Exploring how we can improve nursing education together! Practical active learning ideas and interesting thoughts about nursing education.
✨ New Series!! The four ways of thinking that won't go out of style
Published 5 months ago • 4 min read
Picture a bustling hospital unit in the 10 years. It is entirely possible that digital assistants support patient care and AI algorithms predict health outcomes before symptoms even appear.
A nursing student in the future
As nurse educators, it is difficult to predict exactly what nursing practice will look like for our graduates. Rapid advances in medicine, nursing care, and AI make the future of nursing practice uncertain.
What truly matters, however, and the skill that will not go out of style, is being a “thinker.” And that is the goal of this next series. I want to explore the different ways of thinking we can develop in our students. So that even if their workspace is different than what we can even imagine, students have the skills to adapt, problem-solve, humanize, learn, and take action.
Using a framework developed by Gilmore & Goldberg (2023), this series will serve as a guide to think about as you design learning experiences and lesson plans. Asking yourself, "What type of thinking will this activity develop?" can be a useful guidepost when working toward an active learning classroom.
Because students will need to employ various types of thinking to succeed as nurses in the modern world.
First up is INDEPENDENT THINKING
To develop independent thinking skills, students need space to research, debate, create, and form meaningful connections. This progression from an advanced beginner to a competent nurse involves experiences that scaffold their learning journey. Here are a few examples of independent thinking activities that help shape this trajectory:
📊 acknowledge personal limitations (often done through reflective practices such as journaling about a clinical day), which fosters self-awareness
🔐 see a problem as a challenge rather than an insurmountable obstacle, aiding in the development of resilience and critical thinking
📚 use evidence to make judgments, an essential skill as they move from theoretical knowledge to applying it in clinical settings
🙉 engage in active listening, improving communication skills crucial for patient interaction
💡 become interested in others’ ideas, fostering teamwork and a collaborative spirit
These activities not only build independent thinking but also align with professional milestones, guiding students as they advance through their nursing careers.
Developing independent thinking skills is essential for both academic and job success. Here is one active learning tool to help develop this type of thinking in your nursing classroom.
🏃🏼♀️➡️ Evidence Sprint
This is an excellent activity for introducing students to the use of evidence in nursing. It is excellent practice to make clinical judgments using evidence.
1. Present students with a brief scenario relevant to your course. You may use the scenario examples in this guide or create your own to fit your content. I had clinical on a surgical unit, so many of these scenarios were from that experience.
Scenario Examples for Evidence Sprint
EXAMPLE: Patient with a history of CHF. The patient’s weight increased by 5 pounds post-surgery. +2 edema; BP 138/84; K⁺ 3.0; provider order for IV furosemide now.
2. Ask students to use a Claim–Evidence–Reasoning worksheet for the activity. To create this, draw a four-square grid on paper, or use the template included here.
Evidence Sprint Worksheet Example
Each square represents one response:
Claim: What I would do.
Evidence: 1–2 lines, with citation. In this case, students could reference their textbook or the unit’s guidelines on potassium replacement.
Limits: What I still don’t know
Action: Smallest safe next step I will take.
3. Present three options for micro-decisions to the class verbally or write them on the board so all students can refer to them:
📈 Delay dose and correct K⁺ first.
💉 Give the furosemid dose now.
📱 Call for dose adjustment of furosemide based on potassium level.
4. Students complete an independent sprint (8-10 minutes) by completing the four lines on the worksheet.
5. Set up a pair and debate (5 minutes) where student A shares, student B actively listens, and repeats back what they heard. Then, reverse roles.
6. Hold a large group discussion. Tally each decision. Provide an additional piece of data. In this case, the patient may report numbness and tingling in their fingers, or they may be a fall risk. Allow students to adjust their response based on the additional data.
Independent thinking can be challenging to practice, but it helps students ask better questions, listen more attentively, and feel confident making decisions, even when the path isn’t perfectly clear.
Some of the most important thinking “training” we can do as nurse educators happens with small, subtle micro-decisions. And students need lots of practice navigating that nuance. It is not always a high-stakes decisions, and the choices are not structured like NCLEX-style questions. But it’s worth giving students some space to struggle a little, with your guidance close by, because this is where they learn to trust their judgment, connect dots, and notice what matters.
Independent thinking is just one piece of the puzzle. When we ask, ‘What kind of thinking will this activity build?’ it provides a helpful filter for what to retain, what to revise, and what might be missing from our lessons. Go ahead and try the ‘Evidence Sprint’ above, or here are a few activities from the Idea Bank.
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