RN Clinical Teacher- no teaching experience?

[Genista]

Just curious what you think of this. I saw a job posting at work yesterday for a position as a clinical instructor for ADN program in my area. All they want is a willing RN/BSN with recent acute care experience. They don't care if you have ever taught or have any teaching experience. I was a little surprised by that. Nope, I am not applying to the job. I was just a little disappointed I guess. I know we nurses do precepting & teaching all the time. But I couldn't help think that they are being unfair to the student RNs by not even requiring a little formalized teaching experience from the clinical instructors. By the way, this ADN program has an excellent rep. What do you all think?

[psychomachia]

zumalong: Would I be a better educator if I had a degree primarily in nursing education???? No I don't think so. THe degree does not make you an instructor, the ability to transmit ideas, thoughts, theories, and skills in a manner that allows the student to thrive in an environment of acceptance and respect makes you an effective educator, and a respected nurse.

Me: EXACTLY!

[Scavenger'sWife, RN]

I also think that although teaching experience is best, it is really clinical experience and (above all) a DESIRE to teach. I have taught nurse aide classes, nurse tech classes and CPR for two years, in a vocational school, an assisted living and currently at my hospital. When I started, I had NO experience as a teacher, but a great desire to teach and a love of nursing. I have since taken "Train the Trainer" which is a class to educate RNs in the state of Ohio about the state regs to teach NAs to be state tested. I only really learned paperwork to file. As far as being a good teacher, I feel I learned thro doing. I get good feedback from the students, I ask them how things can be done better, and I always LISTEN.

My experience on a med-surg floor and in Hospice has made me a good teacher. But the DESIRE to be a good teacher and understanding people's different learning abilities was what made me good at it.

I also had teachers in college who had NO floor experience in over 25 years and they were HORRIBLE. The best instructors were the ones who taught but also worked actively in their field.

If you think you might be interested in the teaching, I say GO FOR IT!! It is really fun and very rewarding. The only drawback is the pay usually sucks. Currently I teach within my hospital, so I make the same wages I make on the floor.

[DIPLOMATICRN4HIRE, MSN, RN]

Each one of my instructors from LPN and Rn were also Acute Care Nurses, some with additional education, very few with MSN, the ones that were MSN straight from school , really didnt have the skills to back up what was needed. The most that I leaned on and wanted feedback from was the ones that knew what the shoes felt like and walked the halls everyday...

I loved the insights and the tricks of the trades that they gave me and that I still use to this day.

zoe

[flowerchild]

I thought all nurses were teachers!

How can you be a good nurse and not know how to teach?

:kiss

[Furball]

Great point Flower!

[monkijr]

What an interesting topic!!!! zumalong you and I have an almost identical experience and I could not agree more.

One point I want to make is that nurses deserve the best in their education and I am not sure that this is understood by all institutions. There is more to teaching than the degree, yet nurses deserve both the competent and experienced instructor.

How can you teach about geriatric care, yet never taken care of a geriatric patient? Yet how do you write a lesson plan without the know how to? Even at the CNA teaching level the instructor must have 1 year experience in adult teaching in state funded facilities. In reality a bulk of the learning takes place after completion of the program. This is true. I was fortunate enough in my education to have the effective instructor both in experience and in effective teaching skills. I am very concerned about some of the nurses I have worked with recently who are new graduates and do not understand the basic principles of infection control and patient care. Now is this the individual or the

nursing programs fault? If you were not taught it, can you expect to know it? This absolutely does not apply to all new grads, just making the point that teaching/learning should be effective and this involves prepared instructors.

I am going to stop now, because one thing I do know, is that the longer to post the less likely it is to be read thru. :stone

[Cathy Wilson, RN]

originally posted by furball

i'd rather be taught by someone with actual bedside experience (recent) rather than by someone with just a teaching degree....yes indeed.

no question!

[Q.]

I think it simply reflects the shortage. There is also a shortage of qualified, Masters prepared nurses available to teach.

I agree, bedside experience (recent) is very valuable when teaching, however, knowing how to teach I think is just as if not more, valuable.

You could be an excellent clinical nurse, but if you can't deliver your message, what's the point?

[mark_LD_RN]

if you could only hire teachers with teaching experience where would we get them from eventually there would be none left to teach. this is along the same line of thought as not hiring a new grad to work as a nurse, if you can only get job if you have experience how will you get the experience?

as nurses we teach all the time. and if the program is a s good as you say they will have something in place to monitor and mentor the new instructor. Being an instructor I can tell you that this is most likely very true. 2 of the 3 colleges i taught at or currently teach at monitored everything i did for the first yr they reviewed all my teaching plans,approved all my exams even analized the results of my exams. I was held responsible for my students scores on the exit exam. if the sections i taught were below their standards i would be consuled on that.

so if this is a good program, and all the needed things are in place. i know the students will not be missing out. as a matter of fact sometimes the new instuctors actually do a better job because they need to prove them self so they push them selves harder.

[Tookie]

Interesting subject - makes for interesting reading and much thought

Thank you Tookie

[SmilingBluEyes]

NO teaching experience........HUMMMM ....REALLY????

I believe we nurses are the CONSUMMATE TEACHERS! Are we not? Ok so, she needs a bit of theory. (learning styles, types etc.)..... I think she can do a wonderful job if her heart is in it and she has the desire to learn fast. I think she could be awesome. I had one who was a bedside nurse who adjunct taught at our school. She was the BEST and i HONESTLY say I learned SO MUCH FROM HER and had so LITTLE pressure to do it. She, also had no real teaching experience, but a BSN, and LOTS OF CLINICAL KNOW-HOW! Oh and no ivory tower thinking, just real stuff for learning bedside nursing.

If someone has the desire to teach and believes in what he/she is teaching, I say go for it!

[Q.]

It's not about hiring someone only with "teaching experience" but hiring a *qualified* nurse to do so, ie someone who has been taught how to teach.

I have been precepted by excellent clinical nurses who could not verbalize their skills to a stone. As a nurse, sure I've taught to patients; ran off a teaching checklist, went over points, maybe even asked for a return demonstration, but it is not the same thing. The MSN program I am in now is one that teaches us HOW to teach, how to deliver your message effectively, how to identify when learning hasn't taken place and how to know when your students are faking it.

I don't believe in taking a nurse, who has only been a bedside nurse and saying that by virtue of being a nurse she is qualified to teach at the academic level. Uh-uh, no way.