The Mathematical Knowledge for Teaching Model as a Pedagogical Framework for Clinical Nursing Educators

Background: Clinical education is essential to the development of nursing students and future nursing practice. However, research often focuses on pedagogies used in the classroom and not in the clinical environment. Problem: Presently, there is no framework in nursing education to describe the subject matter and pedagogical knowledge educators draw upon when teaching in the clinical setting. Approach: This article describes how the mathematical knowledge for teaching framework was applied to nursing education to examine clinical educators' subject matter and pedagogical knowledge. Outcomes: By applying the framework, facets of subject and pedagogical knowledge used by clinical educators were identified, defined, and described. Conclusions: Applying the mathematical knowledge for teaching framework to clinical education may be an initial step to describe the types of knowledge that nursing educators draw upon in the clinical setting. It may also be used in the design of professional development and mentoring programs for nurse educators.