Latest News Archive

Please select Category, Year, and then Month to display items

Nursing students taken to boot camp in innovative educational strategy

19 October 2021 | Story André Damons | Photo Charl Devenish

Dr Annali Fichardt and Dr Champion Nyoni — Dr Champion Nyoni and Dr Annali Fichardt, together with Prof Yvonne Botma (not on the picture), from the School of Nursing at the University of the Free State (UFS) came in second for their research paper on this innovative educational strategy at the recent Faculty of Health Sciences’ Faculty Research Forum.

When South Africa went into hard lockdown due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the School of Nursing at the University of the Free State (UFS) adopted the conventional boot camp as an innovative way to continue learning and teaching clinical skills for its students.

School of Nursing leadership adopting an innovative educational strategy

The COVID-19 pandemic, specifically the hard lockdown of 2020, challenged the leadership of the School of Nursing to adopt innovative educational strategies to continue learning and teaching, especially for undergraduate nursing students. Adapting theory classes to the online space appeared easier due to the various enabling modalities in the university such as Blackboard, but the same could not be said about learning clinical skills. It is near impossible to learn clinical skills at home. The School of Nursing had to devise ways to facilitate learning of clinical skills in campus during the pandemic. Underpinned by the theory of deliberate practice, they used the boot camp as an innovative educational strategy to continue the learning and teaching of clinical skills.

Dr Champion Nyoni, Dr Annali Fichardt and Prof Yvonne Botma, who did research on this innovative educational strategy, came in second place at the recent Faculty of Health Sciences’ Faculty Research Forum. They also won the Kerneels Nel medal for best educational research paper in 2020.

Manuscript already accepted

The manuscript about their research has already been accepted by The African Journal of Health Professions Education and will be published next year.

“Deliberate practice is understood as a type of purposeful and systematic learning of skills requiring focused attention and is conducted to improve performance. Boot camps are synonymous with conventional training camps, such as used in the military, where specific skills are learnt, and the School of Nursing adopted the practice for this particular situation,” wrote the researchers in the manuscript.

According to them, the boot camps had the dual aim of developing foundational clinical skills for undergraduate nursing students, including sessions missed during the higher levels of lockdown, and preparing them for the ‘new’ workplace environment.

Educational institutions were compelled to adapt their education strategies during the pandemic and the innovation of the use of boot camps as a strategy for learning and teaching clinical skills is an example of what the School of Nursing applied immediately after the hard lockdown.

How the boot camps worked

Each student year group was allocated a week at the simulation laboratory. Each year group was then split into smaller groups to attend their boot camp on specific days of the week. The module outcomes determined the nature and number of clinical skills to be taught per camp.

All the students received a video recording of the clinical skills and associated learning material prior to the boot camp to prepare for the session. On the day of the camp, the group was further split into smaller manageable groups, which were stationed in smaller venues of the simulation laboratory with a preceptor.

Equipment and materials related to the clinical skills for the day were made available in all the venues. A central venue hosted the leading session facilitator, who provided foundational information about the clinical skill before a demonstration while being live-streamed to the other smaller venues. Students in smaller venues watched the leading facilitator via live streaming after which they had opportunities for clarification from their preceptor. All the students in the small groups then demonstrated the taught skills to the preceptor who immediately provided feedback.

This intervention commenced after the hard lockdown and continued for the whole of the year 2020.

Outcomes of the strategy

The boot camps appeared to have influenced the learning and teaching of clinical skills positively, but the strategy is an emergency solution only in response to COVID-19 and is not regarded as suitable for long-term educational purposes. Students’ clinical outcomes appear to have improved compared to previous years and they appreciated the efforts taken by their educators in facilitating the learning of clinical skills and re-integrating them into the clinical environment.

“We always encourage our students to be innovative in their own practice, – the boot camps were an exceptional demonstration of practising what we preach,” says Dr Nyoni.

The infrastructure, the educators, and the leadership of the School of Nursing appeared to be enablers for the effective influence of this strategy. The boot camps were located at the state-of-the-art simulation facilities at the school that have multiple venues and facilities for live streaming. Teamwork among the educators in each year group drove the process through reflecting on their own practice.

News Archive

Eye tracker device a first in Africa

2013-07-31

31 July 2013

Keeping an eye on empowerment

"If we can see what you see, we can think what you think."

Eye-tracking used to be one of those fabulous science-fiction inventions, along with Superman-like bionic ability. Could you really use the movement of your eyes to read people's minds? Or drive your car? Or transfix your enemy with a laser-beam?

Well, actually, yes, you can (apart, perhaps, from the laser beam… ). An eye tracker is not something from science fiction; it actually exists, and is widely used around the world for a number of purposes.

Simply put, an eye tracker is a device for measuring eye positions and eye movement. Its most obvious use is in marketing, to find out what people are looking at (when they see an advertisement, for instance, or when they are wandering along a supermarket aisle). The eye tracker measures where people look first, what attracts their attention, and what they look at the longest. It is used extensively in developed countries to predict consumer behaviour, based on what – literally – catches the eye.

On a more serious level, psychologists, therapists and educators can also use this device for a number of applications, such as analysis and education. And – most excitingly – eye tracking can be used by disabled people to use a computer and thereby operate a number of devices and machines. Impaired or disabled people can use eye tracking to get a whole new lease on life.

In South Africa and other developing countries, however, eye tracking is not widely used. Even though off-the-shelf webcams and open-source software can be obtained extremely cheaply, they are complex to use and the quality cannot be guaranteed. Specialist high-quality eye-tracking devices have to be imported, and they are extremely expensive – or rather – they used to be. Not anymore.

The Department of Computer Science and Informatics (CSI) at the University of the Free State has succeeded in developing a high-quality eye tracker at a fraction of the cost of the imported devices. Along with the hardware, the department has also developed specialised software for a number of applications. These would be useful for graphic designers, marketers, analysts, cognitive psychologists, language specialists, ophthalmologists, radiographers, occupational and speech therapists, and people with disabilities. In the not-too-distant future, even fleet owners and drivers would be able to use this technology.

"The research team at CSI has many years of eye-tracking experience," says team leader Prof Pieter Blignaut, "both with the technical aspect as well as the practical aspect. We also provide a multi-dimensional service to clients that includes the equipment, training and support. We even provide feedback to users.

"We have a basic desktop model available that can be used for research, and can be adapted so that people can interact with a computer. It will be possible in future to design a device that would be able to operate a wheelchair. We are working on a model incorporated into a pair of glasses which will provide gaze analysis for people in their natural surroundings, for instance when driving a vehicle.

"Up till now, the imported models have been too expensive," he continues. "But with our system, the technology is now within reach for anyone who needs it. This could lead to economic expansion and job creation."

The University of the Free State is the first manufacturer of eye-tracking devices in Africa, and Blignaut hopes that the project will contribute to nation-building and empowerment.

"The biggest advantage is that we now have a local manufacturer providing a quality product with local training and support."

In an eye-tracking device, a tiny infra-red light shines on the eye and causes a reflection which is picked up by a high-resolution camera. Every eye movement causes a change in the reflection, which is then mapped. Infra-red light is not harmful to the eye and is not even noticed. Eye movement is then completely natural.

Based on eye movements, a researcher can study cognitive patterns, driver behaviour, attention spans, even thinking patterns. A disabled person could use their eye-movements to interact with a computer, with future technology (still in development) that would enable that computer to control a wheelchair or operate machinery.

The UFS recently initiated the foundation of an eye-tracking interest group for South Africa (ETSA) and sponsor a biennial-eye tracking conference. Their website can be found at www.eyetrackingsa.co.za.

“Eye tracking is an amazing tool for empowerment and development in Africa, “ says Blignaut, “but it is not used as much as it should be, because it is seen as too expensive. We are trying to bring this technology within the reach of anyone and everyone who needs it.”

Issued by: Lacea Loader
Director: Strategic Communication

Telephone: +27 (0) 51 401 2584
Cell: +27 (0) 83 645 2454
E-mail: news@ufs.ac.za
Fax: +27 (0) 51 444 6393

Back

Economic and Management Sciences

Education

Health Sciences

The Humanities

Law

Natural and Agricultural Sciences

Theology and Religion

Open Distance Learning

Business School

We use cookies to make interactions with our websites and services easy and meaningful. To better understand how they are used, read more about the UFS cookie policy. By continuing to use this site you are giving us your consent to do this.

Accept