With the rise of technology, cyberspace has offered itself as an alternative classroom where information can be shared and exchanged in fast pace. The article discussed the issues involved in electronic learning utilized as a teaching method. The authors claim that e-learning is an andragogy which refers to a teacher-student relationship. This is in lieu of the traditional pedagogy utilized in the curricula today.
One issue that the article touched on is the use of e-learning in nursing education. The authors said that although information can be transferred easily, which may promote uniform practice across nations, it does not help in developing critical thinking skills. In addition to this, e-learning has dissociative properties which do not allow actual teacher-student interaction. This scenario does not allow the teacher to guide the students through the program and does not allow the teacher to evaluate students right away.
Personally, I admit that online education is effective in imparting information. The internet is an easy accessible way of getting answers. But we have to understand that Nursing education is not only focused on knowing facts and information. It requires training. Moreover, it does not only require the ability to perform skills, it requires caring as postulated by Nursing theorists such as Travelbee (Tommey & Alligood, 2002). E-learning and knowledge management is different from training, according to Marc Rosenberg's book "E-Learning: Strategies for Delivering Knowledge in the Digital Age" (Hansen,2003).
I believe that in a field where therapeutic person-to-person relationship is required, a person-to-person teaching and learning is beneficial. How else is care demonstrated if not in personal contact, how else is effective verbal and non-verbal communication shown if not in live conversations and how else are skills evaluated if not in practice? E-learning may be a supplemental or adjacent approach, but should not be the primary medium of instruction in the Health Sciences. In the health Sciences, precision, accuracy and effectiveness are critical because a mistake of .001 can cost a health practitioner one’s precious life.
Another issue of concern pointed in the article is that e-learning allows pre-conceived materials are to be highly utilized. This means that sources and related links are readily available in just one click.
I remember senator Nikki Coseteng once commented in an interview that the quality of students have deteriorated through the years because of the internet. students are no longer s diligent as the students before because the use of books have been minimized. I personally do not rely on internet sources alone. Even in my paper work, I have more books, periodicals and magazines as references; I consciously try to keep internet sources to a minimum. That is because I believe in how diligence, critical thinking in digesting and determining needed information from books and being selective as to reliability of sources cannot be honed in internet dependence. After all, it is not what we know that is important in gauging education; it is the values that we learn –the values of patience, resourcefulness and hard work.
E-learning may have been accepted in other countries, considering that it is highly flexible for adult learners, but I think the extent to which it will be utilized as medium highly depends on the field being studied. I firmly stand that nursing education requires more that accessible trickling down of information and knowledge. It requires hands on guidance from teachers and actual demonstration and feedback from students. It can be an adjacent pedagogy to the traditional nursing curriculum., but I wouldn’t bank on it as a total alternative.
REFERENCES:
Hansen, D. J. (2003). Book review: E-Learning: Strategies for Delivering Knowledge in the Digital Age (Author: M. Rosenberg). Educational Technology & Society, 6(3), 80-81 (ISSN 1436-4522). Retrieved on November 21, 2010.Retreived from
Tomey, A.M. & Alligood, M.R. (2002). Nursing theorists and their works. Singapore: Mosby, Inc.
One issue that the article touched on is the use of e-learning in nursing education. The authors said that although information can be transferred easily, which may promote uniform practice across nations, it does not help in developing critical thinking skills. In addition to this, e-learning has dissociative properties which do not allow actual teacher-student interaction. This scenario does not allow the teacher to guide the students through the program and does not allow the teacher to evaluate students right away.
Personally, I admit that online education is effective in imparting information. The internet is an easy accessible way of getting answers. But we have to understand that Nursing education is not only focused on knowing facts and information. It requires training. Moreover, it does not only require the ability to perform skills, it requires caring as postulated by Nursing theorists such as Travelbee (Tommey & Alligood, 2002). E-learning and knowledge management is different from training, according to Marc Rosenberg's book "E-Learning: Strategies for Delivering Knowledge in the Digital Age" (Hansen,2003).
I believe that in a field where therapeutic person-to-person relationship is required, a person-to-person teaching and learning is beneficial. How else is care demonstrated if not in personal contact, how else is effective verbal and non-verbal communication shown if not in live conversations and how else are skills evaluated if not in practice? E-learning may be a supplemental or adjacent approach, but should not be the primary medium of instruction in the Health Sciences. In the health Sciences, precision, accuracy and effectiveness are critical because a mistake of .001 can cost a health practitioner one’s precious life.
Another issue of concern pointed in the article is that e-learning allows pre-conceived materials are to be highly utilized. This means that sources and related links are readily available in just one click.
I remember senator Nikki Coseteng once commented in an interview that the quality of students have deteriorated through the years because of the internet. students are no longer s diligent as the students before because the use of books have been minimized. I personally do not rely on internet sources alone. Even in my paper work, I have more books, periodicals and magazines as references; I consciously try to keep internet sources to a minimum. That is because I believe in how diligence, critical thinking in digesting and determining needed information from books and being selective as to reliability of sources cannot be honed in internet dependence. After all, it is not what we know that is important in gauging education; it is the values that we learn –the values of patience, resourcefulness and hard work.
E-learning may have been accepted in other countries, considering that it is highly flexible for adult learners, but I think the extent to which it will be utilized as medium highly depends on the field being studied. I firmly stand that nursing education requires more that accessible trickling down of information and knowledge. It requires hands on guidance from teachers and actual demonstration and feedback from students. It can be an adjacent pedagogy to the traditional nursing curriculum., but I wouldn’t bank on it as a total alternative.
REFERENCES:
Hansen, D. J. (2003). Book review: E-Learning: Strategies for Delivering Knowledge in the Digital Age (Author: M. Rosenberg). Educational Technology & Society, 6(3), 80-81 (ISSN 1436-4522). Retrieved on November 21, 2010.Retreived from
Tomey, A.M. & Alligood, M.R. (2002). Nursing theorists and their works. Singapore: Mosby, Inc.