Fundamentals Can Be Fun

A foundation course in any discipline should be a
“grabber” and have a “hook” that not only provides
essential information but also excites students about
the subject. Devising creative ways to teach, while
enhancing student learning, is challenging, exciting,
and enormously stimulating for faculty. Creativity
breathes new life into basic or routine courses.

At Monroe Community College (MCC), it is neces-
sary to accommodate large numbers of students in
“Fundamentals of Nursing”; course content is pre-
sented to 200+ students in a two-story lecture hall.
Traditionally, alternative learning methods have been
difficult to implement in this setting.

Some attention-grabbing mechanisms have been
found to be successful in obtaining and keeping
students’ attention.

SCTE

Personification is utilized during a lecture on sensory
and perceptual changes in the elderly. The lecturer
enters the room dressed as a very old woman, com-
plete with wig, glasses, cane, hospital gown, and
bathrobe. She walks in a stooped posture and requires
the assistance of another instructor to reach the po-
dium. Students are generally responsive and enthusi-
astically await the content of the lecture.

In a class on grief and loss, students are greeted with
organ music and gospel singing. The instructor enters
the lecture hall dressed in mourning clothes, with her
face covered by a heavy veil. Again, the atmosphere is
set, and the students’ attention is immediately focused
on the topic.

Students who attend these classes have been found
to participate more, remain attentive, and demonstrate
better retention of the content on examinations. Many
have said that when they reached that topic on the
exam, picturing the lecturer dressed in costume helped
them remember the related theory.

Instructors combine personification with class
participation. When teaching methods for preventing
the spread of infection, an instructor enters the class-
room dressed in isolation clothing—a gown, mask,
head cover, shoe covers, and gloves. The students are
then free to discuss their feelings and reactions to
seeing a “nurse” dressed in this manner. Later, while
the lecturer reviews the proper procedure for applying
and removing the clothing, other faculty members
demonstrate the technique. The class, supplied with

gowns, gloves, and masks, then proceeds to carry out
these activities under the supervision of the faculty.
Students enthusiastically participate in the activities
and comment that knowledge of this skill is enhanced
by their active participation in the learning process.

Gaming is another attention-grabbing technique. It is
useful for reviewing content and reinforcing critical
information. Many games, like “Jeopardy” and
“Bingo,” are conducive to team or individual play and
can be used in any size class. Learning is enhanced
through collaboration when students work in teams
Awarding prizes or other incentives, no matter how
small, increases enthusiasm and participation.

“Jeopardy,” patterned after the popular television
show, uses a game board with five or six categories
along one axis and dollar amounts along the other.
The instructor reads the “answer,” and the students or
group must supply the correct “question.” Each
correct response is worth points/dollars; the player or
team with the highest total wins. This technique has
been used to review material related to medical record
documentation, as well as to review content prior to
unit exams.

“Bingo,” using a game board of 24 spaces with a
middle “free” space, is particularly helpful in review-
ing definitions, factual knowledge, normal values, and
abbreviations.

ECECE

Admittedly, these methods appear elementary, but
they result in active participation and enthusiasm,
which increase motivation, comprehension, and subject
retention. We have found that creativity generally
requires a willingness to take risks, and there is risk in
presenting materials through techniques not commonly
associated with higher education.

These techniques reward both students and faculty,
as evidenced by MCC’s exceptional performance (95
percent pass rate) on the National Council Licensure
Examination.

Karen Cardillo, Associate Professor, Nursing

Jane Garr, Associate Professor, Nursing

Pamela Korte, Instructor, Nursing

For further information, contact the authors at Monroe

Community College, 1000 East Henrietta Road, Roches-
ter, NY 14623.

 

Suanne D. Roueche, Editor

March 1, 1991, Vol. Xill, No. 7

©The University of Texas at Austin, 1991
Further duplication is permitted by MEMBER
institutions for their own personnel.

 

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