“F.A. Davis’s books and resources don’t try to cover everything; they focus on the critical content that students need to become practice-ready nurses.” Melanie Wynja, BSN, MSN, DNP Professor of Nursing and Simulation Director Dordt University
Dr. Melanie Wynja is a Professor of Nursing at Dordt University’s BSN program. She brings more than 30 years of clinical experience spanning neurology, rural hospital care, occupational health, and mental health. Before joining Dordt, she held roles as a nursing instructor and simulation coordinator in LPN and ADN programs. Dr. Wynja is also a Certified Healthcare Simulation Educator and has presented at conferences on local, state, national, and international levels. She joined Dordt University in 2017 and played a pivotal role in launching their prelicensure BSN program. Development of the BSN Program at Dordt University The BSN program at Dordt University was developed using a concept-based curriculum to foster critical thinking and clinical reasoning—skills essential for competent nursing practice. “ Our ‘north star’ for nursing education is to deliver a practice- ready nurse .” The goal is for students to begin thinking like nurses from the very first day. During the development phase, Dordt University evaluated books from numerous publishers. They ultimately selected F.A. Davis products because their resources best aligned with their concept-based approach and mission to train practice-ready nurses. “ We like the way F.A. Davis delivers the content. They focus on the most important exemplars that students need to become competent nurses. They don’t try to cover everything; one of the goals with a concept-based curriculum is to decrease content saturation, and we feel that the F.A. Davis’s books and online resources help students understand the key concepts to apply to any situation. ” She highlights the presentation of content, such as effective headings, tables, and bullet points, which emphasize the key points students must consider to become resourceful nurses. Melanie emphasizes that students are not expected to memorize every detail; instead, F.A. Davis’s materials guide them to the essential responsibilities of a nurse caring for patients. This approach supports the development of critical thinking and clinical reasoning, enabling students to apply these skills at the bedside. Additionally, the vignettes, questions, and case studies provided in the materials encourage practical, real-world application of concepts. Melanie believes these features help students bridge the gap between theoretical learning and clinical practice. Implementing Davis Advantage in the Curriculum Melanie finds that F.A. Davis products are highly compatible with Dordt University’s concept-based curriculum. The resources are easy to tailor, and the online activities can be structured to support either a concept-based or systems-based model. When the program was launched, Concepts for Nursing Practice by Jean Giddens (Elsevier) was adopted for foundational concept content, while F.A. Davis products provided exemplars and practical application. Students are assigned conceptual readings from Giddens and related content from F.A. Davis books. Recognizing that some students do not always read assigned material or may not learn best through reading, Melanie relies on Davis Advantage Personalized Learning activities to prepare students for class. These activities are assigned beforehand, contributing to students’ grades and priming them for active engagement in the classroom. Melanie describes these as excellent activities that focus on the most crucial content. “ We have much more productive classroom discussions and activities because students come ready to participate. ” Clinical Judgment activities are also employed to ensure students can apply learned material, while Quizzing is used for exam preparation. Melanie values the quality and quantity of NCLEX-style questions and the rationales provided, which help students understand why their answers are correct or incorrect. Both Clinical Judgment activities and Quizzing count toward homework points. She also emphasizes that having such high-quality exercises already prepared saves a lot of time for faculty. Looking ahead, Melanie anticipates incorporating new Simulations from Davis Advantage, which she believes will further help students understand practical application. She appreciates the flexibility of Davis Advantage exercises, which can be
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