Improving Questioning Skills of Nursing Faculty in the Clinical Learning Environment

BACKGROUND: Literature indicates that clinical faculty across disciplines often ask lower-level recall and comprehension questions, limiting opportunities for students to develop clinical reasoning and judgment. This educational project aimed to enhance faculty's skills in higher order questioning by using application and analysis level questions. METHOD: Thirteen clinical faculty teaching a junior-level baccalaureate medical surgical course attended a 2.5-hour virtual synchronous workshop on using the Questioning Aid for Rich and Real-Time Discussion (QARRD) tool. Questioning skills were assessed pre- and postworkshop, with follow-up surveys on QARRD usage. RESULTS: Postworkshop data showed increased use of higher-order questions from 16% to 63.6%. Faculty reported varying QARRD use during the semester from rarely (11%), occasionally or sometimes (55%), and almost always (33%). When used, faculty perceived improved student critical thinking and treatment planning. CONCLUSION: The QARRD tool can strengthen clinical faculty's questioning techniques and potentially develop thinking, reasoning, and judgment in nursing students.