Deck 9: Helping Students to Prepare for Clinical Learning Experiences

Question 1

Structured assignments that guide students' preparation for the clinical experience create an "anticipatory set," or readiness to learn by

A) guiding students to identify the relevant factors in the patient care situation
B) providing a conceptual focus for clinical activities
C) guiding students to review the technical skills required by the assignment
D) providing practice in the use of the nursing process
E) all of these

Answer 1

A
guiding students to identify the relevant factors in the patient care situation. Structured assignments help students to access prior knowledge and fill in gaps in understanding prior to embarking on patient care, establishing the "anticipatory set" necessary to learning.

Question 2

Teacher-created data collection forms guide the student to the collection of data concerning her patient care assignment for a given clinical experience. These forms also

A) enable the student to clearly identify the most relevant data to guide her care
B) make explicit the theoretical elements related to the patient care data
C) serve as a reference for the student as she provides nursing care during the day
D) encourage the student to validate the data in relation to the patient's current condition
E) all of these

Answer 2

C
serve as a reference for the student as she provides nursing care during the day. The data collection form provides a synopsis of the patient's condition and treatment plan prior to the start of the student's clinical activities. However, such forms do not help the student to sort out the salient elements of the situation, nor do they link theoretical concepts to the plan of patient care. While students should validate data they collect with their own assessment of a patient's current condition, the form does not prompt such action.

Question 3

A major problem with using daily nursing care plans as a means to help students prepare for the clinical experiences is that

A) planning takes place before the student has interacted with the patient
B) textbook rationales for planned care may not apply in the actual situation
C) the student is rarely challenged to evaluate the plan after caring for the patient
D) each of these
E) only a and b

Answer 3

D
each of these. When used to prepare for the clinical learning experience, daily nursing care plans provide no mechanism to prompt the student to evaluate the plan following the day's activities, an important element of the nursing process, unless prompted to do so in a follow-up discussion or assignment.

Question 4

Student preparation for clinical learning experiences usually involves some combination of the following elements:

A) collection of patient-related data, including demographic data, prior health history, presenting problems, and treatment specifics, including medications
B) review of relevant theory and concepts related to the patient's condition and treatment specifics, including medications
C) development of a tentative plan of care outlining a sequence of activities involved in providing patient care and treatment specifics, including medications
D) all of these
E) only a and b

Question 5

Clinical concept mapping

A) provides a comprehensive picture of the patient status when the student begin the clinical experience
B) guides the specific activities in which the student will engage while caring for the patient
C) makes evident the student's understanding of the concepts underlying the patient's treatment plan
D) guides the student's understanding of the theoretical basis for specific nursing procedures
E) enables the student to evaluate the fit of the plan of care to patient goals

Question 6

As an alternative to traditional approaches to student preparation for a clinical experience, the "verbal connection" described by Emerson & Groth (1996)

A) requires students to interact with the assigned patient prior to the start of clinical to begin developing a therapeutic relationship
B) frees students from the constraints of formal guidelines for preparation for the clinical assignment
C) utilizes clinical postconference time to verify students' understanding of the concepts underlying the care they have provided
D) both a and b
E) both b and c

Question 7

Nursing process mapping differs from clinical concept mapping in which of the following ways?

A) The structure of the nursing process map is different than the structure of the clinical concept map
B) The nursing process map is more linear than the clinical concept map, which tends to be more conceptual
C) The nursing process map does not incorporate patient goals regarding optimal functioning as does the clinical concept map
D) The nursing process map encourages critical thinking, which is not true of the clinical concept map
E) None of these

Question 8

Assignments intended to enable students to make the necessary theoretical connections prior to engaging in a clinical assignment

A) free the instructor from the work of verifying each student's preparation for clinical
B) enhance student confidence, particularly when performing technical skills
C) waste both the instructor's and students' time given the fluid clinical situation
D) guide the conduct of the clinical pre- and postconference
E) initiate students into the intellectual work of nursing

Question 9

Clinical focus guidelines, described by Blainey (1991), are intended to focus students' preparation for clinical assignments around course and clinical objectives. An advantage to this approach is that

A) the clinical nursing instructor can be confident that students recognize the fit of the clinical assignment to course and clinical objectives
B) students need not be concerned about clinical content that is unrelated to course and clinical objectives
C) the clinical nursing instructor is able to focus on students' technical skill development
D) the use of the guidelines helps to develop students' skills of lifelong learning, including self-evaluation
E) none of these

Question 10

The use of structured assignments to prepare students for clinical learning experiences help students to

A) access prior knowledge
B) identify gaps in knowledge, prompting the need for further preparation
C) "make meaning" in clinical work
D) recognize connections between theory and practice
E) all of these