Teacher Role

My experience as a teacher has gone from teaching in the clinical setting to teaching in the academic setting. I feel like I started out going backwards because when I was the nurse educator for the Pediatric Emergency Department (PED), I was teaching trained professionals. After entering the Nurse Educator program I was able to teach nursing students and realized a whole other side of teaching. It was like night and day in comparison. I have taught nursing students who were in their third semester and felt a little more comfortable with the nursing process and patient care. This group of students seemed more laid back and ready for challenges. My method of teaching this class was in person as well as in the clinical setting on a pediatric floor. I also had the opportunity to teach brand new nursing students who had never taken care of a patient. This group of students definitely had a higher level of anxiety about them, but I really enjoyed them as much as the first group. I felt like I was teaching sponges and they soaked up every little thing I said. The methods of teaching this group was all online due to COVID, except for my time with my specific clinical groups on the adult hospital floor. In my development as a teacher I would say that I have learned to loosen up and break concepts down better. In the beginning, I think I taught more like an educator who is used to having trained professionals. I did not break down concepts as well because I was so used to having my students already know these things. By learning how to explain things at a basic level and build on that foundation I have been able to improve my teaching style. A goal that I have for professional development is to continue to improve my teaching style and my delivery of information. I would also like to obtain my certification for nursing education.

These two surveys were taken by different classes, one in 2019 and one in 2020. The latest survey shows improvement in all areas when compared to the 2019 survey.