I was wondering if anyone knew if any nursing program has the right to determine a semesters grade solely on examinations (in this case 3 exams). I feel as this is unfair to my fellow classmates who have issues with test taking (anxiety and such) and do awful on them. However they do great in clinicals, and are very active in class. I don't know if these classmates have any ground to stand on about how the class is set up and the grading a students theory knowledge on exams only. Any help would be greatly appreciated!! I'm in FL
Specializes in mental health / psychiatic nursing.
Programs have the right to determine grading however they want. Grades from exams only is not uncommon at the university level - be it nursing school other otherwise.
While I agree that this can be challenging and test anxiety is real, the time to address this issue is when you first get the syllabus by proactively working with instructors on testing strategies, and by seeking accommodations through the disability office if need be (yes, even part way through the term), and by working on strategies to manage anxiety in general, because nursing school and work can cause high anxiety aside from exams and one needs to know how to cope.
I struggled with my first exam in nursing school, and was super anxious about my ability to succeed afterwards. I went to the instructor's office hours and she provided a combination of reassurance, study strategies, test taking strategies, and got me set up with on-campus tutoring services. While I was still somewhat anxious going into the final exam, I managed to score an A- on the exam, and left with a solid understanding of the course material. Actively communicating with instructors can go a long way - I had to have accommodations for an assignment in a later term due to illness and I am quite certain that because I had been an actively engaged and communicative student all a long with my instructors, I had a much easier time getting an extension granted than I would have otherwise received.
While I admire your concern for your classmate, ultimately his anxiety is his own to manage. You can be supportive and encouraging and help him study, help remind him of coping skills etc - but ultimately this is his responsibility to figure out, and his battle to fight. I would urge you to not come into conflict with instructors over this, because chances are you only have his perception of the story and not the full picture.
I've got documented learning disabilities. In classroom/lecture style classes, I get time and a half for testing and a specialized recording program. I've been told that when I get into the program proper (doing my skills prereq right now, which is set up like a lecture/lab nursing class) there are zero accommodations available in clinicals, so not to even ask. I get no accommodations at all in labs. Nursing school is apparently a live or die and they don't care much about disability.
I've got documented learning disabilities. In classroom/lecture style classes, I get time and a half for testing and a specialized recording program. I've been told that when I get into the program proper (doing my skills prereq right now, which is set up like a lecture/lab nursing class) there are zero accommodations available in clinicals, so not to even ask. I get no accommodations at all in labs. Nursing school is apparently a live or die and they don't care much about disability.
That doesn't seem like a fair assessment. It's not that they don't care much about disability, but you're not going to get certain accommodations as a nurse. Recording in clinical would be a HIPAA violation, anyway.
That doesn't seem like a fair assessment. It's not that they don't care much about disability, but you're not going to get certain accommodations as a nurse. Recording in clinical would be a HIPAA violation, anyway.
To be clear, I don't think their lack of caring is a bad thing. It sets me up for a clear display of what nursing is, rather than one that's coddled and sets patients up for nursing mistakes. I would never ask to record during clinicals, because patients deserve privacy. My point is that nursing school is sink or swim and I think it should be like that. Do I have to work twice as hard in my skills class to get my notes right during lab demos? Do I have to practice a skill twice as much to make sure I have all the steps in order? Do I have to ask more questions sometimes to clarify the rules and the logic behind them? Yes, to all of those. But if I cannot make my own way in this program, I don't belong in the program. In the real world, lives will depend on my understanding what I am learning right now. Lives will depend on my being capable of synthesizing decisions and information from the concepts I am learning. If I cannot handle it, then nursing is not the right choice for me.
They don't care, because they can't care, because lives hang in the balance. It's not up to them to care. It's up to them to teach. It's up to me to care enough to learn. If my disabilities are too much to allow me to learn, then nursing isn't for me.
To be clear, I don't think their lack of caring is a bad thing. It sets me up for a clear display of what nursing is, rather than one that's coddled and sets patients up for nursing mistakes.
Gotcha, I misinterpreted your original comment. I feel the same way, I have some conditions and it's my responsibility to manage them to practice safely and effectively.
Gotcha, I misinterpreted your original comment. I feel the same way, I have some conditions and it's my responsibility to manage them to practice safely and effectively.
Exactly. If the OP's classmates can't responsibly manage their own conditions (take a sabbatical to get symptoms under control and return a semester later, for example), then they aren't ready to be nurses. Our final test to become nurses will be the NCLEX. If they can't pass exams in class, then how will they get their licenses?
I've got documented learning disabilities. In classroom/lecture style classes, I get time and a half for testing and a specialized recording program. I've been told that when I get into the program proper (doing my skills prereq right now, which is set up like a lecture/lab nursing class) there are zero accommodations available in clinicals, so not to even ask. I get no accommodations at all in labs. Nursing school is apparently a live or die and they don't care much about disability.
Depending on what the accommodations being requested are that isn't entirely true. Even in clinical under the ADA a school is required to make reasonable accommodations.
Depending on what the accommodations being requested are that isn't entirely true. Even in clinical under the ADA a school is required to make reasonable accommodations.
The school claims that there's no such thing as a reasonable accommodation beyond equipment accommodations. I can have an amplified stethoscope if needed (I'm a hearing aid user) at my own expense and I can carry a calculator. That's it.
The school claims that there's no such thing as a reasonable accommodation beyond equipment accommodations. I can have an amplified stethoscope if needed (I'm a hearing aid user) at my own expense and I can carry a calculator. That's it.
Not a lawyer, but I think part of the problem is that "reasonable" accommodations might not be reasonable to the host facility at clinical? At clinicals you're assigned to patients and need to work with the nurse/CNA...a student needing extra time, or has difficulty taking notes during report, etc. can really throw them off. Nurses don't get paid extra to mentor students during clinical, and they still need to finish their work on time.
I used to give guidance to students on the unit when I worked in mental health, and sometimes it was a pain when I had a lot to do.
Is the stethoscope at your own expense because it's yours to keep? My school doesn't supply stethoscopes and we have to buy our own. Some buy the cheaper ones like Prestige Medical brand, and the lucky ones were able to buy the nice Littmann ones.
I was wondering if anyone knew if any nursing program has the right to determine a semesters grade solely on examinations (in this case 3 exams).
Of course they have the right.
Accommodations for a documented disability is a different issue; it doesn't change the fact that a school has the right to determine the method(s) they will use to evaluate a student's performance.
Not a lawyer, but I think part of the problem is that "reasonable" accommodations might not be reasonable to the host facility at clinical? At clinicals you're assigned to patients and need to work with the nurse/CNA...a student needing extra time, or has difficulty taking notes during report, etc. can really throw them off. Nurses don't get paid extra to mentor students during clinical, and they still need to finish their work on time.
I used to give guidance to students on the unit when I worked in mental health, and sometimes it was a pain when I had a lot to do.
Is the stethoscope at your own expense because it's yours to keep? My school doesn't supply stethoscopes and we have to buy our own. Some buy the cheaper ones like Prestige Medical brand, and the lucky ones were able to buy the nice Littmann ones.
Yeah, once we're in the program we are expected to have our own stethoscopes. My problem is that a decent amplified one is literally twice as expensive as anyone else's. Otherwise, I figure if I can't hack it, I can't hack it. I'm not bothered by the lack of accommodations, just stating, in response to the OP, that accommodation is limited in nursing school. I'm pretty sure I'll survive and I won't sink. I've kept calm at gunpoint. I can figure out my own personal mnemonics and work-arounds without being accommodated for most things. I'm never going to be able to do mental arithmetic, but that's what calculators and dimensional analysis are for. It might take me an extra minute, but that extra minute is worth it and I was able to keep up and be right in the middle for my pharm class for working through dosage problems, so I'm not that slow.
But if someone is so anxious over tests that they cannot pass tests, with licensure being test-dependent, they aren't going to make it.
ThatChickOmi, ADN, RN
245 Posts
And for what it's worth, I have anxiety too. It unfortunately seems to run in my family. I don't get it as bad as some others in my family however.