The need to train new nurses, social healthcare practitioners has never been greater. Students who are attracted to these professions often excel in clinical practice, and many return to education after working. For some, it can prove a challenge to adjust to academia, especially when writing essays. This may result in capable students struggling with their university education simply due to the prescribed way of learning. Ketso Connect is a tool that brings the needed critical thinking to life, with visual and hands-on methods to structure and plan assignments. It proves a stimulating, engaging way to master the academic part of healthcare training.

By nature of the profession, students undertaking degrees in nursing, health care, and social work expect a hands-on approach. Whilst they often excel at practical and people skills, they may struggle with academic requirements, such as planning and writing essays, and passing theory exams as a necessity to graduate. It is a common dilemma for students who otherwise show enormous potential. Ketso Connect presents a solution.

Looking at a Ketso Connect kit for the first time, students can be surprised; it’s a felt ‘board’, and there are coloured ‘leaves’ to write ideas on and arrange into clusters. It comes across as a very different style of learning tool than they are used to, for instance, compared to online software. It is only when they begin to use it, that they comprehend its power to structure their thoughts and ideas.

Structuring notes from reading in essay preparation

Ketso is used in over half of the UK’s universities, with 75 peer-reviewed outputs citing its use in research, public and patient engagement, and learning. Its established, wide appeal in academic learning springs from the physical representation of the key components of critical thinking – learners can develop different strands of thought, swap out ideas, branch them off, cluster them and order them. Our thoughts are not always linear, and we have to go back, rethink, reorder and explore ideas before settling on conclusions. By physically building your thoughts into an organic structure, Ketso Connect lets you see and ‘feel’ the way your mind creates, orders and structures ideas, which in turn helps you improve how you do it. Ketso products all have the same central advantage; you’re developing and growing your ideas in one small easy-to-see place, before your eyes, in a way that you can’t do on a computer with a keyboard and screen alone.

Uncluttering the mind for critical thinking

This approach means it becomes easier for students to develop the required critical thinking and to competently structure essays and reports. Using this tool develops project planning and writing skills.

Further to this, a survey of feedback from student nurses using the Ketso Connect kit highlighted how using it de-cluttered messy thought processes, making the complex simple to comprehend. One nursing student commented: “Using the Ketso kit has allowed me to structure my essay. Prior to using the Ketso kit, my ideas would not flow clearly,” and another stated, “It is a very simple concept that can be used to uncomplicate an idea or thought process.” When this happens it is easier to see the pattern you need to follow. Comments from students from other disciplines back this up, for example: “I was able to write out my plan and follow it step by step,” and, “Easy to make connections with ideas, easy to structure assignments, easy to organise thoughts.”

Consider this key question asked in a survey of 235 students who have used Ketso Connect in their studies:

This anonymous survey was conducted with students from the Universities of Central Lancashire, Manchester, Salford, Anglia Ruskin and Manchester Metropolitan University; and covered subjects as diverse as: nursing, mental health nursing, sociology, social work, environmental management, sustainability, education, English literature and human resource management. A key finding, as shown in this chart, was that 85% of the students found Ketso Connect useful in helping them to structure their thinking and learning.

By physically building your thoughts into an organic structure, Ketso Connect lets you see and ‘feel’ the way your mind creates, orders and structures ideas, which in turn helps you improve how you do it.

For the 7% who did not find it useful, the reasons given were that is doesn’t suit their preferred learning style, or they prefer to type straight onto the computer, as that was seen as more efficient.

For most of the students surveyed, Ketso Connect offers a tangible way to grasp and manoeuvre concepts to make their essay writing clear and structured, with the direction they need to attain good grades.

A tool for healthcare professionals

Students using Ketso Connect to develop assignments

Ketso is used by health and social care professionals as a tool for engaging with service users and partners. Ketso Connect was born as an aid for engagement and connection for university students isolated during the peaks of the pandemic. An unexpected finding was the high value these students gained from using the kits in private study for structuring their assignments. Since then, it has won the 2021 Association of European Schools of Planning Teaching Excellence Award and has been ordered in bulk for multiple student cohorts. It makes a practical and intriguing addition to a welcome pack for new students. Specifically, for student nurses, the results of early trials have been exceptional.

Post-graduation, it retains value for everyday use and can be used for time planning, organising and reflective practice. It can prove to be of daily value in a fast-moving, complicated work environment with evolving methods and regulations, and when it becomes easy to be overwhelmed or distracted.

For students embarking on health and social care related degrees, a Ketso Connect can be included as part of a welcome pack in a university-branded canvas wallet. As a lifelong tool for learning, organisation and personal development, it is a highly beneficial tool for the beginning of university life.