REFLECTIVE LEARNING JOURNAL - Essay Example

Reflective Learning Journal Reflective Learning Journal Faculty Meetings: Besides the faculty meeting that I attended at xxxx College, I also attended faculty meetings at yyyy University in Saudi Arabia. It was very nice to be able to compare between the faculty meetings in two different countries. The ones in Saudi were different; the focus was on the faculty, their tasks, duties, and promotions. I heard very little about students, their needs, and how to promote and facilitate learning. I know that the grades at yyyyy University are 100% based on tests.

Therefore, I suggested dividing the grades and using a variety of evaluation methods such as assignments and reflective journals. However, I was surprised to realize that it is not the faculty decision to change the evaluation methods. The decision is up to the dean of The Applied Medical Science who is not even a nurse. I think having such a bureaucratic system decreases innovation and creativity in a nursing college. It was great to know that yyyy University has modified its curriculum. More Nursing courses have been added to the program and include Nursing Informatics, Care of Older Adults, Principles of Education for Nurses, Counseling, Epidemiology, Nursing Theory, and Genetics for Nurses.

I think adding these courses is a great move forward because it happens after hiring new faculties who get their PhDs in education from developed countries. This change makes me feel better about the future of nursing in Saudi Arabia because there is apt of improvement that just needs passionate personnel. The faculties were very welcoming and they accepted my ideas and me. Additionally, they were very encouraging especially because some of them had been my instructors when I was undergraduate student.

They were also very proud of my accomplishments. That made me happy and more excited to go back to Saudi and contribute to the improvement of nursing education and ultimately nursing care in my country.I also feel grateful because I contributed to changes at Yanbu College in Yanbu city in Saudi Arabia. My brother is an associate professor at Yanbu Collage and teaches chemical engineering. I discussed with him the teaching pedagogies, the assessment, and evaluation methods I learned at xxxxx. At that time, I realized that having a PhD in a field does not mean that you can teach well.

This is because my brother has a PhD in Chemical Engineering but he did not know how to be an effective educator. I was very excited telling him everything I could possibly remember from NUR 504, NUR 528, and NUR 600 courses. He liked the flipped classroom strategy and uses it during lectures to facilitate the students’ critical thinking. In addition, he starts preparing for this pedagogy to apply it coming semester in one course that he teaches to see how well it will go. In addition to that, he discussed the critical pedagogy at his faculty meeting and they might use it as well.

Another thing I discussed with my brother was developing a clear Syllabus and giving it to the student in the beginning of the semester. We both started developing the syllabus. Lastly, we discussed the importance of using different evaluation methods. This is because 85% of the students’ grades are based on tests and only 15% on homework. Therefore, my brother and I ended up developing a very nice syllabus that we feel will improve the students’ learning outcomes and experiences.