Authors

  1. Manzetti, Colleen DNP, CNE
  2. Sciarra, Erica PhD, DNP, APN-c, CNE

Article Content

Nursing education students are often exposed to the teaching role within their educational courses; however, the accreditation process may not be addressed. Our objective was to create an assignment that provided nursing education students with a focused view of the accreditation process, exposing them to the various accrediting agencies they may encounter during their career as nursing faculty. For this interactive assignment, students work in collaboration with their preceptor and course faculty to create linkages between course content and accreditation standards. First, students are required to familiarize themselves with the appropriate accrediting agency for the institution where they are completing their preceptorship by reviewing the accrediting agency's websites. Students then develop a comprehensive lesson plan based on the topic assigned by the preceptor using the backward design approach, aligning program outcomes to course and lesson outcomes. Finally, students review the institution's self-study report and align the end-of-program outcomes with the appropriate standards/essentials consistent with the accrediting body. Completion of this assignment allows students to have a comprehensive look at the development of a lesson and how it relates to program and accrediting outcomes.