Learning clinical teaching. Is it magic?

Clinical teaching in nursing is a complex phenomenon that lacks a coherent theoretical base and is perplexing to novices, who tend to teach as they were taught. Nursing educators must find strategies to assist novice clinical teachers to learn the practice of clinical teaching. This article reports on the findings of a qualitative study that describes the process of learning clinical teaching through the voices of five novice and five expert clinical teachers. Essential differences between novices and experts are presented, and the challenges of preparing clinical teachers are discussed.