A curriculum self-study of writing assignments and reflective practise in nursing education

Reflective practice is an ongoing process of purposeful thinking about one' s clinical practice to develop understanding, insight, and clinical judgmen t. It can be enhanced through careful use of writing assignments that requi re reflection, evaluation, and thoughtful analysis. The uses of writing ass ignments in the undergraduate nursing programs at a midwestern college of n ursing were studied over a a-year period, using survey methodology. A purpo sive sample of all faculty who taught in baccalaureate or associate of scie nce (ASN) programs (n=21) completed a questionnaire and were interviewed ab out the number and purpose of writing assignments in courses they taught. Q uantification of the results in tabular form allowed the faculty to look at all writing assignments required of students across both programs with reg ard to the number, length, and nature of those assignments. Results were th en recategorized by type of assignments, changes needed, and faculty assess ment of the usefulness of these writing assignments. The summary of written assignments was then cross-referenced according to program, semester, and program level. This produced a working document that illustrated the quanti ty and type of writing assignments that each student, in each program, at a given level and semester must complete. Information was used by faculty te aching across courses to make changes that more effectively linked course w riting assignments by association, themes, concepts, or areas of study. Thi s process enables faculty to collaboratively develop writing assignments th at facilitate the adult student's Linking and associating concepts across c ourses, as a true exercise in critical thinking.