Used to define quality in nursing education, the AACN Essentials outline the necessary curriculum content and expected competencies of graduates from baccalaureate, master’s, and Doctor of Nursing Practice programs. AACN is dedicated to providing resources and support to facilitate this shift in nursing education. Whether you're an educator, student, or healthcare professional, explore this microsite to stay informed and engaged as we shape the future of nursing education together.
As your school continues to evolve its nursing programs and transition to competency-based education, we want to ensure you stay abreast of the latest tools and services to enhance your school's Essentials implementation efforts. This event is specifically designed for AACN member deans, faculty, and administrators who are considering innovative technology solutions to elevate your curriculum and streamline program administration. The Vendor Showcase is available to watch on-demand now through January 1, 2025.
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Resources to Elevate Your Understanding of Competency-Based Education
December 18, 2024 AACN is committed to providing faculty development focused on competency-based education (CBE). A content-rich website was created to highlight the latest learning resources, including more than 60 on-demand webinars and conference sessions on CBE, learning assessment, and Essentials implementation. Special highlights include The Guiding Principles for Competency-Based Education and Assessment, Guide to Curriculum Transition for Competency-Based Education, and a video featuring Dr. Jacquelyn McMillian-Bohler from Duke University, which outlines the six elements that distinguish CBE from traditional approaches to teaching and learning. AACN encourages faculty to visit this website often for the latest announcements related to new resources and upcoming learning opportunities.
Share Your Essentials Implementation Efforts in a School Spotlight
December 11, 2024 AACN would like to hear from schools about their efforts to adapt their nursing programs to meet the 2021 Essentials and transition to competency-based education. We are compiling School Spotlights to share lessons learned and strategies for moving to the new competency standards. What approaches are you using to revise your curriculum and clinical experiences? Are there any tools or strategies that you’ve found to be particularly helpful in advancing this work? Are you working closely with your practice partners to implement new learning and assessment measures? Please send us a short video or summary of the work underway at your school for inclusion in an upcoming News Watch and on the AACN website. Send spotlights to rrosseter@aacnnursing.org.
Weaving Caring Science into the AACN Essentials
December 4, 2024 As part of our popular series on implementing the Essentials, AACN presented a webinar on Unifying Caring Science and the AACN Essentials in October featuring three co-authors of the article profiled in the Weekly Digest above: Sara Horton-Deutsch, Jean Watson, and Danny Willis. Championed by Dr. Watson, Caring Science provides an ethical, humanistic, and heart-centered educational guide for the future of nursing. The presentation explores a visionary partnership model between healthcare organizations and academic institutions focused on integrating the AACN Essentials within the broader context of Caring Science and the nursing discipline. This integration aims to elevate the standards of nursing education, preparing a new generation of nurses with a deeper understanding of the caring, healing, and compassionate aspects of the profession. For details on dozens of additional webinars offered to help with Essentials implementation, click here.
AACN’s Scholarly Journal Seeks Manuscripts on Essentials Implementation
November 21, 2024 The Journal of Professional Nursing (JPN) is AACN’s peer-reviewed journal, which serves as the leading source for scholarly publications related to the 2021 AACN Essentials and the transition to competency-based nursing education. JPN is currently seeking manuscripts focused on how schools are moving to adapt their programs using the new model and framework outlined in the Essentials, including new approaches to teaching and learning assessment. To discuss your manuscript idea, contact editor Dr. Patricia Morton at Trish.Morton@utah.edu. For an updated list of Essentials-related articles published in JPN and other leading journals serving the academic nursing community, click here.
Conference Sessions on Essentials Implementation and CBE at Transform 2024–Only 20 Spots Left!
November 13, 2024 On December 7, AACN is hosting a panel presentation on Shaping the Future of Nursing: Integrating Competency-Based Education and AI to Implement the AACN Essentials as part of Transform 2024 in New Orleans, LA. As nursing transitions to competency-based education (CBE), schools are embracing creative approaches to better prepare the next generation of nurses. Faculty will share insights on how sustainable transformation requires both a short game of immediate wins and a long game of gradual progress to fully transition to CBE. In this session, presenters will highlight strategies and real-world examples that balance these approaches, providing a roadmap for long-term success. In addition to this closing plenary session, Transform will feature several Emerging Solutions sessions on December 6 focused on the Essentials and CBE, including Reimaging Nursing Education: AACN’s Competency-Based Education Initiative for Practice-Ready Nurse Graduates; Bridging the Gap: Academic Service-Learning and CBE; and Discovering Alignment Between the AACN Essentials and Sigma’s Global Leadership Competency Framework. Register now.
Leveraging Simulation in the Transition to Competency-Based Education
November 6, 2024 For the first time, AACN will host a new regional workshop for faculty seeking effective approaches to meeting the 2021 Essentials and transitioning to competency-based education (CBE). Offered as a pre-conference to Transform 2024 in New Orleans, AACN will present Unlocking the Power of Simulation - Coach for Competency on December 3-4. Faculty will explore how to adapt instructional strategies through experiential learning using various forms of simulation in the lab, classroom, and clinical setting. Participants will learn how to take their coaching and debriefing techniques to the next level using simulation. Program sessions include Simulation’s Role in CBE, Scenario Development and Assessment, Art of Facilitation, Building a Resource Toolbox, and Creating a Learning Oasis: Psychological Safety and Engagement. Register now, space is limited.
Join Us in Denver for a Faculty Development Workshop on CBE
October 30, 2024 Faculty members from nursing schools nationwide will travel to Denver for a one-day immersion experience on competency-based education (CBE). On November 8, AACN will host a workshop on Essentializing Your Curriculum: Moving Forward with Competency-Based Education at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus for faculty and their practice partners working to implement the 2021 Essentials. The workshop will show nurse educators how to apply backward design to meet desired student outcomes, including a special focus on performance-based learning and assessment strategies. Tips for using AI to develop progression indicators will be shared. Register for the workshop now.
Upcoming Webinar Focuses on Infusing AI in Nursing Education Programs
October 23, 2024 The AACN Essentials calls for nursing students across programs to demonstrate competency with informatics, which encompasses artificial intelligence (AI). Join Dr. Rene Love and Dr. Jane Carrington from the University of Florida for a discussion about AI, including its application in healthcare delivery and clinical decision-making. On November 5 from 2:00-3:00 pm (ET), AACN is offering a webinar on Infusing Artificial Intelligence in Undergraduate and Graduate Nursing Programs, which is free to faculty from all member schools. Come enhance your understanding of how generative AI works and learn new ways to infuse AI into nursing curriculum across program levels. Register now.
Reach Key Audiences with the Essentials Talking Point Series
October 16, 2024 To facilitate dialogue about the move to competency-based education (CBE) in nursing, AACN has developed a series of talking points to help frame the issues for key audiences in the healthcare and academic arenas. These documents provide an overview of the transformational work underway in nursing to fully transition to the 2021 AACN Essentials, as well as the “Why” behind moving to CBE. Talking points have been tailored to answer questions typically posed by higher education leaders, practice partners, development officers, and prospective nursing students. Faculty and administrators use this information to negotiate for resources and build support for curriculum redesign. The talking points may be accessed for free on the AACN website, and most may be ordered in bulk.
Register Now for Regional Faculty Development Workshops Focused on CBE
October 9, 2024 AACN is hosting two regional workshops this fall for faculty seeking strategies, resources, and solutions to meeting the 2021 Essentials and transitioning to competency-based education (CBE). The first workshop, titled Essentializing Your Curriculum: Moving Forward with Competency-Based Education, will show faculty how to apply backward design to adapt curriculum with a stronger focus on performance-based learning and assessment. Faculty will also learn tips for using AI to develop progression indicators. This workshop will be held on November 8 at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus located outside of Denver. Register now. AACN is also introducing a new workshop, titled Unlocking the Power of Simulation - Coach for Competency, on December 3-4 in New Orleans, just prior to the Transform 2024 conference. Faculty will explore how to adapt instructional strategies through experiential learning using various forms of simulation in the lab, classroom, and clinical setting. Participants will learn how to take their coaching and debriefing techniques to the next level using simulation. Register now; space is limited.
Conference Session on Essentials Implementation and AI Planned for the ANLC
October 2, 2024 On October 14, AACN is hosting a panel presentation on Building the Future of Nursing: Implementing the AACN Essentials with Competency-Based Education and AI-Driven Innovation as part of the Academic Nursing Leadership Conference (ANLC) in Washington, DC. As nursing transitions to competency-based education (CBE), schools are embracing creative approaches to better prepare the next generation of nurses. Discover how schools are leveraging AI to develop progression indicators and create immersive experiential learning opportunities. Join us as we celebrate ingenuity in nursing education focused on developing a future-ready workforce. Presenters include Dr. Jacklyn Barber, Morningside University; Dr. Rene Love, University of Florida; Dr. Jacqui McMillian-Bohler, Duke University; and Dr. Carmen Ward-Sullivan, Samuel Merritt University. Register for the ANLC now.
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What Higher Education Leaders Need to Know About the AACN Essentials
Essentials Competency Assessment Framework