Significance to Distance Education

Distance Learning Name Institutional Affiliation Distance Learning Introduction A major issue that impacts distance-education learning is the critical nature of nursing education that requires more intense nursing learning that may not be possible to offer effectively through online platforms. Currently, a nursing educator can use numerous techniques, simulators, and models, in addition to modern technologies that allow teaching clinical knowledge away from the classroom (Morelock, 2019). However, despite the current advancement, studies have shown that there are numerous challenges that affect the ability to impart clinical knowledge from miles away. Evidence indicates that it may be difficult to determine if a student who is away from the classroom understands what is being taught. To effectually teach present and future online classes, a nurse educator needs to have a clear understanding of the clinical concepts, and master different techniques of delivering this information (Lowery, 2014). This paper examines how the critical concepts of nursing impact distance-education learning and proposes strategies for tackling this challenge. Significance to Distance Education Distance-education learning has expanded rapidly, with advanced technologies enabling nursing education to become more modernized. However, the main challenge facing online education is evaluating whether nursing students understand the critical issues that are taught online. Scholars argue that online learning is not for all students since contrary to popular belief, teaching e-courses can be labor intensive and thus have numerous challenges (Morelock, 2019). Current nursing education utilizes time-tested and traditional techniques like lectures, which are combined with web-enhanced or web-based content. Therefore, students who are not conversant with techniques of navigating through online learning platforms may have a difficult time excelling in nursing courses. Olson and Benham-Hutchins (2014) say that compared to traditional classroom platform, distance-education learning does not have a physical space that is tangible. Instead of face-to-face interaction in physical classrooms, interactions in online classes are only text-based. Students who lack the capacity of understanding the virtual models that are presented in online platforms may not succeed when presented with online courses. Lowery (2014) argues that nursing education is rapidly changing just like the case of the entire healthcare system. Furthermore, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) has argued that nursing education should also advance at a rapid pace to ensure that future nurses are fully prepared for concerted and efficient clinical practice. Recent studies have shown that there is a massive gap between nursing education and effective clinical practice. This increases the challenges experienced by nursing students who rely on online learning platforms. According to Farzi, Shahriari, and Farzi (2018), the current clinical learning systems do not empower students to have the ability to substantiate their clinical skills and merits since online nursing education lacks the required effectiveness. Tackling the Challenges To tackle the challenges associated with offering effective distance-education l...