Immersion Course Research Articles

The Threshold of Beauty in Creation and Art Appreciation

ABSTRACT Art appreciation is a remarkable human activity that begins the moment someone first perceives a work of art until they have fully contemplated the art, including purposefully discovering resources to enhance perceptions, reflections, and memorization. In this paper, the author first presents personal conjectures about the origins of the perception of beauty and art. He then explores three ways in which the art appreciation phenomenon has been researched and understood: the traditional art history approach; the opposite scientific neuroaesthetic stream; and a third and often controversial approach, art appreciation assisted by psychoanalytical theory and praxis. Finally, he suggests a method to foster, develop, and refine art appreciation based on personal analysis and his experience with students in immersion courses.

The effectiveness of badging systems in engaging, motivating, and incentivizing students in the mastery of nursing licensure materials.

Integrating gamification methods into undergraduate nursing programs has prepared students to pass the nursing comprehensive predictor test and the licensure examination. Research demonstrates that the motivational factors of game elements like badging and leaderboards are of great value and utility to student engagement and motivation. The badges symbolize achievement, authority, and belonging, whereas leaderboards rank students based on different levels of course engagement. This paper explores the benefits, challenges, and strategies of incorporating digital badges and leaderboards in the undergraduate program. Immersion courses preparing students for professional practice are usually one of the last didactic courses offered in the undergraduate curriculum, designed to integrate all knowledge gained from the nursing program. The digital badging system can encourage nurse educators globally to engage, motivate, and power students to achieve professional goals. Furthermore, nursing programs worldwide can benefit from adding digital badges and leaderboards to final semester preparatory courses or any nursing course with the same emphasis. Digital badges and leaderboards engage and motivate students to integrate knowledge and skills learned in the nursing program and successfully master nurse licensure materials.

Museum‐based pedagogy in an adult language immersion course

Museum‐based pedagogy in an adult language immersion course

A blended immersion course: advancing practice for social work students working with military members, veterans, and their families

ABSTRACT This paper presents a specialization blended immersion course in social work with military, veterans, and their families that includes a 3-unit elective course for Master of Social Work (MSW) students incorporating a virtual (i.e. synchronous) class component and an eight-day visit to the Washington DC area. Data collection from over 60 students over a four-year period was collected, and mixed methods analysis indicated success in knowledge acquisition related to social work practice and policy with military and veteran communities. This study supports other research findings on the usefulness of immersion experiences in acclimating students to different cultures, in this case, military culture. Additionally, as today’s digital education platform evolves in light of COVID-19 more students are engaged in online education. As such, this paper describes a framework for combining methods of instruction, such as blended and immersive experiences, that can be useful for social work education and in advancing practice in working with these populations.

Orthopaedic Surgery Boot Camp: An Immersion Course for Medical Students.

IntroductionThere is a substantial need for orthopaedic surgery-specific boot camps due to the limited orthopaedic and musculoskeletal education in medical school, which inadequately prepares medical students for their orthopaedic surgery sub-internships. The aim of this study is to identify the impact of the novel orthopaedic surgery boot camp on medical students’ confidence with key orthopaedic topics.MethodsA cross-sectional study was conducted using an anonymous online survey distributed to medical students attending the novel orthopaedic surgery boot camp. The boot camp consisted of a four-day immersion course into the basics of orthopaedic surgery principles through both didactic and skills-based educational series. The medical students’ confidence in orthopaedic surgery clinical and technical skills were assessed by comparing the students’ survey responses before and after attending each of the sessions.ResultsTwelve fourth-year medical students and 15 second-year medical students attended the boot camp. All the sessions attended by the medical students were statistically significant in improving their confidence in the subject matter and skills-based training. Hundred percent (100%) of the fourth-year medical students recommend future orthopaedic surgery-bound medical students to attend this boot camp.ConclusionA dedicated orthopaedic surgery boot camp focused on clinical and technical skills plays a key role in increasing medical students’ confidence with key orthopaedic topics by providing an opportunity to practice these skills in a supervised environment with real-time feedback. This novel boot camp can provide a framework for creating a longitudinal course for medical students to augment the musculoskeletal education taught in medical school education.

The inner voices of students in asynchronous online learning approach

Many schools around the world are looking for various approaches to continue the delivery of teaching and learning delivery despite the threat and challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. Educational institutions considered the idea of mixing and matching the different teaching and learning approaches to address the learning needs and conditions of the students in this time of global health crisis. In the Philippines, the problem of uncontrolled surge of COVID-19 cases put face-to-face classes still on hold, thus, resulting for colleges and universities to engage in emergency remote education. This phenomenon paved the way for courses like National Service Training Program or NSTP, which is a community-based immersion course, to resort to asynchronous online learning delivery. Interestingly, there were three themes or types of learning engagements that were revealed in a study using a phenomenological research design to ten purposively selected NSTP 2 students. These themes are student-content, student-teacher, and student-student engagements. It was found out that the theme student-content engagement is highly present in an asynchronous online learning environment while the other two forms of engagement can be described as limited or lacking. This scenario suggests the need for policy makers and curriculum developers to rethink and revisit the course design and delivery of NSTP 2 to address the challenges experienced by the students in this type of online learning approach.

Who Is My Neighbor? Developing a Pedagogical Tool for Teaching Environmental Preaching and Ethics in Online and Hybrid Courses

As theological education has moved increasingly to online and hybrid settings (both by choice and by pandemic necessity), practical theologians committed to teaching ecological theological education must navigate a paradox. How do we teach about interconnectivity and interdependence between the human and other-than-human inhabitants of a particular place when our classrooms are in disembodied digital spaces? This article examines a case study of a pedagogical tool developed by the author called the “Who Is My Neighbor” Mapping Exercise that enables students to explore and articulate how they conceptualize themselves and their faith communities embedded within their larger ecological contexts. This paper assesses the use of the mapping exercise in four different course contexts: three online and one hybrid online–immersion course. The author provides an overview of each of the four course contexts in which the tool was used, includes descriptions of how students engaged the tool, and assesses its effectiveness. The author uses three types of criteria for assessment of the pedagogical exercise: student feedback, level of competence demonstrated in student assignments (sermons, worship services, teaching events), and personal observations, particularly around the differences between online and onsite contexts. The author suggests that the mapping exercise is a tool that can be used by others teaching practical theology to help students understand their relationships within Creation and their communities, critically engage environmental justice issues, and apply what they learn to their ministry contexts.

Self-Care for Advanced Practice Nursing Students in Rural Primary Care.

Advanced practice RNs (APRNs) working in rural primary care provide a spectrum of health care needs that can lead to professional burnout. As a preventative for burnout, the Institute of Medicine developed a strategy focused on self-care. Understanding the importance of self-care as a preventive for building professional resilience to manage workplace stressors during students' academic years may improve retention. Twenty-two APRN students participated in a rural primary care immersion course with a specific component on self-care. Preand postsurveys, student journaling, class discussions, and a posttraining focus group were used to assess students' progress. Students reported strengthening patient and team relationships, enhanced interpersonal communication, and increased self-awareness of stressors for managing their emotions. These self-imposed processes improved student confidence, job satisfaction, and workplace resilience. Heath-promoting behaviors via self-care during APRN students' formal education may assist them in their clinical practice as rural primary care providers. [J Nurs Educ. 2022;61(4):187-191.].

Enhancing sense of belonging and satisfaction among online students in multi-track public affairs programs: A case analysis of immersion courses

Many graduate public affairs programs offer both residential and online options for students. One of the challenges for multi-format programs is creating a sense of belonging among online students who may never set foot on campus. In 2017, the MPA program at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill developed an “immersion” course designed for residential and online students in a weekend intensive format on campus to help create a greater sense of connectedness and satisfaction among (principally) online students, while benefiting students in both formats. This paper examines immersion courses as one strategy to address gaps in belonging and satisfaction between online and on-campus students. The case study of UNC-Chapel Hill developing the immersion course and the first three iterations of it are described, offering practical insight for other campus-based public affairs programs that also have online degrees who may want to try something similar.

Enhancing sense of belonging and satisfaction among online students in multi-track public affairs programs: A case analysis of immersion courses

Enhancing sense of belonging and satisfaction among online students in multi-track public affairs programs: A case analysis of immersion courses

Changing Legal Landscape Observations Post-COVID-19.

Lynn S. Muller, JD, BA-HCM, RN, CCM, is a nurse attorney, independent professional case manager, and managing partner of Muller & Muller. She is an adjunct professor in the MSN and DNP programs at Saint Peter's University of New Jersey. Lynn is a registered nurse and a board-certified case manager with extensive nursing and case management experience. Her law practice includes defense of health care professionals before the state licensing boards, consultant on such issues as regulatory compliance and accreditation, civil litigation, Wills, Trusts and Estates, and Family law. Lynn is the author of numerous articles and the legal chapters of the fourth edition of Case Management: A Practical Guide for Education and Practice and the second and third editions of the CMSA Core Curriculum for Case Management. Lynn is a contributor to the CCM Body of Knowledge (CMBOK), CMSA Career & Knowledge Pathways Project, and CMSA Standards of Practice for Case Management and is the contributing editor of Professional Case Management. She is as a former commissioner for the Commission for Case Management Certification (CCMC) and serves on the Professional Development and Education Task Force and is a facilitator for CCMC's 360, the 2-day immersion course. Address correspondence to Lynn S. Muller, JD, BA-HCM, RN, CCM, Muller & Muller, P.O. Box 164, Bergenfield, NJ 07621 ([email protected]). Disclaimer: The information contained in this department is for educational purposes only. It is not legal advice, which can only be given by an attorney admitted to practice in the jurisdiction/state(s) in which you practice. Do you have a question or issue you would like addressed here? Questions are always welcome. We encourage ALL readers to submit questions and/or manuscripts, as well as topics you would like to see addressed in this department. Questions and other inquiries are accepted by e-mail at: [email protected]. If you have an idea you would like to discuss, send your contact information by e-mail and you will be contacted via your preferred method. The author reports no conflicts of interest.

Sleep and Second-Language Acquisition Revisited: The Role of Sleep Spindles and Rapid Eye Movements

IntroductionSecond-language learning (SLL) depends on distinct functional-neuroanatomical systems including procedural and declarative long-term memory. Characteristic features of rapid eye movement (REM) and non-REM sleep such as rapid eye movements and sleep spindles are electrophysiological markers of cognitively complex procedural and declarative memory consolidation, respectively. In adults, grammatical learning depends at first on declarative memory (“early SLL”) then shifts to procedural memory with experience (“late SLL”). However, it is unknown if the shift from declarative to procedural memory in early vs late SLL is supported by sleep. Here, we hypothesized that increases in sleep spindle characteristics would be associated with early SLL, whereas increases in REM activity (eg, density and EEG theta-band activity time-locked to rapid eye movements) would be associated with late SLL.MethodsEight Anglophone (English first language) participants completed four polysomnographic recordings throughout an intensive 6-week French immersion course. Sleep spindle data and electroencephalographic spectral power time-locked to rapid eye movements were extracted from parietal temporal electrodes.ResultsAs predicted, improvements in French proficiency were associated with changes in spindles during early SLL. Furthermore, we observed increased event-related theta power time-locked to rapid eye movements during late SLL compared with early SLL. The increases in theta power were significantly correlated with improvements in French proficiency.DiscussionThis supports the notion that sleep spindles are involved in early SLL when grammar depends on declarative memory, whereas cortical theta activity time-locked to rapid eye movements is involved in late SLL when grammar depends on procedural memory.

An emergency care research course for healthcare career preparation

BackgroundUniversity students have limited opportunities to gain healthcare clinical exposure within an academic curriculum. Furthermore, traditional pre-medical clinical experiences like shadowing lack active learning components. This may make it difficult for students to make an informed decision about pursuing biomedical professions. An academic university level research course with bedside experience provides students direct clinical participation in the healthcare setting.MethodsDescribed is a research immersion course for senior university students (3rd to 5th year) interested in healthcare and reported study enrollment with final course evaluations. The setting was an adult, academic, urban, level 1 trauma center emergency department (ED) within a tertiary-care, 1000-bed, medical center. Our course, “Immersion in Emergency Care Research”, was offered as a university senior level class delivered consecutively over 16-weeks for students interested in healthcare careers. Faculty and staff from the Department of Emergency Medicine provided a classroom lecture program and extensive bedside, hands-on clinical research experience. Students enrolled patients in a survey study requiring informed consent, interviews, data abstraction and data entry. Additionally, they were required to write and present a mock emergency care research proposal inspired by their clinical experience. The course evaluations from students’ ordinal rankings and blinded text responses report possible career impact.ResultsThirty-two students, completed the 16-week, 6–9 h per week, course from August to December in 1 of 4 years (2016 to 2019). Collectively, students enrolled 759 ED patients in the 4 survey studies and reported increased confidence in the clinical research process as each week progressed. Ranked evaluations were extremely positive, with many students describing how the course significantly impacted their career pathways and addressed an unmet need in biomedical education. Six students continued the research experience from the course through independent study using the survey data to develop 3 manuscripts for submission to peer-reviewed journals.ConclusionsA bedside emergency care research course for students with pre-healthcare career aspirations can successfully provide early exposure to patients and emergency care, allow direct experience with clinical bedside research, research data collection, and may impact biomedical science career choices.

Soins, réhabilitation psycho-sociale et réintégration professionnelle du militaire blessé (2e partie)

The military institution has developed a policy of supporting the wounded through the establishment of a care plan and a marked administrative path, ranging from screening for PTSD or problems of harassment and suffering at work (tall free call Écoute Défense) to the recognition of the imputability of the injury in service leading to compensation (military invalidity pension, Brugnot case law, contingency funds, private insurance guarantees, through the rehabilitation of the injured with support from injured cells of the various military Armies branches (rehabilitation training through sport) up to professional reintegration (company immersion courses, retraining leave, business creation) with the defense mobility system for professional retraining. In this second part of the interview, the PSYHC Laurent Brulin and social service assistant Delphine Breuil evoke the administrative path of the wounded, the various rehabilitation courses through sport and the question of the professional reintegration of injured soldiers.

COVID-19 Changes in Laws and Regulations.

Lynn S. Muller, JD, BA-HCM, RN, CCM, is a nurse attorney, independent professional case manager, and managing partner of Muller & Muller. She is an adjunct professor in the MSN and DNP programs at Saint Peter's University of New Jersey. Lynn is a registered nurse and a board-certified case manager with extensive nursing and case management experience. Her law practice includes defense of health care professionals before the state licensing boards, consultant on such issues as regulatory compliance and accreditation, civil litigation, Wills, Trusts and Estates, and Family law. Lynn is the author of numerous articles and the legal chapters of the fourth edition of Case Management: A Practical Guide for Education and Practice and the second and third editions of the CMSA Core Curriculum for Case Management. Lynn is a contributor to the CCM Body of Knowledge (CMBOK), CMSA Career & Knowledge Pathways Project, and CMSA Standards of Practice for Case Management and is the contributing editor of Professional Case Management. She is as a former commissioner for the Commission for Case Management Certification (CCMC) and serves on the Professional Development and Education Task Force and is a facilitator for CCMC's 360, the 2-day immersion course. Address correspondence to Lynn S. Muller, JD, BA-HCM, RN, CCM, Muller & Muller, P.O. Box 164, Bergenfield, NJ 07621 ([email protected]). Disclaimer: The information contained in this department is for educational purposes only. It is not legal advice, which can only be given by an attorney admitted to practice in the jurisdiction/state(s) in which you practice. Do you have a question or issue you would like addressed here? Questions are always welcome. We encourage ALL readers to submit questions and/or manuscripts, as well as topics you would like to see addressed in this department. Questions and other inquiries are accepted by e-mail at: [email protected]. If you have an idea you would like to discuss, send your contact information by e-mail and you will be contacted via your preferred method.

Soins, réhabilitation psycho-sociale et réintégration professionnelle du militaire blessé (1re partie)

The military institution has developed a policy of supporting the wounded through the establishment of a care plan and a marked administrative path, ranging from screening for PTSD or problems of harassment and suffering at work (tall free call Écoute Défense) to the recognition of the accountability of the injury in service leading to compensation (military invalidity pension, Brugnot case law, contingency funds, private insurance guarantees, through the rehabilitation of the injured with support from injured cells of the various military Armies branches (rehabilitation training through sport) up to professional reintegration (company immersion courses, retraining leave, business creation) with the defence mobility system for professional retraining. In this first part of the interview, the PSYHC Laurent Brulin detail the successive action plans of the army health service and address the issue of the hospital and therapeutic care of soldiers wounded at the Robert Piqué Army Instruction Hospital (HIARP) and in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (MPR).

The physician healer track: educating the hearts and the minds of future physicians

ABSTRACT Calls to reform medical education recommend explicit training in professional identity formation to promote the development of humanistic, compassionate physicians. The authors report their experience offering The Physician Healer Track, a 500-contact-hour curricula integrated over 4 years, focusing on self-awareness, reflection, being-with-suffering, communication and professional identity development. The voluntary scholarly-concentration program comprises 4 years of monthly dinner meetings with faculty mentors, a two-month preceptorship in the first year, a one-month immersion course in MS4 and one elective. Training in mindfulness, cognitive behavioral therapy, nonviolent communication, motivational interviewing, spirituality in healthcare, wellness, equanimity, and ‘being with suffering’ is reinforced across all 4 years. Community building and reflection are integral to the training both in the monthly sessions and the immersion courses. Enrollment has grown from 26 students in the first year (11% of class) to a total of 258 students across our first 6 years (average of 20–26% of each class). Graduates in our first two cohorts of PHT have exceeded the numbers in the eight other scholarly concentrations offered at UTMB. Among students participating in the summer preceptorship, there has been less than 1% attrition. In serial assessments, students report continued growth in personal development, professional development, and the ability to empathize. Offering PHT has resulted in the growth of training for our medical residents, faculty, physical therapy students and the creation of a student healer association. Despite the demands on student’s time, they are voluntarily participating in a challenging program of integrated training with the intention of keeping them connected to their humanity during the rigors of medical school training.

Content-Related and Methodological Issues in Bilingual and Plurilingual Programmes

CLIL programmes have been implemented in a large number of Spanish schools in the last decades as a means of promoting foreign language proficiency and fostering multilingualism and language diversity in order to meet the new demands of our globalized societies. Although Spain is considered one of the European leaders in CLIL practice and research, it nevertheless faces many challenges caused by teachers´ insufficient training both in the target language and in CLIL methodology. While the language-related shortcomings have been identified to a certain extent and remedied through language immersion courses and language assistant programmes, the content-related and methodological issues are still being largely neglected in spite of the fact that there exists considerable CLIL literature where these issues have been addressed. Renowned CLIL authors such as Do Coyle, David Marsh and Peeter Mehisto stress the importance of high quality teaching as key to the success of the CLIL approach; they claim that good CLIL practice not only broadens conceptual mapping resources by boosting cognitive development and metacognitive skills, but it also encourages active, meaningful, “deep” learning, critical thinking and creative thought with the help of scaffolding techniques that facilitate both language and content learning. This paper examines the language practices in content classrooms in the bilingual programmes of Castilla la Mancha. With a view to identifying the main difficulties that both teachers and students face. It also explores different ways of approaching these challenges, most of which are bound to be extensive to the Indian context.

The Development of a 2-Credit Simulated Specialty Clinical Immersion for 15-Month Senior-Level BSN Students

After experiencing challenges securing specialty clinical experiences for senior BSN students enrolled in a 15-month program, faculty created an 8-week, 2-credit simulated specialty clinical immersion course. Using Tanner's Model of Clinical Judgment, the INACSL Standards of Best Practice: Simulation℠ and core competencies essential to practice, faculty created eight specialty simulations. Students were assigned preparation and then participated in prebriefing, simulation, debriefing, and wrote a reflection. Students had multiple opportunities to experience the role of the nurse. A “clinical pause” ensured a safe environment. After five cohorts, course evaluations continue to be positive. Students noted that the prebriefing activities were the most valuable part of their learning.

Transforming Global Leadership Skills in Graduate Nursing Programs Using an Intercultural Setting and a Case Study on Refugees


 
 
 Transformation of our world to a more just and equitable system will require a fundamental shift from a domination approach to a partnership-based approach. In nursing and health care, this shift will require a global perspective with culturally humble providers and systems. In this article we share the experience of our international course Leadership in Nursing – a Global Approach, a joint project of the University of Iceland Faculty of Nursing and the University of Minnesota School of Nursing. This collaborative immersion course offers a model of global partnership-based health-care education. International partnership-based collaboration in nursing and health-care education prepares students and faculty to take an active role in transforming global systems.