The learning landscape continues to evolve as new technological tools enable teachers to deliver robust learning experiences. It is important to help teachers, administrators, and students know where to begin so that the transition to virtual learning is smooth, without educational loss. This chapter consists of two sections: current trends and issues in technology integration and technological pedagogical content knowledge. The first section briefly reviews the trends in instructional or educational technologies that are causing administrators, teachers, and students to reflect on and modify their thinking about learning and educational content delivery. The second section explores constructivism, the scientific underpinnings of nursing informatics, and ethics. Nurse educators must also address the ethical challenges brought about by this evolving learning landscape. After reading this chapter, one can understand current trends and issues, as well as the influence of nursing informatics and ways to approach new ethical dilemmas.

Healthcare is in a state of rapid change. Although practice environments have become more complex, educational delivery methods have remained stagnant. Innovative technologies provide opportunities to enhance nursing student learning and help nursing programs become more responsive to changes in the practice environment; however, obstacles may hinder successful implementation. With the increasing complexity of today’s health care environment, innovations in nursing curricula are necessary. This chapter explores some of the general challenges associated with the integration of innovative educational technologies, as well as some challenges unique to virtual simulation. It helps the reader to analyze the challenges of integrating educational technologies into nursing education associated with faculty, administrators, and students. It also helps the reader to examine practical and philosophical barriers related to technology integration and explores challenges unique to the adoption of virtual simulation.

Simulation has many advantages for nursing education, some of which include creating safe learning environments for students and reinforcing information learned in the classroom; it also has the advantage of being available in inclement weather as well as 24 hours a day for student access. Simulation in nursing is one of many methods used for teaching students. Teaching and learning in a virtual learning environment has many advantages for administrators, faculty, and students. One of the advantages includes the use of other disciplines to help create or participate in a virtual world learning experience. The virtual learning environment can be created to look similar to real communities, disaster areas, or homes, with avatars populating that environment. The advantage to using virtual reality, rather than a real-life experience, is that in real life, students could be immersed in an environment that could cause them harm.

The integration of a virtual learning environment (VLE) for graduate virtual world practicum (VWP) students has been a success based on faculty, mentor, and student feedback. Second Life helped provide students with the opportunity to complete their practicum without any delays, which would have been the case of a lack of qualified mentors or appropriate on-ground practicum placement sites. Student, mentor, and faculty feedback on this option for students completing their practicum has been positive. Mentors working in SL have been instrumental in support of this option for students and dedicated their area through the development of scenarios and other aspects of the VWP component. VWP students enact their future role as nurse executives and experience more than real world practicum (RWP) students. This chapter highlights some aspects of the faculty’s role in the integration of this virtual simulation into a nursing practicum course, specifically in the executive specialty.

Clinical simulation has changed significantly over the last three decades. The introduction of virtual simulation programs enables safe repetition of practice in standardized scenarios that, if rigorously developed, can support validity and reliability. This chapter focuses on enhancing rigor across the five stages of development of virtual simulation programs, drawing on our experience of developing a patient deterioration management program known as Feedback Incorporating Review and Simulation Techniques to Act on Clinical Trends. The program includes background educational materials, precourse and postcourse knowledge tests, and three interactive management scenarios (acute myocardial infarction [AMI], hypovolemic shock, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease). The chapter helps the reader to assess approaches to enhancing rigor in the development, implementation, and evaluation of virtual simulation and appreciate the importance of and steps necessary to trialling a virtual simulation prior to full integration with an established curriculum.

This chapter addresses how and why faculty and staff should integrate and leverage game-based technology for their curricula. It also advocates anytime–anywhere learning as the corollary for mobile learning facilitated through smart technology devices and mobile applications as it relates to video games, mobile app–based games, and simulation-based learning. It discusses the process of educational game development specific to clinical education and provides an approach for integration of such technology into the curricula, as well as introduces readers to the pedagogy supporting such technology. Definitions provided in this chapter and terms defined in the glossary are crafted through the lens of educational design to assist and inform teachers or faculty members wishing to integrate game-based learning solutions into their curricula. The chapter also provides a discussion on the merits of faculty support and professional development needed to promote successful integration of game-based mobile technology into the curriculum.