Practice-based simulation model: a curriculum innovation to enhance the critical thinking skills of nursing students

Objective: The purpose of this paper is to describe the Practice-Based Simulation Model (PBSM) as a pedagogical framework that enables the integration of simulation in a way that ensures critical thinking skills are explicitly taught as part of the processes and outcomes of students’ learning. Setting: The PBSM is an innovative pedagogical strategy that offers greater flexibility; one that can be applied to various types of educational contexts and delivery modes, while simultaneously ensuring desired learning outcomes. Primary argument: The use of simulation has been gaining popularity because of its capacity to provide effective experiential learning as a method of enhancing learners’ critical thinking skills. Despite ample literature that highlights the need for the integration of simulation into nursing curricula, there are few papers demonstrating simulated learning experiences that are underpinned by sound pedagogy. This paper asserts that simulated learning experiences need to be integrated into a curriculum underpinned by sound pedagogy, such as the PBSM, in order to ensure that learning facilitates the development of the critical thinking abilities deemed essential for nursing. Conclusion: The PBSM demonstrates an example of effective integration of simulation into a curriculum, and highlights the importance of the integral relationship of simulation as a key component of curriculum.