Experiential Learning for Health Sciences Education Students: An Open Distance Learning (ODL) Context

ABSTRACT

The purpose of the study was explore and describe experiences of student teachers currently registered for the BCUR degree studying in an ODL university. The degree comprises nursing education and management and the students had attended the teaching practice workshop, a component of nursing education programme. An explorative, descriptive, interpretative and qualitative design was conducted to explore student teachers’ experiences of the teaching practice workshop they have attended. The interviews were conducted on twenty student nurse educators who participated in the study. Purposive sampling which is based on the belief that the researcher’s knowledge about the population can be used to hand pick sample elements was used. The study yielded both positive and negative experiences. The positive was the provision of environment, which exposed them to teaching, and acquisition of pedagogical skills. Negative experience were also reported including poor and inaccessible orientation, outdated study guide and workbook, ineffective feedback and a very short period of exposure to teaching practice. Workshops to be divided into two phases, first phase for orientation and second phase for teaching practice and assessment. Students to be thoroughly prepared re on-line teaching.