Faculty tools and techniques used to assess associate degree nursing student learning while using handheld digital devices

Abstract

<p>Many nursing programs utilize digital eBooks as well as nursing applications that contain specialized nursing tools. A gap in the literature review demonstrated the need for research into the best practice for assessing student learning obtained with handheld digital devices. The purpose of this research study was to explore the tools and techniques nursing faculty members use to assess the nursing student&rsquo;s ability to retain the information that had been obtained through the handheld digital device. One of the questions that was examined in this research was as follows: How do nursing instructors assess Kolb&rsquo;s experiential learning theory with the nursing students that are using handheld digital devices? The subquestions in addition to the primary question were as follows: (a) How do handheld digital devices impact vertical learning and (b) How does handheld device usage impact the long-term memory and working memory? A basic qualitative study was used to explore the influence on vertical learning transference into long-term memory during use of handheld digital devices. The population and sample of this study was associate degree nursing faculty from the Midwest region of the United States. The study participants ranged in age from 25 to 64 years of age, and they all had been teaching for at least a full academic year. The purpose of the study was to examine the tools and techniques used by faculty to assess student learning and transferability of that learning to working memory. Results from the research show nursing faculty felt students are not retaining learned information from class to class regardless of how the information is presented, and there were no specific tools being used by faculty to measure learning through the use of handheld digital devices. Recommendation for additional studies would include the use of a larger sample size.</p>