Effective fetal monitoring (FM) is central to safe intrapartum care and features prominently in national strategies to reduce neonatal morbidity and mortality. As midwives provide continuous one-to-one care during labour, they are often the first clinicians to detect early deviations in maternal or fetal wellbeing. Preparing student midwives for this responsibility requires more than technical instruction. As fetal monitoring education increasingly moves beyond fetal heart-rate pattern recognition, it demands pedagogically robust, practice aligned and contextually sensitive educational frameworks that foreground physiological understanding and clinical reasoning.

This article outlines an integrated approach to FM education in a pre-registration midwifery programme. Drawing on Biggs’ constructive alignment (1996) and Fink’s taxonomy of significant learning (2013), it demonstrates how university teaching and clinical learning environments can be intentionally aligned to bridge the theory–practice gap. Central to this approach is the use of interactive, real-world case discussions that support the application of theoretical knowledge to authentic clinical scenarios, fostering critical thinking, reflective practice and clinical confidence.

Offering regular FM case discussions in the university during academic blocks, alongside bespoke learning opportunities in clinical placements delivered by specialist fetal monitoring midwives, ensures that fetal monitoring remains a visible and prioritised element of student learning. The co-designed higher education institution–National Health Service (HEI–NHS) interactive fetal monitoring conference further demonstrates the value of collaborative teaching, student partnership and authentic learning experiences. Collectively, these approaches support safe intrapartum care by promoting physiological birth while equipping students with the clinical reasoning, vigilance and escalation skills required in practice.