
 Students must respect their teacher

 teachers have the ultimate responsibility to

establish these expectations
Fact of Fiction?
3. QUALITY IS MORE IMPORTANT THAT
QUANTITY
 The length of time spent in clinical activities is
no guarantee of the amount or quality of
learning that results
How to become effective?
Effective
 It involves a process

a. Knowledge of theory

b. Willingness to learn new roles

c. Ability to reflect on one’s performance

Hallmarks of an Effective
Teacher
Six major categories (Jacobson, 1966)
1. Professional Competence

2. Good interpersonal skills

3. Teaching Practices

4. Personal Characteristics

5. Evaluation Practices

6. Availability to students
Professional Competence
 Who aims at excellence
 Develops thorough knowledge of subject
matter
 Polishes skills throughout his career
 Progressively learners
Good interpersonal skills
 Most important skill
“Studies indicate that students actually learn more in
classrooms and clinical settings where teachers
are student oriented and empathic”
Characteristics:
a. Personal interest in learners
b. Sensitive to feelings and problems
c. Showing respect for students
d. Alleviate anxieties
e. Accessible
f. Fair
g. Allow students to express points of view
h. Create an atmosphere for students to ask
questions
Personal Characteristics
 Authenticity
 Enthusiasm
 Cheerfulness
 Self control
 Patience
 Flexibility
 Sense of humor
 A good speaking voice
 Self confidence
 Caring attitude
Teaching practices
 As defined, “Teaching practices as the mechanics,
methods, and skills in classroom and clinical
teaching”
Considerations
1. The method use depends on the objectives
2. Facts and rules – “lecture with handouts” or
“computer tutorial“
3. Mold attitudes – “case studies”, “discussion” , “role
playing”
4. Motivate learners – “gaming”
5. Creativity and problems solving – “problem based
learning” or “individual projects”
Considerations
 Know the capabilities and background
knowledge level of students
 Different groups of learners have different
motivation levels
 Number of people in the class
Evaluation Practices
“Evaluation practices valued by students include
clearly communicating expectations, provide timely
feedback on student progress, correcting students
tactfully, being fair in the evaluation process, and
giving test that are pertinent to the subject matter”
(De Young, 2009)
How?
 Set expectations at the beginning
 Criteria for evaluation should be made explicit
 Inform students whether they meet the expectations
during the course
Availability to Students
 “Nursing students, especially taking clinical
courses, expect the instructor to be available
to them when needed. This may take the
form of being there in stressful clinical
situations, physically helping students giving
nursing care, giving appropriate amounts of
supervision, freely answering questions, and
acting as a resource person during clinical
learning experiences”. (De Young, 2009)