Date of Award

January 2015

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

Teaching & Learning

First Advisor

Carolyn C. Ozaki

Abstract

Community college part-time nursing faculty enter academia as expert clinicians, but most have little or no training in the pedagogy of effective student learning. The purpose of this study was to use qualitative phenomenological methods to explore community college part-time nursing faculty’s perceptions of their experiences during their role transition from nurses in clinical practice to part-time clinical instructors in academia. In addition, this study explored if and how community college part-time nursing faculty developed a professional identity as clinical instructors through their experiences. The research questions were: 1. Through their experiences, how do community college part-time nursing faculty describe their role transition process and development of their professional identity as clinical instructors? 2. What are part-time nursing faculty’s perceptions of the pedagogical skills and support needed in order to promote effective student learning in their role as clinical instructors in the community college setting? 3. What are the part-time nursing faculty’s perceptions of the initial and long-term professional development and support they need to promote their professional identity development and role transition from nurses in clinical practice to instructors in the community college setting? The theoretical framework guiding this study was Illeris’ Transformative Learning and Identity theory (Illeris, 2014). Eight themes emerged to support the proposition that six participants have experienced a role transition process over time from nurses in clinical practice to part-time clinical instructors and developed a professional identity as part-time clinical instructors, however two continue in the process. In addition, critical to this transition and identity development are the social influences and relationships with other instructors, faculty, and students; incentive to learn to be better instructors, and the importance of support and training. A complimentary model emerged specific to this population, The Process of Role Transition and Professional Identity Formation for Part-time Clinical Instructors at Two-Year Institutions Model. This model is potentially useful for leaders at two-year institution nursing programs in developing individualized orientation and professional development programs for part-time faculty that support them in learning their roles, responsibilities, and pedagogical skills necessary to facilitate effective student learning.

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