The nursing profession requires critical thinking skills. Advancements in technology and information management systems make decisions about the treatment and care of patients more complex. It also requires nurses to coordinate care among clinicians and use technological tools to improve care. And, of course, nursing is the most lucrative profession in the world. These four reasons make online nursing education a great choice for students who wish to further their education without interrupting their current career.
Benefit
An online nursing education gives you a multitude of advantages over a traditional classroom setting. You’ll never have to wait in a crowded classroom to ask questions or get clarification on a concept. Unlike in a traditional classroom, you can designate your own study area and attend lectures wherever you like. The online classroom environment also gives you the opportunity to interact with your instructors in real time, which can make your learning experience more personalized.
Online classrooms allow you to interact with your professors and classmates. You’ll be able to interact with assignments, participate in class discussions, and have a virtual lab partner. Because you’re studying online, you can also read and do assignments at your own pace. Online classrooms also offer collaborative learning opportunities with online chat features and discussion boards. Even if you’re shy or don’t speak perfect English, you can always proofread your own work before submitting it to your professors.
Impact
The online education has a number of significant advantages. This new format of education is cost-efficient and provides students with the flexibility they need to complete the programme. However, its inflexibility may create problems. For example, it may cause some final-year students not to finish their studies, and this could lead to a shortage of nurses, especially in developing countries. Additionally, it can affect the quality of healthcare in a country due to the gap created in the nursing workforce.
To tackle this issue, universities have implemented various strategies, including the suspension of face-to-face classes and virtual remote learning. For example, some schools in countries affected by the pandemic have suspended face-to-face classes until the disease has passed. The conversion process was fast, but has to continue after the crisis has passed. As a result, the nursing field must remain focused on innovation to ensure continuity of education.
Challenges
The Internet has fundamentally changed nursing education over the last decade. Schools of nursing have embraced Internet-based course delivery technology and online education. The rush to stay competitive, however, raises questions about the quality of online programs. Hence, nurse educators must assess the effectiveness of their online programs systematically. This assessment process should include identifying appropriate evaluation tools and finding, and developing a strategy to evaluate online learning. This article explores the state of science in online nursing education evaluation and examines how effective the instructional strategies are.
Despite the promise of this new mode of teaching, it presents several challenges to students. The virtual environment creates a unique set of challenges, including limited access to faculty and resources. In the event of a pandemic, many colleges will need to extend online nursing instruction beyond summer 2020. Changing curricular policy is no longer a one-time process; it requires substantial change documentation. Faculty and administrators must work closely with online educational designers to determine the most effective way to provide simulated real-world experiences that simulate real clinical situations.
Solutions
New digital and cloud-based services are giving nurse educators a bigger playing field. The use of such tools may help increase enrollment rates in nursing programs. In 2019, nearly 80,000 qualified applicants were turned away by nursing schools across the nation. Many reasons for these rejections include faculty shortages, classroom site unavailability, and lack of technology. With such innovations, nurse educators can now reach students effectively and offer them better learning opportunities. This article explores some of the challenges faced by nurse educators who use virtual and online learning environments.
In the traditional world, nurse education takes three to four years. The last two years of the curriculum usually focus on content relevant to a nursing discipline. The neuroscience of learning supports this practice model. In an online setting, nursing education students can take courses on a flexible schedule. Online nursing programs can be delivered to diverse student demographics with the right technology support. For this reason, prospective students should consider their own communication and learning style before enrolling in an online program.