From Vocational Training to Academic Education: The Situation of the Schools of Nursing in Sweden

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Abstract
As a conséquence of a college reform in 1993, nursing education in Sweden is changing from vocational training to academic education. Teacher competence ia considered to be of strategic importance to the quality of education for nurses, and nurse educators are expected to have a doctorate or master's degree in nursing or social science. This article focuses on teaching competence as it is perceived by teachers and describes the strategies used by nurse educators to meet the educational changes. The data for this ethnographic study were collected by participant observations at three Swedish nursing schools and interviews with 59 nurse educators. Results indicate that nurse educators use three different strategies to cope with changing demands and to keep their knowledge and competence as faculty at a desirable level. A good nurse educator must: (al be a "real" nurse; (b) be well prepared in different subject matters; or (c) have an academic degree (master's degree or PhD). The success of the change from vocational training of nurses to an academic education depends on the faculty composition and the culture of the school. As a result of the increased demands for competence, traditional strategies to cope with change are no longer appropriate. Nonacademtc-educated faculty risk losing their identity as good educators.