Teaching dietetic students in the clinical setting.

On the basis of requests from dietitians who function as student preceptors, faculty members for a coordinated undergraduate program developed guidelines for their inservice training. It was anticipated that the dietitian as a clinical instructor would need to be able to establish, clarify, and guide the student in achieving goals; aid the student's learning process by helping him/her recall information and knowledge from previous course work; direct the student's attention to focus on priorities; identify factors that will contribute to effective communication skills; provide opportunities for the student to apply knowledge and practice dietetics; identify motivational possibilities; use evaluation feedback to help students improve their clinical practice; and assist the student in facilitating the transfer of knowledge and skills to new problems and situations.