Procrstination/ Reflective writing

[redtshirt]

So i have a research project, a portfolio and reflective practice to write. None of which i actually want to do but I dont get a choice in it. Has anyone else had the wonderful experience of writing a reflective piece? Ill get it done in the end but im just wondering can anyone convince me its a useful part of nursing as i dont see how it is. i would rather spend my time learning meds or important things. It annoys me also because my college assignments are marked on the quality of my english rather than the nursing content and my writing skills are not to the level of Charles Dickinson that they expect.

[truern]

Redtshirt, your college is preparing you to write for conciseness and understanding...important aspects of charting and communication with other members of your healthcare team.

That said, I couldn't wait to get out of my English classes in school

[redtshirt]

dont have any english classes....its a nursing degree not an english degree they dont get that concept unfortunately!

[sh1901]

Regardless, you will need to be able to communicate well, both verbal and written. That said, I do feel that many schools go overboard with their English and writing assignments. But...no rule or requirement is put into place without some sort of reason for it. Perhaps there was a point when they had students who simply did not possess the writing skills necessary for the degree, so they increased the requirement?? Unfortunately, you have to take the classes and don't have a choice. Sometimes we all have to just buckle down and do things that we don't want to.

Best of luck with all of the assignments!!

[llg, PhD, RN]

It's not just about writing skills. People who can not "reflect" on their practice can not learn from their experiences. They don't learn their mistakes and are likely to repeat them. Nor do they learn from their successes. Reflection is a critical stage in the learning process necessary to acquire experiential knowledge.

Nurses need more that "just the facts" that can be absorbed from books and lectures. Nurses need to be sensitive to the people around them and attuned to the interactions among those people. We also need to be aware of our own inner processes of taking in and responding to things in our environment. Those "reflective" skills are necessary for expert nursing practice. Without them, we are simply practicing at a beginner-level of "following the rules" given by a book or policy.

The development of true expertise requires much more than just "memorizing the book" so-to-speak. It involves the ability to learn and grow from the analysis of our personal and professional experiences. If you can't reflect, you can't learn from your experiences and continue to develop as a nurse. Those are the skills the faculty is trying to get you to practice (and demonstrate) with your reflective writing assignmen in addition to the demonstration of your writing skills.

[Mr Ian]

... and my writing skills are not to the level of Charles Dickinson that they expect.

I think you mean Charles Dickens.

Good assignments reflect good aptitude and attitude - not just an ability to write English. It demonstrates attention to detail, conscientious application to the task, motivation, ... it's like handwriting analysis - you can tell a lot about a personality by the way they express themselves. Written assignments are just one way of evidencing your personality and aptitude also.

You can write the most accurate essay - but if you present it in a slip-shod fashion, you will lose marks.