Thesis (MCur)--University of Stellenbosch, 2011. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: During the period 2006-2008 more than 50% of midwifery students at the college under study failed the midwifery training programme. The academic performance of students can be attributed to various factors, ranging from personal uniqueness and institutional aspects to the course content itself. Accordingly, this study aims to explore the perceptions and experiences of student midwives with reference to their training programme. The objectives set for the study were set to determine the perceptions and experiences of the student midwives with regard to: • guidance in the practical field, • classroom experiences • assessment procedures and • whether the students attribute their academic successes or failures to the training programme. A qualitative approach with a descriptive design was applied to determine the perceptions and experiences of the undergraduate midwifery students concerning their training programme. The population of this study was fourth-year students who have successfully completed their midwifery-training programme. Nineteen students consented to participate in the study. The trustworthiness of this study was assured by using the Lincoln and Guba’s criteria of credibility, transferability, dependability and conformability. A pre-test was completed. All ethical principles were met. Data was collected through focus group interviews, using an interview guide. The analysis of the data revealed that students attributed their academic failures and success to guidance received in the theoretical as well as the practical field. The findings displayed the frustration that the students experienced with the lecture method as a teaching strategy. Discontentment was perceived among the participants regarding the demarcation, which differed among lecturers. Students were of the opinion that certain content of the curriculum was intended for the doctors, and they indicated a need for the extension of class time, for the instruction of the theory, as the curriculum was perceived as “content heavy”. Guidance in the clinical field, by the clinical educators, was perceived as being positive, yet the student-clinical educator ratio was proving to be a challenge. Marking of tests and examination answer sheets was perceived as too strict. Recommendations Students must be active participants in the learning process, not passive recipients of information. Teaching methods (such as role-play, brainstorming, case studies, simulations, and group work), that expand and reinforce basic communication, intellectual and interpersonal skills, should be employed. Uniformity amongst midwifery facilitators, in terms of content selection, demarcations, classroom activities and assessment techniques, should be agreed upon prior to the commencement of a block period. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Tydens die periode 2006-2008 was meer as 50% van die verloskunde studente by die kollege waar die studie gedoen was, onsuksesvol in die verloskunde program. Akademiese prestasie van studente kan aan verskillende faktore toegeskryf word. Hierdie kwessies wissel van persoonlike uniekheid en institusionele aspekte tot die kursus inhoud self. Dus poog hierdie studie om die persepsies en ervaringe van die student vroedvroue ten opsigte van hul opleidingsprogram te verken. Die doelwitte van die studie was om die persepsies en ervaringe van die student vroedvroue met betrekking tot: • praktiese leiding, • klaskamerondervinding, • assesseringsprosedures te bepaal en • of die studente hul akademiese suksesse en mislukkings aan die opleidingsprogram toe skryf. ʼn Kwalitatiewe benadering met ʼn beskrywende strategie was gebruik om die persepsies en ervaringe van die voorgraadse studente rakende hul opleidingsprogram vas te stel. Die populasie van hierdie studie was studente, in hul vierde jaar, wat reeds die verloskunde opleidingsprogram suksesvol voltooi het. Negentien studente het ingestem om aan die studie deel te neem. Die vertrouenswaardigheid van die navorsing is verseker deur van die Lincoln en Guba kriteria – geloofwaardigheid, oordraagbaarheid, betroubaarheid en bevestiging – gebruik te maak. ʼn Voorafgaande toets is voltooi. Al die etiese beginsels is nagekom. Data is ingesamel deur onderhoude met fokusgroepe te voer. ’n Onderhoudsgids is vir die doeleinde gebruik. Die data-ontleding het getoon dat studente hul akademiese mislukkings en suksesse aan die leiding wat hulle op teoretiese en praktiese gebiede ontvang het, toeskryf. Die bevindinge het die frustrasie wat die studente met die lesmetode as ’n onderrigstrategie ervaar, getoon. Ontevredenheid rakende die werkafbakening, wat verskil van lektor tot lektor, is ook waargeneem. Studente voel dat dele van die kurrikuluminhoud vir dokters bedoel is. Hulle is van mening dat meer klastyd nodig is om teorie te onderrig, aangesien die kurrikulum oorvol is. Hoewel die leiding op kliniese gebied, deur die kliniese opvoeders, positief ervaar is, is die student-opvoeder verhouding as ʼn uitdaging beskou. Die studente het gevoel dat hul toetse en eksamenantwoordstelle te streng nagesien was. Aanbevelings: Studente moet aktief by die leerproses betrek word en moet nie bloot passiewe ontvangers van inligting wees nie. Onderrigmetodes, wat basiese kommunikasie-, intellektuele en interpersoonlike vaardighede aanvul en versterk (soos byvoorbeeld rolspel, dinkskrums, gevallestudies, simulasies en groepwerk), moet ingespan word. Die fasiliteerders moet ooreenkom en ʼn eenvormige beleid, betreffende die kurrikuluminhoud, afbakening van werk, klaskameraktiwiteite en assesseringsmetodes, voor die aanvang van die blokperiode, daarstel.

Simulation in nursing education has become a standard method of instruction to provide nursing students with a realistic and safe environment in which to practice and hone clinical skills. There are three components to a nursing simulation: prebriefing, the simulation experience, and debriefing. While there is a list of minimum criteria recommended for the prebriefing experience at the time of this dissertation there were no published frameworks or models for prebriefing. A quasi-experimental pretest/posttest study assessed the impact of a structured prebriefing method on sophomore level nursing students’ (N = 55) clinical judgment, perception of their ability to care for patients, and their perceptions of the prebriefing and simulation experiences when compared to a group that was exposed to only the standard prebriefing criteria. All participants had the same simulation scenario. Participants were placed in groups of four then groups were randomly assigned to the structured prebriefing (intervention) or standard prebriefing (control). The instruments used in this study were the Satisfaction and Confidence in Learning Scale (SCLS), Prebriefing Experience Scale (PES), Lasater Clinical Judgment Rubric (LCJR), and the Perception to Care in Acute Situations (PCAS). This dissertation includes two chapters based on the same study as well as a chapter of lessons learned with commentary on completing nursing education research with postpandemic nursing students. The first dataset reported are results from the SCLS and PES. These instruments are posttest only and were completed after the prebriefing and simulation experience. The second dataset reported are results from the LCJR and the PCAS. The LCJR was used by two faculty members to rate student demonstration of clinical judgment during the simulation scenario. The PCAS was implemented as pretest/posttest; participants completed it upon arrival to their scheduled simulation then again after the simulation scenario was finished. All data were collected prior to debriefing as the groups had different debriefing experiences. The findings of this study indicate that all participants were satisfied with the simulation and prebriefing experiences. No statistically significant differences were found between group perceptions of confidence, satisfaction, or prebriefing. There was a statistically significant increase from pretest to posttest scores on the PCAS on which participants rated themselves higher in their perceptions to care for patients. There was no interaction as there was not a statistically significant interaction between group and time. There were no statistically significant differences between groups for participant clinical judgment scores as rated by two faculty members. Unprecedented attrition and retention were seen in the participant cohort. Though not an aim of this study, this phenomenon is attributed to the changes being seen in the postpandemic learner. More students did not return after their first year than in previous years and 49% were unsuccessful in the Fundamentals of Nursing course compared to the usual 5%. These results show that while participants were satisfied with both interventions, and their confidence in their ability to provide care did increase after the simulation, there may not be a difference between structured and standard prebriefing. Additional studies are needed with different cohorts to determine if structured prebriefing has an effect on nursing student clinical judgment or if the unique variables caused by COVID-19 had lingering effects on these participants.

M. Tech. Drama / Sources on musical theatre training by experts Rocco Dal Vera, Joe Deer, Tracy Moore and Allison Bergman, give the impression that there is a lacuna in training when teaching acting skills for singing in musical theatre. This dissertation, in an attempt to fill this lacuna, constructs a strategy of engagement by using cognitive science, together with Stanislavsky's acting techniques and music theory to explain the process from text/sheet music (the 'digital' domain) to performance (the 'analogue' domain). In this dissertation the 'digital' is seen as a metaphor for bounded, specific and singular phenomena (such as a written word or music note), and the 'analogue' is seen as a metaphor for a continuous, undulating and unbroken line of an event. The aim of this dissertation was achieved by conducting a critical literature study on the subjects of second generation cognitive science, Stanislavsky's acting techniques, and music theory and analysis.

M. Tech. Public Management / Young people in South Africa constitute 41% of the population of the country. Therefore, youth development needs to be recognised as a priority by the Government of South Africa. South African youth are faced with many challenges such as a lack of development which may lead to unemployment. Despite the majority of young people in South Africa having completed their tertiary studies and graduated, they still find it hard to get employment. This is a result of a lack of development, as well as skills and training needed to equip young graduates with sufficient practical work experience to enable them to get employment. In this study, an attempt is made to determine whether the Department of Water Affairs Graduate Trainee Programme has the desired impact on the young graduates who have participated in it.

Abstract not available. / Thesis (Ph.D.) - University of Natal, Durban, 1961.

Orientador: Luiz Carlos de Freitas / Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Faculdade de Educação / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-22T07:37:42Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Anjos_MarleneGonzagados_M.pdf: 3023425 bytes, checksum: 4bfe7d2c643972822832a43e823d92e0 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2013 / Resumo: Este trabalho discute a temática da avaliação institucional, na perspectiva da Avaliação Institucional Participativa e focaliza o sistema participativo da escola. Diante disso, esta pesquisa teve como objetivo descrever as instâncias do sistema participativo da escola e colher elementos para: identificar que demandas se originam nas práticas que compõem o sistema participativo - (CPA, Conselho de Escola e assembleias) e se elas se voltam para a melhoria na relação entre o professor e os estudantes; identificar a relação entre o processo avaliativo e educativo, se tem se constituído enquanto espaço de formação de valores e quais; identificar que aprendizados (outros) os segmentos apontam serem construídos nesse exercício. Esta pesquisa se trata de um estudo de caso e a metodologia conjugou entrevistas, observações e análise documental. As categorias de análise que emergiram a partir das quais se processou a análise demonstraram a importância do sistema avaliativo e participativo da escola para a instrução e formação de valores. Verificou-se ainda que os temas discutidos no sistema avaliativo, em grande parte se articulam e revertem para a aprendizagem dos estudantes. / Abstract: This paper discusses the issue of institutional assessment, from the perspective of Participatory Institutional Assessment and focuses on participatory school system. This study aimed to describe the instances of the participatory school system and to collect elements: identify demands that originate in the practices that make up the participatory system (Self-Assessment Commission, School Counseling and Student Assemblies) and if they turn into improvement in the relationship between teacher and students. Identify the relationship between the assessment process and education; if it has constituted itself as an area of formation of values and which ones. Identify learning that (other) segments (students, parents, teachers, managers and employees) indicate to be built in this exercise. This research is a case study and the methodology conjugated interviews, observations and documentary analyzes. The categories of analysis that emerged from which the analysis was processed showed the importance of the participatory evaluation system and school for the education and values formation. It was also found that the topics discussed in the evaluation system, largely articulate and revert to student learning. / Mestrado / Ensino e Práticas Culturais / Mestre em Educação

Healthcare simulation is a teaching strategy rooted in cognitive, constructivist, and social learning theories. Simulation–based learning experiences offer a replacement for traditional clinical learning and are widely used across all levels of nursing education. Most simulation activities are focused on student application of cognitive knowledge to clinical situations or practicing psychomotor skills, with little attention paid to student development of core nursing values such as caring and compassion. In fact, few studies have empirically assessed the usefulness of simulation for helping student nurses develop affective characteristics such as empathy. A quasi–experimental control group study was conducted to evaluate affective learning in student nurses during a simulated clinical activity. Students randomized to the treatment condition watched a lesson on the importance of empathy as a professional nursing value along with a vignette in which an actor playing the simulated patient shared a narrative story that detailed aspects of his social, emotional, and physical well–being. Subjects who received the intervention had a greater and statistically significant increase in empathy score than those in the control condition. Students exposed to the intervention also had higher observed empathy scores, but differences between groups were not statistically significant. Since narratives can be useful for helping health profession students understand patient perspectives on their health and well–being, the concept of narrative transportation (i.e., immersion in narrative accounts or stories) was used to assess student engagement in the simulated learning activity. Students in the treatment condition had higher but non–statistically significant engagement scores in response to the intervention. Last, associations between empathy, emotional intelligence, and nursing competence were assessed. Positive and statistically significant relationships between empathy and emotional intelligence, emotional intelligence and nursing competence, and empathy and nursing competence were observed. Further analysis indicated that emotional intelligence partially mediated the relationship between empathy and nursing competence in this sample. The findings of this study demonstrated that patient narratives were useful for facilitating affective learning during simulated clinical activities. The observed results also provide insight on the relationship between affective characteristics and competency development in student nurses.

Academic integrity, while important for all students, is especially so for those enrolled in nursing programs. Nurses are entrusted by the public to care for those in need from birth through death. A nursing student who graduates through dishonest means jeopardizes the safety of patients in their care. Nursing faculty need to understand the scope of academic integrity violations and develop meaningful, targeted interventions to show students the harm their actions could cause. The purpose of this dissertation is to explore undergraduate nursing students’ knowledge and perceptions of academic integrity and to specifically look at their willingness to report peer violations. This dissertation study was a collaborative effort among three doctoral students. Using a research team-modified version of McCabe’s Academic Integrity Survey as well as a research team-created Knowledge Assessment, 442 nursing students were surveyed. Results confirm a hesitation to report peers for violations of academic integrity. Students’ ability to neutralize their behaviors as harmless, their desire to remain loyal to their peers, and age act as positive predictive variables for willingness to report peer violations. Additionally, participants’ perceptions of the severity of various offenses and their perceptions of their faculty’s support for academic integrity policies are positively correlated with willingness to report peer violations. Program improvement strategies, such as implementing an honor code, were supported by participants and may help foster a culture of academic integrity that promotes peer reporting. Lastly, a targeted intervention designed for nursing students to promote academic integrity and peer reporting is explored.

Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree in Master of Technology: Nursing, Durban University of Technology, 2012. / Background : Work Integrated Learning is an educational approach that aligns academic and workplace practices for the mutual benefit of students and workplaces. Work Integrated Learning like in any other nursing course is essential in primary health care as required by the South African Nursing Council. In the clinical setting, students develop clinical and diagnostic reasoning; they also learn how to make the appropriate clinical decisions which they need as qualified primary health care practitioners. This is achieved through instruction and guidance by lecturers, mentors and clinical staff. However it has been noted that the clinical learning environment confronts students with challenges that are absent from the classroom situation. So this study seeks to explore and describe the experiences of post basic nursing students in primary health care clinics so as to address the challenges that are faced within the clinical settings. Aim of the study The aim of the study was to explore and describe primary health care post basic nursing students’ experiences during clinical placements. Methodology : A descriptive exploratory qualitative approach was used to guide the study. In-depth interviews were conducted with ten primary health care post basic nursing students who were allocated for Work Integrated Learning at the clinics in District A and District B in 2011. The main research question for this study was asked: ‘What are the experiences of primary health care post basic nursing students regarding Work Integrated Learning?’ Results : The findings of this study revealed that Work Integrated Learning is vital for the development of clinical skills amongst primary health care post basic nursing students. However, shortage of staff, inadequate material/ non-human resources, lack of supervision in the clinical facilities, distant clinical facilities and insufficient practice in the clinical skills laboratory were identified as challenges that students experience during Work Integrated Learning placement.

Thesis (MPhil)--Stellenbosch University, 2014. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Aim - The aim of this study was to explore second year medical students’ perceptions of their early clinical experiences with a view to improving curriculum development so as to enhance early clinical training programmes at Stellenbosch University (SU). Methodology - A qualitative, interpretive study, based on semi-structured focus group discussions with second year medical students was conducted in order to capture the relevant data that would provide information about their attitudes, feelings, beliefs and views on their early clinical learning experiences during their first year of studying medicine at SU. Thirty seven students participated in four focus group discussions after a process of selection of candidates using purposive sampling methods and stratification criteria to obtain the research sample. The interviews were moderated by an external facilitator, and were audiotaped and transcribed verbatim. The data transcripts were analysed and manually coded, and four broad categories with subthemes which illustrated the findings of the study, were identified and decided upon by the researcher and verified by the supervisor. Results - Early clinical exposure was generally positively perceived by students. It fostered a sense of vocation and feeling like real doctors, leaving students motivated and enhancing their learning interest. Early clinical skills training led to students’ professional development, acquiring the technical skills of a doctor, familiarisation with basic clinical terminology, and normal clinical findings which prepared them for later clinical studies. The new setting of practical learning in a simulated environment required students to adapt to small group learning and student clinical demonstrations which developed new learning styles and study skills. Some of the challenges that students encountered in the transition to clinical learning were, understanding the new subject of clinical medicine, having limited background knowledge to acquire basic clinical skills, and student clinical demonstrations. Although the strategy of peer physical examination was perceived to be effective, some ethical dilemmas emerged for students in terms of autonomy, and no opportunities available to practice on female models. Acting as a simulated patient proved to have both positive and negative outcomes on students’ skills acquisition. Factors that had a negative outcome on clinical skills learning were limited practice opportunities due to high student to teacher ratios per clinical session, and the variability of teaching content and practical techniques taught by various clinical tutors with different teaching strategies. The most stressful experience for students was the OSCE since it was a new method of assessment. Stress was attributed to uncertainty about the correct clinical content and techniques resulting from the teaching variability, while performance anxiety during the exam was related to inappropriate examiner behaviour. The OSCE was a positive learning experience because its format simulated the hospital setting which fostered students’ critical thinking abilities and time management. Conclusion - Early clinical exposure and practice have a great impact on junior medical students’ academic growth, and have positive learning outcomes. However, further development by the faculty in the areas of didactic skills, addressing the ethical issues related to student clinical demonstrations, and supporting students to enable a smooth transition to clinical learning will enhance and optimise their early clinical training.