NGR 6101

COURSE SYLLABUS

PAGE 6

UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA

COLLEGE OF NURSING

COURSE SYLLABUS

FALL 2011

COURSE NUMBER NGR 6101

COURSE TITLE Theory and Research for Nursing

CREDITS 3

PLACEMENT First Semester in Master's or BSN to DNP Program

OR

Second Semester of BSN-Accelerated Track

PRE/COREQUISITE None

FACULTY Bryan A Weber, PhD, ARNP

HPNP 3221

Office 352.273.6327

Fax 352.273.6531

Office Hours Fridays 10A – 12P by appt.

DEPARTMENT CHAIR M. Josephine Snider, EdD, RN

(352) 273-6359 HPNP 4221

Office hours: By appointment only

JACKSONVILLE CAMPUS DIRECTOR Andrea Gregg, DSN, RN

Jacksonville (904) 244-5172

Office hours: By appointment only

COURSE DESCRIPTION This course is designed to further develop the knowledge and skills necessary to critique theory and research from nursing and related fields. Emphasis is on the relationship among theory, research and practice.

COURSE OBJECTIVES Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to:

1.  Analyze the links among theory, research, and practice in nursing.

2. Analyze the elements of conceptual models and theoretical frameworks.

3.  Critique theories in nursing and other disciplines for their applicability to nursing

practice and research.

4.  Critique published research to identify appropriate use of the steps of the research

process.

COURSE OBJECTIVES (continued)

5.  Compare and contrast quantitative and qualitative research approaches relevant to

nursing inquiry.

6.  Critique research studies used to explore clinical problems in nursing.

7.  Describe ethical and scientific integrity issues related to research.

COURSE SCHEDULE

Section Day Time Room

8595 Web

E-LEARNING

Sakai is the course management system that you will use for this course. Sakai is accessed by using your Gatorlink account name and password at http://lss.at.ufl.edu. There are several tutorials and student help links on the E-Learning login site. If you have technical questions call the UF Computer Help Desk at 352-392-HELP or send email to .

This class is also being delivered using the efficiency of a web-based platform called Voicethread™ for course content delivery and student/instructor interactions. A Voicethread™ is a collaborative, multimedia slide show that holds images, documents, and videos and allows people to navigate pages and leave comments in 5 ways - using voice (with a mic or telephone), text, audio file, or video (via a webcam). There is no software to install to use Voicethread™. The initial link to access Voicethread™ will be sent to your Gatorlink e-mail account.

It is important to implement safeguards to protect the privacy of participants and the course content. The course will be conducted within a secure Voicethread™ environment that requires individual authentication for access and interaction. You should create a unique username and password and protect them both. This safeguard is intended to make course material (including our interactions) only accessible to registered students,the instructor, and others authorized by law and University policy (e.g., IT personnel). Although you are not required to post your picture on the course webs site, experts for on-line education stress the importance of community building to make students feel connected to the course at various levels. Thus, I will be asking you to post your headshot within the first week of the class. Be certain to crop out loved ones/friends so that you are the only person in the picture. If you have ever taken an on-line course in the past you know how tedious and time consuming written discussion boards can be. Unlike any other asynchronous platforms, Voicethread™ makes it possible for us to have dynamic and engaging dialog using voice and video. As testament to the ease and learning effectiveness of Voicethread™ is a comment from a former student, who once told me that “Voicethread™ is the closest thing to being in a classroom.” While you can opt to write your comments, I strongly encourage you to consider using voice and video as it makes the class more interesting, fun, and dynamic. Several tutorials are available in the public portion of Voicethread™ that will aid in the setup of voice and video, and explain the features and benefits of this amazing software. All student comments will be deleted at the end of the course.

For the purposes of this class, our week will begin on Monday morning at 8:00 AM and will close on Sunday evening at 6 PM. Weekly module assignments/on-line discussion will be due no later than the Sunday evening at 6 PM closing time unless otherwise indicated in the weekly schedule below.

It is important that you regularly check your Gatorlink account email for College and University wide information and the course E-Learning site for announcements and notifications.

Course websites are generally made available on the Friday before the first day of classes

ATTENDANCE

Students may be expected to attend on-campus or synchronous classes periodically. Students are expected to participate in the activities and discussions as listed in the course syllabus and on the course web-site. Timeframes for the posting and receiving of materials are listed in the course materials on the course web-site. Make-up exams may not be available in all courses.

ACCOMMODATIONS DUE TO DISABILITY

Each semester, students are responsible for requesting a memorandum from the Disability Resource Center to notify faculty of their requested individual accommodations. This should be done at the start of the semester.

STUDENT HANDBOOK

Students are to refer to the College of Nursing Student Handbook for information about College of Nursing policies, honor code, and professional behavior.

TOPICAL OUTLINE

1.  Theories from nursing and other disciplines influencing evidenced-based practice including general systems theory

2.  Critique/evaluation of theories, models, and frameworks

3.  Analysis of the relationship between theory, research, and practice

4.  Selected steps of the research process:

5.  Problems and purpose

6.  Review of relevant literature

7.  Objectives, hypotheses and questions

8.  Research design

9.  Qualitative research approaches

10.  Quantitative research approaches

11.  Ethical issues in research

12.  Scientific integrity

TEACHING METHODS

Asynchronous interactive e-Learning modules using Sakai and Voicethread™

LEARNING ACTIVITIES

Assigned readings, Web-based discussion, quizzes, written papers, self-evaluation, small group activities, and attendance at selected research meetings

EVALUATION METHODS/COURSE GRADE CALCULATION

Three quizzes (24%), 2 written papers (40%), NIH certificate (10%), online participation in VoicethreadTM (6%), and 1 online presentation (20%). The quizzes will be short answer or multiple choice format. Evaluation of the on-line presentation will based on the collaborative effort of two student groups (both students submitting an outline of their contribution to the group project) and will include the content development, implementation, and leading class discussion of the Voicethread™ presentation.

Assignments/Papers will be returned within 2 weeks.

GRADING SCALE/QUALITY POINTS

A 95-100 (4.0) C 74-79* (2.0)

A- 93-94 (3.67) C- 72-73 (1.67)

B+ 91- 92 (3.33) D+ 70-71 (1.33)

B 84-90 (3.0) D 64-69 (1.0)

B- 82-83 (2.67) D- 62-63 (0.67)

C+ 80-81 (2.33) E 61 or below (0.0)

* 74 is the minimal passing grade

For more information on grades and grading policies, please refer to University’s grading policies at http://www.registrar.ufl.edu/catalog/policies/regulationgrades.html

REQUIRED TEXTS

American Psychological Association (2010). Publication manual of the American

Psychological Association (6th ed.). Washington, DC: Author.

Polit, D. F., & Beck (2010). Nursing research: Generating and assessing evidence for nursing practice (9th ed). Philadelphia: Lippincott.

Assigned articles


WEEKLY CLASS SCHEDULE

Week / TOPIC/EVALUATION / ASSIGNMENTS/READINGS
22 – 28 AUG
Week 1 / Course & e-Learning Overview
College/ University Resources useful for this course
Evidence-base practice
QUIZ 1 / Voicethread™ (VT) week 1
Syllabus
Textbook preface
CON Home page
UF Writing Center
Polit & Beck (P&B)
- Front cover (Hierarchy of Designs [levels of evidence] diagram)
P & B - Chapter 1-3
29 AUG – 4 SEP
Week 2 / Theory in review / VT week 2
P & B - Chapter 6
Assigned articles
5 – 11 SEP
Week 3 / Evaluating theories overview
Quiz 2 / VT week 3
Assigned articles
12 – 18 SEP
Week 4 / Nursing theories
Theories from other disciplines for use in Nursing practice / VT week 4
Assigned articles
Web resources
19 – 25 SEP
Week 5 / Ways of knowing
Scholarly Paper I – Due 6 PM on 9 October via MSWord document e-mailed as an attachment to / VT week 5
Assigned articles
26 SEP – 2 OCT
Week 6 / Philosophy of research / VT week 6
P & B ch 2 & 3
WEEK / TOPIC/EVALUATION / ASSIGNMENTS/READINGS
3 – 9 OCT
Week 7 / Quantitative research design/methods I / VT week 7
P & B ch 4-12
10 – 16 OCT
Week 8 / Quantitative research design/methods II
Quiz III / VT week 8
P & B ch 13-19
17 – 23 OCT
Week 9 / Qualitative research design/methods / VT week 9
P & B ch 20-26
24 – 30 OCT
Week 10 / Research ethics & scientific integrity
Quiz IV / P & B ch 7
Assigned articles and Web resources
31 OCT – 6 NOV
Week 11 / Evaluating evidence
Scholarly Paper II – Due 6 PM on 14 November via MSWord document e-mailed as an attachment to / P & B ch 27 & 28
Assigned articles and Web resources
7 – 13 NOV
Week 12 / Translating and applying theory and research in decision making / Clinical Practice Guidelines
Assigned articles and Web resources
14 – 20 NOV
Week 13 / Student Project Presentation
21 – 27 NOV
Week 14 / Student Project Presentation
28 NOV – 7 DEC
Week 15 / Student Project Presentation

Approved: Academic Affairs Committee: 5/96; 5/01, 01/05

Faculty: 8/96; 6/01, 1/05

UF Curriculum: 10/96; 5/99

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