Expressions of critical thinking in role-playing simulations: comparisons across roles

Abstract

The development of critical thinking is crucial in professional education to augment the capabilities of pre-professional students. One method for enhancing critical thinking is participation in role-playing simulation-based scenarios where students work together to resolve a potentially real situation. In this study, undergraduate nursing students were divided into small groups (2-3) to role-play a medical emergency (stroke) within a high fidelity simulation environment. The research team utilized a cross-case comparison design; cases were defined by the different roles played by the nursing students (e.g., primary nurse, secondary nurse, and family member). Results indicated that although students in all three roles displayed instances of reflection, contextual perspective, and logical reasoning, these were not distributed evenly across roles, with family members demonstrating fewer instances of reflection and logical reasoning and secondary nurses demonstrating fewer instances of contextual perspective. However, evidence of students' abilities to apply clinical standards was observed fairly equally across all three roles. Implications for the use of role-plays within high-fidelity simulations are discussed.

The evolution and evaluation of an online role play through design-based research

“…Learners must thus focus not only on playing a specific role, but also on trying to achieve an outcome consistent with the worldview of that role, usually by working towards objectives that (in character) they have themselves defined, as individuals or in groups. The RISOS scenario is set in a fictitious district in a named developing country: as we sought opportunities for students to engage fully with their online identity and role (Ertmer et al, 2010), locating RISOS in a real country was crucial for the authenticity of cultural contexts, knowledge and implications.…”

“…The framework's final reflective stage was represented by a comprehensive debriefing. Like Ertmer et al (2010), we believe that a role play's effectiveness as a learning strategy depends as much on a thorough analysis of what happened, and why, as on the actual role play activities. While a debrief had thus always been part of the RISOS design, the DBR feedback collected in 2010 and 2011 showed just how critical the debriefing was to students' understanding of the wider context and the relevance of RISOS to their learning as professionals.…”

“…Ertmer et al (2010) argue that, in professional education, a role play scenario that allows students to collaborate on a "potentially real situation" (p. 73) fosters enhanced critical reasoning, and helps new professionals start thinking "more like seasoned practitioners" (p. 90). This rationale was the driving force behind the creation in 2009 of the online role play RISOS (which means "resources" in the Melanesian language Tok Pisin) for postgraduate students of development studies at an Australian university.…”

Developing critical thinking skills in undergraduate nursing students: The potential for strategic management simulations

“…The use of simulation with high-fidelity mannequins has shown to be an effective teaching strategy for nursing students [19][20][21][22] .…”

“…Research by Ertmer and associates [19] allowed 164 nursing students to play different roles in a simulated scenario (family member, patient, primary nurse, or unlicensed personnel), and concluded that despite effective reflections, these students still reported a lack of confidence in their decision-making ability, even commenting on feeling "panicked" and "not knowing what to do" in the situation.…”