Opinion 2.0

Teaching a Diverse Audience

As nurse educators, we may be tasked with facilitating learning in a diverse population of learners. Perhaps they live in a socioeconomically deprived area where the learner's ethics, culture, and language differ dramatically from our own. What if they are emotionally scarred or physically debilitated, and we need to reach them in a way they can understand and that we can teach? What if the group has various cognitive abilities, from barely functioning to possessing an advanced degree? It is up to the educator to establish, promote, and nurture a safe and effective learning environment.

 What is the purpose of the lecture? Are we trying to help young people develop the ability to make informed and reasoned decisions for the public good, or are we teaching a diverse group about their upcoming knee replacement and what to expect post-operatively? In one case, we may be discussing sociology and, in another anatomy, all the while trying to grasp the audience's health literacy. To do this, we must employ a toolkit with a wide range of practical and effective principles and instructional strategies. Good teaching is engaging, relevant, and appealing to a wide range of learners and learning styles. A teacher must use an assortment of ideas and concepts that empower students to be energetically engaged in the process of their learning rather than passively receptive.

As educators, we realize there is no sure-fire magical technique. No single strategy, approach, or process works with all students all the time. Therefore, we have to learn to 'read the room,' perhaps adjusting and adapting tonality and direction as we go before everyone starts looking at their watch and muttering amongst themselves. We must avoid discriminating or appearing to discriminate against any racial, socioeconomic, religious, or cultural group. If we have hidden prejudices that occasionally or regularly slip out, we need to seek sensitivity training or consider another career. As many studies show, intelligence alone is not enough to learn. It is often dogged determination. I had a doctor friend who once told me that he was not particularly smart, but he read things repeatedly until he absorbed the lesson. He did this throughout medical school and was one of the best, most socially balanced doctors I have ever met. Failure to learn can stem from many causes, but the bottom line is that if the students are not learning, the teacher needs to change their approach to teaching.

Because of cultural differences, will I, as a white heterosexual male, misinterpret another culture's cognitive approach, body language, verbal cues, speaking tone, or eye contact? What about their gender identity or their age group? Different generations learn in different ways. If I could, I would like to know what my audience consists of beforehand. Forewarned is forearmed.

 Cole, R.W. (2008) Educating Everybody's Children: Diverse Teaching Strategies for Diverse Learners. Gale virtual reference library

Short response #1….Please

What is a safe learning environment:

One of the most difficult responsibilities of the nurse educator is teaching a diverse population.  As unique individuals, nursing students have a variety of variables.  These variables include age, gender, race, ethnicity, past experiences, sexual orientation, physical, emotional and behavioral qualities and different levels of knowledge.  This list is not exhaustive.  The nurse educator must be aware of these differences and utilize multi-modal teaching strategies.  The effectiveness of these strategies begins with creating a safe teaching environment. 

A safe teaching environment encompasses acceptance of differences, open mindedness and a nonjudgmental atmosphere from both the nurse educator and the students.  The nurse educator will be a role model from the first interaction by being self-aware of personal beliefs, biases, and communication habits both verbal and nonverbal (Billings, D., Halstead, J. 2012).  Next, the nurse educator will elicit personal information from the students.  The nurse educator could achieve this through a brief survey, question and answer sheet, written narrative of specific topics and brief meetings with the individual students.  The size of the class will affect which strategy is used.  The nurse educator will also share the teaching philosophy being followed for the course.  Open door policy, student involvement of the flow of the course and a variety of teaching methods, lecture, reading, writing, games, role play, open discussion are some examples. 

Encouragement to participate and discouragement of derogatory and negative statements toward each other are important strategies for the nurse educator.  Awareness of students struggling with class participation, assignments and grade achievement will allow the nurse educator to reach out to the students individually early in the course work.  Including cultural diversity discussion within the class encourages students to identify their own biases and thoughts while expanding knowledge and acceptance for others.  Studies have shown that small group discussions in the diverse classroom, assists students to participate and feel safe discussing sensitive topics.  Learning through these groups are a good base for future nursing professionals interacting with multi-cultural and diverse patients.

The nurse educator should be alert for changes in the learning styles of the students as the course progresses.  Research shows that often first year students begin with a single learning modality.  As the student and course progress, the students begin to add learning modalities and often in their final year have a multimodal learning style.  Incorporating multiple teaching styles, nurse educators increase the likelihood that each student will be able to identify with a learning style.  The nurse educator must continuously assess how each of the students is succeeding and be prepared to adapt the teaching style as necessary (Grace Angeline, J. P., Ranadev, C. 2018). 

Part of a safe classroom environment is ensuring consistency, honesty, trustworthiness and respect.  Encouraging self-integrity, early initiation of projects and assignments and vigilance during graded tests and quizzes decreases the tendency to consider being dishonest in the classroom and clinicals.  Being proactive when receiving information about dishonest acts helps students trust and respect nurse educators (Sheeba, R. P., Vinitha, R., Angelin, E. A., Emily, S. I., Mythily, V. S. C., Anuradha, R., & Selva, T. C.  2019).  Finding creative, non-punitive ways to discuss and disclose dishonest behavior helps students develop respect for each other and the nurse educator.   

Billings, D., M., Halstead, J., A. (2012). Teaching in Nursing A Guide for Faculty fourth edition. Missouri:

            Elsevier Saunders.

Grace Angeline, J. P., & Ranadev, C. (2018). Learning style(S) preferences and the perception of the

            learner's learning style with academic performance of nursing students in a private

            university, oman. International Journal of Nursing Education, 10(4), 48-52.

            doi:10.5958/0974-9357.2018.00100.9

Short response #2…. Please