Nurse Education in Practice

1 Preparation of academic Nurse educatorsTracy L. Booth*, Christi J. Emerson, Michele G. Hackney, Sharon SouterUniversity of Mary Hardin-Baylor, College of nursing , 900 College St., Box 8015, Belton, TX 76513, United Statesarticle infoArticle history:Received 3 December 2015 Received in revised form20 April 2016 Accepted 28 April 2016 Keywords:PedagogyNursingEducationFaculty preparationabstractNursing Practice is diverse, with nurses serving in both direct and indirect patient care roles. For nurseeducators, the realm of nursing Practice extends beyond direct patient care to include preparing studentsfor nursing Practice . Academic Nurse educators must be prepared to serve as educators, researchers, andto have experience in a clinical specialty area.

2 For many Nurse educators, advanced academic preparationoften relates to a clinical area of Practice rather than pedagogical Practice . Graduate-level knowledge ofevidence-based research and Practice , teaching methods, and curriculum design and development formthe foundation for academic Practice . Because Education and nursing are two distinctive disciplines,clinical expertise does not naturally result in teaching expertise. Lack of consensus regarding theeducational preparation of Nurse educators adds to the complexity of the nursing profession. The pur-pose of this article is to advocate for pedagogical preparation for academic Nurse educators. Additionally,this article contains recommendations for pedagogical competencies indicative of academic nurseeducator preparation.

3 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights Preparation of academic Nurse educatorsHealth care is a dynamicfield that must continuously adapt toevolving scientific knowledge, technological developments, andsocietal needs. nursing Practice is at the center of this dynamichealth care system; nursing Education is the foundation of nursingpractice. Keeping pace with thefluid professional Practice ofnursing requires nursing faculty who are qualified as academiceducators and as clinical practitioners. The purpose of this article isto advocate for pedagogical preparation for nurses practicing in therole of academic Nurse educator. Additionally, this article includesrecommendations for pedagogical competencies indicative of aca-demic Nurse educator Practice is diverse, with nurses serving in both directand indirect patient care roles.

4 In academia, the realm of nursingpractice extends beyond direct patient care to include preparingstudents for nursing Practice . nursing Education encompasses boththe profession of nursing and the profession of Education . Aca-demic Nurse educators must be prepared to serve as educators,researchers, and have experience in a clinical specialty area. Inmany parts of the world, nursing scholars have reported evidenceof tension among faculty related to the need for teaching andresearch excellence while simultaneously maintaining a credibleclinical profile (Andrew and Robb, 2011; Royal College of nursing [RCN], 2012). Notably, in the United States ( ) the National Lea-gue for nursing (NLN) recognizes the academic Nurse educator asan advanced Practice role (NLN, 2011).

5 To serve effectively in the role of academic Nurse educator,nurses need pedagogical preparation in curriculum development,teaching strategies, and evaluation methods. Although courses inpedagogy are included in some graduate- nursing tracks, it is notrequired in all Educational qualifications of academic Nurse educatorsIn the , the expectation of educators in pre-licensure nursingprograms is that they have graduate-level academic preparationand advanced expertise in the area of content they teach (American Association of Colleges of nursing [AACN], 2008, para 4).Over the past four tofive decades, graduate nursing programsshifted from a focus on nursing administration or Education to afocus on clinical specialization (Kelly, 2010; Schoening, 2013).

6 In the1990s, the focus of graduate Education turned to preparing nursepractitioners. This shift led to an increase of nurses practicing at theadvanced Practice level and a decrease in nurses prepared for thefaculty role (Kelly, 2010; Zungolo, 2004). For many Nurse educators,advanced academic preparation often relates to a clinical area of*Corresponding Souter).Contents lists available atScienceDirectNurse Education in Practicejournal 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights Education in Practice 19 (2016) 54e57practice rather than pedagogical other parts of the world, such as Australia and the UnitedKingdom, the primary criteria for teaching in nursing is clinicalexpertise and attainment of a teaching diploma (Jackson et al.

7 ,2011). However, relatively recent changes are beginning to takeshape with the requirement for doctoral qualifications to sustainemployment in academia. TheRoyal College of nursing (RCN)(2012)acknowledged, Much more work is needed to ensurenursing academics are able to educate the new [ nursing ] work-force (p. 31).Because Education and nursing are two distinct disciplines,clinical expertise does not naturally result in teaching toBoyer (1990), ..good teaching means that faculty , asscholars, are also learners (p. 24). Australian researchers rein-forced this view when they concluded, expertise in the theory andpractice of nursing are, in themselves, no longer seen as beingenough to teach nursing within the university sector (Jacksonet al.

8 , 2011, p. 342). Effective teaching requires a specialized skillset related to curriculum, teaching strategies, evaluation methods(Cangelosi et al., 2009; McCoy and Anema, 2012), and an ability toengage in research and scholarly activities (Jackson et al., 2011).Advanced degrees suggest content knowledge. However, prepara-tion for the many roles and responsibilities of faculty members isoften absent from graduate curricula (Jaimes et al., 2014; McCoyand Anema, 2012). Over a decade ago, the Association of Amer-ican Colleges and Universities (AACU) identified a lack of prepara-tion for the faculty role as a barrier to student success (AACU, 2002).3. Evidence-based teaching practiceEvidence supports principles of best educational (1990)argued for a more comprehensive and dynamicapproach to scholarship depicted by four overlapping and con-nected functions: The scholarship of discovery; the scholarship ofintegration; the scholarship of application; and the scholarship ofteaching.

9 Since its inception, international support of Boyer sexpanded definition of scholarship is evident. By building on Boy-er s principles to form connections between research and teachingand between theory and Practice , more and more universities areattempting to promote excellence in teaching and learning (Smithand Crookes, 2011; Smith et al., 2012).Cannon and Boswell(2015)acknowledged seven principles of best Practice in educa-tion: engaging students through faculty -student contact, collabo-rative learning, active learning, prompt feedback, time on task/timemanagement skills, setting high expectations for achievement, andrespecting student diversity. nursing Education encompasses bothpedagogical evidence-based Practice (evidence-based teachingpractice [EBTP]) and clinical evidence-based Practice (EBP).

10 Therefore, nursing faculty must possess knowledge and skill inpedagogical Practice as well as the clinical Practice area in whichthey teach. In clinical nursing Practice , the use of EBP is an estab-lished standard for the profession. However, the application of EBPto teaching has only recently begun to receive attention in nursingeducation. Internationally, Nurse educators experience enormouspressure related to expanded expectations for contemporarynursing Practice (Andrew and Robb, 2011; Benner et al., 2010; RCN,2012; You et al., 2015). In the same manner that registered nursesare required to engage in continuing Education to maintain licen-sure, Nurse educators must engage in ongoing faculty developmentto maintain current pedagogical practices (Benner et al.)