Mind maps

Oh, my....it has been a long time since I have posted! April, in fact. The summer has flown by....and soon the semester will be over. We have admitted a second cohort at Duke so I will be teaching the maternity course in the fall....will be fun to try some new things, so quickly after I finished a course.

This summer instead of the "traditional" concept maps we have done Mind Maps, a term and process coined by a British man, Tony Buzan.How to Mind Map: The Ultimate Thinking Tool That Will Change Your Life The outcome of this work has been incredible. While not a short process I have seen the evidence of "deeper thinking" from the students. I did it a bit different, I started with two case studies. Students then had a process and a grading rubric they used to construct an outline, then from their reading (text, an article of their choice on the topic and the standard of care from their clinical site) they completed the visual map. I will be doing an evaluation of the process in a couple of weeks...but all evidence is pointing to that this was a very valuable exercise. I am posting a few of them here. What incredible work that was done.

hg

The digital natives: "Engage them, don't enrage them"

We know the majority of our students are "digital natives." Yet how much of the technology do we utilize in our teaching? This thought provoking You Tube video will perhaps push the question for teachers, no matter what level of students are in your classroom? It seems in nursing we are working to integrate technology into teaching...but perhaps not fast enough? This material is presented in both an evidence-based format as well as another great example of how PowerPoint can be effectively used in a "Presentation Zen" format. The quote I pulled from the video that STUCK was the one I used in the title of this blog..."engage them, don't enrage them." Here it is:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aEFKfXiCbLw&feature=player_embedded

Welcome!

New blog. Yes, maybe a distraction from data collection or maybe the first step in something I have wanted to do for a long time and that is create a place to house information, articles, books, videos, etc about innovative teaching. I have posted a book I will profile later: Presentation Zen. Without question one of the most exciting transformations in how I visually present information to students in my classes. There are a growing number of us at Duke School of Nursing (DUSON) who are experimenting with this visual information format. It is so much better than PowerPoint because it really does "click" into how information is integrated and stored for later application. It is a must read for anyone who uses a lot of slides in their teaching. Do your students a favor and try a new format, then ask them what they like better....dense PowerPoints with too many bullets or visual images they can remember?

What follows is a great example of the Presentation Zen form of a presentation. See if you think your students will remember this? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WIvmE4_KMNw&feature=player_embedded