Curricular Integration
It is important for educators to thoughtfully adopt virtual simulation in the curriculum rather than just adding virtual simulation randomly.
Spotlight on Scholarship: Curricular Uptake
The following scholarly article, ‘Curricular uptake of virtual gaming simulation in nursing education’ provides an historical account of one team’s successful uptake of virtual gaming simulation in a nursing curriculum. The authors share lessons learned about how to maximize curricular uptake. Educators can use this team’s experience to develop their path for embedding virtual gaming simulation in curriculum.
In the following video Dr. Daria Romaniuk, RN, Ph.D. from Ryerson University discusses the ‘Curricular uptake of virtual gaming simulation in nursing education’ article:
Expert’s Corner: Use of Technology
Don’t let technology drive your educational needs, instead, let learning outcomes drive your use of virtual simulation.
Strategic integration of virtual simulation in education programs is foundational to using them effectively and enhancing outcomes. Virtual simulations are enacted in diverse environments; a collaborative or team approach is helpful to identify where virtual simulations are currently provided in the program, where they should be offered, and how.
Effective integration starts with conducting a needs assessment and then developing recommendations for simulation hours (Fogg et al., 2020). The next step is to conduct an analysis of current simulation use and practice in a course or program. Finally, the curriculum should be examined to identify areas where there are experiential learning gaps or less than optimal learning experiences. Once the analysis is completed, it can be used to determine if the different types or modalities of simulations complement each other, and meet course/program learning outcomes. The evaluation can also point to parts of the curriculum that would be improved through more or better active learning. All classroom, laboratory, simulation lab and clinical educators within a program should be involved in the curricular integration evaluation process. This team approach is important because the versatile nature of virtual simulation means that they are used in many settings besides the simulation lab. They are used in a variety of educational settings and ways such as a large class setting, hospital simulation centres, clinical practice groups, clinical placements, professional development, individual assignment, and as part of an in-person simulation activity. The next step is to identify available simulations i.e. virtual, in-person, standardized patients or simulated participants https://advancesinsimulation.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s41077-017-0043-4, choose ones that meet learning objectives and are within budget constraints. Finally, take the time to document when and where virtual simulations will be used in a particular program.
Expert’s Corner: Collaborative Approach
A collaborative approach to the use of virtual simulation is recommended in order to provide professional development, augment learning, and enhance the student experience.
As noted above, careful, systematic planning is needed for in-depth integration of simulation-based resources to align with course content and content sequencing. Keeping a record of simulation experiences used is helpful for educators but also for administrators (Fogg et al., 2020). When administrators are involved, and understand the full trajectory of simulations used, support is more likely for professional development and educational materials to meet faculty learning needs.
Expert’s Corner: Process Matters
Finding the right virtual simulation to meet learning outcomes is important. Learning is enhanced when educators follow a process for embedding the virtual simulation instead of just adding them to a course or sending learners the link to a virtual simulation.
