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Waunakee, Wis.--Faculty and administrators from each of Wisconsin’s 16 technical colleges recently completed a two-year, collaborative curriculum development project focused on alleviating the state’s nursing shortage. Come fall of 2004, learners will be able to enroll in a statewide, “one-plus-one” nursing program at any one of Wisconsin’s 16 technical colleges.
Publish Date : 10/28/2003-- Waunakee, Wis.--Faculty and administrators from each of Wisconsin’s 16 technical colleges recently completed a two-year, collaborative curriculum development project focused on alleviating the state’s nursing shortage. Come fall of 2004, learners will be able to enroll in a statewide, “one-plus-one” nursing program at any one of Wisconsin’s 16 technical colleges.
Developed in collaboration with the Worldwide Instructional Design System (WIDS), a nonprofit organization that provides curriculum-design software, consulting and training services, the unique nursing program allows students to become practical nurses after one year and associate-degree nurses after two years, without overlap or repeating credits.
A first for Wisconsin
The aligned program is a first for Wisconsin and one of a few in the nation, according to Kay Tupala, associate dean of health and public safety at Northeast Wisconsin Technical College in Green Bay. The program is aligned across the state, which means no matter where or how it is delivered – online or face-to-face – it has the same course titles, numbers, credits, descriptions, competencies (skills) and performance standards. Yet, she said, the curriculum leaves instructors free to individualize learning activities and delivery.
“Aligned curricula makes it much easier for the schools and especially the students,” said Barbara Grumet, executive director of the National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission (NLNAC). “Clinical agencies, such as hospitals, know what the background is for each student in terms of pre-clinical knowledge and skills,” said Grumet. “And students have an easier time navigating the system if they have to transfer or ‘stop out’ for a time.”
Each of the WTCS schools will toss out its old nursing program and adopt the new statewide curriculum. That way, all technical colleges will teach to the same standards and learners will achieve the same skills, or competencies, according to Terri Johnson, who facilitated the collaboration process.
As a WIDS consultant Johnson worked with deans and faculty from all 16 colleges to create a program representative of the best practices in nursing.
“All the campuses had to work as a team to help increase the number of nurses and ensure we have a quality product,” said Tupala. “Without a quality facilitator, we would have been spinning our wheels. Designing the program with WIDS software puts the curriculum into an easy, organized and valuable format.”
Dianne Joyce, a nursing instructor at Northcentral Technical College in Wausau, agrees. “We have a remarkable product because baseline rules were established right off,” she said. “We could be the beginning of something national. This is exciting and will be a good thing for Wisconsin.”
Health care hurting for nurses
As the second largest employer in Wisconsin, the health care industry is expected to lose a large number of nurses to retirement in coming years, according to the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development (DWD). As a result, the need for registered nurses and licensed practical nurses is expected to grow 20.2 percent and 14.2 percent, respectively, from 1998 to 2008. The nursing deficit spurred state legislature to urge WTCS to reduce the barriers to entry and advancement in nursing, according to Tupala. The new aligned nursing program is designed with this in mind.
Sharing core competencies; reducing overlap & increasing opportunity
The one-plus-one nursing program requires the same core competencies (skills) to become a practical nurse as it does to become an associate-degree nurse. This allows learners to more easily transfer between programs and schools without duplicating credits. “The program really increases career mobility,” said Karen Taylor, nursing instructor at Chippewa Valley Technical College in Eau Claire. “Students can complete their first year anywhere and finish their second year anywhere for RN licensure.”
It didn’t used to be that way. Now, students enrolled in the associate-degree nurse program can become practical nurses after completing their first year of coursework. If they choose, they can seek licensure to become licensed practical nurses (LPN), and either work as LPNs, or complete the second year of coursework to become associate-degree nurses. Associate-degree nurses can then take a licensure exam to become registered nurses (RN). The new curriculum allows students who complete the one-year practical nurse program to return to school to pursue an associate-degree nurse without duplicating credits.
This makes it much easier for nurses to climb the professional ladder, according to Tupala, because LPNs will not need to repeat general education courses to get back into the nursing program.
Making theory courses available online will also expand opportunities for distance learners and make preparation for nursing more convenient for working professionals, she said. “The new program gives students the choice of online or traditional learning for the theory portion, but also retains clinical hands-on experience,” she said. Emphasis on expansion of nursing programs statewide will also help alleviate long waiting lists throughout the system.
The aligned, statewide program will create more opportunities to educate students interested in nursing, said Tupala. Plus, curriculum used statewide is more cost-effective than developing individual programs at each college.
Saving money & simplifying accreditation
Colleges and faculty can save time and money when it comes to curriculum development and accreditation. When developing the nursing program using WIDS software, the curriculum competencies were linked to NLN standards, ensuring the program met certain requirements. Instead of submitting 16 different nursing curricula to NLNAC, the colleges can now submit one, jointly.
“There are still some factors that each campus will need to address individually, but this simplifies the accreditation process greatly and saves each campus time and money,” said Tupala.
Because competencies are clearly linked to necessary standards, the new aligned program will be easier to evaluate, too. “A statewide curriculum, particularly if developed with NLNAC standards in mind, will clearly make it easier for the school to meet our standards,” said Grumet.
Facilitating the exchange of ideas
WTCS faculty are as impressed with the process of developing the nursing program as they are with the final product. “Frequent statewide curriculum meetings over the past two years have helped us gel as a group, both faculty and administrators,” said Tupala. “I feel I can pick up the phone or email any of the administrators with questions or ideas. I also know that faculty who worked on the project feel the same way. The ability to exchange ideas, share learning activities, discuss policies amongst the campuses is only going to strengthen our product.”
“Students who look to start a nursing program at any of the 16 colleges can be assured we are maximizing their job placement opportunities,” added Taylor. “And because they are learning from curriculum developed by nurses all over the state, they can be confident they’re getting a good education.”
WIDS – a nonprofit division of the Wisconsin Technical College System Foundation Inc. – provides a set of tools to educators, including the WIDS learning model, curriculum-development software and training. WIDS is used for curriculum design by more than 200 colleges and schools nationally. To find out more, visit www.wids.org. |
