Tips for New Nurse Educators

Hey All,

I am a recent BSN graduate, 23 years-old....I was working in a hospital for a little bit, on the Neonatal Intensive Care unit, but a teaching job opened and I looked into it. Its at a career school in my county, teaching LPNs. I love working with kids so leaving the hospital was difficult, but I was asked to teach maternal child health and pediatrics and also be the pediatric clinical instructor. This is a great opportunity and I jumped at the chance. I start on Jan. 23 and I am very nervous because I don't really have all that much experience as an RN and NONE as a teacher. Plus, most of my students are much, much older than me and I am afraid they won't respect me. Should I be worried?

Welcome to the wonderful and rewarding field of nursing education! We certainly need you and this next generation of nurses needs you!

My best advice for you is to make sure you have a mentor or preceptor at the school. Make sure that your mentor is someone you can trust, someone with integrity. (Unfortunately, horizontal violence is alive and well among nursing faculty, so choose your confidants and friends wisely. Stay out of interpersonal conflicts and politics.)

Hopefully the instructors who preceded you left copies of their lecture notes, etc. Some are more thorough than others. It is very difficult (but not impossible ) creating lectures purely from scratch.

Research your lecture material thoroughly, until it becomes part of you and you feel a passion for that subject. As you lecture, that enthusiasm will shine through and spark interest in the students. There is great virtue in simplicity (KISS, stay on target and to the point as possible). Less is more. Try not to drown the students with too much information. I know, I know. This is nearly impossible with ADN and BSN curricula, but try anyway Always let your students know what are the most important points of your lecture as you are lecturing.

I give out handouts. Caution: Don't give out too many (as I did my first year of teaching and "drowned" my students). Remember the axiom: Less is more. Simple handouts with the main points of your lecture save time--you will be able to get more bang for your buck, as time is very scarce with lecturing (SO MUCH information, so LITTLE TIME). Good handouts will enable the students to write less and concentrate on what you are saying more. I also encourage my students to use tape recorders. That way they aren't so frantic to catch my every word. If your nursing school has a web site, use it to your students' advantage. Post your lecture notes and study guides there. Your students will appreciate the convenience. I try to post my lecture notes early so the students have a chance to read my notes ahead of time.

Integrate pertinent NCLEX-type questions as you lecture. Especially after more important subjects are covered, throw out a question or two. This helps the students process the material better, and also helps with their test-taking skills.

If a study guide is included with your text book, refer to it often and have the students use it (don't recreate the wheel). If not, create a simple one yourself. The students really appreciate having them.

Writing exam questions is an art. It takes time to develop this skill. Nursing test questions are modeled after the NCLEX and are "higher order." Most teachers and students (!) aren't accustomed to this type of testing at first. Instead of a simple knowledge question, you are requiring your students to think critically (analyze, evaluate, prioritize), which is so essential to safe nursing practice. All nursing textbooks come with a test bank. I would use these questions first. After awhile, you will learn to create your own. Caution: make sure you choose your test questions BEFORE you lecture, so that your lecture will include this material!

Hope this little bit of advice helps. Any other more "seasoned" veterans feel free to post here. I welcome your input.

As an educator in a small rural hospital, i am stretched to the limit trying to do annual mandatory inservices and departmental specific inservices. Has anyone used self study modules? Are they effective? I need some feedback. Educators, Please help me. bevll

I most certainly appreciate the tips for new nurse educators. I hope that I will be provided with some teaching aids and some sort of outline of what is expected of the students. I'm a little nervous about the starting from scratch. I loved my Maternity Text. I wish I could use that..........I guess I have no idea what I'm getting into.
Debbie