Evaluation and Philosophical View In Nursing Education and Evaluation its Types, Alternative
Introduction to the Evaluation Process In Nursing
Nursing faculty are responsible for evaluating student learning, courses, curricula, and program outcomes, as well as their own teaching practices. They are accountable to students, peers, administrators, employers, and society for the effectiveness of the nursing program.
The purpose of this chapter is to present an overview of the process by which nursing faculty can evaluate instructional and program outcomes and report results to stakeholders. The chapter provides an overview of evaluation and delineates a step-by-step evaluation process.
Also, this chapter provides
information about the use of evaluation models; selection of instruments; data
collection procedures; and the means to interpret, report, and use findings.
Results can be used to make decisions about improving student learning; faculty
performance; and course, curriculum, and program quality. This chapter is a
link to previous and subsequent chapters that discuss specific evaluation
activities and strategies.
What Is Evaluation?
Evaluation is a broad term that describes the process of determining value, worth, or quality. In nursing education it is an ongoing process that begins with specifying outcomes and criteria (program outcomes, course outcomes, learning outcomes, promotion, and tenure criteria), providing opportunity to attain the outcomes (participating in instruction and learning activities), receiving information about progress toward attaining the outcomes (skills practice prior to actual clinical performance), and ends with evaluation or a judgment about the extent to which outcomes were attained.
A variety of terms are used in describing this process;
they are connected, yet distinct. In this book the following terms are used to
describe the evaluation process.
Evaluation Types and Alternative Terms
Evaluation involves gathering and appraising data or placing a value on data gathered through one or more measurements. Evaluation is a process of making judgments using pre-established criteria that have been communicated to the individual or group prior to their use.
In nursing education, faculty evaluate students' learning in cognitive, psychomotor, and affective domains in both classroom and clinical settings; determine the effectiveness of teaching and learning; and judge the outcomes of curricula and academic programs. Evaluation is also a professional activity that educators undertake to reflect on their own performance.
Evaluation may be defined by the time frame in which it is conducted. In formative evaluation, the judgment about the performance is conducted while the event being evaluated is occurring. Formative evaluation focuses on determining progress toward purposes, outcomes, learning activities, courses, or curriculum, and provides opportunity for correction and improvement.
Formative evaluation emphasizes the parts instead of the entirety. The aim of formative evaluation is to monitor progress (eg, in student learning, institute a new teaching–learning strategy such as simulation, or in curriculum or program development) and make ongoing corrections to ensure the desired end result is attained.
For formative evaluation of a program, many schools of nursing use national standardized testing systems. Each semester students take a test that identifies the student's competencies and their placement nationally. This helps to determine student progression through key concepts within the curriculum.
Weaknesses within the curriculum can be identified using content-specific testing as the cohorts progress through the nursing program. Thus formative evaluation provides critical data for ongoing changes necessary to improve student outcomes. One advantage of formative evaluation is that the events are recent, thus guarding accuracy and preventing distortion over time.
Another major advantage of formative evaluation is that the results can be used to improve student performance, program of instruction, or learning outcome before the program or course has been concluded (Waugh & Gronlund, 2012).
Disadvantages of formative evaluation include making judgments before the activity (classroom or clinical performance, nursing program) is completed and not being able to see the results before judgments are made.
Formative evaluation can also be intrusive or interrupt the flow of outcomes. There is also a chance for a false sense of security when formative evaluation is positive and the results are not as positive as predicted earlier.
Summative evaluation, on the other hand, refers to data collected at the end of the activity, instruction, course, or program (Waugh & Gronlund, 2012; Story et al., 2010).
The focus is on the whole event and emphasizes what is or was and the extent to which objectives and outcomes were met for the purposes of accountability, resource allocation, assignment of grades (students) or merit pay or promotion (faculty), and certification.
Therefore, summative evaluation is most useful at the end of a learning module or course and for program or course revision. Summative evaluation of learning outcomes in a course usually results in assignment of a final grade.
The advantages of performing an evaluation at the end of the activity are that all work has been completed and the findings of the evaluation show results. The major disadvantage of summative evaluation is that nothing can be done to alter the results.
What Is Assessment
Assessment refers to gathering and using data that are used to improve the factors being evaluated in relation to the specified criteria. Assessment data are used to determine progress and provide guidance toward attaining the desired outcomes.
Faculty use assessments to give feedback to student learning, to improve teaching and learning, and to coach and guide students to competency or mastery. Although similar to formative evaluation in that one of the purposes of assessment is to monitor progress, the focus of assessment is on improving teaching and learning.
Assessment is an interactive process between students and faculty with the goal
of improving learning and teaching. Findings from assessment are diagnostic;
the results are used for improvement and are not “graded.”
What Is Grading
Grading involves quantifying data from student work and assigning a value. The value is expressed as a “grade,” or representation of the value of the student’s work.
Final grades, grades obtained at the end of the course of study, are typically required in academic programs and are used to communicate to the student, the university, and the public the achievement of the student as determined by the faculty.
Grading
criteria must be made evident to the student prior to assigning grades. These
criteria are published, typically in a syllabus, for both grading of
assignments and for calculating a final course grade.
Philosophical Approaches to Evaluation In Nursing Education
Conducting an evaluation begins with understanding one' s philosophy, or values and beliefs about evaluation. The philosophy will influence how evaluations are conducted, when evaluations are conducted, what methods are used, and how results are interpreted. A philosophy is reflected in attitudes and behavior.
In nursing education, evaluations or judgments are made about performance (students and faculty), program effectiveness (a nursing curriculum or program), instructional media (a textbook, a video), or instruction (course, faculty). Evaluation activities in nursing education are conducted from various perspectives, and these perspectives influence outcomes.
Therefore, evaluators should be aware of the perspective or orientation as they relate it to the evaluation process. Several philosophical perspectives tend to influence evaluation. Educators who rely on goals, objectives, and outcomes to guide program, course, or lesson development will likely have a goals approach to evaluation.
The merits of the activity or program are largely indicated by the success of students in meeting those goals or objectives. A service orientation toward evaluation emphasizes the student learning process and includes self-evaluation, thus assisting educators to make decisions about learners and the teaching–learning process.
Although all evaluation involves judgment, the evaluator with a judgment perspective focuses on establishing the worth or merit of the employee, student, product, or program. Others have a research orientation to evaluation and emphasize precision in measurement and statistical analysis to gain a general understanding of why students and programs do or do not succeed.
The focus in this perspective is on tools, methods, and designs as they relate to validity and reliability of instruments. Yet another orientation is the constructivist view, which emphasizes the values of the stakeholders and builds consensus about what needs to be changed.
Although faculty, in their role as evaluators, use a combination of these perspectives, one is likely to be dominant, and faculty should be aware of the perspective they bring to the evaluation process because their philosophical orientation toward evaluation will guide the evaluation process and influence outcomes. More importantly, results should be used by faculty for course, clinical, and program improvement.
Give your opinion if have any.