I am in a first year nursing class. Context based learning is our format.
The premise behind CBL is that the instructor does not TEACH. The students do all the teaching.
We are given a scenario: Based on a core concept map, we then brainstorm. Covering topics such as Code of ethics, Primary Health care system, etc that all apply to the particular scenario.
Then as a group we choose the topics to "research" and then research our topic and come back to the group and present our "findings".
The problem with this concept and I mean PROBLEM.....is that it is taking us hours and hours to research everything.
We never know if the topics we are researching are going to be "enough info" and so some of us worry that we will not know what will be on the exams.
We are now into our second week and still no one is "getting it".
Other groups who have gone before us complain that it was the most frustrating two years of their lives. With each exam that they took, they learned that they were never thorough enough with their "research" and missed many things that were covered on the tests. With all the unorganized classroom time, folks are starting to fight and get upset. We are all feeling pretty angry that we spent thousands on tuition and get no TUTORIALS.
It is not only with our class. It is across the board. In each area of my city that they are doing this CBL, all of the students are complaining of the same thing.
Some of the students have huge workloads and add to that all the research that we have to do, the pressure and stress and tension is reaching the boiling point.
I hate it.......it is a huge learning curve. So much time is being wasted on trying to figure out what we are supposed to be doing.
Anyhow, I just needed to vent. Not sure what to do except be patient I guess. What a load of crap CBL is.
One of my med surg instructor lectures ~1/2 to 3/4 of the class time then she gives us case studies(can be before or after)...we group off & present... she & rest of class then add their input. I love it & really learn this way. She does a lot of different activities that the class actively participates in although there have been some tough subjects we all agree we learn more from her than any of the rest of our instructors. I know it is up to each student to grasp the material regardless of teaching style but I really learn better by doing, seeing mistakes & why it is right or wrong. Her style puts it more on you to pay attention, read, think & apply what you know. When you go to her class you better be prepared cause you never know what you will be doing!
Specializes in med/surg, telemetry, IV therapy, mgmt.
Well, Alberta Rose and everyone else who reads this. . .I went through a similar learning approach in my nursing program back in 1973! However, we had a lot of guidance. The learning format used was developed by nurse educators in Florida (if I remember correctly). It was called LEGS. LEGS stood for Learning Experience Guides for nursing Students. For each semester we purchased our learning guides from the college bookstore. They had holes punched in them and had to be inserted into three ring notebooks. I don't know if this LEGS approach is even in existance anymore. It was a very organized learning plan in which there were objectives grouped into larger sections called LEGS. It was designed so that students did their own exploration of various resources and references in order to fullfill each objective within each LEG. So, if one of the objectives was to describe the disease process of acute renal failure and treatment, the information given to use was a listing of places to search for this information. Textbook and nursing journal references were listed, as well as videotaped information (we actually had the old slide shows in those days as videotape wasn't in general use yet), suggestions of questions to ask RNs we might come into contact with in our clinical setting as well as hints about what labwork, diagnostic tests and drugs we should be looking for and learning about in relation to that particular disease. We had no formal lectures--at all. All of us nursing students met once a week for a large group meeting where we were coached as to what point we should have been with our learning modules and objectives. We discussed any problems or concerns about the program, in general. We also each had a weekly meeting with an instructor to who we were assigned. The instructor was like a counselor and kept track of where we were with the modules and would let us know if we were getting behind. Here's the real shocker for you! We had a test after we completed our study of each LEG (or maybe a module--it's been 32 years since I did this) and we could take the test anytime we felt we were ready. The tests were administered at a testing center the school had. Just to make sure that test questions were not being passed on to students who had not yet taken the tests, there were usually a couple of different tests for each LEG (or module). We got our test back and our instructor went over them with us individually at our weekly meetings. As I am recalling this, I believe that within each LEG there were several modules that were broken down into objectives. We could do the modules within a LEG in whatever order we wanted. So, none of us were working on learning the same information at the same time. Anytime we asked a specific nursing question of any of our instructors we were asked where we had looked to find the answer. Sometimes we were given a direct instruction to go to a specific reference, but a lot of times were given the nurse smile and told to keep looking. Most of us also belonged to an informal study group with a couple of our peers. My group met every Tuesday evening and we each took turns hosting it at our house or apartment. We divided the work to be done in the modules this way and shared it.
This was a well-organized learning system and the reason it had been adopted was because of the high passing rate on the state boards. Now, back in 1975 we took that 2-day paper and pencil exam that was split into 5 tests. It was a doozy! I will never forget sitting in the Long Beach Arena with 4,000 other nursing students on two hot July days to take that exam. Everyone in my class passed the state board the first time around! We weren't the only class that did that out of my school either.
I wish I had my old LEGS to e-mail a sample to you, but all my textbooks and nursing school notes were ruined by water damage and had to be thrown out. Perhaps there is someone reading this who learned under this LEGS program and still has some of them.
So, I think I understand what your school is trying to achieve, but it sounds like they are not giving you much direction to go about it. May I suggest that you try to find out if LEGs is still in publication or if they have a web site. Also, a nursing textbook that focuses on the disease process and gives you some nursing care or even a bit of some care plan info will probably be a big help. Before Nursing diagnosis, we made lists of the signs and symptoms a person would have for a disease and proceded to develop the nursing care they would be given based on those signs and symptoms. Some of the older care plan books actually listed those signs and symptoms out for you. Organization is going to be your best asset to learning this nursing information on your own. I would ask one of the instructors to help you and your study group to help you work out a kind of template as to how to approach collecting information on each disease (or nursing diagnosis). As an example, list the signs and symptoms of a disease process and then start looking for labwork and diagnostic tests that would be done to establish the disease, what medications are likely to be ordered for the patient, nursing interventions that are likely to be needed, and don't forget to also include interventions by other healthcare personnel that might be needed. I think that if you can come up with a format as to how to organize information you are going to search for, you may do better with this.
Good luck with this. By the way, finding answers on your own really is the best way to learn. I think your instructors have the right idea, but sound like they lack the organization to pull this off.
Specializes in Gerontological, cardiac, med-surg, peds.
Well, Alberta Rose and everyone else who reads this. . .I went through a similar learning approach in my nursing program back in 1973! However, we had a lot of guidance. The learning format used was developed by nurse educators in Florida (if I remember correctly). It was called LEGS. LEGS stood for Learning Experience Guides for nursing Students. For each semester we purchased our learning guides from the college bookstore. They had holes punched in them and had to be inserted into three ring notebooks. I don't know if this LEGS approach is even in existance anymore. It was a very organized learning plan in which there were objectives grouped into larger sections called LEGS. It was designed so that students did their own exploration of various resources and references in order to fullfill each objective within each LEG. So, if one of the objectives was to describe the disease process of acute renal failure and treatment, the information given to use was a listing of places to search for this information. Textbook and nursing journal references were listed, as well as videotaped information (we actually had the old slide shows in those days as videotape wasn't in general use yet), suggestions of questions to ask RNs we might come into contact with in our clinical setting as well as hints about what labwork, diagnostic tests and drugs we should be looking for and learning about in relation to that particular disease. We had no formal lectures--at all. All of us nursing students met once a week for a large group meeting where we were coached as to what point we should have been with our learning modules and objectives. We discussed any problems or concerns about the program, in general. We also each had a weekly meeting with an instructor to who we were assigned. The instructor was like a counselor and kept track of where we were with the modules and would let us know if we were getting behind. Here's the real shocker for you! We had a test after we completed our study of each LEG (or maybe a module--it's been 32 years since I did this) and we could take the test anytime we felt we were ready. The tests were administered at a testing center the school had. Just to make sure that test questions were not being passed on to students who had not yet taken the tests, there were usually a couple of different tests for each LEG (or module). We got our test back and our instructor went over them with us individually at our weekly meetings. As I am recalling this, I believe that within each LEG there were several modules that were broken down into objectives. We could do the modules within a LEG in whatever order we wanted. So, none of us were working on learning the same information at the same time. Anytime we asked a specific nursing question of any of our instructors we were asked where we had looked to find the answer. Sometimes we were given a direct instruction to go to a specific reference, but a lot of times were given the nurse smile and told to keep looking. Most of us also belonged to an informal study group with a couple of our peers. My group met every Tuesday evening and we each took turns hosting it at our house or apartment. We divided the work to be done in the modules this way and shared it.
This was a well-organized learning system and the reason it had been adopted was because of the high passing rate on the state boards. Now, back in 1975 we took that 2-day paper and pencil exam that was split into 5 tests. It was a doozy! I will never forget sitting in the Long Beach Arena with 4,000 other nursing students on two hot July days to take that exam. Everyone in my class passed the state board the first time around! We weren't the only class that did that out of my school either.
I wish I had my old LEGS to e-mail a sample to you, but all my textbooks and nursing school notes were ruined by water damage and had to be thrown out. Perhaps there is someone reading this who learned under this LEGS program and still has some of them.
So, I think I understand what your school is trying to achieve, but it sounds like they are not giving you much direction to go about it. May I suggest that you try to find out if LEGs is still in publication or if they have a web site. Also, a nursing textbook that focuses on the disease process and gives you some nursing care or even a bit of some care plan info will probably be a big help. Before Nursing diagnosis, we made lists of the signs and symptoms a person would have for a disease and proceded to develop the nursing care they would be given based on those signs and symptoms. Some of the older care plan books actually listed those signs and symptoms out for you. Organization is going to be your best asset to learning this nursing information on your own. I would ask one of the instructors to help you and your study group to help you work out a kind of template as to how to approach collecting information on each disease (or nursing diagnosis). As an example, list the signs and symptoms of a disease process and then start looking for labwork and diagnostic tests that would be done to establish the disease, what medications are likely to be ordered for the patient, nursing interventions that are likely to be needed, and don't forget to also include interventions by other healthcare personnel that might be needed. I think that if you can come up with a format as to how to organize information you are going to search for, you may do better with this.
Good luck with this. By the way, finding answers on your own really is the best way to learn. I think your instructors have the right idea, but sound like they lack the organization to pull this off.
Truly fascinating. I had no idea such learning methods existed... and back in 1973! Thank you so much for sharing :)
Specializes in med/surg, telemetry, IV therapy, mgmt.
Well, I did a quick search and it looks like LEGS (Learning Experience Guides for Nursing Students) still exists. I looks like it's being utilized in programs where the nursing student is working toward their degree on line or in distance learning programs where you only go to the college for tests.
This LEGS learning sounds so interesting. Would of like this method when i was in nursing school. I am an independent learner and get bored easily. Wonder if any grad schools use this method? Thanks to the poster who told us about this.
My school uses CBL extensively and it works quite well when done properly. Our teachers step in and fill in the gaps that the groups miss so there are no surprises on the exams. Handouts are required to be typed.We have a no lecture system of learning and the students talk in class as much as the teachers.Something similiar to the LEG system is used as well. We have to complete booklets in our course package and use them to study from for tests and exams.Usually the teachers don't check to see if we have completed our work, we are expected to learn pretty independently using the resources that are available.
Specializes in Gerontological, cardiac, med-surg, peds.
My school uses CBL extensively and it works quite well when done properly. Our teachers step in and fill in the gaps that the groups miss so there are no surprises on the exams. Handouts are required to be typed.We have a no lecture system of learning and the students talk in class as much as the teachers.Something similiar to the LEG system is used as well. We have to complete booklets in our course package and use them to study from for tests and exams.Usually the teachers don't check to see if we have completed our work, we are expected to learn pretty independently using the resources that are available.
Here is an excellent website that explains the basic principles of adult learning (helps put CBL and the LEG system in perspective):
I had a background in elementary education (having homeschooled both of my children) and was not prepared for the radical differences between child and adult education.
Most of us also belonged to an informal study group with a couple of our peers. My group met every Tuesday evening and we each took turns hosting it at our house or apartment. We divided the work to be done in the modules this way and shared it.
crb613, BSN, RN
1,632 Posts
One of my med surg instructor lectures ~1/2 to 3/4 of the class time then she gives us case studies(can be before or after)...we group off & present... she & rest of class then add their input. I love it & really learn this way. She does a lot of different activities that the class actively participates in although there have been some tough subjects we all agree we learn more from her than any of the rest of our instructors. I know it is up to each student to grasp the material regardless of teaching style but I really learn better by doing, seeing mistakes & why it is right or wrong. Her style puts it more on you to pay attention, read, think & apply what you know. When you go to her class you better be prepared cause you never know what you will be doing!