Interactive Teaching Tools

This week was fun! I enjoy interactive educational tools. I had no idea so many tools were out available for educators to use. Just like most activities, I favored some over others.

Quizzes

I attempted many of the quiz sites. My least favorite was Imagequiz. This is a time-based quiz, apparently meant to be competitive. Students are expected to click on the image in the picture the quiz requests. However, the question is hidden among the menu bar and scoring table. It is hard to readily identify what is to be chosen. Then, the question automatically changes if the student clicks on the correct image. If the student is incorrect, an alert is displayed. However, the quiz does not identify which image was chosen. A difficulty for the student can be determining where to select the image. For instance, on the first quiz I took, I was asked to click directly on the image. The second quiz I took, I was to click in black boxes beside the appropriate image. It took me several clicks to determine the purpose for the black boxes. Quizzes can be very stressful for students. The quiz arrangement does not need to add additional stress to the student.

The orange type is the "question".

I very much enjoyed Quizdini and QuizBean. Quizdini was great in that it allows quiz creators to provide an explanation for the correct answer. The quiz is displayed nicely and is easy to navigate. Quizdini offers two types of quizzes. The first is a basic multiple choice quiz. A question is asked and four options are provided. The student chooses an option. The quiz automatically identifies the answer as right or wrong. If it is wrong, a red “x” is shown in place of the option. If it is correct, the question disappears and is replaced with a green screen with the correct answer and the explanation as to why that answer is correct. The interesting twist with this application is the student only has 10 chances to get the answer correct. Once the student has chosen 10 incorrect answers, the quiz shuts off. One unfortunate aspect of this program is teachers’ inability to gain access to students’ quiz results. This is because of a combination of Quizdini not wanting students to have to create an account and not having approval of education regulatory agencies.

QuizBean was also very user-friendly and clean looking quiz site. The site allows instructors to create classes for easy distribution of quizzes. Quizzes can be a mixture of true/false, multiple choice, or multiple answer. Once the student chooses an answer, they receive immediate feedback as to whether or not the answer is correct. If it is, the screen is green and titled “Correct”. If the student chooses the incorrect answer, the screen is red, includes the answer the student gave as well as the correct answer. Upon completion of the quiz, a review screen is presented that includes all the questions, answers, and the students’ answers. For this program, class creators are able to monitor students’ progress on the quizzes. They are able to see how many attempts have been taken by the students as well as their performance for each. This was probably my favorite program. I created a tiny, fun quiz.

Other Interactive Programs

Audio response systems (ARS) allow class participation. The two I discovered were Poll Everywhere and Socrative. Poll Everywhere was interesting because it can be embedded into PowerPoint programs or can be utilized separately. Responders can use cell phones to respond to poll questions with the only cost to them being the cost associated with text messaging. Secondly, those respondents with smart phones can access the website, or download the app to respond. Unfortunately, for a single owner, this program costs approximately $65 a month. Socrative is slightly different. This program allows several question types, including true/false, multiple choice, short answer, and others. Also, with this program, the class can be split into teams and identified by the program. This allows for group interaction. Socrative is an application and does not link into PowerPoint. This application is free.

The Body Map site was fairly interactive. I was hoping (and maybe expecting) more interaction than clicking on a body part or disease process to watch a video or read a description. I wish this were more interactive.

One of the most interesting interactive tools I have learned about is The Neighborhood. We discussed this program in Dr. Porter’s class. I find it to be very interesting and educational. Students are able to see an illness or disease process as they are learning about it. This would be very helpful for students to understand the patient perspective whoistically. Unfortunately, when student nurses are learning about certain illnesses, disease processes, or treatments, they often may not encounter a patient with that particular problem throughout their academic career. Students are limited to what is available during  clinical settings and hours. The Neighborhood brings the possibility of seeing these problems brought to life. Students are asked to monitor the populations behaviors, symptoms, and overall living situation to determine how that particular patient could best be helped.

This is the home screen for The Neighborhood

Simulation

Prior to the lesson this week, I was very pro simulation experiences for students, not identifying many negatives to this form of teaching. However, after reading the articles presented, I have come to realize the complications simulation can cause. Prior to the readings, I thought simulation would be a great evaluation tool. This way of thinking was supported by the QSEN  website.  After reading the article by Onello and Regan (2013), I now understand how using simulation as an evaluation tool can be complicated. For one, evaluation utilizing simulation has not been standardized. One school may have a specific set of criteria to claim competency in a skill or procedure. Yet, another school may require a more in depth evaluation.  Onello and Regan also discussed how simulation is causing students to by hyper-aware of patients deteriorating quickly, especially in rarely seen conditions. I find this fascinating because when students arrive on units as beginning students now, they are very timid around patients that are not doing so well. They tend to stand back, instead of being able to name off and complete appropriate assessments. While recognizing the signs of patients’ decline, most patients do not. The assumption and hyper-awareness they might can do a great disservice to students. Students will begin using so much time and energy expecting the patients to decline, instead of providing the patient with the things they need to progress. For instance, if a patient is about ready to be discharged and needs education on new medications and a new home routine, the students may miss this because their time and energy is being spent on assuming the patient is going to decline.

In Dr. Porter's class, we had to complete modules from the University of Washington on proper simulation set-up and initiation. While I did not complete all modules, I learned quite a lot from those I did. I believe all universities should have faculty complete similar modules before initiating a simulation program. 

Digital Storytelling Presentation Tools

lThis week has been interesting. I have always been a sucker for a good story! I enjoyed watching all the clips this week. Several of them reminded me of my undergrad classes. I was always thankful when a professor, special guest, or video would interrupt the lecture to offer a story. The story seemed to re-energize me, especially when I was becoming stressed out with the homework, papers, and exams. They always had a way of reminding that the stress would all be worth it one day. This week had several examples of digital storytelling.
I enjoyed the Prezi presentation by Predernal. She defined and described the parts that are imperative in creating an attractive and entertaining digital story. After watching the presentation, I decided to try one of the digital storytelling programs she offered. One of my first choices was the Xtranormal program because it was fun in a simplistic way. However, once I started to research this program, as of July 2013, the program was no longer available. For a moment I was disappointed. Meanwhile, other programs have become available offering some of the same characteristics of Xtranormal. The one I chose was Powtoon.
Powtoon is a free, online program that offers creative animated presentations. The basic set-up is similar to PowerPoint in that the author creates several slides to the presentation. However, each slide can have several sets before transitioning to the next slide. This program was not as similar to Xtranormal as I was expecting. Xtranormal used cartoons providing the information in a conversational format. Powtoon is more of a presentation tool. Creators can create slides with animation, voiceover, and music. I created a small presentation just to assess the features. I had fun working with this program. Here is my attempted Powtoon presentation!! A problem I have with this program is the difficulty in sharing the presentation in another format other than via links. For instance, I was unable to post the program into this blog.
I also tried another storytelling program suggested by the blog, Metta. I was fairly surprised at how easy this program was to create presentations. Within a couple of clicks- easily identified by the program site- the creator can have an attractive and professional presentation. This presentation is a fairly short presentation, but did not take long to create. This would be a good program for educators that are looking for a fun way to present a quick story. Caring for the Elderly  (Please use password "elderly") A problem with this program is very similar to the problem I have with Powtoon; I am unable to load the presentation directly into the blog.
The final presentation software offered on the blog site was Camtasia. I watched the videos offered, but did not try to create anything. I have seen this presentation tool used in a statistics course I took and wanted to concentrate on learning new programs. While Camtasia offers a one month free trial, the cost of nearly $200 scared me a little. I am hoping other programs are available with similar features for a lesser cost.

Technology Formats

The last couple weeks have been quite a learning experience for various technological teaching methods. When we first started the lesson, I was very excited to begin exploring new teaching methods. I became engrossed with the examples. After watching a tutorial or exemplar for each technology offered, I was excited to take each one for a test drive. I began opening up each link, skimming over the sites, seeing what each had to offer. However, sometimes, once I started looking deeper, confusion might hit. The sites were not what I had envisioning as teaching formats. In my opinion, online teaching formats were ways to present lectures and slide shows. The first site I opened had nothing to do with a presentation format. The first site was for creative, short teaching moments. The site was called Infographics & Data Visualization by Visual.ly. The site assists people in creating fun and aesthetically pleasing posters to present information. I was very impressed by what I saw. These were some of the most creative, yet professional looking posters I had ever seen.  The biggest disappointment for me was the cost to be able to use the tools.

                Cost amongst most of the websites was one of my biggest disappointments. For many of the formats, I would have liked a free trial. This would have allowed me to become familiar with the program and determine whether it was an investment I was willing to make. Instead, anything with a cost associated and no free trial was immediately dismissed. Technology can be fairly expensive. As an educator, determining what presentations styles are entertaining, user friendly, and cost effective can be difficult.

                The one presentation I found that fit these three criteria was the Screencast-O-Matic. This was the technology I chose to use for my first presentation. At first, I was trying to complete the presentation using only the free trial. However, after further investigation, I found the subscription was affordable, considering how many more editing options were included. I enjoyed working with this format. However, I quickly concluded a simple PowerPoint may be just as effective at times. If the teaching material being presented is a “how-to” type of presentation, this format is perfect because of the ability to utilize video, audio, draw, and real-time screens.

My findings while browsing the web

This week has been interesting. I have always considered myself competent and fairly savvy in computers and the world-wide web. This week proved me wrong. The websites and articles available to enhance nursing education are incredible. People have often told me of the technology, but I had never seen much information or research about it. Throughout the past week, I have found myself being creative with search phrases and utilizing one site to link to another. If the site holds my attention and interest, I am willing to spend time reading and creating test tools.

Surprisingly, one of the sites that caught my eye and attention was via a site I visit frequently: Pinterest. I have found myself wondering why I never thought to search this social media site for interesting technology being used for and by nursing students. Utilizing this site in this way makes sense. Many students already hold an account; a separate account is not needed. By creating a page, students from all over the United States and the world can share sites, apps, and ideas being utilized to enhance their education. Some of the sites and apps seem less credible; however, several seemed to be economical and reliable.

Yet, while finding all these fun sites and apps, I came across a program I thought would be helpful, especially in group work. Disappointment struck when it proved otherwise. Group work can be tedious and difficult to share work. This site promised to ease these situations. The site is called Evernote. I spent a fair amount of time attempting to find the ways it promised to make group work and note taking easier. So far, I am not grasping their ideas. To me, this site is another form of Microsoft Word. Documents are typed. Media, such as audio, photography, or other visuals can be incorporated into the document. However, in order to share this information with others, the document had to be saved and emailed. When I first began, I was hoping it would act more as an open forum where anyone in the group could log in to the site, make changes to any document, and save so the rest of the group could further critique and change leaving only one document instead of several copies.

 I soon learned that I must be cautious when trying new products and tools. The creators of these sites want others to use their product, just like any business. Teachers and students must learn how to become savvy and knowledgeable shoppers. This skill comes with practice and research. When I first began looking at the Evernote application, I did not read any consumer or expert reviews. If I had, I might have saved myself from spending the time exploring only to be let down. This is becoming a key process in today’s education. So many resources are available in various forms that students must learn how to differentiate the reliable from fiction.

My first blogging experience.....

I am Jill Ricke, BSN, RN, CMSRN. In 2007, while just beginning nursing school clinicals, I accepted a job at St. Francis hospital on the Center for Geriatric Medicine as a student nurse. Upon completing college, I transitioned into an RN position and recently accepted the Patient Care Coordinator (PCC) position. In my few years as a nurse, I have found I love to teach and precept new nurses. For this reason, I enrolled in the University of Indianapolis Nursing Education program. Last year, I was able to try out my skills as a clinical instructor for the University of Indianapolis. I loved it. That experience challenged me as much as the students. After graduation, I plan on working as an adjunct professor or clinical instructor for a university (hopefully University of Indianapolis) while continuing to work in my current position. However, down the road, I would love to continue working with a university while being able to educate in the hospital system.  

In all honesty, seeing myself as the primary teacher for a class has been difficult and slightly surreal. I feel as though I have just started my career and have a lot of learning left before I should be in that position. However, I would love to begin using some of the ideas to strengthen, update, and enrich a couple of existing programs. The first course I would focus on would be the Geriatric Resource Nurse class taught by employees of the Center for Geriatric Medicine. While I loved teaching it last year, the content was presented in a fairly dry manner. This past week’s reading supplements provided a plethora of ideas to enrich learning experiences. Utilizing some of these resources could make for a more interactive and engaging course.

The second course I would love to create would be a critical thinking simulation course. This course could be in conjunction with senior nursing students’ capstones. Often times I have seen capstone students being able to fully embrace the level of critical thinking nursing can present. The critical thinking course would take place in a simulation or virtual world classroom. Each class, students would be presented with various scenarios. Once presented with the situation, the student(s) must critically think how to better the situation. While one group is working on meeting the day’s goal, a second group will be the evaluators. Objectives of the course would include: 1. Student will construct a safe and effective solution for a distressed patient. 2. Student will critique another student’s performance with adequate supportive evidence. 3. Student will be able to recognize unsafe situations for patients and families.

These last two weeks have renewed my enthusiasm for school. I have enjoyed the readings and find myself creating situations to implement some of the ideas. Bastable (2008) made a statement that I found profound, “Educators in the Information Age are becoming facilitators of learning rather than providers of information…”. With all the technology and unlimited informational resources available to people, learners must understand how to safely utilize it all. This is especially true with nursing. While the nurse must be well-rounded and have a baseline knowledge set, most nurses begin specializing right out of college. They must be aware of what they do not know and how to find it. With educators viewing themselves as facilitators, students can continue their education outside of school and become a great resource to any employer.

                My personal life is rather exciting right now. I have a fiancé named Tony and we will be getting married on September 6, 2014. Any extra time I have not working or studying is being devoted to planning a wedding with an enormous assistance from my parents. I am really enjoying being able to plan this with them.  Secondly, my brother and his wife just had the first grandchild in our family! Milo James was born on January 5, 2014. He is adorable and I cannot wait to see what his future holds! Finally, my sister just graduated college with a major in psychology and is on the job hunt. While she has ideas of what she wants, she is open to ideas. This makes me filled with anticipation and apprehension for her.

Reference

Bastable, S. B. (2008). Nurse as educator: Principles of teaching and learning for nursing practice. Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett Publishers, p.515-553.