You may have heard that the NCLEX will be changing in April of 2023. The National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN) has spent years researching and developing a framework model to assess a newly graduated RN student’s ability to demonstrate minimal competency, with respect to clinical judgment and decision-making. The model, known as the NCSBN Clinical Judgment Measurement Model (NCJMM), is utilized to provide a valid and reliable means of measuring clinical judgment and was influential in the development of the Next Generation (NGN) NCLEX. This Next Generation NCLEX (NGN) is vital to better protect the public and deliver better outcomes in today’s ever-changing healthcare industry.
The good news: Since you are already a seasoned nurse who has been in the clinical setting, you have had to make difficult decisions based on your clinical judgment and critical thinking abilities. You have already developed what Next Gen NCLEX will be testing!
We’re Here to Help
The Guardian Healthcare NCLEX Prep Team is well-versed in the NGN NCLEX and will prepare you as an international nurse for success. Check out some of the new changes implemented in the NCLEX exam to be in the know when prepping.
Types of Questions to Expect
The NGN NCLEX exam is about asking better questions to help nurses think critically when providing care. The NCSBN is dedicated to assessing and adapting to the rapidly evolving healthcare environment. The next generation of nurses will need to make more complex decisions about client care to meet today’s client needs. Improved measurement of the nurse’s clinical judgment is crucial, so you can expect questions that test for a combination of critical thinking and decision-making abilities. NGN NCLEX questions will focus on: measuring clinical judgment involving the interaction between nurse and client, the client’s needs, and expected outcomes.
There is more good news related to the NGN NCLEX. In the past, some types of questions (ex: Select-All-That-Apply) were “graded” where if you missed any part of it, you missed the entire question. With the new NGN NCLEX, exam takers can receive partial credit for certain questions.
New Question Types:
- Extended Multiple Response
- Allow you to select one or more answer options at a time
- Similar to current NCLEX multiple response items, but with more options
- Extended Drag and Drop
- Allow you to move or place response options into answer spaces
- Similar to current NCLEX ordered response items, but not all of the response options may be required to answer the items
- In some items, there may be more response options than answer spaces
- Close/Drop Down
- Allow you to select one answer option from a drop-down list of words or phrases and can be founded within tables or charts
- Enhanced Hot Spot
- Allow you to select the answer by highlighting predefined words or phrases
- These types of items allow an individual to read a portion of a client’s medical record and then select the words or phrases that answer the item
- Matrix/Grid
- Allow you to select one or more answer options for each row and/or column
- This type of item can be useful in measuring multiple aspects of the clinical scenario with a single item
The new question types provide the nursing student with a fidelity-based exam reflecting the complexities of clients in a variety of healthcare settings. Click here to learn more.
Clinical Judgment for Better Outcomes
These new updates are an exciting enhancement to an already rigorous exam. Using the latest testing techniques, the new NCLEX exam will maintain a high level of reliability and accuracy while meeting the changing needs of nursing regulations.