Dr Ed Errington Teaching & Learning Development James Cook University Townsville/Cairns/Brisbane Queensland AUSTRALIA Challenges facing educators using simulation to supplement students’ lived experience

SIMULATION IS... Simulation... “is a technique used to replace or amplify real experience with guided experiences, often immersive in nature that evoke or replicate substantial aspects of the real world in a fully interactive manner”, (Gaba 2004:1).

SIMULATION’S “NOTHING NEW” TAG Simulated learning designs include:- Role-play Scenario-based learning Gaming Psychodrama Sociodrama Playback theatre Dramatization/re-enactment All are based on ‘situated learning theory’ and a valuing of contextual knowledge

OUTLINE 1.Why educators use simulation 2.Significant challenges and how these might be met 3.Optimising simulation -based learning success

WHY HEALTH EDUCATORS USE SIMULATION To provide an education aimed at: Improving patient safety and care Bridging theory with (clinical) practice Delivering a range of core skills Exposing students to a range of un/common experiences Reproducing practice

Simulation Media Learner- focussed Situation- focussed Teacher- focussed Curriculum- focussed SOME CHALLENGES INFLUENCING SIMULATION SUCCESS

LEARNER FOCUSSED CHALLENGES Psychological realism through a willing suspension of disbelief Clear understanding of the aims & relevance of the simulation Productive interaction with simulated patients Opportunities for staged [critical] reflection

SITUATION-FOCUSSED CHALLENGES Constructing and sustaining true-to-life situations (Re)Creating and sustaining the scene Drawing on people and situations from a broad eclectic society Providing inter-positional opportunities Enabling knowledge transfer to real patients

TEACHER-FOCUSSED CHALLENGES Making practice deliberate Communicating ‘significant’ knowledge Engaging students consciously in in professional identity formation Providing opportunities for team work Providing students with timely feedback Creating a risk-free environment Helping students deal with complexity

CURRICULUM-FOCUSSED CHALLENGES Helicopter view of the curriculum Having a transparent curriculum map Integrating traditional knowledge, simulated learning, and actual patient care Incorporating students’ lived experiences into the curriculum Broadening the curriculum to include team- based simulations

OPTIMISING SIMULATION SUCCESS Being driven by learning purposes not the technology/media Enhancing psychological realism Providing opportunities for repetition Aligning immersion with (critical) reflection Connecting with students’ lived experiences

OPTIMISING SIMULATION SUCCESS continued... Communicating clear roles and responsibilities Having a helicopter view of the curriculum Tolerating student failure (rehearsal/opening night?) Moving from individual skills acquisition to team building Training/mentoring simulation facilitators

WHAT DO TEACHERS NEED TO ASK? (a) How might simulation help students acquire the technical and interpersonal skills needed for the health profession? [A question driving the current use of simulation-based learning] OR (b) How might simulation help students prepare for a lifetime of uncertainty and change within the increasing complexity of the (post)modern world? [A question with potential to transform simulation-based learning into a process of genuine inquiry and provide an agenda of possibility]