'Preparing for sciences' workshop: A new
initiative for Whyalla nursing students

This article describes a regional campus initiative, which set out to address the problem of high student failure in first-year Human Bioscience courses in the Bachelor of Nursing program. Through the introduction of the 'Preparing for Sciences' workshop provided at the beginning of the semester, the faculty of the Discipline of Nursing and Rural Health at the Whyalla Campus developed students' understanding of the learning process and individual learning, related scientific concepts to the practice of nursing, and began examining specific scientific topics relating to the human body as a way of preparing students for the study of sciences. Evaluating the learning that transpired and the impact of the workshop on academic performance was considered essential. Results of the post-workshop survey indicate that the students (n=22) who participated in the pilot workshop perceived it as a valuable introduction to studying sciences and university life in general, while results of the end-of-course survey (n=6), constrained by small sample size, found the workshop to have been useful in preparing students for Human Bioscience 1, positively impacting on their performance in this course. The initiative is worthwhile continuing on a regular basis.