Exploring student's perceptions and experience of personal tutors

doi:10.1016/j.nedt.2011.01.005

Nurse Education Today

Volume 31, Issue 8, November 2011, Pages 904-910

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nedt.2011.01.005 Get rights and content

Summary

There are a variety of arrangements to support pre-registration nursing students whilst they engage with the theoretical and practical elements of their course; these includes academic supervisor and a personal tutor. The personal tutor system is recognized as an effective method of ensuring that each student has access to a wide range of support services and that the individual's academic progress and personal development are monitored by a skilled member of academic staff (Harrison, 1990).

However, there is a dearth of studies relating to the role of the personal tutor in nurse education from the students' perspective. This study set out to explore the pre-registration students nurse's experience of personal tutoring at one School of Nursing and Midwifery in a Higher Education Institution (HEI) in the UK. Focus groups and a semi-structured questionnaire were used to collect data from pre-registration nursing participants. Data analysed revealed both positive and negative experiences; most rated their advice and support good with many positive aspects to their personal tutoring expressed however many felt the need for more contact time, more support academically and whilst on clinical placements, and more structured support with their personal development planning.

This paper also describes how the study was conducted, the importance that students place on the role, and the need for further research and areas for improvement.

Introduction

The learning and support experienced by student nurses are pivotal to ensuring that nursing students are fit for practice and can deliver high quality nursing care. However, it is well documented that undergraduates encounter many challenges during their studies, and for some this may mean contemplating leaving their programmes (Cooke et al., 2004, Fowler and Norrie, 2009). Whilst there may be no panacea to the challenges that students face, providing effective high quality student support is undoubtedly critical, and the role of the personal tutor is central to the support systems that higher educational institutes offer. There are a variety of provisions to support pre-registration nursing students whilst they engage with the theoretical and practical elements of their course. The allocation of students to a named personal tutor has been identified as one method of addressing these needs (Gidman et al., 2000). In the UK Higher Education Institutes (HEIs) employ a personal tutoring system for pre-registration students as stipulated by the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) (2004), in which students are allocated a registrant i.e. nurses tutor (from the same part of the register) to support their learning in both academic and practice environments throughout their course; however, this model of support may not be used in HEIs outside the UK. Widening access to students from backgrounds not traditionally associated with higher education has necessitated a review of the personal tutor system, as potential students may not be equipped with the academic skills to meet the demands of higher education. The purpose of this paper is to focus on the findings of a study that set out to explore student nurses' experiences of personal tutoring in one UK HEI.

Section snippets

Background and literature review

As HEIs in the UK, Australia and the USA address major policy drivers of widening and increased participation set out by current government policies (Higher Education Funding Council for England, 2009, Higher Education Opportunity Act, 2008, Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations (DEEWR), 2009), and at a time of increasing focus on attrition rates, the need for student support could not be greater. Moreover, with attrition rates running as high as 28% in the UK (Nursing

Research design

The purpose of this study was twofold. Firstly, to explore the concept of the personal tutor's role from the pre-registration students' perspective, and secondly to contribute to the evidence base for supporting student nurses, contributing ideas for good practice guidelines which would seek to improve student progression and retention. This study utilized both qualitative and quantitative methods and was conducted in two phases. The first phase consisted of a pilot involving focus groups to

Response rate

A total of 32 adult diploma students agreed to take part in three focus groups. A total of 447 students (n = 447) completed and returned the self-report questionnaire, of these 121 were degree and 326 were diploma students out of a potential target population of 929. The response rates varied across programme and branch ranging from 30 to 79%, achieving an overall response rate of 48%. This in part can be attributed to the number of students in attendance on the day the questionnaire was

Discussion

Overall the majority of students appeared to have a positive relationship with their personal tutor and were generally satisfied with the level of support and advice that they received but not all their learning needs were met.

Conclusion

This study has provided a valuable addition to the dearth of literature on students' perspective of personal tutoring, providing knowledge of both positive and negative experiences, and some clear areas for improving the supportive environment where students can consult with peers and compare experiences. It would seem that from the students' perspective further consideration needs to be given to multi-faceted personal tutor role in pre-registration education. This may not only enhance the

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank all the students who participated in this research study for their time and effort and to Conor Lomas for his invaluable support in the data analysis.

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Regarding peers, the two types of support perceived are informative and emotional, thereby coinciding with studies by Mazer and Thompson (2011a), Thompson and Mazer (2009), Thompson (2008) and Aston and Molassiotis (2003), in which support types are considered as the most substantive in the students' assessment. Regarding support types attributed to Academic Institution, both instrumental support (provision of material or temporary resources or services) and emotional support (personal tutors, practicum coordination, academic coordinators, lecturers, etc.) are set in line with the resources belonging to the academic structures (Braine & Parnell, 2011; Chan, So, & Fong, 2009; Price, Hastie, Duffy, Ness, & McCallum, 2011; Weitzel & McCahon, 2008). These results corroborate the usefulness of this tool considering the lack of instruments to evaluate academic support for college students, and its presence in the specific context of the practicum.
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View full text

Exploring student's perceptions and experience of personal tutors

Summary

Introduction

Section snippets

Background and literature review

Research design

Response rate

Discussion

Conclusion

Acknowledgements

Nurses Education in Practice

Nurse Education in Practice

Nurse Education Today

Nurse Education Today

Nurse Education Today

Nurse Education Today

Nurse Education Today

Nurse Education Today

Thematic networks: an analytical tool for qualitative research

Qualitative Research

Why do nursing students who consider leaving stay on their courses?

Nurse Researcher

The personal tutor: a teacher's view

Nursing Standard

Leaving university early: exploring the differences between continuing and non-continuing students

Studies in Higher Education

How social class differences affect students' experience of university

Journal of Further and Higher Education

Higher Education in the Learning Society

Transforming Australia's Higher Education System

Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations

Personal tutor encounters: understanding the experience

Nursing Standard

Development of an attrition risk prediction tool

The British Journal of Nursing