Evaluation of teaching and learning course in the nursing baccalaureate curriculum in one University Teaching Hospital in Karachi, Pakistan

The Generic BSC Nursing four years degree program is a great achievement of Pakistan Nursing Council (PNC). It was developed in collaboration with HEC (Higher Education Commission). There is an unprecedented shortage of nurse educators in the country. The course entitled NU361: Teaching and Learning: Principles and Practices, forms the foundation for educating students about teaching theory, principles and practices. There is discussion at the PNC level that a one year teacher training program for nurses will be established. However, till this program comes into existence this is the only course offering for potential nurse educators. The teaching learning course will be described as one medium to educate a cadre of nurse educators in the country. This paper will describe the existing HEC/PNC course for NU 361: Teaching and Learning: Principles and Practices as it presents itself in the curriculum. Changes were made based on the prevailing nurse educator situation in Pakistan. Course content was added to reflect current trends in nursing education. This paper will highlight how the given course in the national curriculum was reviewed for curriculum alignment, strengths and limitations. In addition, a new teaching pedagogy of moodle was introduced in the course. It is envisioned that this course will enable student nurses' to utilize appropriate teaching learning strategies in their future settings. (c) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. Open access under CC BY-NC-ND license.