Devastated beyond belief....and I don't even know what to change.

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I just got home from class and we had a test on Psych. I have actually had quite a few psych classes and I am very comfortable with the subject.

We had 15 chapters to read for class. I read all of them.

We had 50 pages of pre-prepared notes from lecture, that they have always told us to know inside and out...and I did.

Our test had 50 questions...40 is passing. I got a 33.

Granted, the rest of the class bombed too....missing 16, 18, 20 and more on this same exam....however, I have learned that they don't really do anything to help us on the next one other than to say, "Do better".

I had missed so many by question 20 that I couldn't keep from crying as we were reviewing our exam. The tears just wouldn't stop and I had no control over them. When I got to my car I just sat there for an hour in a fetal position and I had never cried so hard in my life.

This is the scary part:

EVEN AFTER they explained the rationales...they seemed to be very contradictory from question to question...and if I took this same test tomorrow, or even if I had my notes in front of me during the exam...it would not have helped.

The instructors didn't even give us a direction of study during lecture, such as, "So an example of a test question might be..."

So when I showed up and some of us were chatting before the exam...we collectively assumed that there would be a lot of Erikson, Maslow questions, questions on psych drugs, legal issues dealing with restraints and involuntary commitment. Comfort, trust, rapport, talking down, how to keep everyone safe, etc.

You think things like that were on the exam????

Nope.

They were along the lines of appropriate/inappropriate responses that you would make during group therapy (which we have never seen or discussed other than the purpose of it). This was in sharp contrast to the resources that they had us use to prepare for the exam.

So my biggest concern is I don't know what to do for the next one. We have an entirely different instructor for each unit during this semester..so there is no way to "learn how he/she" gives an exam b/c each time it will be different.

I don't know what to do. I don't know where to start for the next one. I don't have another minute to devote b/c I don't sleep as it is now.

I just don't know what to do.

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Specializes in Family Nurse Practitioner.

Psych can be tough and what I found helpful was to do a ton of practice questions. Read the rationales because while there are times when you will still disagree with the correct answer it should give you some insight as to where they are headed. I really liked the Maryann Hogan series because they have a lot of questions. If you aren't using it you should be able to get a cheap copy used from Amazon etc. I also did NCELX practice questions. If your school uses test banks for their exams definitely check out your textbook's publisher's website for additional practice questions and purchase a study guide because you might see the exact same question on an exam. Good luck!

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:icon_hug: It will get better... promise.. I hated psych just felt like the biggest fraud doing it... and my instructor gave me this advice..

"If you think "this sounds so stupid.. I would never say this.. the pt must think I am a moron" it is probably therapeutic, your just not used to talking like that...

I know this doesn't help you, but don't give up.. you can and will get thru this, have faith..

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What is so shocking about this exam, is that I can't figure out what went wrong.

I think part of it had to be test design (I'm not trying to place blame..seriously), b/c if it was just me, then so many wouldn't have done so poorly...our best performing student, who is an LPN, missed 9 on the exam...but she said that a ton of the questions mirrored her LPN training.

Our book came with a disk, but it seems like it askes more fact-based questions than critical thinking questions...not sure if that makes sense or not....so I do very well on those.

I have my Saunders book....I'm going to try that and see if it gives me more "off the wall" questions for the next one to see if that helps.

I had so much I had to do today...I knew it was going to be hard, but I just didn't expect that to happen.

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Specializes in Nursing Professional Development.

Perhaps your ability to apply the material to case scenarios (i.e. critical thinking) was also impaired because of stress and lack of sleep. In your original post, you said that you did not get much sleep. Perhaps your problem is not so much a lack of factual knowledge ... but rather the inability to think clearly and apply what you know do to stress and lack of sleep.

You mind may be scrambling around frantically searching for a clue as to what is the right answer when it should be taking a deep breath and trying to see the scenario calmly, clearly and simply. I often find that's where students mess up on application questions -- which are usually best approached with certain degree of calmness necessary to clarify and simplify the situation.

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Specializes in LTC, case mgmt, agency.

Is it possible you were overconfident because of your prior knowledge? Mix that with lack of sleep and nursing school stress well it = disaster. Take a step back and breathe. Remember, this is just 1 test, so learn from it rather than dwelling on it. In nursing school you will make mistakes that you will swear up and down you did right. In the end though, look at the rationals, there is a reason and if you still don't see it, ask your instructor after class. :wink2: After all, you pay alot for an education, so if you are not clear as to why an answer is wrong ask. That is what teachers are there for. :cool: Good luck and best wishes!:heartbeat

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Interesting - my instructor in Health Teaching, who also teaches psych at an ADN program, told us last night that if a majority of her students don't do well on a test, then she looks in the mirror and asks herself what SHE did wrong.

I'm tempted to email her this thread.

steph

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We have an entirely different instructor for each unit during this semester..so there is no way to "learn how he/she" gives an exam b/c each time it will be different.

Herein lies your hope that things will get better. It could be that this particular instructor gave an atypical test and that future exams will make more sense.

At any rate, nothing is wasted. All the studying you did for this class will benefit you at some point.

And though you might not appreciate it now, the abject misery, fear and confusion you felt after the class could give you a tiny glimpse into the world of hurt some people with mental illness face every day.

I don't mean to trivialize either MI or what you went through. Only to say that most of us chug along through life, keeping a fairly good handle on our day to day challenges. Once in a while, something really throws us off track, something we don't see coming, and the shock of it takes us by the collar and gives us a good shake. File this disoriented, beaten up, off-kilter feeling away for you to recall when you want to understand mental anguish. Your unhappiness was situational, but some people live with this kind of suffering for extended periods and from internal causes that don't easily yield to treatment. It's possible that your taste of fear and pain will give you insights that no amount of book-learning could provide about what it is like to feel lost and afraid and, yes, hopeless.

You may have gotten a poor grade on this test, but that's not the end of the story.

Be true to your name and don't give up.

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Specializes in LTC, case mgmt, agency.
Interesting - my instructor in Health Teaching, who also teaches psych at an ADN program, told us last night that if a majority of her students don't do well on a test, then she looks in the mirror and asks herself what SHE did wrong.

I'm tempted to email her this thread.

steph

I like your instructor already.:yeah:

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Specializes in Ortho, Neuro, Detox, Tele.

I hated psych...and I worked 3.5 years in a mentally ill nursing home with 200 residents aged 18-97....

The test questions were always the ones where I'm going "well, I would have done...x,y,z." the answers were things i NEVER would have said...it's school way vs. real world.

Know that it's not YOU. Study and pick the answer that you go..."oh, it can't POSSIBLY be that." Because it probably is the answer they want. Good luck

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Specializes in Acute Mental Health.

Honestly, if more than 1/4 of the class bomb a test, the instructor should be looking in the mirror and figure out what he/she can do differently. It is an instructor issue.

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Specializes in LTC, case mgmt, agency.
Is it possible you were overconfident because of your prior knowledge? Mix that with lack of sleep and nursing school stress well it = disaster. Take a step back and breathe. Remember, this is just 1 test, so learn from it rather than dwelling on it. In nursing school you will make mistakes that you will swear up and down you did right. In the end though, look at the rationals, there is a reason and if you still don't see it, ask your instructor after class. :wink2: After all, you pay alot for an education, so if you are not clear as to why an answer is wrong ask. That is what teachers are there for. :cool: Good luck and best wishes!:heartbeat

BTW, no offense was meant. Just trying to figure out reason and asking questions. If the whole class failed, problem is with instructor and/or the exam. :heartbeat

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