Kelly Christoff
NLN Competency III Assessment and Evaluation
There are a number of effective evaluation methods that can be used to assess students’ learning and progression in a course, program or clinical placement. At the outset, no matter which tool or assessment strategy is used, grading requirements and performance expectations need to be clearly outlined (Billings & Halstead, 2005).Tools used may include checklists, grading scales or rubrics to ensure that grading is fair and as objective as possible (Billings & Halstead, 2005).
Classroom assessment techniques (CATs) can be used in real time to evaluate students’ learning of presented material. In one example, students can be asked, at the end of the class, to quickly write down the most important thing learned and to also write down what is the most unclear point (Utley, 2011). I would use this technique as new information is introduced and as one is adding to previously covered material to ensure linkages are made by students. I think that this would be a way to assess the effectiveness of teaching rather than being used to grade students. If a number of students indicate the same concept is unclear then as the instructor, I would use this information to revisit and explain the material in a different way.
Reflective writing is used to encourage students to think about the material covered and then reflect on how their own feelings and ideas intersect with that information (Utley, 2011). I think that this would be valuable when covering such topics as cultural sensitivity or ethical dilemmas in health care as reflection is necessary to “unpack” our own biases and preconceived ideas about the different issues that impact how we, as nurses, relate to our clients. I don’t think that reflective writing should be “graded” but I do believe that the instructor should review these writings, first in class to discuss trends or common themes and then with individuals if there are concerns or as an opportunity to assist students in becoming more receptive to different opinions.
Multiple choice testing is common in nursing programs and is used frequently as an “objective” test to assess understanding. The difficulty lies in generating test questions that are well written and accurately assess students’ knowledge and skills (Utley 2011). In the readings, it was interesting (for me) to note that I have written many multiple choice exams that did not follow sound practice for exam writing such as excessive number of distractors, a lot of “all of the above”, “none of the above” and when in doubt, pick ‘c’. I think that multiple choice tests should be used near the end of a course and there should be a number of practice tests before the “big” one. I always found that writing a number of tests (such as practice tests before my specialty certification exam) was a way for me to determine what concepts I was already familiar with and which topics needed more in depth review.
The use of portfolios and especially electronic portfolios has increased in nursing education. According to Green, Wiley and Jackson (2014) portfolios encourage students be responsible for tracking their own performance and learning. The use of electronic portfolios means that information can be easily updated and is exceptionally portable. I think the value in portfolios is in the incremental building over time. As a student, to have a central repository of all best works, certifications or accomplishments over the course of the program would, I think, help to validate all the hard work and long hours. I would grade this type of work as a PASS/FAIL since not everyone is comfortable sharing information online in this manner or comfortable in creatively setting up a site.
Objective structured clinical examinations (OSCEs) occur in a simulated setting and uses standardized (pretend) patients and case scenarios to observe and document student responses to clinical situations. Using “patients” allows for immediate feedback and debriefing (Billings & Halstead, 2005). Downsizing of hospitals and limited resources within hospitals often means that clinical placements can be challenging for some nursing programs to secure and because there are many competing institutions, clinical placements can be very short and therefore students may have limited contact with real patients (McWilliam, & Botwinski, 2012). OSCEs provide an alternative approach to clinical evaluation that can aid the instructor in determining if students have learned the skills they need to function safely in a patient care environment (McWilliam & Botwinski, 2012).
Nursing students can and should be evaluated using a variety of methods. Not every student will excel in every testing situation and just as learning styles differ among students, testing skills may be quite different as well. However, at the end of the day, no matter which methods are used, the goal should be instructor confidence that the student can function safely in his/her clinical environment.
References
Billings, D.M. & Halstead, J. A. (2005). Teaching in nursing: A Guide for faculty (2nd ed.). St. Louis, MO: Elsevier Saunders.
Green, J., Wyllie, A., & Jackson, D. (2014). Electronic portfolios in nursing education: A review of the literature. Nurse Education in Practice, 14(1), 4-8. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.nepr.2013.08.011
McWilliam, P. L., & Botwinski, C. A. (2012). Identifying strengths and weaknesses in the utilization of objective structured clinical examination (OSCE) in a nursing program. Nursing Education Perspectives, 33(1), 35-9. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/923246043?accountid=34574
Utley, R. (2011). Theory and research for academic nurse educators: Application to practice.
Sudbury, MA: Jones and Barlett, LLC.