Radical Online Resource Tuesday: Strategies for Success in Nursing School

Today's blog post focuses on a great Open Educational Resource (OER) called Strategies for Success in Nursing School: From Start to Finish. This is an awesome tool that can be used as an online resource to prepare students for nursing school. Learn more about it in today's blog post!

This upcoming semester will be my first time teaching a non-nursing course. It is a Freshman Seminar course that is designed to introduce new college students to academic success skills. It has always been a desire of mine to reach students before they get to the nursing program because I want to set them up for success. I know that many of my students come to my college lacking some of the study skills and academic acumen that might be found among students who have attended high schools with more resources. I consider it a privilege  to be able to teach this course and provide my students with the tools they need to excel in their academic journey.

One of the main topics that we will cover in this course is time management and study strategies. This is why I was so excited to come across Strategies for Success in Nursing School: From Start to Finish. It immediately caught my attention as it seemed like the perfect resource to share with my students. 

The OER book, Strategies for Success in Nursing School: From Start to Finish is specifically tailored for pre-nursing and nursing students, serving as a comprehensive guide to essential skills for achieving success. It covers a range of crucial topics, beginning with time management and progressing to study techniques and effective test-taking strategies. The book places a strong emphasis on self-care, guiding students on how to maintain their well-being, a skill they can carry forward into their nursing careers to prevent burnout. Additionally, it underscores the importance of utilizing the library as a foundational resource for academic success and future evidence-based practice. Lastly, the textbook includes a section on career planning, offering valuable insights and steps for students embarking on their path to becoming a nurse.

What I love about the book are the awesome interactive elements such as links to inspirational and informational TED Talks, activities such as the :One-Week Time Audit" Workbook where students can enter their information right inside the online document, and even drag and drop activities. This is not your typical text. It encourages students to take action and implement what they learn immediately.

This is an excellent way to set students up for success in nursing school and beyond. The book is very comprehensive and covers the most important topics for nursing students today. The author even conducted a study to determine the effectiveness of this resource via a 5 week online asynchronous course. Read about the results HERE.

A special thank you to Leslie A. Jennings and Regina W. Urban for making this amazing resource available! 

I'd love to hear your ideas on how you might be able to use this resource in your own online course. Share them in The Online Educator Facebook Group!