Teaching for Understanding: Linking theory to practice in postgraduate intellectual disability nursing education

The “theory-practice gap” originates from the separation of theoretical knowledge (knowing that) from practical knowledge (knowing how) (Craddock, 1993). This gap between theory and practice can impede the personal and professional development of postgraduate student nurses and has the capacity to negatively impact on the provision of quality services for those with an intellectual disability. This poster presents the development of a module aimed at directly linking theory to practice in the clinical environment. The Teaching for Understanding (TFU) conceptual framework is used to identify through lines, generative topics and understanding goals. Performances of Understanding take the form of the development of a clinical competencies portfolio where students reflect on their performance in the clinical practice setting. In addition students undertake a clinical project where students develop and implement evidence based practice initiatives and evaluate the outcome of their projects using an action research approach. The results indicate that students develop the competence to identify practice issues and implement evidence based strategies to enhance service delivery.