THE EXPERIENCES of Faculty Teaching in an Innovative Clinical Immersion Nursing Curriculum

A lack of research exists regarding the impact of substantive curriculum reform on faculty teaching and attitudes. This report of an interpretive phenomenological study of one group of baccalaureate nursing faculty undergoing implementation of an innovative curriculum revealed that the curricular structure and program philosophy offered multiple new challenges. These included the integration of multiple concurrent learning activities, expansion of simulation, and a renewed focus on student assessment. The study design used Heideggerian hermeneutics, a reflexive approach to text analysis of interviews of seven full-time faculty who had worked in the school's traditional curriculum prior to the implementation of the clinical immersion model. The research offers insights into faculty adaptation to curriculum change and its effect on teaching and instruction. The results of this study may assist other schools contemplating or in the process of similar overarching program reforms.