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Hello again!

There are just two weeks left in the series about AI and its impact on nursing education. Everyone's experience with this new technology is different, and we have all been feeling a range of emotions. But this week is one I have been excited to share with you. It's time for the evaluation evolution!

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In case you want to get caught up on the previous weeks, here are the articles:

​Week 1 - Introduction

​Week 2 - Independent Inquiry

​Week 3 - Trust vs Traps

Week 4 - [🌟THIS EMAIL] - Evaluation Evolution

The emergence of AI will likely accelerate higher education's need for a change in evaluation techniques. Here, I will share a few short-term solutions and one long-term idea about how evaluation within nursing education could change.

A tricky question?

If AI breaks some of our assessments and makes them unusable, could that actually be a positive change? Have we defaulted to certain worksheets, papers, assignments, and case studies because they are easy to deploy? And do they actually measure learning or ask students to apply knowledge?

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💡Short Term Ideas

The first suggestion I have to make AI less appealing to students is to continue to humanize our learning environment. If you are unfamiliar with "humanize" as it refers to education, it is a set of caring values, attitudes, and behaviors that build trust between students and educators. I discussed building trust last week, and I don't think we will go wrong if we incorporate this concept into our assessments.

📍 I like this infographic on Humanizing Online Education from Michelle Brocansky if you want to learn more about this topic.

Humanizing care is also essential for the nurse, and practicing it builds trust between the patient and the care provider. For example, in practice, the nurse will notice the context and background of a patient's situation by noting prayer schedules, dietary preferences, or a birth plan. As educators, we can include this in our evaluation techniques by asking students to notice, interpret, and reflect on a patient's lived experience and preference. Then, with this understanding, the student builds an entire plan of care.

A student cannot enter this type of information into a language model. It is only gained through careful observation and interview. Through our evaluation structure, we can guide students to humanize their care by revising rubrics and assignment instructions so that students must use real-life examples.

The second suggestion around reimagining how we complete evaluation is to develop multi-media assignments. Writing is something that AI excels at, so we can look to other media tools. These modalities can include:

• Video assignments - A guide to using video journals from my friend Natasha Nurse-Clarke
• Infographic development - This student instructional manual from the University of Toledo sets a foundation and nas excellent prompts for developing an infographic assignment
• Review images and include interpretation
• Live discussions
• Collaborative group projects
• Debate - An idea for a debate with movement​
• Decrease multiple choice questions on exams and move toward more open-ended or alternative format questions (one or two a semester is a great start!)
• ​Structured clinical exams - a nice overview of what this technique is by the University of Rochester School of Nursing
• Simulation

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🧭 Long-Term Idea

Finally, what if the rapid surge of AI can inspire us to explore major shifts in our overall approach to evaluation? There is an entire cultural movement around un-grading or going gradeless in higher education. Those educators who practice this have developed unique and innovative assessment techniques and tackled some of the most pressing issues we feel around teaching.
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A fuzzy thought

When educators join the Active Learning Strategies for Nurse Educators Facebook Group, I ask about their struggles with teaching. The vast majority reply that engagement is a significant challenge, and students want to be given information that will be on the test. We have all felt this way.

When I think of ways to counteract this, there is something forming in my mind that feels a bit shaky and fuzzy yet. But what if this lack of interest and motivation is something that our systems are causing? What if students are unmotivated by numeric grades, and the pressure and intensity of a specific passing grade in a course is counter-productive to learning, engagement, and motivation?

Now, I do not know how this pedagogical approach of un-grading would fit into nursing education. After all, we are preparing them for a licensing exam and to practice as competent professionals. I understand we must maintain academic rigor. As I said, this idea feels a bit fuzzy, and I do not have all the answers. But I am always curious, and I think this is an approach worth investigating as our landscape changes. Eighteen of the top twenty medical schools use a simple pass/fail system for their pre-clinical coursework (Blum, 2020). There are totally grade-free higher education institutions across the United States, including Alverno College in Wisconsin and Reed College in Oregon (you can read their grading policies through the links). This approach is an additional thought as we reimagine our future evaluation of students.

📖Is this a possibility?

What are your thoughts on using alternative grading in nursing education? I would love to hear from you if you are using any of these techniques. I read and write all of my own emails, and I will reply!

Next week, we will finish up the series with thoughtful resources that I have found helpful in exploring this topic. Thank you for coming along for the ride! I love being a part of this community!

Talk soon, Martha

Resources

Blum, S.D. (2020). Ungrading: Why rating students undermines learning (and what to do instead). West Virginia University Press.