Effectiveness of Different Elements in a Case-Based Curriculum in School of Nursing in the Kingdom of Bahrain : Student's Perception

Abstract

Abstract : Background/Purpose of the Study The College of Health Sciences in the Kingdom of Bahrain is adopting a case-based approach during the four years of the undergraduate nursing curriculum. Case-Based Learning (CBL) is a learning method where students are given a case or set of cases for study and research. The students study the case and the new material and try to solve the problem before discussing it in large-group tutorials. Students in a case-based curriculum are not only confronted with problems (cases), but also with other elements such as course objectives, tutors, descriptions of student tasks, learning resources, lectures, and tests. The effectiveness of these various elements on student learning, however, is not clear. This study aims to investigate the effectiveness of these various elements in a case-based curriculum on student learning. Subjects and Methods This study was conducted on second- and third-year nursing students. Students were given a structured questionnaire highlighting the main components of the case-based curriculum that influence students' decisions about what to study. Four themes were included in the questionnaire: tutor, tutorial group, learning resources, and quality of cases. Students were asked to indicate their degree of agreement or disagreement with each statement in the questionnaire on a five-point Likert-type scale. The questionnaire was pretested on a group of students (n = 13), and exploratory factor analysis using principal component factoring and varimax rotation was performed. The reliability of the questionnaire was determined, and it was then distributed to the entire class of second- and third-year nursing students. Results Overall, the four components of CBL were found to have an impact on student learning across degrees and are interrelated. Students perceived that the 'Quality of Cases' is the most effective, while the 'Tutor' is the least effective for their learning. There are differences in perception among students regarding the Learning Resources based on the second and third year curriculum years. The qualitative comments from students on how to improve the effectiveness of CBL programs were related to all four themes (Tutor, Learning Resources, Tutorial Group, and Quality of Cases). Conclusions This study evaluated the students' perception regarding the effectiveness of different elements of the CBL program at the school of nursing. The results indicated that there is a strong need for improving tutor performance and learning resources in the CBL program in Bahrain. These results are expected to have a significant impact on CBL programs in nursing schools in the Kingdom of Bahrain. Encouraging the results of this study may also help the researcher transfer these data to adopt a similar model in Qatar Nursing Schools