Nursing education requires a close connection between the theoretical field and the clinical field, while clinical training is described as a discipline that prepares students to apply previously acquired knowledge to new skills and competencies. Personal and professional skills, attitudes, and behaviors are learned and practiced in patient care as students put theory into practice.

In 1948, nursing education was officially included in the Saudi medical education curriculum. Nowadays, nurses make an essential contribution to the health care sector, which has made them one of the most sought-after professions. According to the latest statistics from the Ministry of Health (2017) of Saudi Arabia, nurses make up 41% (83,596) of the MoH workforce, of which 63% are Saudis. As a result, nursing education has evolved from2-year vocational colleges to 4-year course at universities with over 39 nursing programs across the Kingdom.

At this time, we aimed to investigate and evaluate the impact and effect of teaching methods and techniques used by clinical teachers on the education of Saudi nursing students at a medical institution in the Eastern Province. We further hypothesized that this approach would allow a better understanding of the relationship between clinical learning behavior and the educational experience of nursing students, as well as identify areas for improvement to improve the quality of college nursing education. We administered the Nursing Clinical Teacher Effectiveness Inventory (NCTEI, Knox and Morgan, 1985) among n = 135 nursing students.

We found that, similar to global trends, Saudi nursing students have precise expectations of the behaviors of clinical teachers in facilitating students’ clinical experiences. Respondents rated teaching ability as the most effective clinical teaching behavior, followed by nursing competence. Both interpersonal relations and personality were equally rated, while evaluation received the lowest overall mean. The patterns identified in this research were consistent with international data, suggesting that clinical teachers are expected to maintain their credibility and be relevant, devoting time to studying and exchanging new knowledge, guiding, and supporting students in their training.

Along with teaching ability, Saudi students considered nursing competence as some of the highest category for an effective clinical teacher. Further findings in this study showed that although faculty occupy a distinctive position in the education system and can professionally train students, interpersonal communication skills and their positive attitude to knowledge delivery and exchange cannot be underestimated. The least rated category by the students was evaluation. Nevertheless, the evaluation is an important tool for teachers, managers, and nurses to get information about professional strengths and weaknesses of nurses and, therefore, in educational and developing needs. Moreover, this process helps students get the desired skills and goals and assists teachers in the development of an integrated and acceptable system of providing knowledge. Accordingly, although the evaluation is not the ultimate goal of providing knowledge, it should be a motivating force to teach students.

The study identified significant variation in how students at different academic levels perceive clinical teaching behaviors. Teaching Ability and Nursing Competence were consistently valued across all cohorts, but Evaluation was perceived as the weakest domain, particularly by lower level and bridging students. The BSN4 group, nearing program completion, rated all aspects of clinical teaching more favorably, possibly reflecting greater appreciation of clinical instruction or more mature academic expectations. These findings highlight the importance of tailoring clinical teaching strategies based on program level. In particular, there is a need to improve evaluation practices and support lower-level students who may perceive less instructional value in their clinical experiences.

A holistic and differentiated approach—emphasizing strong teaching behaviors while addressing weaker domains like evaluation—can enhance the learning experience, promote competence, and better prepare nursing students for professional practice.