As you can tell infer from the title--I have found study groups to be a colossal waste of time. Everything you need to know is in the book and anything confusing can be googled much quicker than any alternative.
Now that I've started nursing school everyone and their dog has heavily emphasized the importance of forming study groups to survive. Can someone explain to me how utilizing a study group can be beneficial to me?
How do you prepare for a study group?
How does it provide any greater understanding of the material?
i never liked study groups.......i have my own way of understanding and remembering things. i attended one once and found it to be an enormous waste of my time.
One thing you need to beware of is incorrect information.
Ultimately, YOU need to understand the information, because YOU will take the test independently - without the study group. Learning the material independently will help you to reason out a question on your own...something you'll do in the real world.
I'm kind of a loner when it comes to studying, but I fell in with a great couple of people who just happened to sit by me in nursing classes, and our group built from there. By the end of our two years together, we had a really solid study group that improved all of our scores just by getting together a couple of times a week to review the material. We had a great balance of men and women in our group, as well as a broad age range from the 20 year old to the late-40s, which offered good perspective. We pretty much traded off with one other well organized study group for the highest test scores each week. We also gathered to prepare for the NCLEX, and used the NCLEX-RN game part of that. It was a lot of fun, and we were quite successful at passing the exam at the end. It helped that we were a bunch of self-motivated students, several on 2nd careers, who had the drive and KNEW we had to get through it. Definitely welcome a diversity of people into your group!
For me, I use both study methods. I study independently all that I can understand on my own. Once I pretty much feel like i can almost lecture on it, then my friends and I will meet up and discuss each topic in detail. You will be AMAZED at what material you misunderstood, and how well your friends can explain something differently from the instructor that makes it all crystal clear now.
I tried a study group and we were at one student's house for 3 hrs on Sundays. About 45 min. we actually studied, the rest of the time there was a whole bunch of socializing. My grades started slipping so I spent the time at home studying, instead. My grades went right back up. Some people benefit with study groups. I didn't.
I agree with the above post. While study groups may prove beneficial, I worked all through nursing school, and made time for a life. As a result, I did not have time to waste in a group. In groups, you inadvertently always spend extra time socializing. I had no time for that. For me, when something needs to be learned, I make an outline and go right in. Although I did socialize :), when there was a task at hand, the socializing wasn't a priority. That being said, I don't mind teaching others after I have learned the material.
My study group was amazing. It was a group of 5 very focused ladies! They help because the way someone else explains something you aren't getting will spring to life during your exam! Often times would I think oh goodness I am glad so and so brought that up...or helped me understand that. Also on days where you just wanna say blahhh a scheduled study session will keep you on it. Plus, no one gets the difficulty of nursing school like your fellow nursing students yes socializing takes place and its needed to keep sane! I graduated with honors as did 2 others in my study group and am officially an RN =D
So you've just started nursing school? Looks like you've just stumbled across one of the subtle (and not-so-subtle) characteristics of professions that are dominated by a particular gender. "Study groups" are one of these peculiarities. You could be enrolled in another comparably difficult program comprised largely of one gender--engineering--and never once hear the term "study group."
I tend to study best in intense short bursts, so study groups don't work for me. However, others in my class belong to one of the many study cabals, and seem to do well. As other have mentioned, it's all about your learning style. It's my impression that study groups are as much about socializing and support as they are about actual studying.
Now that I've started nursing school everyone and their dog has heavily emphasized the importance of forming study groups to survive. Can someone explain to me how utilizing a study group can be beneficial to me?
bina2345
7 Posts
i never liked study groups.......i have my own way of understanding and remembering things. i attended one once and found it to be an enormous waste of my time.