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Melanie Jasper

Publications and source records attributed to Melanie Jasper.

7 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2004

Making portfolios work in practice.

BACKGROUND: A portfolio captures learning from experience, enables an assessor to measure student learning, acts as a tool for reflective thinking, illustrates critical analytical skills and evidence of self-directed learning and provides a collection of detailed evidence of a person's competence. AIMS: This paper reports data on how assessors and nursing students match learning outcomes and/or competencies to their practice and then reconstruct those experiences into the format required by the portfolio documentation. The data were gathered as part of a larger study to evaluate the use of portfolios in the assessment of learning and competence in England. METHODS: This three phase stakeholder evaluation was designed to gain the views of those involved in designing, implementing and using portfolios in nurse education. In phase 2, 122 students and 58 nurse teachers were interviewed about their perceptions of portfolio use, and a further 32 students and 26 assessors were interviewed after they had been observed taking part in an assessment process. Thematic data analysis was used. FINDINGS: Assessors and students underwent a complex process of deconstructing learning outcomes/competences to fit these to their practice. These then had to be reconstructed through the written medium to fit the structure of the portfolio. Confirmation that this met teachers' expectations was essential to allay feelings of insecurity. CONCLUSIONS: To achieve maximum benefit from the portfolio as a learning tool to link theory and practice, there needs to be a clear fit between the model of portfolio and the professional practice that is to be assessed. Outcomes and competences, as well as the type of evidence required to demonstrate their achievement, and integration of the whole experience should match the students' stage of professional and academic development. Over-complex approaches to practice assessment, particularly in the early stages of students' careers, can detract from clinical learning in favour of learning how to complete the portfolio successfully.

Clinical Competence↗
PubMed2003

Portfolios and assessment of competence: a review of the literature.

BACKGROUND: The literature review presented here was conducted as part of an English National Board for Nursing, Midwifery and Health Visiting funded project to evaluate the use of portfolios in the assessment of learning and competence. Initial consideration of the topic revealed the need to clarify the terminology and approaches used to assess competence using portfolios, and therefore the literature review was conducted to inform the study. AIMS: To clarify definitions, theoretical bases and approaches to competence and the use of portfolios in the assessment of learning and competence in nursing education. METHODS: A comprehensive literature review was conducted using the CINAHL and MEDLINE databases and the keywords competenc*, portfolios and nursing. Articles published in the period 1989-2001 in English were obtained and their reference lists scrutinized to identify additional references. Twenty articles were found using a combination of the keywords competenc* and portfolios, and 52 using the combination portfolios and nurse education. Articles were included in the review if they focused on the use of portfolios in nursing, and those concerned with professional or transitional portfolios were excluded. This article will analyse definitions of and approaches to competence and its measurement and to portfolios and their use as discussed in the articles identified. RESULTS: Three approaches to competence were identified, each with its appropriate forms of assessment. With regard to portfolios, a number of definitions were again found, but there was a consensus that the theoretical basis of their use is theories of adult learning. A number of reasons for and advantages and disadvantages of their use were found, as well as varying ideas about what a portfolios should consist of and how it should be assessed. CONCLUSION: A holistic approach to competence seems to be compatible with the use of portfolios to assess competence in nursing students, but the concept and its implementation is still evolving. A variety of assessment methods are needed for assessment and portfolios appear to have the potential to integrate these. Reflection is an essential component of a portfolio, as are the student-teacher relationship and explicit guidelines for constructing the portfolio. Issues of rigour in assessment of portfolios need to be addressed, but the assessor's professional judgement will inevitably enter into this assessment.

Clinical Competence↗
PubMed2003

Health Visitors' experiences of Family Group Conferences in relation to child protection planning: a phenomenological study.

AIMS AND BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to explore Health Visitors' experiences of Family Group Conferences as part of Child Protection Planning in Hampshire, England. The aim was to identify good practice, recognizing the challenges of the approach and enabling recommendations for improved collaboration to be framed. The Family Group Conferences model is based on partnership, decision-making and family involvement and presents an alternative to case conferences. METHODS: A Husserlian phenomenological approach was adopted, using taped semi-structured interviews with four health visitors who had experience of Family Group Conferences. Colaizzi's seven stages of phenomenological analysis were used. FINDINGS: The four key categories related to the ability of the Family Group Conference model to empower families; the need for health visitors to receive appropriate education and training; organizational; and professional issues. Health visitors believed that Family Group Conferences could empower families, but they felt unprepared to attend. Concerns were identified regarding confidentiality and responsibility. Although the health visitors supported the principles underpinning Family Group Conferences, they were unsure about how to put theory into practice. The need for more education and training was strongly supported to enable the model to move from marginal to mainstream use. They also considered that Family Group Conferences could threaten interagency working, associated with issues relating to professional responsibility. CONCLUSIONS: The results identified training and procedural issues that need to be addressed if Family Group Conferences are to be introduced successfully within mainstream child protection practice. Insights from this study have led to inclusion of Family Group Conferences in the local child protection guidelines, with emphasis applied to interdisciplinary working, empowerment of families and professional staff, and education and training.

Attitude of Health Personnel↗