Dropping like flies....now I know why

[justme1972]

We are half-way through the semester, and out of 52, we have lost 6 students and a meeting will be held next week by the instructors with students that are not doing well, and some will be encouraged to withdraw.

I would say, out of the students that I know that are not doing well, probably only 2, are truly giving it their best shot.

The others that are not making it are:

1) Re-admits, who previously failed the first semester

2) Students who were accepted that had bare-minimum requirements

3) Students who are not showing up to class

4) Students who are not serious, laugh when they fail an exam, and say, "Oh well, I didn't crack a book anyway."

5) Students who are working full-time jobs.

I just don't get it...why go to all of the trouble to get in, if you aren't going to take it seriously?

[RNDreamer]

I had what I considered a very difficult biology prof during the summer. He kept telling us that he wanted us to UNDERSTAND the material, not just MEMORIZE it. My thoughts were that he was being unreasaonable. I had to change my study pattern after failing the first exam with a 63. (I ended up with a B in his class).

Anyway, this past week, I was taking a biology exam (I must take 2 semesters of Bio). This biology I had this past summer taught in a lecture/class discussion method. This semester's Bio prof uses powerpoint slides. We are so busy frantically writing down the info off the slides since he does't give much time before he moves on to the next slide, that it's hard to do that AND pay attention when he is talking. Everytime, he asks "Do you understand?", he is met with silence. Understand? We are took busy trying to write before you change the slide!!! Back to the exam: The questions were SO SPECIFIC that it was not enough to have GENERAL knowledge of the info, you had to UNDERSTAND the material. I am in a class full of first semester students who just came out of HS, who were stunned at the exam. However, I as took the exam, I had to laugh as I thought about my previous prof and was thankful that I had him (I also thank him for the 96% I got on my chem exam).

HOWEVER, I did want to say this:

-My biology professor admitted that he likes giving "hard exams", as he called it. He said that if he sees too many students getting As, he will make sure the next exam is much harder

-I have had professors (at this school and at my prev. college) say that they have a limit to how many As they give out in a particular semester. At my first college, I actually had a prof say that if too many students get As, he will have to give some of them Bs by doing this: Let's say a typical A is 93-100...what he would do when too many students got As is this..Change the A range to something like 96-100, that way the students who got between 93 and 95 would get Bs instead.

-One of my professors this semester actually said something to the effect of not wanting to give too many full credit points on our extra credit assignment because she has to limit the amount of "full credit" she gives out. HUH?

Sometimes, I do believe that it IS the professor

....but trying to include a few questions that are tough enough to discriminate between those students who really know their stuff and those who don't. Then I'll let the grades fall where they fall.

[Jess_Missouri_RN]

llg - I did nursing school as an adult. However, I will say that when I did nursing school right out of high school, I was a major screw-up. One day I got fed up with school (with only one semester left to get my RN), quit going to class, joined the Navy and shipped out within 48 hours. Now mind you, I didn't DROP the classes, just quit going. Had a 0.7gpa when I decided 12 years later to go back. Needless to say I had to not only re-take every single class, I was "invited" to talk with just about instructor as to how I had rectified my earlier lifestyle choices! Ugh - talk about humbling.

Sometimes I think that when we are a little younger we go into things w/o thinking things through. That was what happened in my case at least. Glad I grew up and wised up (to some extent anyway - lol).

I did the exact same thing. Started nursing school when I was 19 and dropped after 1 semester - I wasn't mature enough for it, I know that now. I am now 31 and will be starting in January 2008. I am way more dedicated and serious about my education. I've taken 3 semesters at a community college and cant wait to start nursing.

I wanted to be a nurse at 19 but I also wanted to do teen/young adult stuff and had I stayed I would have failed out anyway.

[eldragon]

I'm about to graduate December 11th, from an LPN program. We started with 26 students and have 9 remaining.

Why? Many reasons.

The first block we lost 2 students who really weren't academically prepared for nursing school.

Second block we lost all the ones not serious enough for nursing school. The ones that studied for tests in their cars in the parking lot before class started, and expected to pass. The ones who had other obligations they weren't willing to give up for nursing school. The ones who tried to manage full-time jobs, kids, and husbands and nursing school, etc.

The third block we lost some of our best students because one of our instructors went nuts. Really! She tried to fail everyone, and came really close. Everyone complained, of course, and she was transferred out of the program, but she did manage to fail 6 promising students.

And the rest of us are graduating in December. There are one or two I didn't think would (should) make it, but will.

I've remained an A - B student throughout, but not without a huge struggle. It's as if I walked through fire for an entire year. The third block, especially, was nothing short of a nightmare. We had to learn pharmacology in 3 weeks!

This LPN program, which lasted one year (without breaks) seems more like a two-year course to me.

I can't wait to say goodbye to my fellow students, none of whom I can say I connected with on a real level, and move on to the next step.

Sad but true.

[karlita]

I knew when I was 4 that I wanted to work in the medical field. I started my nursing pre-reqs when I was 16 and could dual-enroll in high school and the community college. Life has thrown some challenges at me so there have been times when I had to take a semester off which set me back a bit. I'm 22 now, I just started the RN program, and I am as dedicated as ever to accomplish my goal. I guess my point is not everyone is the same. I've also always felt, when starting a job at the hospital and being the youngest by far, that I have to work really hard to 'prove myself'. When often I turn out to be more responsible and reliable as an employee than some of my older co-workers. I think it just depends on how you're raised. My mother taught me that there is nothing more valuable than your education because it is the one thing no one can take away from you, and I have always worked hard to educate myself.

[Rage, RN]

I grad in May so that makes me a senior in a ABSN program. I'm 52 years old and a male to boot. But I'm also an honor student............so if anyone thinks age makes a difference then they can dispell that thought, I'll gladly stand up for being a "poster child" on that issue.

I've seen ALOT of younger students come and go as well, I can tell you it all comes down to several factors in my opinion.

1) maturity: they put their wanna's in front of their gotta's, anytime you put something off that you have to do because you want to do another thing you have a problem.

2) Study Habits: It amazes me how schools are set up to teach you things without giving you the basic tools for actually learning them. I guess it is just "assumed" you know how to study because your in school............assumptions........pfffffft

3) Dedication: School like the profession requires dedication, if you think that "awwww it's gonna be easy, and a breeze" well welcome to reality. It's work and hard work at that, like they say if were easy then there wouldn't be a deficit in nursing. But think about it, if someone was gonna put their grubby lil paws on you, wouldn't you want them to know what they doing?

4) It just doesn't sink in: Let's face it, not everyone is cut out to be a nurse, just like there are some people not cut out to be a lawyer or engineer. Wanting isn't the same as being. But you really don't know until you test the waters. Get into a "care giving" job and see if it's what you really want before you waste your time and money.

5) Yes there are some professors that suck: So? Deal with it, they have a job and you don't. Study harder, smarter, longer.....do what ever it takes. If you decide to give up then refer back to the "grubby lil paws" comment above.

Sorry, thats just the black and white of the situation. I have never been accused of being the "warm and fuzzy" type. But if you want someone in ICU who is taking care of you that is intensely focused and not willing to give up, then I'm your guy.