NLN/Elsevier HBCU Innovation in Technology Excellence program

Innovation in technology and teaching are increasingly becoming an essential tool for nurse educators in preparing students to provide safe and quality care in diverse healthcare settings. Engaging students in contextual learning using technology and dialogue shifts the focus from learners as doers of actions to learners as meaning makers. This is the new paradigm for the role of the nurse educator and a challenge to deliver innovation in teaching excellence.

There is a critical need for faculty development directed to teaching in this technological age to improve patient care outcomes. As new nurse educators engage in teaching excellence and learning, the continued development of online, virtual products is necessary to both enhance their skills and expertise and meet the needs of this contemporary generation of learners. Concurrently, this need is even greater in Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) Schools of nursing where resources for faculty development are often limited and the students they teach are from underrepresented populations.

The purpose of this project is to provide nursing faculty in HBCUs and clinical preceptors in hospitals/health systems with the opportunity to enhance their coaching skills through innovative technology to facilitate student learning. The project will be housed in the NLN Center for Innovation in Education Excellence and will implement a course titled Coaching for Excellence in Nursing. This course includes e-learning modules that provide context for understanding nursing students’ challenges and how educators can help with the transition to professional practice.

Goals:

• Focus on technology user innovation through the launching of the NLN Coaching for Excellence in Nursing.
• 3-month cohorts of 4 faculty will complete five e-learning modules and six video challenges. 3 cohorts per year.
• E-learning modules that provides context for understanding nursing student challenges and how educators can help with the transition to professional practice.

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About the National League of Nursing

Founded in 1893 as the American Society of Superintendents of Training Schools for Nurses, the National League for Nursing was the first nursing organization in the United States. The NLN is the only national organization that represents all levels of nursing education, from licensed practical nurses, to registered nurses, to advanced nurse practitioners to PhD prepared researchers and teachers. It offers faculty development programs, networking opportunities, testing and assessment, and public policy initiatives to its 40,000 individual faculty members and 1,210 member schools.