Assessment 4 Context Nurse Educators As Leaders and Scholars Learning never stops for the nurse educator; lifelong learning is necessary to stay current both in the practice world and in education. Nurse educators need to have a plan for their own continued professional development that will help them maintain and advance their skills both as nurses and as educators. Part of professional development is also to be a reflective teacher, to continue to do as Zorn advises us: to pause and reflect on who we are as people and as educators. The nursing profession needs nurse educators to educate more nurses, to introduce and educate about evidence-based practice changes, and more than ever to join with our colleagues in other health care disciplines to exchange ideas and engage in interdisciplinary learning. As educators, we must continue to learn, be certified, and function at a high level to ensure continued growth for the nursing profession. The Institute of Medicine has charged nurses to be leaders in health care change, and that requires educators to be at the forefront of those changes. Nurse Educators As Leaders Nurse educators are automatically leaders. The leadership role comes from being responsible for changing behaviors through education. This may be academically by educating future nurses and advance practice nurses. It may be clinically by educating staff on evidence-based practice changes and patients on better health practices. It may be in the community setting, providing knowledge on disease prevention and healthy lifestyles. Regardless of the setting, the leadership role is part of the nurse educator designation. An important aspect of the leadership role is the style of leadership. Some leadership styles come more naturally to us as individuals because they fit our personality and our background; sometimes, though, we have to develop a style that is a better fit for the setting that we are working in. In this unit, we will look at various leadership styles and consider what the most effective style is for each of as individuals. We are also going to look at the nurse educator as part of the interdisciplinary team that provides education to other health providers. Increasingly, this aspect of the educator role is becoming more prominent. As nurse educators we have to be prepared to work across disciplines and in a variety of settings. Nurse Educators As Scholars An expectation for nurse educators is that they are both teachers and scholars. To be a scholar means that the educator is both teaching others in the discipline of nursing and also adding to the advancement of the profession. There are many ways that the nurse educator can be a scholar. Sometimes this is thought of as conducting research and publishing articles and books on research and evidence-based practice. This is certainly one major way to be a scholar, but there are many other ways as well. The Boyer Model Remove or Replace: Header Is Not Doc Title 2 In nursing, a ...

1. Assessment 4 Context
Nurse Educators As Leaders and Scholars
Learning never stops for the nurse educator; lifelong learning is
necessary to stay current both
in the practice world and in education. Nurse educators need to
have a plan for their own
continued professional development that will help them
maintain and advance their skills both
as nurses and as educators. Part of professional development is
also to be a reflective teacher,
to continue to do as Zorn advises us: to pause and reflect on
who we are as people and as
educators.
The nursing profession needs nurse educators to educate more
nurses, to introduce and
educate about evidence-based practice changes, and more than
ever to join with our colleagues
in other health care disciplines to exchange ideas and engage in
interdisciplinary learning. As
educators, we must continue to learn, be certified, and function
at a high level to ensure
continued growth for the nursing profession. The Institute of
Medicine has charged nurses to be
leaders in health care change, and that requires educators to be
at the forefront of those
changes.
Nurse Educators As Leaders
Nurse educators are automatically leaders. The leadership role
comes from being responsible
for changing behaviors through education. This may be
academically by educating future nurses
and advance practice nurses. It may be clinically by educating
staff on evidence-based practice
changes and patients on better health practices. It may be in the

2. community setting, providing
knowledge on disease prevention and healthy lifestyles.
Regardless of the setting, the
leadership role is part of the nurse educator designation.
An important aspect of the leadership role is the style of
leadership. Some leadership styles
come more naturally to us as individuals because they fit our
personality and our background;
sometimes, though, we have to develop a style that is a better fit
for the setting that we are
working in. In this unit, we will look at various leadership
styles and consider what the most
effective style is for each of as individuals. We are also going
to look at the nurse educator as
part of the interdisciplinary team that provides education to
other health providers. Increasingly,
this aspect of the educator role is becoming more prominent. As
nurse educators we have to be
prepared to work across disciplines and in a variety of settings.
Nurse Educators As Scholars
An expectation for nurse educators is that they are both teachers
and scholars. To be a scholar
means that the educator is both teaching others in the discipline
of nursing and also adding to
the advancement of the profession. There are many ways that
the nurse educator can be a
scholar. Sometimes this is thought of as conducting research
and publishing articles and books
on research and evidence-based practice. This is certainly one
major way to be a scholar, but
there are many other ways as well.
The Boyer Model
Remove or Replace: Header Is Not Doc Title
2
In nursing, a widely used model for determining scholarship is
the Boyer model. This model

3. classifies scholarship activities in the following four main
areas:
1. Discovery, where new and unique knowledge is generated;
this would include research.
2. Teaching, where the teacher creatively engages in
partnerships with learners to
facilitate expanding knowledge.
3. Application, where the emphasis is on the use of new
knowledge in solving society's
problems. An example of this aspect of scholarship is initiatives
to introduce evidencebased practice changes.
4. Integration, where new relationships among disciplines are
discovered. An example
would be efforts to engage in interdisciplinary education
initiatives.
Creating a Professional Development Plan Scoring Guide
CRITERIA
NON-PERFORMANCE
BASIC
PROFICIENT
DISTINGUISHED
Describe area of focus as a nurse educator, associated educator
competencies, and professional goals in relation to nurse
educator philosophy.
Does not describe area of focus as a nurse educator, associated
educator competencies, and professional goals in relation to
nurse educator philosophy.
Describes area of focus in ways that are inconsistent with
current conditions in the field or with nurse educator
philosophy.
Describes area of focus as a nurse educator, associated educator
competencies, and professional goals in relation to nurse
educator philosophy.
Describes area of focus as a nurse educator, associated educator
competencies, and professional goals in relation to nurse

4. educator philosophy, and makes explicit and insightful
connections to recent developments in the field.
Describe forces (social, economic, political, or institutional)
that may influence the nurse educator role.
Does not describe forces (social, economic, political, or
institutional) that may influence the nurse educator role.
Inaccurately or inadequately describes forces (social, economic,
political, or institutional) that may influence the nurse educator
role.
Describes forces (social, economic, political, or institutional)
that may influence the nurse educator role.
Describes forces (social, economic, political, or institutional)
that may influence the nurse educator role, and acknowledges
one's own assumptions and biases.
Develop a scholarship plan that includes analysis of how
scholarship will be carried out in the nurse educator role.
Does not develop a scholarship plan that includes analysis of
how scholarship will be carried out in the nurse educator role.
Develops a scholarship plan that does not include analysis of
how scholarship will be carried out in the nurse educator role or
does so inadequately.
Develops a scholarship plan that includes analysis of how
scholarship will be carried out in the nurse educator role.
Develops a scholarship plan that includes analysis of how
scholarship will be carried out in the nurse educator role, and
grounds the plan in explicitly referenced, professionally
standard competencies and expectations.
Discuss development of a leadership role in a chosen area of
nurse educator focus.
Does not discuss development of a leadership role in a chosen
area of nurse educator focus.
Discusses development of a leadership role in a chosen area of
nurse educator focus in a manner that indicates a lack of
understanding of that role.
Discusses development of a leadership role in a chosen area of
nurse educator focus.

5. Discusses development of a leadership role in a chosen area of
nurse educator focus, and explores multiple pathways to
development.
Develop specific plans for professional growth that identify any
additional education, certifications, or training to be acquired.
Does not develop specific plans for professional growth that
identify any additional education, certifications, or training to
be acquired.
Develops plans for professional growth that identify
inapplicable education, certifications, or training for a chosen
role.
Develops specific plans for professional growth that identify
any additional education, certifications, or training to be
acquired.
Develops specific plans for professional growth that identify
any additional education, certifications, or training to be
acquired, and bases the identification on current nurse educator
competencies.
Assess abilities to meet goals, achieve professional
development, and maintain ethical practices.
Does not assess abilities to meet goals, achieve professional
development, and maintain ethical practices.
Unrealistically or inaccurately assesses abilities to meet goals,
achieve professional development, and maintain ethical
practices.
Assesses abilities to meet goals, achieve professional
development, and maintain ethical practices.
Assesses abilities to meet goals, achieve professional
development, and maintain ethical practices, and indicates plan
to address the gaps.
Write coherently to support a central idea with correct grammar,
usage, mechanics, and APA format and style as expected of a
nursing education professional.
Does not write coherently to support a central idea with correct
grammar, usage, mechanics, and APA format and style as
expected of a nursing education professional.

6. Writes to support an idea but commits major errors of grammar,
usage, and mechanics.
Writes coherently to support a central idea with correct
grammar, usage, mechanics, and APA format and style as
expected of a nursing education professional.
Writes coherently, using evidence to support a central idea with
correct grammar, usage, mechanics, and APA format and style
as expected of a nursing education professional.