CAREERS STUDENT LIFE
Building a mentor programme IKON
Social networking can enhance communication among peer mentors in nursing education, writes Shellie Jean Radford
conduct some participatory action research into the effects of the Facebook mentoring group. Together, we created the mentoring action research group (MARG). My role was to review the literature on peer mentoring and online social networks in higher education and to compare my findings with the results of surveys conducted at an evaluation day. We used Wenger’s communities of practice model (see resources) to analyse learning methods and how nursing students develop meaning and identity.
Online communities
The peer mentoring scheme run at the University of Nottingham’s school of nursing links first-year students with more senior peer mentors on the same course. The scheme was devised by lecturers and academic staff as part of a project to tackle attrition rates. A pilot was launched in 2011, and although small scale, it benefited first-year mentees and their mentors. The scheme was rolled out the following year.
Success factors Scheme was guided, not dictated, by lecturers. Scheme evolved to become a community of mentors. Facebook was used as a tool. Mentors experienced personal and professional growth outside the boundaries of the university. 64 may 28 :: vol 28 no 39 :: 2014
I volunteered to become a peer mentor and attended a training day. This involved group work, scenarios and discussion about the roles and boundaries. Mentors and mentees are matched according to programme branch, and each mentor is assigned between three and seven mentees. The first contact was via university email during the first week of lectures. One of the peer mentors initiated a secret Facebook group for the peer mentors to interact. Although other contact methods were available, such as via Moodle, Facebook was the main communication tool. The Facebook group was also used to promote face-to-face events, as well as providing a support network for peer mentors themselves to discuss concerns and issues. The scheme leader identified me and two other mentors as community leaders and asked us to
Many researchers now recognise that Facebook can be used as a community building tool in education, although little is known about the implications of online communities for nurse education and transition into nursing practice. MARG conducted several surveys to identify perceived benefit and limitations of the Facebook community and the gain in transferable skills through acting as a peer mentor. The research found significant correlation between applying the peer mentor role in an online community and the development of transferable skills. The research demonstrates the potential for linking peer mentoring and online communities as an opportunity for students to practise their professional identity in a familiar, and yet remote, online community environment NS Shellie Jean Radford was a nursing student at the University of Nottingham and is now a staff nurse in critical care at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust RESOURCES The University of Nottingham’s peer mentoring scheme www.nursingpeermentors.wordpress.com Wenger’s communities of practice model www.wenger-trayner.com/theory
NURSING STANDARD
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Building a mentor programme IKON
Social networking can enhance communication among peer mentors in nursing education, writes Shellie Jean Radford
conduct some participatory action research into the effects of the Facebook mentoring group. Together, we created the mentoring action research group (MARG). My role was to review the literature on peer mentoring and online social networks in higher education and to compare my findings with the results of surveys conducted at an evaluation day. We used Wenger’s communities of practice model (see resources) to analyse learning methods and how nursing students develop meaning and identity.
Online communities
The peer mentoring scheme run at the University of Nottingham’s school of nursing links first-year students with more senior peer mentors on the same course. The scheme was devised by lecturers and academic staff as part of a project to tackle attrition rates. A pilot was launched in 2011, and although small scale, it benefited first-year mentees and their mentors. The scheme was rolled out the following year.
Success factors Scheme was guided, not dictated, by lecturers. Scheme evolved to become a community of mentors. Facebook was used as a tool. Mentors experienced personal and professional growth outside the boundaries of the university. 64 may 28 :: vol 28 no 39 :: 2014
I volunteered to become a peer mentor and attended a training day. This involved group work, scenarios and discussion about the roles and boundaries. Mentors and mentees are matched according to programme branch, and each mentor is assigned between three and seven mentees. The first contact was via university email during the first week of lectures. One of the peer mentors initiated a secret Facebook group for the peer mentors to interact. Although other contact methods were available, such as via Moodle, Facebook was the main communication tool. The Facebook group was also used to promote face-to-face events, as well as providing a support network for peer mentors themselves to discuss concerns and issues. The scheme leader identified me and two other mentors as community leaders and asked us to
Many researchers now recognise that Facebook can be used as a community building tool in education, although little is known about the implications of online communities for nurse education and transition into nursing practice. MARG conducted several surveys to identify perceived benefit and limitations of the Facebook community and the gain in transferable skills through acting as a peer mentor. The research found significant correlation between applying the peer mentor role in an online community and the development of transferable skills. The research demonstrates the potential for linking peer mentoring and online communities as an opportunity for students to practise their professional identity in a familiar, and yet remote, online community environment NS Shellie Jean Radford was a nursing student at the University of Nottingham and is now a staff nurse in critical care at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust RESOURCES The University of Nottingham’s peer mentoring scheme www.nursingpeermentors.wordpress.com Wenger’s communities of practice model www.wenger-trayner.com/theory
NURSING STANDARD
Downloaded from RCNi.com by ${individualUser.displayName} on Nov 21, 2015. For personal use only. No other uses without permission. Copyright © 2015 RCNi Ltd. All rights reserved.
