Nursing students' experiences of flipped classroom teaching method in higher education: a systematic review.

BACKGROUND: During the COVID-19 pandemic face-to-face activities were suspended, boosting the delivery of online teaching. As students returned to campuses, the delivery of active learning teaching methods followed a blended learning style. The flipped classroom, which is a student-centred approach, appears to be an effective teaching method, generating improved learning outcomes. No systematic review has so far explored students' experiences of this teaching method - a knowledge gap that this review aims to address. METHODS: Studies published between 2012 and 2023 were identified from seven databases. The JBI critical appraisal tool was adopted to select high-quality studies and add credibility. Following extraction of qualitative data, meta-aggregation was used to identify synthesised findings. RESULTS: The findings were aggregated into seven categories. Based on meaning similarity, three synthesised findings were identified to answer the research question on how nursing students experience the flipped classroom method. CONCLUSION: Several factors affect the student experience. Although variables are interrelated and complex to analyse, this approach is a valuable teaching method, positively experienced by students with the potential to improve engagement and learning outcomes. The group activities used as a feature of the flipped classroom can be seen as an instrument to deliver a safer and high quality of care.

Thermotropic phase behavior of choline soaps.

Choline carboxylates (ChCm with m = 12-18) are simple biocompatible anionic surfactants with very low Krafft temperatures, possessing a rich aqueous phase behavior. In the present work, we have investigated the thermotropic mesomorphism of anhydrous ChCm salts for m = 12-18. Transition temperatures and enthalpies determined by differential scanning calorimetry reveal that all investigated compounds exhibit three different phases between -20 and 95 °C. The phases were further characterized by optical polarizing microscopy, NMR spin-spin relaxation, and X-ray scattering measurements. The nature of the phases was identified with increasing temperature as crystalline, semicrystalline, and liquid-crystalline lamellar. Even long-chain choline carboxylates (m = 18) were found to melt into a lamellar liquid-crystalline phase below 100 °C. Accordingly, with choline as counterion in simple fatty acid soaps, not only the water solubility is considerably enhanced but also the melting points are substantially reduced, hence facilitating thermotropic mesomorphism at temperatures between 35 and 95 °C. Thus, simple choline soaps with m = 12-18 may be classified as ionic liquids.