Problem solving strategies used by RN-to-BSN students in an online problem-based learning course.

It is essential that nursing students develop the problem solving and critical thinking skills required in the current health care environment. Problem-based learning has been promoted as a way to help students acquire those skills; however, gaps exist in the knowledge base of the strategies used by learners. The purpose of this case study was to gain insight into the problem solving experience of a group of six RN-to-BSN students in an online problem-based learning course. Data, including discussion transcripts, reflective papers, and interview transcripts, were analyzed using a qualitative approach. Students expanded their use of resources and resolved the cases, identifying relevant facts and clinical applications. They had difficulty communicating their findings, establishing the credibility of sources, and offering challenging feedback. Increased support and direction are needed to facilitate the development of problem solving abilities of students in the problem-based learning environment.

[1]  Timothy Koschmann,et al.  Analyzing the Emergence of a Learning Issue in a Problem-Based Learning Meeting , 1997 .

[2]  Cheryl Martin.  THE THEORY OF Critical Thinking of Nursing , 2002, Nursing education perspectives.

[3]  H. Laschinger,et al.  The effect of problem-based learning on nursing students' perceptions of empowerment. , 2005, The Journal of nursing education.

[4]  P. Feltovich,et al.  The clinical reasoning process , 1987, Medical education.

[5]  M. White,et al.  Problem-based learning. An outcomes study. , 1999, Nurse educator.

[6]  David H. Jonassen,et al.  Instructional design models for well-structured and III-structured problem-solving learning outcomes , 1997 .

[7]  J. Donald,et al.  Thinking processes used by nurses in clinical decision making. , 2002, The Journal of nursing education.

[8]  Agnes Tiwari,et al.  The effect of problem-based learning on students' approaches to learning in the context of clinical nursing education. , 2006, Nurse education today.

[9]  C. Tanner,et al.  Thinking like a nurse: a research-based model of clinical judgment in nursing. , 2006, The Journal of nursing education.

[10]  D. Garrison.  Critical Thinking and Adult Education: A Conceptual Model for Developing Critical Thinking in Adult Learners. , 1991 .

[11]  M. Segers,et al.  Effects of problem-based learning: a meta- analysis , 2003 .

[12]  Thomas M. Duffy,et al.  Problem Based Learning: An instructional model and its constructivist framework , 1995 .

[13]  Elizabeth Murphy,et al.  Identifying and measuring individual engagement in critical thinking in online discussions: An exploratory case study , 2006, J. Educ. Technol. Soc..

[14]  D. Halpern.  Teaching critical thinking for transfer across domains. Dispositions, skills, structure training, and metacognitive monitoring. , 1998, The American psychologist.

[15]  Marie Cooke,et al.  Students' evaluation of problem-based learning. , 2002, Nurse education today.

[16]  D. D. Bueno.  A Crisis in Critical Thinking , 2009 .

[17]  Heather Kanuka,et al.  A Principled Approach to Facilitating Distance Education: The Internet, Higher Education and Higher Levels of Learning , 2002 .

[18]  K. G. Fabro,et al.  Computer Conferencing and Higher-Order Learning. , 1998 .

[19]  D. Halpern.  Teaching critical thinking for transfer across domains. , 1998 .

[20]  D. Randy Garrison,et al.  Critical Inquiry in a Text-Based Environment: Computer Conferencing in Higher Education , 1999, Internet High. Educ..

[21]  A. While,et al.  Problem solving in nursing practice: application, process, skill acquisition and measurement. , 1993, Journal of advanced nursing.

[22]  S. Etheridge.  Learning to think like a nurse: stories from new nurse graduates. , 2007, Journal of continuing education in nursing.

[23]  L. Rounds,et al.  THE SUCCESSFUL USE OF: Problem-based Learning in an Online Nurse Practitioner Course , 2008, Nursing education perspectives.

[24]  David H. Jonassen,et al.  Toward a design theory of problem solving , 2000 .

[25]  H S Barrows,et al.  A taxonomy of problem‐based learning methods , 1986, Medical education.

[26]  E Amos,et al.  Problem-based learning. , 1998, Nurse educator.

[27]  C. Hmelo‐Silver.  Problem-Based Learning: What and How Do Students Learn? , 2004 .

[28]  J. Giddens,et al.  Rescuing nursing education from content saturation: the case for a concept-based curriculum. , 2007, The Journal of nursing education.

[29]  D. Garrison.  Critical Thinking and Self-Directed Learning in Adult Education: An Analysis of Responsibility and Control Issues , 1992 .

[30]  D. Garrison,et al.  Critical thinking, cognitive presence, and computer conferencing in distance education , 2001 .