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Scholarly Articles
Blended Learning Approaches in Nursing Education:
A Way to Move Forward with COVID-19
Dr. R.H.M.P.N. Rathnayake, Senior Lecturer, Department of Nursing
Nursing education is one of the most radically that can be used in the nursing education as
changing educational fields nationally and well concerning both theoretical and practical
internationally during the recent past. Recently components covering basic curriculum matters
COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the to advanced aspects. Many studies have
education system of the entire world including shown that amalgamated technology with the
nursing education. Institutions where nursing direct student contacts in the classroom
degree programmes are conducted therefore, are environment focused on theoretical aspects
bracing for unique challenges related to while only few focused on the clinical setting
developing the next generation of care and further concerned the attitude and soft
providers. Therefore, nursing educationists have skill development.
been focused their eye on initiating the teaching
learning activities through online distance mode Supplemental YouTube videos (Johnston et
and further considered to use blended learning al., 2018) and online learning scenarios
approach for nursing education during the (Shang and Liu, 2018) had been integrated to
COVID-19 pandemic. maintain students’ interest and engagement in
a physiology class for nursing students. Those
Blended learning is a mode of hybrid teaching learning activities were highly preferred by
technique, which merges the face-to-face the students. Use of iPad during class time to
traditional way of teaching with the technology- access online resources supported to enhance
mediated instruction, where all students in the student interactions and knowledge
learning process are not physically present in applications (Gallegos and Nakashima, 2018).
the same environment(Siemens et al., 2015). Podcast-based blended learning helped to
This approach allows for institutions to reduce increase student understanding and
expenditure for programme delivery, eliminates application of research skills (Strickland et al.,
the problem of geographical proximity, 2012). Online videos through Learning
leveraging technology to provide an alternative Management System (LMS) (Furnes et al.,
enrollment and content delivery option for 2018) and Blackboard LMS (Sowan and
students who do not live close to a parent Jenkins, 2013) systems were accepted by
institution, successfully meet the workforce students as effective learning strategies. Web-
demands and enhance competitiveness with based virtual classrooms as a strategy to allow
other programmes. Therefore, strategies that students to learn in remote areas through
have been used in this hybrid learning need to social interactions had shown that
be identified which provides insight for participation rates and course pass rates
beginners to move forward with the situation. improved among the students (O'Flaherty and
Laws, 2014). Further, a virtual gaming
A few cross-sectional and intervention-based platform named Second Life® had been
studies have been shown that blended learning identified as an effective way of teaching
is a possible, convenient and effective strategy mental health nursing content (Kidd et al.,
2012).
October 2022 13
