Multisource Reflections on Assessment of Nursing Students' First Clinical Practice and Predictions for 360-Degree Assessment: A Qualitative Study

Abstract

Aim: This study was conducted to explain the current situation regarding the assessment of nursing students during their first clinical practice and to determine the views on 360-degree assessment, which is an innovative assessment approach, from a multi-source perspective.
 Material and Methods: In this qualitative case study, individual interviews were conducted with nine instructors, focus group interviews were conducted with twenty-three nursing students, and documents were examined. Data were collected between 7 August 2019–22 November 2020. The data were analyzed in line with the descriptive analysis approach.
 Results: The findings were examined under two contexts: reflections on the current situation and predictions on 360-degree assessment. In both contexts, they were divided into six main themes. 
 Conclusion: The most important issues regarding assessment of nursing students during first clinical practice were the high student/instructor ratio and the fact that only instructors are officially assessors. Participants approached positively to the 360-degree assessment, but they also shared some concerns.