A Preliminary Examination of Adaptive Case Studies in Nursing Pathophysiology

Authors

Julie F. Hinkle, University of Central Florida
Patsy Moskal, University of Central Florida

Abstract

Case studies are a valuable instructional tool frequently used in nursing to allow students to analyze clinical problems based on real-world scenarios. This study examines the use of the Realizeit adaptive platform to create case study scenarios for pathophysiology, a course required in the undergraduate nursing curriculum. The data gathered as students progressed through the adaptive content--time on task, number of times cases accessed, and scores on each case--provided valuable information on student behavior and engagement with the three case studies. Results of this preliminary study indicate that adaptive case studies are promising for pathophysiology and system analytics confirmed that all but one of the 1,544 simulations presented to students were unique. This provides a benefit over what would typically be a limited number of distinct options when using instructional case studies without the adaptive learning system. Future research is suggested to examine additional uses of case studies and their impact on students’ knowledge acquisition and engagement when part of a course’s graded assignments.

Keywords

Adaptive learning, case-based pedagogy, simulations, nursing

Recommended Citation

Hinkle, Julie F. and Moskal, Patsy (2018) "A Preliminary Examination of Adaptive Case Studies in Nursing Pathophysiology," Current Issues in Emerging eLearning: Vol. 5: Iss. 1, Article 3.
Available at: https://scholarworks.umb.edu/ciee/vol5/iss1/3