Amanda Bridgewater

Teaching Strengths

Theory-to-practice learning
Creating supportive inclusive learning environment
Assessment and academic integrity
Student-centred and inclusive teaching
Educational leadership and mentoring

Mrs Amanda Bridgewater

Lecturer, Nursing

School of Nursing and Midwifery

College of Health

I teach across the Bachelor of Nursing program and enjoy helping students connect what they learn in the classroom with the realities of clinical practice. My teaching is informed by more than twenty years of nursing experience across emergency, acute and neonatal care, including twelve years in neonatal special care nursing. I have also taught within clinical simulation environments across all three years of the Bachelor of Nursing program, supporting students to develop clinical reasoning, communication and decision-making skills in safe and authentic learning settings.
 

I understand that studying nursing can be both rewarding and challenging, particularly when balancing study with work, family and life commitments. I aim to create supportive learning environments where students feel comfortable asking questions, building confidence and developing their professional identity. Nothing is more rewarding than seeing students realise how much they have learned and how capable they are becoming as future nurses.

My research and scholarship focus on improving student learning experiences, educational quality, graduate capability and academic integrity within nursing education. I am particularly interested in creating inclusive, ethical and evidence-informed learning environments that support student success and preparedness for professional practice.

My completed Master of Nursing (Research) explored the barriers and enablers influencing the clinical placement experiences of international nursing students in Australia. This work has informed ongoing collaborations focused on improving mentorship, belonging, acculturation and preparedness for practice among international and culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) nursing students.

Research interests:

  • Nursing education and graduate capability
  • Student learning and placement experiences
  • Academic integrity and generative AI in higher education
  • Educational quality improvement and student partnership

Current collaborative projects include systematic reviews exploring the reliability of AI detection tools and student use of generative AI in higher education, AI literacy initiatives for students and educators, and collaborative projects examining student voice in educational quality improvement.

Current Research Activity:

My scholarship activities have focused on educational quality, reflective practice, student partnership and emerging technologies in higher education:
  • Co-authorship - Systematic review examining the reliability and accuracy of AI detection tools in higher education.
  • Co-authorship - Systematic review exploring student use and perceptions of generative AI.
  • Collaborative scholarship projects focused on student partnership and educational quality improvement.

Scholarly Outputs

  • Co-authorship on two published Non-Traditional Research Outputs (NTROs) arising from the Teaching Squares Community of Practice.
  • Conference presentations and scholarly dissemination activities.

Grants and Awards:

  • Learning and Teaching Grant ($5,000): Teaching Squares with Student Partners for Reflection on Teaching
  • Innovation Seed Grant ($1,000): Co-designing Resources to Strengthen AI Literacy in Health Education
  • University Teaching Citation for Outstanding Contributions to Student Learning through the Teaching Squares initiative (Awarded $7,000)

Teaching Experience:

I enjoy helping students connect theory with practice, build confidence in their clinical reasoning, and develop the knowledge, skills and professional identity needed for contemporary nursing practice.
 
I teach across the Bachelor of Nursing program, including
  • Foundations of Nursing Practice
  • Health of Older People
  • Health of Infants, Children and Adolescents 
  • Health of Adults
  • Health Assessment, Diagnostics and Pharmacotherapeutics
  • Primary Healthcare Nursing,    
  • Evidence-based Nursing Practice, and 
  • Transition to Professional Nursing Practice.
 
I have also previously taught within clinical simulation environments across all three years of the Bachelor of Nursing program, supporting students to develop clinical reasoning, communication and decision-making skills in safe and authentic learning settings. 
 
My goal is to help students become safe, compassionate and capable nurses who are prepared for the realities of professional practice.

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