Abstract:

Objective To explore the application effect of experiential teaching in the life education course for nursing undergraduates. Methods The experiential teaching was clearly applied to the teaching design of the life education course for nursing undergraduates. The main steps included clarifying the teaching objectives，determining the teaching themes，contents，and experiential teaching activities，creating a teaching resource database，and designing teaching implementation plans based on Kolb’s learning cycle theory. From September 2023 to December 2023，experiential teaching was implemented for 32 nursing undergraduates who selected the elective course “Journey of Life：Experiential Life Education”. Before and after the course，the Meaningful Life Scale for college students was used to evaluate the sense of life meaning of 32 nursing undergrduates. At the end of the course，the content of their reflection diary was analyzed，and their recognition of the course was surveyed using a self-developed teaching recognition questionnaire. Results After the course，the total score and scores in all dimensions of the sense of meaning in life of nursing undergraduates were higher than those before the course（P<0.001）. Three themes were extracted from the content of the reflection diary：experiencing the meaning of life，feeling the impermanence of life and cherishing it，and facing difficulties positively and revering life. The score of nursing undergraduates’ recognition of the course was 25（24，25） points. Conclusion The application of experiential teaching in the life education course for nursing undergraduates is feasible and effectively enhances the sense of meaning in life and perception of life among nursing undergraduates. The course has also gained recognition from nursing undergraduates.

Key words: Nursing, Undergraduates, Life education, Kolb’s learning cycle theory, Experiential teaching