Shanaz Cassum - Academia.edu (original) (raw)
Papers by Shanaz Cassum
PloS one, Apr 4, 2024
The COVID-19 pandemic led to the closure of educational campuses and the suspension of convention... more The COVID-19 pandemic led to the closure of educational campuses and the suspension of conventional classroom teaching globally and locally, and many switched overnight to an online modality. The change was experienced differently by varied audiences, given the availability of resources. The study aimed to examine stakeholders' experiences of emergency remote instructions in the Post-RN Baccalaureate Nursing Program during the COVID-19 pandemic. A qualitative descriptive exploratory design with a purposive sampling technique was used at a private nursing university in Karachi, Pakistan. Focus group discussions with students and faculty were conducted separately, while in-depth interviews with key informants were held using semi-structured interview guides. The focus group discussions and in-depth interviews were recorded electronically and transcribed and translated, coded, and analysed manually. Findings uncovered two major themes. (a) Remote teaching and learning-a paradigm shift; and (b) Remote learning ecosystem-a challenging team sport. The first theme denotes a major shift in pedagogical approach migrating from blended learning model to a complete online modality. Theme two uncovers the efforts and teamwork of the various stakeholders who assisted in mitigating the challenges collaboratively when migrating to virtual learning environment. Findings suggest that to continue to thrive in the post-COVID world, faculty, students, and key informants must collegially enhance the teaching, learning, and assessment strategies and student-teacher interaction, capitalising on evidence-based practices, trial and error, multi-level support mechanisms, and partnerships. The study recommends building resilience in instructional and administrative infrastructure to prepare for future events like pandemics and suggests development of evidence-informed blended and online nursing programmes in the region.
Asia-Pacific Journal of Oncology Nursing, Oct 1, 2020
With the COVID-19 pandemic hitting the global community, routine activities of universities, offi... more With the COVID-19 pandemic hitting the global community, routine activities of universities, offices, and industries have been hindered. People are being forced to rethink the ways of working virtually from home for providing education, business, and health services in this social distancing during the COVID era. This sudden shift also posed challenges of online teaching in a private university, in urban Karachi, Pakistan. The Aga Khan University, School of Nursing and Midwifery recently conducted an online palliative care module using a virtual learning environment and Microsoft Teams for Trainee Nurse Interns. Although the first experience of online teaching and learning was a successful venture for faculty and students, in a lockdown situation, numerous challenges were also encountered being a lower middle-income country. The issues of electricity shutdown, Internet connectivity, and quality assurance were anticipated on transition to online pedagogy, but backup plans were formed to make execution promising.
Critical thinking is an important component of higher education in any discipline. Teaching strat... more Critical thinking is an important component of higher education in any discipline. Teaching strategies such as reflections, self-directed learning, questioning, and concept mapping, which ask for active engagement of students in their learning, fosters critical thinking. Contrary to these strategies, didactic teaching and rote learning is still prevalent in most teaching institutions in Pakistan. This paper reports the findings of a quasi-experimental study in which students at Aga Khan University School of Nursing were taught to use concept mapping strategy. A total of 97 first year nursing students were enrolled in the study. In the pre-intervention phase all students were assessed for their level of self-directed learning and ways of knowing, using two instruments, named SDLRS (Self-Directed Learning Readiness Scale) and WOKAT (Ways of Knowing Assessment Tool). Students were allocated to experimental and control groups based on their WOKAT score. The experimental group students were taught concept-maps development.. In the post-intervention phase, all students were reassessed on SDLRS, WOKAT, and GPA, and their scores were compared. Findings revealed significant difference between the GPA scores of control and experimental groups but no substantial changes were noted in their SDLRS and WOKAT scores
International journal of higher education, Nov 27, 2016
Critical thinking (CT) is considered an important attribute in practice disciplines and faculty m... more Critical thinking (CT) is considered an important attribute in practice disciplines and faculty members in nursing, medicine, and education are expected to facilitate the development of CT in their graduates so that these individuals can be critical, reflective, competent, and caring professionals and service providers. When students are actively engaged in their learning, and classrooms have an enabling environment, CT is promoted. Teachers must reflect upon their pedagogy when students do not participate in stimulating discussions, or asks questions in class. Research suggests that lack of understanding of CT affects teachers' CT practices in the classroom. Literature supports that teaching learning activities and opportunities that emphasize encouragement of students' participation in classroom fosters communication, student engagement, creativity, selfdirectedness and CT. Thus, it is vital to explore the teaching practices of educators that promotes or hinders students' CT. This study aimed to identify perceptions and practices of CT among educators from the disciplines of nursing, medicine, and education in higher education in Karachi. A descriptive exploratory design was used in the study. Using a purposive sample, 12 educators participated in this study. Data was collected via in-depth interviews and classroom observations. Data was analyzed manually; four major themes emerged from the content analysis. This paper focuses on the findings of educators' practices of CT in a classroom setting, which indicates that teachers needs to be aware that an enabling learning environment is necessary to promote students' CT. Moreover, the educators should create an enabling learning environment by focusing on the physical, psychological and intellectual components to promote CT in students.
Journal of Nursing Education, Dec 1, 2001
Journal of Nursing Education and Practice, Jan 9, 2013
Critical thinking (CT) is a phenomenon of worldwide importance and is a desired outcome in higher... more Critical thinking (CT) is a phenomenon of worldwide importance and is a desired outcome in higher and professional education. Development of CT is considered a primary responsibility of educators; however, educators find it challenging to foster learners' CT if their own understanding of CT skills and concepts is not well developed. Limited research is available on how multidisciplinary educators perceive and practice CT. The study aimed to identify perceptions and practices of CT among educators from the disciplines of nursing, medicine, and education in higher education in Karachi, Pakistan. A descriptive exploratory qualitative design was used where 12 purposefully selected educators from three disciplines participated. Semi structured interviews were conducted and content analysis was done. Although the findings revealed four major themes, the focus of this paper is limited to the theme of faculty perceptions. Faculty's perceptions of nature, acquisition, and application of critical thinking are multidimensional and although the educators were from various disciplines their perceptions of critical thinking were analogous. Thus combined efforts by all multidisciplinary educators in a higher education are needed to assist them to actualize their perceptions to promote CT practices in a classroom setting.
International Journal of Nursing Education, 2015
The paper presents the perceptions of educators from nursing, medicine and education discipline a... more The paper presents the perceptions of educators from nursing, medicine and education discipline about the facilitators and deterrents of critical thinking (CT) in higher education in Karachi, Pakistan. Using a qualitative descriptive exploratory design, 12 university educators from three disciplines were recruited as study participants using purposive sampling. Data was collected through semi structured interviews and manually analyzed for themes and categories. Findings related to the theme of facilitators and deterrents of CT are presented in this paper. Study participants identified a variety of key factors related to teacher competence, nature of students, learning environment, and organizational ethos and resources that influence the implementation and promotion of CT in higher education.
Asia-Pacific Journal of Oncology Nursing, Apr 1, 2018
Globally, breast cancer is the most common cancer among women, and also a leading cause of cancer... more Globally, breast cancer is the most common cancer among women, and also a leading cause of cancer-related deaths in this gender. [1] It accounts for 23% of all cancer cases worldwide. [2] The incidence of breast cancer has been increasing rapidly in the developing countries. [3] Among the Asian countries, Pakistan has the highest prevalence of breast cancer, where one in every nine women is at risk
Critical thinking is an important outcome of higher education in any discipline. International li... more Critical thinking is an important outcome of higher education in any discipline. International literature reveals that teaching strategies-such as reflections, self-directed learning, questioning, and concept mapping-which ask for active engagement of students in their learning, foster critical thinking. Social context of the learning environment, and the instructor's competence and approach to teaching also influence students' critical thinking abilities. Contrary to the required teaching practices, didactic teaching and rote learning are still prevalent in most teaching institutions and disciplines in Pakistan. The focus of this paper is to report on the process and findings of a quasi-experimental study in which students at Aga Khan University School of nursing were taught and encouraged to use concept mapping as a way for knowledge acquisition. A total of 97 nursing students in their first year of the programme were enrolled in the study. In the pre-intervention phase all students were assessed for their level of self-directed learning and ways of knowing, using two instruments, named-SDLRS (Self-Directed Learning Readiness Scale) and WOKAT (Ways of Knowing Assessment Tool). The students were allocated to experimental and controlled groups based on their score on WOKAT. Those in the experimental group were taught to develop concept-maps. In the post-intervention phase, all students were reassessed on SDLRD, WOKAT, and GPA and their scores were compared between the groups. Findings of the study showed significant difference between the controlled and experimental groups in terms of students GPA but no substantial change was noted in their scores on SDLRS and WOKAT.
Asia-Pacific Journal of Oncology Nursing, Nov 1, 2021
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) brought to the world, an unprecedented emergency, which drama... more Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) brought to the world, an unprecedented emergency, which dramatically affected the face-to-face teaching in higher education academia. University faculty and students had to shift overnight to an online and remote course instruction. They were neither trained nor prepared and had limited resources and infrastructure. Palliative Care and Oncology Stream Faculty at Aga Khan University, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Pakistan, piloted an innovative academic project using telesimulation (TS). Trainee nurse interns were taught communication skills and the art of breaking bad news to palliative clients using the SPIKES model through TS. To incorporate best practices for simulation-based experiences, we used the International Nursing Association for Clinical Simulation and Learning to standardize and implement TS with 141 interns. This review article documents how the faculty planned and implemented the TS strategy during COVID-19. It outlines the challenges and the lessons learnt from implementation and feedback from faculty and students. This information could be useful in the future execution of TS, in any communication and counseling course, since COVID-19 has impacted the future educational course design and pedagogy worldwide.
Journal of Professional Nursing
International Journal for Students as Partners
This fourth iteration of Voices from the Field highlights some of the many meanings and practices... more This fourth iteration of Voices from the Field highlights some of the many meanings and practices of assessment as faculty/academic staff, professional staff, and students define it and as they situate it in relation to students-as-partners work. The goal of this section of the journal is to offer a venue for a wide range of contributors to address important questions around and aspects of students-as-partners work without going through the intensive submission, peerreview, and revision processes. For this iteration of Voices, we invited responses to the question: "In what ways can students-as-partners work inform assessment?" Recognizing that assessment means different things in different contexts, we invited contributors to specify what definition they are working with. As we expected, people's definitions, arguments, and examples were highly diverse. Contributors' definitions reflect differences of geographical location, level (course, program, institutional), and focus or priority. Regarding the last of those, definitions include reference to teachers offering opportunity to students to demonstrate knowledge and/or skills; dynamic, mutual conversations between educational shareholders; an opportunity to honor knowledge, experience, and engagement; a process of engaging students' language, agency, selfauthorship, and self-directed learning goals in dialogue with course learning goals; instructors' and administrators' evaluations of teaching; the assessment of learning and development
Journal of Liaquat University of Medical & Health Sciences, 2018
BMC Nursing
Background Amid COVID-19, soon after the closure of academic institutions, academia was compelled... more Background Amid COVID-19, soon after the closure of academic institutions, academia was compelled to implement teaching and assessments virtually. The situation was not the same for all countries. This transition was much more challenging in low-resource settings like Pakistan, where the students were geographically distant with minimal connectivity. A private university in Pakistan instituted a systematic approach for ensuring quality assurance and reliability before launching online assessments amid the COVID-19. The purpose of this study was to reflect on the phased transition to online/remote assessments to facilitate continuous student learning through distance modalities during the pandemic. Method To assist faculty in re-designing their assessments, a workshop was conducted which was based on the modified Walker’s nine principles. The principles coded as “ACTFAiREST2” were introduced to ensure that the faculty understands and adapts these principles in designing online assess...
Development of students ' critical thinking: the educators ' ability to use questioning... more Development of students ' critical thinking: the educators ' ability to use questioning skills in the baccalaureate programmes in nursing in Pakistan
Critical thinking is an important outcome of higher education in any discipline. International li... more Critical thinking is an important outcome of higher education in any discipline. International literature reveals that teaching strategies-such as reflections, self-directed learning, questioning, and concept mapping-which ask for active engagement of students in their learning, foster critical thinking. Social context of the learning environment, and the instructor's competence and approach to teaching also influence students' critical thinking abilities. Contrary to the required teaching practices, didactic teaching and rote learning are still prevalent in most teaching institutions and disciplines in Pakistan. The focus of this paper is to report on the process and findings of a quasi-experimental study in which students at Aga Khan University School of nursing were taught and encouraged to use concept mapping as a way for knowledge acquisition. A total of 97 nursing students in their first year of the programme were enrolled in the study. In the pre-intervention phase all students were assessed for their level of self-directed learning and ways of knowing, using two instruments, named-SDLRS (Self-Directed Learning Readiness Scale) and WOKAT (Ways of Knowing Assessment Tool). The students were allocated to experimental and controlled groups based on their score on WOKAT. Those in the experimental group were taught to develop concept-maps. In the post-intervention phase, all students were reassessed on SDLRD, WOKAT, and GPA and their scores were compared between the groups. Findings of the study showed significant difference between the controlled and experimental groups in terms of students GPA but no substantial change was noted in their scores on SDLRS and WOKAT.
Critical thinking (CT) is a phenomenon of worldwide importance and is a desired outcome in higher... more Critical thinking (CT) is a phenomenon of worldwide importance and is a desired outcome in higher and professional education. Development of CT is considered a primary responsibility of educators; however, educators find it challenging to foster learners ’ CT if their own understanding of CT skills and concepts is not well developed. Limited research is available on how multidisciplinary educators perceive and practice CT. The study aimed to identify perceptions and practices of CT among educators from the disciplines of nursing, medicine, and education in higher education in Karachi, Pakistan. A descriptive exploratory qualitative design was used where 12 purposefully selected educators from three disciplines participated. Semi structured interviews were conducted and content analysis was done. Although the findings revealed four major themes, the focus of this paper is limited to the theme of faculty perceptions. Faculty’s perceptions of nature, acquisition, and application of cri...
Journal of Education and Training Studies, 2015
There is little known about whether faculty and students in a resource constricted context experi... more There is little known about whether faculty and students in a resource constricted context experience a change in learning due to the adoption of blended learning (BL) pedagogies in a lab based course. The study aimed to understand the experiences of faculty and students' related to the adoption of BL pedagogies in health assessment course. Design: An action research design was used in this study to integrate planning, action and research in the setting where the change is required. The study sample consisted of year 1 Post RN BScN students enrolled at the Aga Khan University School of Nursing and Midwifery, and the faculty assigned to teach in Health Assessment course. Of the 83 Post RN BScN students and the 6 nursing faculty invited, 53 students and 6 teachers (n= 59) consented to participate in the study. Data was collected using focus group discussions. Results: Findings revealed five major categories; Students' readiness, motivation and selfdirectedness; Teacher competence, commitment, and comfort; Use of blended strategies; Resources; and Contextual factors & challenges. Conclusion: This study was the first of its kind in Pakistan. The findings of the study indicate towards the ways that can improve the use of BL in a resource constrained context.
JOURNAL OF PAKISTAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION, 2012
To enhance the Critical Thinking skills of educators associated with the nursing baccalaureate pr... more To enhance the Critical Thinking skills of educators associated with the nursing baccalaureate programmes in Pakistan. By focusing on the type and level of questions asked by the educators. Ninety-one faculty members from 14 out of 17 schools participated in the study. Data on the faculty's questioning skills was obtained through classroom observations and field notes. The duration of the observations was 45-60 minutes. Using Bloom's Taxonomy for cognitive thinking, questions were categorised into high and low categories. Most of the questions (68.9 %) asked by the participants were of lower levels, while some (5.37 %) were ambiguous. In many instances, the participants did not allow a sufficient wait-time for students to think and respond. The findings suggest that educators must learn to use the questioning strategy effectively. They should ask higher level questions if they wish to inculcate Critical Thinking in students.
Multidimensionality of critical thinking: A holistic perspective from multidisciplinary educators in
PloS one, Apr 4, 2024
The COVID-19 pandemic led to the closure of educational campuses and the suspension of convention... more The COVID-19 pandemic led to the closure of educational campuses and the suspension of conventional classroom teaching globally and locally, and many switched overnight to an online modality. The change was experienced differently by varied audiences, given the availability of resources. The study aimed to examine stakeholders' experiences of emergency remote instructions in the Post-RN Baccalaureate Nursing Program during the COVID-19 pandemic. A qualitative descriptive exploratory design with a purposive sampling technique was used at a private nursing university in Karachi, Pakistan. Focus group discussions with students and faculty were conducted separately, while in-depth interviews with key informants were held using semi-structured interview guides. The focus group discussions and in-depth interviews were recorded electronically and transcribed and translated, coded, and analysed manually. Findings uncovered two major themes. (a) Remote teaching and learning-a paradigm shift; and (b) Remote learning ecosystem-a challenging team sport. The first theme denotes a major shift in pedagogical approach migrating from blended learning model to a complete online modality. Theme two uncovers the efforts and teamwork of the various stakeholders who assisted in mitigating the challenges collaboratively when migrating to virtual learning environment. Findings suggest that to continue to thrive in the post-COVID world, faculty, students, and key informants must collegially enhance the teaching, learning, and assessment strategies and student-teacher interaction, capitalising on evidence-based practices, trial and error, multi-level support mechanisms, and partnerships. The study recommends building resilience in instructional and administrative infrastructure to prepare for future events like pandemics and suggests development of evidence-informed blended and online nursing programmes in the region.
Asia-Pacific Journal of Oncology Nursing, Oct 1, 2020
With the COVID-19 pandemic hitting the global community, routine activities of universities, offi... more With the COVID-19 pandemic hitting the global community, routine activities of universities, offices, and industries have been hindered. People are being forced to rethink the ways of working virtually from home for providing education, business, and health services in this social distancing during the COVID era. This sudden shift also posed challenges of online teaching in a private university, in urban Karachi, Pakistan. The Aga Khan University, School of Nursing and Midwifery recently conducted an online palliative care module using a virtual learning environment and Microsoft Teams for Trainee Nurse Interns. Although the first experience of online teaching and learning was a successful venture for faculty and students, in a lockdown situation, numerous challenges were also encountered being a lower middle-income country. The issues of electricity shutdown, Internet connectivity, and quality assurance were anticipated on transition to online pedagogy, but backup plans were formed to make execution promising.
Critical thinking is an important component of higher education in any discipline. Teaching strat... more Critical thinking is an important component of higher education in any discipline. Teaching strategies such as reflections, self-directed learning, questioning, and concept mapping, which ask for active engagement of students in their learning, fosters critical thinking. Contrary to these strategies, didactic teaching and rote learning is still prevalent in most teaching institutions in Pakistan. This paper reports the findings of a quasi-experimental study in which students at Aga Khan University School of Nursing were taught to use concept mapping strategy. A total of 97 first year nursing students were enrolled in the study. In the pre-intervention phase all students were assessed for their level of self-directed learning and ways of knowing, using two instruments, named SDLRS (Self-Directed Learning Readiness Scale) and WOKAT (Ways of Knowing Assessment Tool). Students were allocated to experimental and control groups based on their WOKAT score. The experimental group students were taught concept-maps development.. In the post-intervention phase, all students were reassessed on SDLRS, WOKAT, and GPA, and their scores were compared. Findings revealed significant difference between the GPA scores of control and experimental groups but no substantial changes were noted in their SDLRS and WOKAT scores
International journal of higher education, Nov 27, 2016
Critical thinking (CT) is considered an important attribute in practice disciplines and faculty m... more Critical thinking (CT) is considered an important attribute in practice disciplines and faculty members in nursing, medicine, and education are expected to facilitate the development of CT in their graduates so that these individuals can be critical, reflective, competent, and caring professionals and service providers. When students are actively engaged in their learning, and classrooms have an enabling environment, CT is promoted. Teachers must reflect upon their pedagogy when students do not participate in stimulating discussions, or asks questions in class. Research suggests that lack of understanding of CT affects teachers' CT practices in the classroom. Literature supports that teaching learning activities and opportunities that emphasize encouragement of students' participation in classroom fosters communication, student engagement, creativity, selfdirectedness and CT. Thus, it is vital to explore the teaching practices of educators that promotes or hinders students' CT. This study aimed to identify perceptions and practices of CT among educators from the disciplines of nursing, medicine, and education in higher education in Karachi. A descriptive exploratory design was used in the study. Using a purposive sample, 12 educators participated in this study. Data was collected via in-depth interviews and classroom observations. Data was analyzed manually; four major themes emerged from the content analysis. This paper focuses on the findings of educators' practices of CT in a classroom setting, which indicates that teachers needs to be aware that an enabling learning environment is necessary to promote students' CT. Moreover, the educators should create an enabling learning environment by focusing on the physical, psychological and intellectual components to promote CT in students.
Journal of Nursing Education, Dec 1, 2001
Journal of Nursing Education and Practice, Jan 9, 2013
Critical thinking (CT) is a phenomenon of worldwide importance and is a desired outcome in higher... more Critical thinking (CT) is a phenomenon of worldwide importance and is a desired outcome in higher and professional education. Development of CT is considered a primary responsibility of educators; however, educators find it challenging to foster learners' CT if their own understanding of CT skills and concepts is not well developed. Limited research is available on how multidisciplinary educators perceive and practice CT. The study aimed to identify perceptions and practices of CT among educators from the disciplines of nursing, medicine, and education in higher education in Karachi, Pakistan. A descriptive exploratory qualitative design was used where 12 purposefully selected educators from three disciplines participated. Semi structured interviews were conducted and content analysis was done. Although the findings revealed four major themes, the focus of this paper is limited to the theme of faculty perceptions. Faculty's perceptions of nature, acquisition, and application of critical thinking are multidimensional and although the educators were from various disciplines their perceptions of critical thinking were analogous. Thus combined efforts by all multidisciplinary educators in a higher education are needed to assist them to actualize their perceptions to promote CT practices in a classroom setting.
International Journal of Nursing Education, 2015
The paper presents the perceptions of educators from nursing, medicine and education discipline a... more The paper presents the perceptions of educators from nursing, medicine and education discipline about the facilitators and deterrents of critical thinking (CT) in higher education in Karachi, Pakistan. Using a qualitative descriptive exploratory design, 12 university educators from three disciplines were recruited as study participants using purposive sampling. Data was collected through semi structured interviews and manually analyzed for themes and categories. Findings related to the theme of facilitators and deterrents of CT are presented in this paper. Study participants identified a variety of key factors related to teacher competence, nature of students, learning environment, and organizational ethos and resources that influence the implementation and promotion of CT in higher education.
Asia-Pacific Journal of Oncology Nursing, Apr 1, 2018
Globally, breast cancer is the most common cancer among women, and also a leading cause of cancer... more Globally, breast cancer is the most common cancer among women, and also a leading cause of cancer-related deaths in this gender. [1] It accounts for 23% of all cancer cases worldwide. [2] The incidence of breast cancer has been increasing rapidly in the developing countries. [3] Among the Asian countries, Pakistan has the highest prevalence of breast cancer, where one in every nine women is at risk
Critical thinking is an important outcome of higher education in any discipline. International li... more Critical thinking is an important outcome of higher education in any discipline. International literature reveals that teaching strategies-such as reflections, self-directed learning, questioning, and concept mapping-which ask for active engagement of students in their learning, foster critical thinking. Social context of the learning environment, and the instructor's competence and approach to teaching also influence students' critical thinking abilities. Contrary to the required teaching practices, didactic teaching and rote learning are still prevalent in most teaching institutions and disciplines in Pakistan. The focus of this paper is to report on the process and findings of a quasi-experimental study in which students at Aga Khan University School of nursing were taught and encouraged to use concept mapping as a way for knowledge acquisition. A total of 97 nursing students in their first year of the programme were enrolled in the study. In the pre-intervention phase all students were assessed for their level of self-directed learning and ways of knowing, using two instruments, named-SDLRS (Self-Directed Learning Readiness Scale) and WOKAT (Ways of Knowing Assessment Tool). The students were allocated to experimental and controlled groups based on their score on WOKAT. Those in the experimental group were taught to develop concept-maps. In the post-intervention phase, all students were reassessed on SDLRD, WOKAT, and GPA and their scores were compared between the groups. Findings of the study showed significant difference between the controlled and experimental groups in terms of students GPA but no substantial change was noted in their scores on SDLRS and WOKAT.
Asia-Pacific Journal of Oncology Nursing, Nov 1, 2021
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) brought to the world, an unprecedented emergency, which drama... more Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) brought to the world, an unprecedented emergency, which dramatically affected the face-to-face teaching in higher education academia. University faculty and students had to shift overnight to an online and remote course instruction. They were neither trained nor prepared and had limited resources and infrastructure. Palliative Care and Oncology Stream Faculty at Aga Khan University, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Pakistan, piloted an innovative academic project using telesimulation (TS). Trainee nurse interns were taught communication skills and the art of breaking bad news to palliative clients using the SPIKES model through TS. To incorporate best practices for simulation-based experiences, we used the International Nursing Association for Clinical Simulation and Learning to standardize and implement TS with 141 interns. This review article documents how the faculty planned and implemented the TS strategy during COVID-19. It outlines the challenges and the lessons learnt from implementation and feedback from faculty and students. This information could be useful in the future execution of TS, in any communication and counseling course, since COVID-19 has impacted the future educational course design and pedagogy worldwide.
Journal of Professional Nursing
International Journal for Students as Partners
This fourth iteration of Voices from the Field highlights some of the many meanings and practices... more This fourth iteration of Voices from the Field highlights some of the many meanings and practices of assessment as faculty/academic staff, professional staff, and students define it and as they situate it in relation to students-as-partners work. The goal of this section of the journal is to offer a venue for a wide range of contributors to address important questions around and aspects of students-as-partners work without going through the intensive submission, peerreview, and revision processes. For this iteration of Voices, we invited responses to the question: "In what ways can students-as-partners work inform assessment?" Recognizing that assessment means different things in different contexts, we invited contributors to specify what definition they are working with. As we expected, people's definitions, arguments, and examples were highly diverse. Contributors' definitions reflect differences of geographical location, level (course, program, institutional), and focus or priority. Regarding the last of those, definitions include reference to teachers offering opportunity to students to demonstrate knowledge and/or skills; dynamic, mutual conversations between educational shareholders; an opportunity to honor knowledge, experience, and engagement; a process of engaging students' language, agency, selfauthorship, and self-directed learning goals in dialogue with course learning goals; instructors' and administrators' evaluations of teaching; the assessment of learning and development
Journal of Liaquat University of Medical & Health Sciences, 2018
BMC Nursing
Background Amid COVID-19, soon after the closure of academic institutions, academia was compelled... more Background Amid COVID-19, soon after the closure of academic institutions, academia was compelled to implement teaching and assessments virtually. The situation was not the same for all countries. This transition was much more challenging in low-resource settings like Pakistan, where the students were geographically distant with minimal connectivity. A private university in Pakistan instituted a systematic approach for ensuring quality assurance and reliability before launching online assessments amid the COVID-19. The purpose of this study was to reflect on the phased transition to online/remote assessments to facilitate continuous student learning through distance modalities during the pandemic. Method To assist faculty in re-designing their assessments, a workshop was conducted which was based on the modified Walker’s nine principles. The principles coded as “ACTFAiREST2” were introduced to ensure that the faculty understands and adapts these principles in designing online assess...
Development of students ' critical thinking: the educators ' ability to use questioning... more Development of students ' critical thinking: the educators ' ability to use questioning skills in the baccalaureate programmes in nursing in Pakistan
Critical thinking is an important outcome of higher education in any discipline. International li... more Critical thinking is an important outcome of higher education in any discipline. International literature reveals that teaching strategies-such as reflections, self-directed learning, questioning, and concept mapping-which ask for active engagement of students in their learning, foster critical thinking. Social context of the learning environment, and the instructor's competence and approach to teaching also influence students' critical thinking abilities. Contrary to the required teaching practices, didactic teaching and rote learning are still prevalent in most teaching institutions and disciplines in Pakistan. The focus of this paper is to report on the process and findings of a quasi-experimental study in which students at Aga Khan University School of nursing were taught and encouraged to use concept mapping as a way for knowledge acquisition. A total of 97 nursing students in their first year of the programme were enrolled in the study. In the pre-intervention phase all students were assessed for their level of self-directed learning and ways of knowing, using two instruments, named-SDLRS (Self-Directed Learning Readiness Scale) and WOKAT (Ways of Knowing Assessment Tool). The students were allocated to experimental and controlled groups based on their score on WOKAT. Those in the experimental group were taught to develop concept-maps. In the post-intervention phase, all students were reassessed on SDLRD, WOKAT, and GPA and their scores were compared between the groups. Findings of the study showed significant difference between the controlled and experimental groups in terms of students GPA but no substantial change was noted in their scores on SDLRS and WOKAT.
Critical thinking (CT) is a phenomenon of worldwide importance and is a desired outcome in higher... more Critical thinking (CT) is a phenomenon of worldwide importance and is a desired outcome in higher and professional education. Development of CT is considered a primary responsibility of educators; however, educators find it challenging to foster learners ’ CT if their own understanding of CT skills and concepts is not well developed. Limited research is available on how multidisciplinary educators perceive and practice CT. The study aimed to identify perceptions and practices of CT among educators from the disciplines of nursing, medicine, and education in higher education in Karachi, Pakistan. A descriptive exploratory qualitative design was used where 12 purposefully selected educators from three disciplines participated. Semi structured interviews were conducted and content analysis was done. Although the findings revealed four major themes, the focus of this paper is limited to the theme of faculty perceptions. Faculty’s perceptions of nature, acquisition, and application of cri...
Journal of Education and Training Studies, 2015
There is little known about whether faculty and students in a resource constricted context experi... more There is little known about whether faculty and students in a resource constricted context experience a change in learning due to the adoption of blended learning (BL) pedagogies in a lab based course. The study aimed to understand the experiences of faculty and students' related to the adoption of BL pedagogies in health assessment course. Design: An action research design was used in this study to integrate planning, action and research in the setting where the change is required. The study sample consisted of year 1 Post RN BScN students enrolled at the Aga Khan University School of Nursing and Midwifery, and the faculty assigned to teach in Health Assessment course. Of the 83 Post RN BScN students and the 6 nursing faculty invited, 53 students and 6 teachers (n= 59) consented to participate in the study. Data was collected using focus group discussions. Results: Findings revealed five major categories; Students' readiness, motivation and selfdirectedness; Teacher competence, commitment, and comfort; Use of blended strategies; Resources; and Contextual factors & challenges. Conclusion: This study was the first of its kind in Pakistan. The findings of the study indicate towards the ways that can improve the use of BL in a resource constrained context.
JOURNAL OF PAKISTAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION, 2012
To enhance the Critical Thinking skills of educators associated with the nursing baccalaureate pr... more To enhance the Critical Thinking skills of educators associated with the nursing baccalaureate programmes in Pakistan. By focusing on the type and level of questions asked by the educators. Ninety-one faculty members from 14 out of 17 schools participated in the study. Data on the faculty's questioning skills was obtained through classroom observations and field notes. The duration of the observations was 45-60 minutes. Using Bloom's Taxonomy for cognitive thinking, questions were categorised into high and low categories. Most of the questions (68.9 %) asked by the participants were of lower levels, while some (5.37 %) were ambiguous. In many instances, the participants did not allow a sufficient wait-time for students to think and respond. The findings suggest that educators must learn to use the questioning strategy effectively. They should ask higher level questions if they wish to inculcate Critical Thinking in students.
Multidimensionality of critical thinking: A holistic perspective from multidisciplinary educators in