Effects of Writing Reflective Journal onMeta-cognition and Problem Solving Ability in Nursing Students taking a Fundamental Nursing Skills Course Applying Blended Learning / 기본간호학회지

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to contribute to the development of an efficient teaching-learningmethod by analyzing effects of writing reflective journals onmeta-cognition and problem solving ability in nursing students in education applying blended learning for fundamental nursing skills. METHODS: The research design was a one-group pretest-posttest design, done to assess changes in meta-cognition and problem solving ability. Participants were 63 nursing students taking the fundamental nursing skills course at one college in Gyeonggi Province. The course was offered from March 21 to June 3, 2016. Data were collected using pre and post tests given before and after writing of reflective journals in blended learning. Data were analyzed using t-test, ANOVA, Scheffé's test and paired t-test with SPSS Statistics version 20.0. RESULTS: The results of this study show that scores formeta-cognition and problemsolving ability of these students were all above average. There was a statistically significant difference inmeta-cognition between pre and post writing of reflective journals but not for problem-solving ability. CONCLUSION: The findings indicate that writing a reflective journal in blended learning is an efficient teaching-learning method to improve meta-cognition in nursing students.

A Study on the Use of Reflective Journals in Problem Based Learning / 한국의학교육

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to analyze the opinions of students and tutors about the use of reflective journals in Problem Based Learning performed in Seoul National University College of Medicine over a period of 4 weeks, and to determine the possible applications of such journals as an evaluation tool. METHODS & RESULTS: The writing of a reflective journal helps students to achieve some of the important PBL goals, for example, keeping such a journal encourages students to reflect on their learning experiences, and fosters problem solving skills. All students were asked to complete the same questionnaire every weeks for the four week period. Most students thought of a reflective journal as a tool for personal reflection, rather than as a tool for fostering problem solving skills. The questionnaire was rated on 5 point scale: from 'very important' to 'not important at all'. Fifty eight percent of tutors and 20% of students replied that the journal writing was 'very important'. CONCLUSION: We suggest the following items for the future application of the reflective journal as an evaluation tool. First, intimate trust should be developed between students and tutors, as a reflective journal can include private matters. Second, tutors should give feedback for the student's reflective journal. Finally, comprehensive direction should be given to students and tutors to allow them to use their reflective journals effectively.