How the metaphor of a gap between theory and practice has influenced nursing education

Nursing has so enthusiastically embraced the notion of a gap between theory and practice that it may have inhibited creativity in the design and delivery of programmes and thereby missing other opportunities for student nurses to learn from practical contexts.

Abstract

The metaphor of a gap between theory and practice is firmly established in nursing education. Furthermore, it is embedded in conventional professional wisdom to the extent that when it used in professional reports, academic writing or in the conversations amongst nurses, it often requires no further explanation. The notion of a gap between theory and practice has proven to be a most fertile and an especially helpful concept which has enabled educators, clinicians and students to devise practical strategies, intended to resolve problems associated with the gap. However, that nursing has so enthusiastically embraced the notion of a gap between theory and practice may also have inhibited creativity in the design and delivery of programmes and thereby missing other opportunities for student nurses to learn from practical contexts.