The use of structured debate as a teaching strategy among undergraduate nursing students: A systematic review.

BACKGROUND

Nurse educators are required to prepare graduates for the increasing complexities of the practice environment. Debate is an active teaching strategy long recognised in many disciplines to promote student-centred learning by enhancing the development of communication skills, collaboration, and critical thinking, all of which are essential skill for future nurses.

OBJECTIVES

The aim of this study was to compare in-class university structured debate implementation methods among undergraduate nursing students, and to identify the effect of such debate methods in the students' learning.

DESIGN

A systematic review of the literature.

DATA SOURCES

Publications in English identified in multiple databases (PubMed, CINAHL, Web of Science, Medline and ERIC) from the launch of the database until 26th November 2019.

REVIEW METHOD

The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guided the review. Studies that investigated the use of in-class debate among undergraduate nursing students as a pedagogical tool were eligible. Information related to the study design, debate process characteristics, evaluation method of the teaching strategy and results were collected.

RESULTS

We identified 14 relevant studies describing structured implementation of debate, 11 of which were instructional design and 3 quasi-experimental studies. Heterogeneity was found across the papers regarding topics, timing schedules, group formation and positioning. Most of the studies evaluated implementation using satisfaction questionnaires or subjective observations. Three quasi-experimental studies reported that implementation of debating improved declarative capacity, argumentative capacity, idealistic moral judgment, and realistic moral judgment.

CONCLUSIONS

Current studies do not provide enough evidence to understand the scope of structured debating as an instrument to develop personal competences needed in nursing. However, based on the evidence reviewed, we have identified elements to establish a debate-based learning format that might enhance student's learning and future studies.