Abstract

In this paper, I will explore the role of care in nursing and nursing education. I will examine ethics of care as proposed by theorists Jean Watson, Nell Noddings, and Mathew Lipman. Although engaging, Watson’s theory of care is underappreciated and lacks practical pedagogical application. Noddings and Lipman supply the missing pedagogical practice in their strategies to implement caring thinking in the classroom. Lipman stresses interactive strategies as effective techniques for teaching caring and caring thinking. Philosophical inquiry provides an ideal way for nursing students in seminars and clinical post-conference, to examine the role of caring in contemporary nursing. The community of inquiry holds promise as a practical strategy to infuse more caring into nursing education.