UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA
COLLEGE OF NURSING
COURSE SYLLABUS
FALL 2012
NGR 6101 COURSE NUMBER
COURSE TITLE
CREDITS
PLACEMENT
Theory and Research for Nursing
3
First Semester in Master's or BSN to DNP Program
OR
Second Semester of BSN-Accelerated Track
PRE/COREQUISITE
FACULTY
None
BEVERLY L. ROBERTS, PHD, FAAN, FGSA
ROBERTSB@UFL.EDU
HPNP 3220
Office 352.273.6330
Fax 352.273.6536
Office Hours: Wednesday by appointment
DEPARTMENT CHAIR M. JOSEPHINE SNIDER, EDD, RN snidemj@ufl.edu
(352) 273-6359 HPNP 4221
Office hours: By appointment only
JACKSONVILLE CAMPUS DIRECTOR Andrea Gregg, DSN, RN greggac@ufl.edu
Jacksonville (904) 244-5172
Office hours: By appointment only
COURSE DESCRIPTION This course is designed to further develop the knowledge and skills necessary to critique theory and research from nursing and related fields. Emphasis is on the relationship among theory, research and practice.
COURSE OBJECTIVES Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to:
1.
Analyze the links among theory, research, and practice in nursing.
2.
Analyze the elements of conceptual models and theoretical frameworks.
3.
Critique theories in nursing and other disciplines for their applicability to nursing practice and research.

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COURSE SYLLABUS
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COURSE OBJECTIVES (continued)
4.
Critique published research to identify appropriate use of the steps of the research process.
5.
Compare and contrast quantitative and qualitative research approaches relevant to nursing inquiry.
6.
Critique research studies used to explore clinical problems in nursing.
7.
Describe ethical and scientific integrity issues related to research.
COURSE SCHEDULE
Section
8613
Day
Web
Time Room
This course is a web-based course that requires a computer to access and use of online resources and to interact with course content. Sakai is the course management system that you will use for this course. To access Sakai, you will go to the E-learning site at http://lss.at.ufl.edu
and sign into
Sakai using your Gatorlink account name and password. There are several tutorials and student help links on the E-Learning login site. If you have technical questions or problems, call the UF
Computer Help Desk at 352-392-HELP or send email to helpdesk@ufl.edu
.
Voicethread will also be used in this course. A VoiceThread is a collaborative, multimedia slide show that holds images, documents, and videos and allows people to navigate pages and leave comments using voice (with a microphone or telephone), or video (via a webcam). You do not need to provide a photo or use the video comment option, this is your choice. If you do not want to be recorded, notify the assigned faculty member prior to the first class for alternative. The recordings are available to the class during the semester and will not be used for another class.
The link to VoiceThread is found on the opening screen of Sakai. The initial link to access
Voicethread will be sent to your Gatorlink e-mail.
For the purposes of this class, except for week 1, the week will begin on Monday morning at
8:30 AM and will close on Sunday evening at 11:59 PM. Week 1 will begin 8:30 AM 8/22/12 and end 8/26/12 at 11:59 PM.
It is important that you regularly check your Gatorlink account email for College and University wide information and the course E-Learning site for announcements and notifications.
ATTENDANCE
Students are expected to participate online in all teaching modules, activities, discussions and quizzes. These are listed in the course syllabus, teaching modules and the course web-site.
Students who have extraordinary circumstances preventing attendance should explain these to the course instructor as soon as possible prior to the scheduled activity. Instructors will make an effort to accommodate reasonable requests. A grade penalty may be assigned for late

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COURSE SYLLABUS
PAGE 3 assignments or make-up exams. Make-up quizzes may not be available.
ACCOMMODATIONS DUE TO DISABILITY
Each semester, students are responsible for requesting a memorandum from the Disability
Resource Center to notify faculty of their requested individual accommodations. This should be done at the start of the semester.
STUDENT HANDBOOK
Students are to refer to the College of Nursing Student Handbook for information about College of Nursing policies, honor code, and professional behavior.
TOPICAL OUTLINE
1.
Theories from nursing and other disciplines influencing evidenced-based practice including general systems theory
2.
Critique/evaluation of theories, models, and frameworks
3.
Analysis of the relationship between theory, research, and practice
4.
Selected steps of the research process:
5.
Problems and purpose
6.
Review of relevant literature
7.
Objectives, hypotheses and questions
8.
Research design
9.
Qualitative research approaches
10.
Quantitative research approaches
11.
Ethical issues in research
12.
Scientific integrity
TEACHING METHODS
Asynchronous interactive e-Learning modules using Sakai and VoiceThread.
LEARNING ACTIVITIES
Discussion, small group activities, quizzes, presentations and written assignments,
EVALUATION METHODS/COURSE GRADE CALCULATION
Quizzes (3 quizzes- 24%), written paper (25%), NIH module (11%), online participation in

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COURSE SYLLABUS
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VoiceThread (15%) and 1 on-line presentation (25%). The quizzes will be short answer or multiple choice format. The scholarly paper is to reflect critical thinking. The NIH (National
Institutes of Health) module will be online and a quiz associated with this module must be taken before NIH gives you a certificate of completion. Evaluation of the on-line presentation will be based on the collaborative efforts of student group members, and the group submits information about each member’s contribution to the project that will include the content development, implementation, and leading class discussion of the Voicethread presentation. Each member must contribute approximately equal effort to the project including facilitating discussion or lose up to 10 points from the grade. One point will be deducted for each day an assignment is late.
Weekly module assignments (including VoiceThread), quizzes, and papers will be due no later than 11:59 PM Sunday evening. Narrated PowerPoint must be posted on VoiceThread no later than 11:59 PM the Sunday before the scheduled presentation. Assignments will be returned approximately within 2 weeks of the due date.
GRADING SCALE/QUALITY POINTS
A
A-
95-100 (4.0)
93-94 (3.67)
C 74-79* (2.0)
C- 72-73 (1.67)
B+
B
91- 92 (3.33)
84-90 (3.0)
B- 82-83 (2.67)
C+ 80-81 (2.33)
* 74 is the minimal passing grade
D+ 70-71 (1.33)
D 64-69 (1.0)
D-
E
62-63 (0.67)
61 or below (0.0)
For more information on grades and grading policies, please refer to University’s grading policies at http://www.registrar.ufl.edu/catalog/policies/regulationgrades.html
REQUIRED TEXTS
American Psychological Association (2010). Publication manual of the American
Psychological Association (6th ed.). Washington, DC: Author.
Polit, D. F., & Beck (2012). Nursing research: Generating and assessing evidence for nursing practice (9 th
ed ). Philadelphia: Lippincott.
Assigned articles

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PAGE 5
WEEKLY CLASS SCHEDULE
Week
22 AUG– 26 AUG
Week 1
27 AUG—SEP 2
Week 2
3 SEP – 9 SEP
(3 SEP – Holiday)
Week 3
10 – 16 SEP
Week 4
17 SEP – 23 SEP
Week 5
24 – 30 SEP
Week 6
1 OCT – 7 OCT
Week 7
8 – 14 OCT
Week 8
15 – 21 OCT
Week 9
22 – 28 OCT
Week 10
29 OCT – 4 NOV
Week 11
5 NOV– 11 NOV
Week 12
12 – 18 NOV
Week 13
TOPIC/EVALUATION
Course & e-Learning Overview
Evidence-base practice
Research, practice and theory
Literature search and review
Quiz 1
Theory unit
Theory unit
Quiz 2
Quantitative research unit
Quantitative research unit
Theory paper due
Quantitative research unit
Quantitative research unit
Qualitative research unit
Quiz 3
Research ethics & scientific integrity
NIH certificate due
Student Project Presentation
Student Project Presentation
19 – 25 NOV
Week 14
(NOV 21-23
HOLIDAY)
26 NOV – 2 DEC
Week 15
Thanksgiving Holiday
Student Project Presentation
Approved: Academic Affairs Committee:
Faculty:
5/96; 5/01, 01/05
8/96; 6/01, 1/05
UF Curriculum: 10/96; 5/99