Nurs 153

Reflective Practice: Community Placement Assignment
Hayley Nolan, #00616959

NURS 153
Professor Janet Jeffery
Humber College
Monday, May, 25th, 2015
Introduction to Community Placement

I am currently in the process of completing my community service learning requirement
through the Halton District School Board (HDSB) at P.L. Robertson Public Elementary School
in Milton, Ontario. The Halton District School Board is among the largest in the province which
governs over 100 elementary and secondary schools within Milton, Burlington, Oakville and
Halton Hills (Halton District School Board, n.d.). It is a publicly funded service administered by
the Government of Ontario with the purpose of providing education to people of all-ages
throughout the Halton region.
During placement hours, I provide assistance in a full-day blended kindergarten
classroom alongside a teacher and an early childhood educator. This involves working directly
with the target population performing duties including but not limited to taking attendance,
planning group activities, one-on-one education support, peer mediation and various
administrative tasks. According to the HDSB, the purpose of kindergarten education is to
provide a "strong foundation for learning in the early years, and to do so in a safe and caring
play-based environment that promotes the physical, social, emotional and cognitive
development" (Halton District School Board, n.d.). The full-day kindergarten program is an
option offered to all residents of Ontario that encourages a stronger start in school and transition
to future grades for young learners (Ontario Ministry of Education, 2015). The full-day
kindergarten curriculum is offered to all students in Ontario between the ages of four and five
within the boundaries of a school offering the program.
Reflective Practice Through Community Service Learning
What is reflective practice? According to The Nursing Times, it is a self-conducted
investigation of the nurses own thoughts and performance which influences their professional
practice. It is a process by which a nurse critically examines feedback, evaluates their

knowledge, and identifies personal strengths and limitations (2004). Prior to choosing an agency
to complete my community service learning hours, I reflected on my current capabilities in order
to identify areas in which I could improve my future practice. As a result, I acknowledged that
my knowledge and experience with children was quite limited. I recognized that a well-rounded
understanding of diverse age groups is imperative to my success, hence, influencing my choice
of community placement.
During my community service learning hours at P.L. Robertson Public Elementary
School, I was given the opportunity to work directly with the target demographic inside of an
unfamiliar and challenging environment; a full-day kindergarten classroom. I have gained
valuable experience working with young Canadians from diverse socioeconomic, religious, and
cultural backgrounds. I am expected to demonstrate many of the same professional behaviours
expected of nurses including maintaining confidentiality, developing therapeutic relationships
and conflict prevention and management. As aforementioned, my role within the classroom was
to support educators with various daily classroom tasks and activities. I regularly conduct oneon-one education with students in order to encourage development of language acquisition,
numeracy, and refinement of fine motor skills. In addition, I developed personalized
relationships with each student which respected their unique needs, capabilities and talents. In
addition to actively engaging with the children throughout the day, I am able to observe the
childrens behaviour in their natural environment. This allowed me to connect information I have
learned in theory-based courses such as developmental psychology, physical health assessment
and nursing theory in a real-world application. For example, the Ontario Ministry of Education
encourages the use of an instructional technique known as scaffolding to facilitate learning in
young children (2010). It is imperative that nurses understand how children learn in order to
effectively teach health promoting behaviours, habits and strategies.
In sum, my experience with the Halton District School Board was positive. I have
arranged to collaborate with the teacher and early childhood educator to discuss my experience
within the classroom and its relevance to my future nursing practice. This includes continuing to
practice self-reflection and peer assessment throughout my nursing education and career.
Social Determinants of Health and Community Resources
According to the Canadian Nurses Association, social determinants of health are the
economic and social conditions that influence the health of individuals, communities and
jurisdictions as a whole (2005). The role of the Ontario Ministry of Education is to ensure that
all persons have access to education regardless of their social determinants of health. In 2010, the
Ontario government began implementing the full-day kindergarten program to support the early
learner and reduce the cost of childcare for Ontario families (Final Roll Out for Full Day
Kindergarten, 2011). Despite the governments best efforts to reduce the influence of the social
determinants of health on Canadians youth, its remains to be eliminated. During my
community placement, I identified two social determinants of health effecting Canadian youth:
food insecurity and social supports.
According to the Canadian Nurses Association suggests that a well-balanced diet and
adequate supply of nutritious food are essential elements of good health (2008). Food insecurity
is not merely lack of access to food, but a lack of access to nutritious food. During my
placement, I observed that many of the childrens lunches and snacks were composed of calorie
dense food with little to no nutritional value. As obesity remains an issue for young Canadians, it
is important to implement healthy lifestyle choices early in order to promote lifelong health
(Canadian Nurses Association, 2008). The Heart and Stroke Foundation website provides free
tips and strategies for healthy living for Canadians. Their mission is to prevent disease, save lives
and promote recovery (Heart and Stroke Foundation, 2015). The website is filled with family
friendly recipes for healthy meals. This includes a printable colouring book for children with
recipes and information about healthy lifestyle choices. It is easily accessible for anyone who has
access to a computer or a local library.
The Canadian Nurses Association defines social supports as the practical and emotional
life skills (2008). It is imperative that children have access to support from family, caregivers
and educators. During my community placement, I recognized that children who lacked adequate
social and emotional support at home often exhibited maladaptive behaviours inside of the
classroom. The Reach Out Centre for Kids (ROCK) is a learning centre dedicated to the mental
health of children, adolescence and their family (ROCK, 2015). The organization provides a 24
hour crisis line and a walk-in services once a week in Milton, Oakville and Burlington. This
includes individual and family therapy.
3
References
Canadian Nurses Association. (2005). Social Determinants of Health and Nursing: A Summary
of the Issues. Retrieved from: https://www.cna-aiic.ca/~/media/cna/page-content/pdf-en/
social-determinants-of-health-and-nursing_a-summary-of-the-issues.pdf?la=en
Final Roll Out For Full-Day Kindergarten. (2011). News Ontario. Retrieved May 25, 2015, from
http://news.ontario.ca/opo/en/2011/06/final-roll-out-for-full-day-kindergarten.html
Halton District School Board. (n.d.). Retrieved May 20, 2015, from http://www.hdsb.ca/
Programs/Pages/ProgramsServices.aspx
Heart and Stroke Foundation. (2015). Retrieved May 25, 2015, from http://
www.heartandstroke.com/site/c.ikIQLcMWJtE/b.6248871/k.BE53/
Healthy_Kids__Healthy_Eating.htm
Reach Out Centre for Kids. (2015). Retrieved May 25, 2015, from http://rockonline.ca/services/
child-and-family-services/
Somerville, D., & Keeling, J. (2004). Clinical Practice: A practical approach to promote
reflective practice within nursing. Nursing Times. Retrieved from http://
www.nursingtimes.net/Journals/2012/11/30/v/l/x/040323A-practical-approach-topromote-reflective-practice-within-nursing.pdf
The Ministry of Education. (2010). The Full-Day Early Learning - Kindergarten Program.
Retrieved from http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/curriculum/elementary/
kindergarten_english_june3.pdf

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Reflective Practice: Community Placement Assignment

Hayley Nolan, #00616959

Introduction to Community Placement

practice. It is a process by which a nurse critically examines feedback, evaluates their

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