What works better for you?

Nursing Students General Students

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Hi there,

I am a Nursing I student and it is in the middle of the semester and I am still lost at where my professor makes her tests from. Alot of my classmates record the lectures and only focus on what the professor says on the powerpoints and will read the book in depth if they dont understand what she went over in class. But for me, I read word for word everything in the book regardless if it stuck in my head or not because I feel like there is no way only what is on the powerpoint is the only thing she will test us on. I feel like I will miss something if I dont read the book. I recently bought a voice recorder for the lectures to write things down that I missed. I am not doing too well in this class either. Passing is a 70. I got a 76 on the first exam and a 60 on the second one. I am on the brink of either passing or failing so my grade can go either way. I just cant seem to grasp what exactly to study, I should already know what to focus on if we are already reviewing for the 3rd exam!

What do you guys focus on when you study? Do you go to the book for everything or focus on JUST what the professor says and hit those key points in the book? I feel like there is no way the professors can go over everything they want so if i dont review the book I feel like ill miss alot of other information and we are responsible for the reading assigned so if they only go over certain things, we are still responsible for knowing other things she didnt go over as well. WHAT SHOULD I DO!? help!! I go for tutoring that they have on campus but it hasnt worked! :no:

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This may be the least possible answer out there.

I focus on the power points. I read the book once before the lecture but then hardly ever reread the books. When I study I study the power points, I may go to the book to add some additional information that I don't have on my power points. My power points are covered in notes and I study those notes also. I find if the instructor has given an example for something, writing that example helps. The tests are critical thinking, so knowing the book information isn't what its all about, it is being able to apply that information in a question (why examples work well)

When we start the class another day, the first thing our instructors do is a recap of what we just did. I write like crazy during that time. It seems whatever they go over at the beginning of class will be on the exam. I also write down any youtube videos we may watch to review at home. (I find videos difficult in class because some of my fellow students use this as time to chat)

I put everything I possibly can onto quizlet it causes me to think about the answers.

This works for me, I am getting 90s on my exams.

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Specializes in CVICU, CCRN.

What you should have done immediately after you failed that second exam is go to your instructor and ask for his/her advice. Simply ask her what you should focus on in your study. Hopefully, she will have some advice for you.

If I were you, I would highly recommend looking for "flashcard" websites (like Gwhiz.com) and trying to find relevant test questions.

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What you should have done immediately after you failed that second exam is go to your instructor and ask for his/her advice. Simply ask her what you should focus on in your study. Hopefully, she will have some advice for you.

If I were you, I would highly recommend looking for "flashcard" websites (like Gwhiz.com) and trying to find relevant test questions.

I have been to my professor and spoke to her. To be honest I told her I have trouble pin pointing the most important info to study and she didnt say much. The didnt offer any advice at all. She is very old school so shes not much of a help. I have been to tutoring for test taking to see what I am doing wrong and went to tutoring on things I have difficulty understanding and I was given practice questions. I have alot of NCLEX books to practice questions but it seems I have difficulty applying my knowledge. Im kind of stuck

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Specializes in Maternal Child.

Is there anyone you could talk to that has taken a class with her before? Maybe check with your school's SNA chapter? At tutoring, could they connect you with someone whom has taken her tests? From the 2 tests you have taken so far, could you tell if they were more PowerPoint info heavy? Try talking to a classmate as well to see how they study vs how they are performing on tests. I also agree with flash cards, though I write them out myself. I find that just pouring over your books can be unsuccessful. There is so much info there, that I would read, make notes on pertinent info, and make flash cards along with the info from the powerpoints. I take my notes on PDFs (annotate) but I find that handwriting flash cards help to have the info "sink in."

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