I knew that getting back on track once I've come back to Malta would be difficult. There were a few days when I kept wishing I was back in Finland and getting on with everything felt more laborious than it really was. But after two weeks, things seemed to have settled a bit more, though the workload has only gotten worse. Ah, the joy of being a final year student. ;-)
First off, the MINE programme was such an amazing experience, one that I will not forget. It was a multifaceted learning experience that taught me so many different things in various aspects of my personal and academic life. Socially, it allowed me to meet a variety of people with a wide range of personalities and characteristics, all coming from numerous differing backgrounds. It was simply astounding how well such diversity could come together and come up with (in my opinion) a remarkable student-led conference, showcasing everyone's hard works. However, it's not without it's hardships; personalities sometimes clash; too many differing ideas make it hard to reach an agreement; language barriers become too much to overcome at times; the general physical and mental demands of being in an intensive programme. But we have managed to overcome those hurdles and get to the finish line as finishers, if not winners. In addition, I think that we got on pretty well outside the classroom setting, marked by a couple of nights out and activities in the hostel that proved to be great bonding experiences. I've made great friends during my time in Finland and for that, I am so grateful.
Academically, it introduced me to the differing systems of education and Nursing in Europe. It made me consider the way we're being taught in Malta and compare it with the methods of teaching in other countries. The differences we've established in every country was very interesting to me because it made me question the reasons behind these varieties. It made me evaluate my own personal way of learning and whether this coincides with the teaching method being used in my country. I think that if we take this a step further, by examining the way curricula are taught in different countries and why these work for them, we can actually update our own method of teaching that can improve learning and mentoring in our country. It is easy to just stay with old methods because they've been used since the beginning of time, but the way forward is to continually observe and look for ways to improve. I think that the MINE programme is a great tool for such purpose, where we're being exposed to such an array of cultures, lifestyle and way of working. It is an opportunity to assimilate knowledge and methods, as well as contribute one's own experiences and skills.
We also found a number of similarities amongst the six partner countries participating in the programme. The similarities in systems and methods between countries help in the event that one decides to migrate from one place to another, be it for studies or employment. It is a beneficial factor for mobility. However, it does not mean that the differences impede said mobility. It came up in our group discussion for my our digital story making that being introduced to a different system from your own basically makes you more well-rounded as a professional and possibly as a person too. As I've mentioned above, we can adopt the good points we come across and make it part of the already established structure we're working in. I realise that it may sound a bit over-simplified and in practice, it comes with it's own challenges but it's possible. One example that struck me during this discussion is that in Malta and the UK, the Nursing curricula are holistic whilst in Italy the curriculum is more medical based. A student from Italy who would opt to go to either country can benefit from learning a different approach in Nursing and vice versa.
The whole two weeks essentially helped me grasp better the similarities and differences in Nursing across Europe as well as made me see new points which I had not considered before. It also gave me the opportunity to learn more about Nursing across Europe by my interaction with my fellow students and the mentors present during the IP.
MINE can help Erasmus exchanges by giving the participant an idea of how the exchange will be. It can even aid the student in the decision making process - whether to actually to go and where to go - by speaking to students from other countries present as well as accessing the Wiki site that is made available to participants. An Erasmus exchange student we've met during the IP briefly shared with us his MINE experience and his eventual Erasmus exchange. He said that being part of the MINE programme gave him ample information about the country he had chosen and already having contact in that country helped a lot. I also think that mentors learn a lot from the MINE programme regarding mentoring strategies and such which they can apply in practice. I feel that having a mentor who has participated in such programme can greatly benefit the student assigned to them. MINE can also introduce students to what Erasmus exactly is. Some may go in the IP having only vague ideas of what the exchange entails and come out being more well-informed through interaction and the resources made known/available.
After having finished the IP, I can now appreciate the whole process adopted from start to finish. The patches were useful evaluation tools and also good ways to integrate ourselves with each other and get along with the programme. Having to introduce ourselves on Facebook even before we were due to fly to Finland gave us a small sense of familiarity that helped in our eventual interaction with each other. This is particularly true for me when I was contacted by a delegate from the UK after I posted my introductory post. It turns out that we're both of the same nationality and that was such a pleasant surprise to me. Fast forward to the first day in Finland, we met each other in the hostel's kitchen and promptly hugged each other when we realised who we were. It was such a nice feeling to already "know" someone in the IP who wasn't part of your country's delegation.
I really enjoyed watching each country's videos, introducing themselves and giving us a virtual tour of where they came from. It honestly made me want to visit each of them! Making our own video was fun too, in it's own way. It gave us the opportunity to get to know the other group members, particularly our mentors who we've never met before. The blogging was a little harder to get used to but eventually, we all managed. I find my colleagues' reflections to be inspirational and informative.
I had a wonderful time making the digital story. I whinged, mind you, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. And to see the final edit on the big screen during the conference was very satisfying, knowing that we've all had our share of work in it and exerted every effort to make it as best as we were able. I feel that during the making of the project, certain people naturally assumed the leadership role and others the followers and I think the major factor influencing this was the command of the English language. Those who were more comfortable speaking in English had it easier to express themselves and present their ideas and some tend to just agree. I'm not saying it's a bad thing because in our case, it worked in that we had a few people organising things and delegating tasks. One of the major turning points for me though was during the filming of the final part of the project where we had to have a somewhat spontaneous discussion about the impact of the differences in education students across Europe on nurses' mobility. It was a challenge starting the discussion but once it got going, I found the input from everyone to be valuable and riveting. Even those who initially weren't comfortable speaking English made substantial contribution during the discussion which allowed us to see different perspectives on the topic.
I was very uncomfortable at first about being separated from the Maltese students during the IP. It's always a bit hard stepping away from your comfort zone and that wasn't any different. But eventually, I've come to appreciate being in a group with the students from other countries. First of all, that was one of the main points of having the IP: to interact and learn from the others. Secondly, the nature of the assessment required each group to have a contribution from each country which naturally we cannot achieve if we just work with our the people from our own country. Lastly, it made making friends much quicker as you're somewhat forced (for the lack of a better term) to socialise with the others.
In conclusion, I think that I've benefited immensely from this IP. I've come to learn so much more about Nursing across Europe and the different mentoring strategies used. The social aspect, in my opinion, was where I learned the most. The other participants willingly shared their experiences and knowledge and I was only too happy to share my own. It allowed me to see things in a different perspective and made me more inquisitive in those two weeks. The fact that there was a medley of different personalities required me to be more open minded and tolerant. It also called for a self-evaluation - I didn't want to end up unknowingly offending anyone. These will be especially helpful in the workplace where I will be put in the same situation.
