Margaret Kosowski, PhD, RN
Rank: Professor
E-mail:mkosowsk@westga.edu
Phone Extension: 678-839-5626
Office#: 271
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Teaching Philosophy:
My philosophy of nursing education is based on central tenets of nursing: that is, professional nursing is an art and science. Professional nurse caring requires cognitively and culturally learned behaviors, actions and techniques that enable the creation of health and healing environments for self, clients, nurses and other health professions colleagues. Learning professional nurse caring requires maintaining academic and practice settings that ensure the quality of the professional. Caring is learned through a variety of life experiences and can be enhanced in an educational setting that promotes caring practices among students, teachers, and colleagues. I believe that professional nursing science must be studied in a university setting; however, professional nursing education is obliged to be accompanied by rich, diverse clinical experiences with a wide variety of clients and settings.
As society and health needs of humans evolve, the role of the professional nurse unfolds and boundaries of nursing practice expand. Responses to those changes influence the educational preparation of undergraduate and graduate nursing students. Critical examination of health care issues and practices encourage critical thinking, reflection, reasoning, creativity and application in real life settings. The autonomy in making intelligent independent and interdependent decisions requires embracing a philosophy of life-long learning. I, too, share this perspective, and attempt to secure and nurture this concept during the professional nursing educational experiences of students. Undoubtedly, the development of competent, caring professionals who will be equipped to successfully meet the challenges of the future is of monumental importance to myself as well as my nurse educator colleagues.
I truly believe that education in any setting must stem from a caring and humanistic soul, but is especially critical in the human sciences. Nursing, which I believe is a humane science, teaches students to kindly, competently, and caringly care for persons who might feel fragile and powerless; they also have responsibilities to help keep healthy people healthy. My approach to teaching professional nurse caring to students has been influenced by many great nurse scholars, such as Em Bevis, Nancy Diekelmann, Patricia Benner and Jean Watson (to name a few). I continue to seek growth as an educator by studying these and other nurse educators' pedagogical theories and research. I believe that caring is the essence of nursing and a basic way of being with students, colleagues and others. Caring for self involves a sense of self-awareness and personal empowerment. I believe that the focus of nursing education is to provide a caring presence with students and to create an environment that facilitates acceptance of diverse ideas, critical thinking, creativity and clinical decision making. I believe that if nursing students experience a caring, empowering educational experience, they will continually strive to re-create a caring environment in nursing practice and in their lives. Therefore, I continuously strive to provide a welcoming, egalitarian and caring educational environment in classroom and clinical experiences.
Learning is encouraged in an atmosphere of egalitarian interpersonal interaction fostered by a trusting relationship between students and teacher. Believing that teacher is learner and learner is teacher, faculty may be perceived as facilitators, planners, supervisors, competent role models and colleagues with students. The teacher-student relationship is enhanced by a mutually supportive, caring and respectful cohesive unity where participants guide each other toward increasing independence, self knowledge and appreciation of the art and science of nursing. Learning is also enhanced by a climate of shared responsibility and on- going personal and collective development that fosters individual and professional growth.
Students posses rights as well as responsibilities, and are entitled to autonomy, dignity, respect and fair treatment by faculty. In order to continue my growth as a caring, respectful teacher, I welcome students to the learning setting as co-participants in the learning process. I communicate my belief that we will build trust with each other while creating an open and egalitarian relationship. I believe this egalitarian teacher-student ambiance is essential to educating a caring professional nurse. A caring paradigm is also essential to empowerment of nursing students, and is nursing’s moral activity. In addition, I believe that a caring nursing educational experience is our moral imperative.
Participatory education is one of open dialogue, self-awareness and relationships that reflect cooperation and a sense of community. Narrative pedagogy is one teaching strategy that I find particularly empowering and valuable for nursing students. Much can be learned from the stories of others, and students seem to enjoy and understand the nuances of lessons when nurses share their rich, caring experiences in narrative form. One gentle beginning to self awareness and empowerment is to create a climate of warmth and welcoming. Class may start with music, relaxation exercises, and sharing of students’ perceptions of stress sources and levels. Since teachers and students co-participate in class, open dialogue and mutual sharing is encouraged. Students are involved in setting learning goals and may decide to co-facilitate readings or share learning experiences. Students and teachers increase their self-awareness by identifying their strengths and preferred improvements. Students may contract for their desired grade, and self evaluate achievement of goals frequently. Students may re-evaluate their contract, and revise as necessary. These caring pedagogical strategies help to create a learning climate of increasing self awareness, personal and professional empowerment, welcoming of diverse clients, and understanding and respect for varied perspectives.
The faculty role is one of not just teacher, but also of expert learner and co-learner. Faculty are connected teachers when they partner with students, engage in open dialogue, and act as coaches and midwives versus disciplinarians. In order to accomplish this, I believe that teaching pedagogies should be aimed at alternatives to traditional, ethnocentric, teacher-centered learning. I eagerly embrace pedagogical approaches that are grounded in critical praxis and aim to emancipate, liberate and empower learners to transform their personal, social and economic worlds. This requires critical thinking, values clarification and transformative curricula that encourage empowerment of students. Transformative pedagogy liberates students from a world of gender, race and class distinction, and promotes greater understanding of discrimination and domination within the health care system. I am committed to the empowerment of caring professional nurses who are capable of facilitating reformation of the current health care system into an egalitarian, holistic, and healing home of the future.
Courses Taught:
- Nursing 3122 – Professional Concepts
- Nursing 3245 – Family Health Nursing Practice
- Nursing 6501 – The Role of the Nurse as Educator
- Nursing 6787 – Nurse Educator Role, Practicum II
Education:
Doctor of Philosophy in Nursing - Georgia State University
Master of Nursing – State University of New York at Buffalo
Bachelor of Nursing – D'Youville College, Buffalo, New York
Areas of Expertise and Professional Interest:
Caring Science in Nursing and Nursing Education
Nursing Theory and Issues
Qualitative Research Methodologies
Pediatric Nursing
Professional Memberships and Certifications:
American Nurses Association
Georgia Nurses Association
National League for Nursing
International Association for Human Caring
Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society for Nursing
Southern Nursing Research Society
Personal Interests:
Family, Music, Reading
The most unique thing about our program is…
The unique curriculum that is based on caring; the supportive faculty; the faculty-student cohesiveness; student success-oriented program; sustaining a community of caring for faculty and students together.
