An Educational Programme To Facilitate Critical Thinking Of Student Nurses In Namibia

SUMMARY

The focus of this study was to develop an educational programme to facilitate the development of critical thinking in student nurses in Namibia. The study was conducted in four phases, beginning with a needs assessment in phase 1 through which the researcher determined the needs of student nurses in terms of critical thinking. The deductive data analysis of phase 1 served as the conceptual framework for the development of an educational programme in phase 2. Phase 2 consisted of the development of an educational framework to facilitate critical thinking in student nurses. Specific educational approaches and a philosophical framework were employed during the development of the programme. An expert opinion on the programme was obtained before the implementation could be conducted in phase 3. Phases 3 and 4 of the study were conducted simultaneously. Phase 3 covered the implementation of the educational programme and phase 4 the evaluation of the programme. A quasi-experimental design was implemented which focused on active participation by the participants in the programme. The quasi-experimental design incorporated an experimental and a control group and both groups underwent a pretest before the programme commenced.