“SimWars”: A MultiSpecialty Simulation Competition to Improve Learning - Critique & Practical Usage

Montgomery, M., Johnson, P., Graves, A., May, O., Hoggle, J., Booth, L., & Kelley, M. A. (2015). “SimWars”: A multispecialty simulation competition to improve learning. Clinical Simulation in Nursing, 11(9), 421-424. doi:10.1016/j.ecns.2015.05.010

The article SimWars”: A Multispecialty Simulation Competition to Improve Learning discusses how simulation competitions were used to to foster team-based patient care utilizing technology, teamwork and creativity in nursing education. This article argues that this style of learning incorporating innovative teaching strategies targeted to millennial students was able to improve leadership skills and teamwork in undergraduate nursing students. The article highlights a specific innovate simulation competition called “SimWars” that was developed by faculty in three nursing courses with a baccalaureate program. The reasoning behind this is the faculty wanted to utilize innovative teaching strategies that would be embraced by the unique characteristics of Millennial nursing students. The focus was on designing an environment that would foster team-based attitudes toward patient care, allow students to learn in a controlled environment, and could lead to improved clinical judgment, leaderships skills and improve the students’ self-confidence.

My reaction to this article is that it is a very unique and innovative approach to education and teaching and one that could work out quite well in the realm of athletics and sports management. The use of simulation competitions could be used by coaches for team-building activities and to have friendly competition between various groups within a team. It could also be used to simply change up the standard training and classroom learning that can become quite mundane and boring for higher level athletes who have been competing for quite some time. The ability to simulate certain situations within the overall context of a game can be quite beneficial for players should a similar scenario occur during an actual competition. Also, the ability of this simulation competition to bring teams together is something that a coach is always trying to do with the players.

This article has a practical usage for anyone who is attempting to discover the best learning methods for people to be able to learn and utilize information that is practical. I want to uncover the best way for athletes to learn new movements of the human body, for team sport participants to be able to learn and understand plays, and for coaches to learn the best methods to teach their athletes particular nuances of the sport they are teaching. This article helps to do that with respect to showing that utilizing simulation competition during training may be an excellent way for athletes and coaches to practice game strategies and perform team-building activities in a fun and relaxed atmosphere. Allowing athletes to learn new skills and play in an environment in which they best are able to learn will make the process more fun, and they will be apt to remember and retain the new information and be able to use that information during future competitions. This is yet another tool for coaches and sports managers to utilize to make it fun and exciting everyday for their players and employees. Having everyone excited about work or practice and creating an environment where everyone is focused on having the team succeed instead of concentrating on their own individual skills or performances can help a team become more cohesive. This can mean the difference in a real competition where teamwork becomes so integral to the success or failure of a team, especially in intense, stressful situations, which can be simulated through use of this innovative teaching approach.

http://www.sciencedirect.com.ezproxy.lib.utexas.edu/science/article/pii/S1876139915000493