Communication Opinion and Creative Teaching Strategies - Assignment Example

Communication Opinion Paper Abstract. Several teaching methods for nursing education are currently in existence; however, students find most of them to be uninteresting and quite tedious. The development of creative teaching strategies is playing a crucial role in the creation of suitable learning environments where the needs of diverse learners can be addressed. This paper seeks to identify and illustrate the use of creative learning strategies in nursing education. Introduction Creative Teaching Strategies What are Creative Teaching Strategies? Creative teaching strategies are teaching strategies designed to make the whole learning experience less boring and more engaging for students in an attempt to cause the students to engage in creative thinking (Starbuck, 2006). The use of Creative Teaching Strategies in Engaging Diverse learners. There are several creative teaching strategies that can be helpful in effectively engaging diverse learners, in the nursing profession. Some of these methods include: Experiential Education In this strategy, the students gain knowledge and create meaning via actively being engaged in real life situations, in the medical field. The nursing educator purposefully tries to engage the diverse learners in direct reflection and experience with the aim of clarifying values, increasing skills and increasing knowledge. This method is applicable in nursing education as students can be taken on medical rounds so as to cause the learning experience to become more engaging (LeFever, 2004). Differentiation This teaching method will be helpful in helping educate diverse learners in a learning environment as it involves modifying the curriculum and instructions in an effort to try and put into consideration the learning needs of diverse learners in a learning environment. The modifications normally put into consideration factors such as linguistic and cultural differences, developmental level, socioeconomic backgrounds and academic readiness (Starbuck, 2006). Description of the Learners, the Learning Topic and the Setting of the Teaching Experience With my background in nursing, I was recently asked to instruct a group of recently married couples in the neighborhood who needed more information on some basic nursing skills for small children. Recently there was a flu outbreak and most of them found themselves without any knowledge on how to take care of their invalid children. The Main Objectives of the Lesson While working at the local hospital, there has been an observation of a general trend of my local neighborhood experiencing higher levels of flu infections during the flu season as compared to other neighborhoods. This can be attributed to most of the families living in the neighborhood lacking the necessary basic knowledge on how to prevent flu and handle cases of flu in their families. As a result of this, I designed the following teaching strategy which seeks to achieve two main objectives. The first objective will be for the parents attending the session to learn how to prevent their families from catching the flu during the cold season. The second objective will be for parents to learn how to adequately take care of their children who happen to catch the flu virus. Creative Teaching Strategies Selected. After careful consideration, I have tried to select two creative teaching strategies that will effectively deliver the information required, be practical and easy for my audience to relate with and promote active learning on their part, and address the needs of the diverse learners. These strategies are: Role-Playing Role playing can also be a powerful, creative teaching experience as it causes the nursing students in the classroom to put themselves in the positing of a person affected by an issue. This causes them to engage in creative thinking in an effort to solve the problem. By doing, the diverse learners in a learning environment are seen to gain valuable practice and confidence in themselves (LeFever, 2004). Questioning Activity This method prompts the learners to write down a list of questions limited to a certain number. The instructor does not provide any guidelines on the questions and each student is free to ask questions pertaining to any topic without any criticism or judgment on the questions. The student’s motivation and productivity are increased by their being provided with the opportunity to ask this wide range of questions. The increase in productivity and motivation is as a result of students getting the chance of focusing on exactly what they want to discover. By generating their own questions, it is found that they are more willing to pursue answers to the questions without any prodding. Sometimes, the instructor can also base the questions on a particular reading or topic (Iowa State University, 2012). The Effectiveness of the Learning Methods The learning methods that I had selected proved to be extremely effective since during the next flu season, cases of flu infection in the neighborhood dropped by about 40%. This positive development in reducing cases of flu in the neighborhood can be directly attributed to the learning methods that were used to educate the parents in the neighborhood. The next time I am asked to do another lecture on the same or different topic, I will try and use more audio-visual aids like short movie clips and images. These will be useful in the creation of a more interesting learning environment for the learners. The Questioning activity proved to be most effective, and I will retain the use of this method the next time I am asked to address an audience. The general behavior objective of ensuring a more informed approach to the issue of the flu on the part of my audience was achieved. This was seen by the significant reduction in cases of the flu in the neighborhood during the next flu season after the lecture. References: Iowa State University. Techniques for creative teaching. Retrieved on 22nd Sept, 2012 from http://www.celt.iastate.edu/creativity/techniques.html. LeFever, M. (2004). Creative teaching methods. Colorado Springs, Col. : NeXgen. Starbuck, D. (2006). Creative teaching: getting it right. London; New York: Continuum. Read More