Research Based Learning (RBL) at the Royal Thai Navy College of Nursing CDR.Suwapak Vesamavibool RTN. Head of Mental Health and Psychiatric Nursing Department, Royal Thai Navy College of Nursing (RTNCN) Introduction The Royal Thai Navy College of Nursing has continuously improved and developed the teaching and learning system. Presently, the curriculum of Bachelor of Nursing 2008 has been applied and used as guidelines for teaching and learning management since 2008. The objectives of the course are not only to produce the graduates who are academically and militarily qualified but also to equip the graduates with the knowledge in conducting researches. They should be able to apply the results gained from the researches to the actual working environment. The course also aims to produce the graduates who have critical mind and can make rational decision. The graduates from the college should be creative, eager to learn, and always pursue the lifelong learning goal. Therefore, the teaching and learning system needs to be research-based instruction which would be the key element for the college to be able to achieve the prime objectives. Underpinning Theories of RBL Researches are activities to pursue new knowledge. Using research as a tool is to achieve two main objectives. 1. To encourage the learners to discover the required knowledge by themselves. This derives from various concepts. a. Constructivists believe that the process of learning exists within the learners. Individual builds up knowledge by combining new experiences with background knowledge. b. The concept of Experience Learning also stated that Experience Learning takes the student out of the detached role of vicarious learner and plunges her into the role of participant observer, performer, or even teacher. c. The concept of Active Learning also claimed that the body of knowledge or the process of learning would be more valuable and permanent when learners have shifted the position from being passive learners to active ones. 2. To develop learners who have required educational qualities eagerness to learn, pursuit of knowledge, ability to solve problems by themselves, independence, and leadership. Characteristics of RBL Principle 1: Fundamental concepts. Change the concept of listening and giving the correct answers to asking questions and finding the answer by oneself. Principle 2: Objectives. Change the objectives from remembering, doing and using to thinking, searching and questing. Principle 3: Teaching methodology. Change the methodology from giving lecture to giving advices. Principle 4: Role of instructors. Change the role of instructors from self conducting to arranging and allowing learners to conduct.
2 These principles are shown in the following table. Learning activities Lecturing Seminars Projects Researches Objectives Remembering Researching Learning Listening to lectures and answering questions Teaching Lecturing Advising s Performer Manager Self questioning and searching for answers Learners Observer Performer (modified from Paitoon Silaratana, 2003) Patterns of Research Based Learning (, 2003) A. RBL which uses results from researches in teaching and learning is composed of: 1. learning the results and/or applying them in teaching 2. learning from numerous studies and/or synthesizing researches B. RBL which uses process of research conducting in teaching and learning is composed of: 3. studying the research methodology and/or how to conduct researches 4. learning from doing research reports 5. learning from participating in research projects 6. learning from doing baby thesis 7. learning from writing theses. Applications of RBL at the Royal Thai Navy College of Nursing From the seven levels of RBL, it is clear that the process of research conducting is thoroughly woven in teaching and learning system starting from encouraging learners to acquire knowledge from consulting textbooks and academic documents, studying research results and eventually being able to independently conduct researches. The Royal Thai Navy College of Nursing has classified the RBL into 4 categories. Category 1 Learning and teaching system that based on results from researches is at the basic level. Learners at the level would study results from various researches that are relevant to the subject content. Learners then discuss and exchange opinion with peers and instructors regarding to what they have found from the studies. This approach has become foundations of several subjects. 1. The First Year: In Basic Nursing 1, the students are assigned to research, collect, and summarize information from research reports in the topic of making the bed which is included in the subject of nursing care for healthy people. 2.The Second Year: In the subject of nursing care for patients with health deviation, the students are assigned to collect information from articles and results from evidence based practice. Then, exchange, discuss and summarize the collected information with peers and instructors. 3.The Third Year: In Psychiatric Nursing, students are required to read research papers and refer to the knowledge in the writing of case study report. 4.The Fourth Year: In Primary Nursing Care, instructors would prepare relevant studies as references for students. Category 2 is the teaching and learning system that is based on synthesis of studies and researches. It is a requirement for the students to be able to qualitatively synthesize the information
from reading researches and to summarize and conclude the information. The quantitative synthesis is also needed to analyze figures or statistics appeared in researches. These elements are included in several subjects. 1.The Third Year: In Practicum of Pediatric and Adolescent Nursing, students are assigned to study phenomenon relating to chronic child and adolescent patients admitted in the hospital. They are also required to do research to find the guidelines to treat the patients. The guidelines would then be openly discussed with peers and instructors prior to actual application. In Nursing Administration and Management, the students are encouraged to analyze various points in nursing management, and suggest some solutions on research basis. 2. The Fourth Year: In Practicum of Nursing Administration and Management, students are stimulated to analyze the situation on wards in aspects of nursing management, and through the research process suggest the solutions. Category 3 The teaching and learning system in this category would emphasis on constructing students' ability in conducting researches under the instructors' supervision. Case studies and research projects are main focus. This concept firmly underpins the Practicum of Psychiatric Nursing in the Fourth Year of which students are required to conduct projects to promote the preventions of psychiatric problems. The students need to identify the problem, search for the outstanding points, make assumption, collect data, analyze the data, process the data and present the results as a project to suggest the solutions and preventions of psychiatric problems to the targeted group of people. Category 4 is the teaching and learning system that is purely related to independently conducting of researches. In Nursing Research in the Fourth Year, the students are divided into groups to conduct a research and write a research report, and then present it to the instructors board. An example of the application of Research-based learning for Practicum of Psychiatric Nursing for nursing students in the Fourth Year. The objectives of the subject are to provide the nursing students a supervised practical practice on psychiatric nursing by means of nursing process, and to let the students practice establishing a close rapport and the therapeutic communication with the patients. Through research process, the practice is also on conducting various campaigns to raise public awareness of mental health problems and to introduce a precautionary measures to combat the problems. Example The Games Addiction Prevention Program for Intararam School Length of the program: 7 weeks Process 1. Initial Preparation Stage 1. Brainstormed for appropriate research-based activities to promote awareness raising and introduce precautions to mental health problems 2. Studied the current trend of the mental health problem in Thai society to set the guidelines for the students' projects. 1. Studied the research process and methodology 2. Studied the current trend of the mental health problem in Thai society to be able to discuss and exchange the information among peers and with instructors. 3
4 2. Operation Stage 2.1 Research problem identification 1. Questioned the students on their gathered information related to mental health problems 2. Stimulated the students to openly and widely discuss the information to select the current controversial issue related to mental health problems 3. Organized activities to allow students to identify the problems and set the research objectives 2.2 Hypothesis establishment 1. Assigned students to gather more information on the problem and solution of youth game addiction through textbooks, research results and articles 2. Stimulated the students to discuss and share the body of knowledge, and establish the hypothesis related to the set objectives 2.3 Testing of hypothesis 1. Stimulated students to brainstorm for methods to test the established hypothesis 2. Discussed with the students the appropriate methods and approaches for the hypothesis testing 2.4 Information gathering 1. Asked permission from Intararam School to let the nursing students gather information at the school 2. Facilitated and gave advises throughout the information gathering process 1. Discussed to reach the agreement on the selection of the targeted mental health problem 2. Selected the youth game addiction and identified the research objectives 1. Studied more on the problem and discussed the information gathered 2. Set the relevant hypothesis 1. Brainstormed for and constructed the appropriate testing methods and tools to test the established hypothesis 2. Designed the questionnaire for selecting the children addicted to games and the interview pattern for the subjects as the research tools 1. Gathered data through the questionnaire involving 120 participants who are the school's grade 6 students 2. Gathered data through interviewing with the school principal and the class teachers
5 2.5 Data Analysis 1. Suggested the relevant statistics for data analysis 2. Assisted in interpreting results Analyzed and interpreted the data gathered from the questionnaire and the interview From the analysis, the results showed that there were 8 participants addicted to games, 37 enjoying playing games, and 30 at risk of game addiction. 2.6 Solutions planning/establishment of game addiction prevention program 1. Stimulated the nursing students to apply their acquired nursing knowledge in planning the prevention program 3. Evaluation Stimulated the students to discuss and opine the benefits from the research based program 1. Brainstormed to find the suitable solutions for the problem of game addiction: 1) conducted role play to simulate the current condition of the game addiction problem, 2) conducted group works to stimulate the grade 6 students to analyze the physical, mental and socializing problems that might be derived from the game addiction 3) conducted group works to encourage the school students to coordinately set the goals of life and declare the testament based on the discussed goals 4) summarized and concluded the program 5) prepared a report on solutions to youth game addiction which composed of the information on the game addiction situations, effects of the addiction, the students' self analysis and goal setting. The report then was presented to the school in order to follow up and take reasonable precautions Exchanged the opinion and stated that they gained the following elements. 1. more rational and logical way of thinking process 2. researching skill to gather data from various sources 3. improved ability in coordinating, communicating and working in team 4. pride in being able to practically apply theories to help the targeted people in real situations
6 Consequences The school principal and class teachers are all in agreement that the program does significantly provide various benefits in setting precautionary measures to the youth game addiction problem. The school also includes the information gained from the program into the school's health education. Weaknesses and points to be further developed The Department of Mental Health and Psychiatric Nursing is still lack of the concrete evaluation form for the research-based learning. Therefore, in this academic year, the department is conducting a research project on the evaluation of the research based learning. Challenges in RBL at the Royal Thai Navy College of Nursing 1. The foreign language research journals are not sufficiently available. 2. The information technology system has yet to well establish for searching information. 3. The students are lack of internet searching skills such as inability to select the effective key words to be typed in search engine, limited knowledge of sources and so on. 4. The evaluation of learning still focuses only on subject content and does not include the research process embedded in learning system. Future Developments of RBL at the Royal Thai Navy College of Nursing As the RBL does provide good results and promote the students' critical thinking, problem solving and eagerness to learn, the preparedness of the Royal Thai Navy College of Nursing in various areas needs to be achieved in order to provide the effective learning results according to the set objectives. 1. The provision of adequate number of up-to-date journals both in Thai and foreign languages is needed. 2. The development of the information technology system is also required. 3. The students need to be prepared and equipped with knowledge related to research based learning such as knowledge about research process and the internet researching. 4. The evaluation system should also be modified to suit and correspond with the research based learning. 5. There is a need to conduct a study to find out the extent of the RSL's influence on producing nursing graduates who have critical thinking, good judgement, be able to solve problems and eager to learn.