Certificate in Nursing Education

The certificate program in nursing education is designed to prepare experienced nurses with the knowledge and skills that are necessary to teach in classroom and clinical settings. The program consists of three courses, totaling 9 semester hours of graduate-level credit. Each course is taught in a ten-week block, using a combination of classroom and online activities. The third course includes a practicum component, which provides opportunities for the student to work with a full-time faculty member

Note: A Masters of Science in Nursing (or a related field) or enrollment in the Saint Xavier University MSN program is required to enroll in the Certificate of Nursing Education Program. A Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) is required in order to teach in a classroom and clinical setting.

Curriculum

Course content and activities reflect best practices in nursing education. The curriculum incorporates the Core Competencies of Nurse Educators© as defined by the National League for Nursing (NLN). Threaded throughout the courses are three core concepts that are essential to effective teaching of nursing students: clinical decision-making, communication, and cultural competence.

Courses   Hours
NURSG 550 Concepts, Theories and Issues in Nursing Education 2
NURSG 554 Learning Principles and Instructional Methods for the Adult Learner 3
NURSG 551 Nursing Education Role Practicum 4
Total Hours   9

Course Descriptions

NURSG 550: Concepts, Theories and Issues in Nursing Education
(2 semester hours)
Course Description: This course explores foundational principles of the scholarship of teaching, as the basis for examining learning theory, motivation, and teaching. Analysis of educational theories and teaching-learning methodologies are applied to the challenges of teaching nursing in classroom, online, and clinical settings. Characteristics of learners with diverse learning styles and backgrounds are discussed. Current trends in nursing education are explored, with emphasis on how nursing curricula evolve in response to societal and workforce demands and the curricular standards of accrediting bodies.

NURSG 554: Learning Principles and Instructional Methods for the Adult Learner
(3 semester hours)
Course Description: The development of teaching strategies and learning activities that enhance the presentation of content for nursing courses is explored in a systematic and comprehensive manner. Course planning, development, implementation, and evaluation are included. The focus is on ways to incorporate the core concepts of clinical decision-making, communication, and cultural competence into the curricular plan. Evidence-based educational strategies, including technology, are discussed and ways to integrate them into clinical and classroom activities are identified. Particular emphasis is placed on strategies for planning and implementing learning activities in clinical settings.

NURSG 551: Nursing Education Role Practicum
(4 semester hours: 1 semester hour seminar, 3 semester hours practicum)
Course Description: This course focuses on knowledge of evaluation design and strategies for evaluating learning outcomes in nursing education. Evidence-based practices for evaluation of learning in both classroom and clinical settings are examined. Instruments and strategies for evaluating learning outcomes are analyzed. Assignments are designed for learners to demonstrate the application of theoretical materials and strategies into clinical and classroom instructional situations. A particular focus is effective communication between teacher and student and sensitivity to varying needs of students based on culture and educational background. Ethical and legal implications of classroom and clinical evaluation are explored. Students spend the practicum in the role of clinical instructor with a group of baccalaureate nursing students enrolled in a clinical course. They will collaborate with the faculty mentor teaching the course and will participate in teaching activities that include presenting classroom lectures, making clinical assignments, clinical supervision of students, holding pre and post clinical conferences, and student clinical evaluation.

For further information, please contact the Saint Xavier University School of Nursing
at 773-298-3700.