TDNet Discover

The purpose of this deductive qualitative thematic study was to facilitate self-determined learning in prelicensure nursing students by conducting a study of how three common debriefing tools elicit self-determined learning in alignment with heutagogy as a theoretical framework. It was guided by a primary research question: How do the diamond, Plus Delta, and PEARLS debriefing tools align with the principles of heutagogy in fostering self-determined learning for nurses? Grounded in heutagogy as the theoretical framework, learner agency, self-ability, reflective processes, metacognition, and double-loop learning were emphasized. The setting for the study was simulation-based nursing education, with the debriefing tools themselves serving as the units of analysis. The sample consisted of three open-access debriefing tools, namely, Diamond Debriefing, Plus Delta, and PEARLS. Systematic document review of facilitator prompts, structural elements, and instructional guidance contained within each tool was conducted. Data analysis involved deductive thematic coding derived from the five principles of heutagogy. Codes were clustered into the theoretically based themes of self-ability, learner agency, reflective processes, metacognition, and double-loop learning, and inductive subthemes to examine how each tool supports self-determined learning processes. Findings indicated that all three tools supported the heutagogical principles of self-determined learning to varied extents as the depth and consistency of alignment with higher order heutagogical principles varied.