Improving Portfolio Assessment: Addressing Challenges in Transition to Eportfolio.

BACKGROUND: As health care education programs adopt electronic portfolios (eportfolios), a midwestern university baccalaureate nursing program faces challenges in transitioning from a 25-year-old paper-based system to eportfolio. METHOD: Process improvements and faculty development were implemented through collaboration with the information technology (IT) department and the involvement of students as ambassadors. Pre- and posttransition surveys and portfolio benchmarks were used to evaluate the efficacy of the new eportfolio system. RESULTS: Results of faculty and student surveys revealed improved positive experiences regarding the value, clarity, and ease of use of the eportfolio system. Benchmark deficits decreased from six of eight portfolio criteria in Fall 2017 to none in Fall 2019. CONCLUSION: Buy-in through faculty and student involvement, along with a user-centered design, are essential for a successful eportfolio transition. Student and faculty engagement would be secured when they are well-informed in the transition process. [J Nurs Educ. 2020;59(12):705-708.].

A Framework for Educator Storytelling: Situation, Background, Assessment, Recommendation, Review (SBARR).

BACKGROUND: Delivering content in an interactive manner presented a specific challenge in a medical-surgical course. Storytelling, using an SBARR (Situation, Background, Assessment, Recommendation, Review) format, emerged as a means to deliver content in an interactive and engaging manner. PURPOSE: The purposes were to provide a framework for effective educator storytelling in the nursing classroom and after implementation of the framework, to gather student perceptions of the effectiveness of the SBARR framework. METHODS: A 2-stage qualitative methods approach using Bengtsson's method of thematic content analysis was chosen for the pilot study. Content analysis and a descriptive survey were used to gather student perceptions of the SBARR framework. RESULTS: Five themes emerged: stay engaged, retain material, comprehend concepts, relate theory to practice, and develop critical thinking. CONCLUSIONS: Nurse educators seeking to improve effectiveness while capitalizing on their wealth of experience from clinical practice may benefit from the use of storytelling using the SBARR format.