MCC Daily Tribune

TCC: HIPs Institute Follow up Interview with Colleen Caruana (Nursing)

Colleen Caruana (Nursing) participated in the Collaborative Learning strand of 2016 High Impact Practices Summer Institute for Faculty: Growing a High Impact Culture through Course Redesign.  Here are her reflections 9 months after the Institute.

How have you implemented what you learned about Collaborative Learning at the HIPs Institute?

Last fall I was able to implement numerous strategies to improve collaborative learning in a large and small class. From asking students to submit a journal, to a short simulation in a large classroom with participation from all students, to two new simulations in a small group setting that allowed them to apply concepts and skills that they had learned.

What were some highlights from your class last fall?  Or, what is a highlight that you are working on now?
The highlights were the positive and supportive feedback that we received from students in response to the new simulations that had been implemented. Also, the support of the other faculty that I teach with in providing feedback on the development and implementation of the new content into the course.

What are your next steps with Collaborative Learning?

One concept that really resonated with me in the institute was getting feedback from colleagues about an idea or thought about a potential new activity. This would allow me to talk about it and receive feedback that would hopefully make the student experience better. I am always trying to come up with a new way for students to interact with the material and getting feedback and thoughts from other experts in my field helps me to fine tune the activity more prior to implementation.

What impact have you seen on your students?

Students enjoyed being able to see how they as nurses would utilize their skills in a safe environment, complete their assessments, interact with providers, and work as a team to keep the patient safe. It helped improve their confidence, their critical thinking and their ability to apply their knowledge.

What are some challenges that you needed to overcome?

The biggest challenge was time to design, review, get feedback and prepare everything to be ready to implement. Anytime you redesign or change content it is a large time commitment to be able to provide student with the best interactive experience possible.

Eugenia Merliss
Teaching and Creativity Center
05/12/2017