Help... What to do if my teacher is rotten???

stpauligirl · Jul 2, 2007

Hi All!
I hope you are all having a good summer so far! I'm hoping some of you can give me some much needed advice... (here is the story... sorry if it gets long)
I'm registered for Chem this fall with a teacher who has gotten great ratings on ratemyprofessor... I've also heard good things about her. However, it is in the morning, 2 days a week, and it looks like I'm stuck as far as day care goes and getting my oldest on to the bus and then getting to school on time. I've looked at a few home day cares, most were full (and still expensive), I've looked at a center (WAY TOO expensive).. and I also checked out my schools day care and I was really creeped out by it.
So I'm thinking I need to register for the afternoon class and have my regular babysitter (who will be much cheaper), help out.
The only problem is that at this point, there is no scheduled teacher assigned to the class. They have gaurenteed that a teacher will teach the course, we just don't know who yet. There are 2 really bad teachers in our Chem dept and I'm afraid if I get one, I'll do really bad in the course. It's been a long time for me and Chem, and I need all the help I can get...
Any suggestions?? Anyone have a horrible teacher for Chem and come out ok?? I'm willing to work super hard, and teach myself as much as I can, but I would really like to have a good professor, as that is part of what I feel I'm paying for...
TIA... if you made it this far..:monkeydance:

I had what must be the WORST EVER chem teacher....5 people were left to take the final and I had the highest grade which was only a B :madface:

I hope that you get lucky and get an ok one for the afternoon.

Good luck, I so hear you about babysitting dilemmas.....How much can we take, huh? Things will work out, I am sure.

cardiacRN2006, ADN, RN · Jul 2, 2007

I think I actually had the worst chem teacher! Bland, blah, and just read the power point notes. Then his tests were outrageous!

Seriously, you do what you got to do to pass. Does your school offer tutoring? If you get stuck, you can consider that route...

catzy5 · Jul 2, 2007

Hi All!
I hope you are all having a good summer so far! I'm hoping some of you can give me some much needed advice... (here is the story... sorry if it gets long)
I'm registered for Chem this fall with a teacher who has gotten great ratings on ratemyprofessor... I've also heard good things about her. However, it is in the morning, 2 days a week, and it looks like I'm stuck as far as day care goes and getting my oldest on to the bus and then getting to school on time. I've looked at a few home day cares, most were full (and still expensive), I've looked at a center (WAY TOO expensive).. and I also checked out my schools day care and I was really creeped out by it.
So I'm thinking I need to register for the afternoon class and have my regular babysitter (who will be much cheaper), help out.
The only problem is that at this point, there is no scheduled teacher assigned to the class. They have gaurenteed that a teacher will teach the course, we just don't know who yet. There are 2 really bad teachers in our Chem dept and I'm afraid if I get one, I'll do really bad in the course. It's been a long time for me and Chem, and I need all the help I can get...
Any suggestions?? Anyone have a horrible teacher for Chem and come out ok?? I'm willing to work super hard, and teach myself as much as I can, but I would really like to have a good professor, as that is part of what I feel I'm paying for...
TIA... if you made it this far..:monkeydance:

I am in a similar situation as you I don't get the advantage of being able to pick my instructors based on their qulifications, I pick my classes according to my schedule. I have had very rotten teachers and I have had wonderful teachers, you have to learn to get used to all sorts so I say just go for it. In nursing school you will come across the samething some are great some are horrible better to learn now to just suck it up and rely on your own merits to get through the course. I had never taken any kind of Chemistry before at all I basicly taught myself it was very hard and I worked my tail off, but I got my A.

good luck

LMRN10 · Jul 2, 2007

I do know someone who had a bad Chem teacher and she ended up dropping the class more than 1/2 way through and almost no one was passing!

Have you tried calling the department directly and asking them if they have assigned teachers to those classes yet? They do the same thing for a lot of our night classes.

Good luck to you, but all in all, what can you do? Hopefully if it is a "bad teacher" he/she will be willing to answer questions for you because that is the most important thing! I hope you get one of the good ones!!!

justme1972 · Jul 2, 2007

If you can pick your instructor do....it makes all the difference in the world.

You may pass, but the grade may wreck your GPA. Obviously, you are doing this for nursing, and anything less than a "C" is usually not good enough.

Some classes such as English, History, etc...are what I calll instructor non-dependent....you can have a bad instructor and still do well, b/c between the book and the notes, all the material should be there for you to succeed.

However, Chemistry textbooks are not very good, and there are MAJOR amounts of math involved, and a good instructor is critical in order to understand the math concepts.

The concepts on THEORY are easy...it's the math that is difficult, and lab can be a nightmare.

I know your desire to save money, but remember the saying, "Penny wise and a dollar foolish"

caliotter3 · Jul 2, 2007

One of the schools I went to used to allow (almost all instructors) people to bring children to class and they sat in the back. One woman actually brought a playpen and set it up in the back. They had to control their kids and remove them if their behavior became disruptive. Too bad, all schools don't allow this practice.

I never chose my classes according to instructor, but according to my schedule. If at all possible, you should try to work something out, even if you have to pay a special babysitter, so that you can take the good teacher's class in the AM. Chemistry can be very difficult and you need to make things as easy as possible for yourself. Having a bad teacher can make a bad class into one you are forced to drop. You can't let your GPA suffer. Good luck.

HikingNinja, BSN, MSN, DNP, RN, APRN, NP · Jul 3, 2007

I've always chosen my classes according to schedule too. But try to look at it in a positive light. You may get a great teacher. In my case I was totally horrified about taking College Algebra (got a D in it the first time around). The only class that worked for my schedule was an online class at a local college and no teacher was assigned. I scheduled it anyway and did great. I guess the regular faculty didn't want to teach it so they had an adjunct do it that was just hired and he rocked!!! So maybe that will happen to you.

D

NewenglandMSNRNBC, ADN, BSN, MSN, RN · Jul 4, 2007

You definitely need a good teacher for chem. I also had a horrible professor and the only reason I past the class was because of the lab grade. I am a senior nursing student and chemistry was my only C in college this far. It's tough if you don't get a good instructor. Good Luck!

stpauligirl · Jul 4, 2007

You definitely need a good teacher for chem. I also had a horrible professor and the only reason I past the class was because of the lab grade. I am a senior nursing student and chemistry was my only C in college this far. It's tough if you don't get a good instructor. Good Luck!

I have a question for you since you are a senior nursing student. I've had people recommed to get an NCLEX RN Review book to help make it thru nursiing school, How soon should I get one, Will it help me off to a good start?

Thanks for your input.

coolpeach · Jul 4, 2007

I always try to pick the best teachers. I look on rateyourprofessor, pick yourprofessor, and ask around campus. Because I have kids I also have schedule to work around, and can't always just choose a class based on the instructor. I have discovered that if its an easy class then its no big deal. On the other hand if its a major science course or something that is difficult to me then I try to make a way. I usually take the kids to and from school, but have found other parents to carpool with so I could take a class during that time. I have also taken classes at night (which is really bad for me), and rearranged my schedule in many different ways to take an instructor I really liked.

I think it depends if you think chemistry will be easy for you. I just took it a couple of semesters ago, and it was a little difficult to me. It really did require a good professor to get through it. Whatever you decide remember it's just a short time.

NewenglandMSNRNBC, ADN, BSN, MSN, RN · Jul 4, 2007

I definitlely do recommend getting study guides with nclex/review questions. You want one that has lots of practice questions along with the rationales for right and wrong answers. The most recommended nclex review in my school is the Saunders Comprehensive Review for Nclex-RN. I had this since second semester and has helped alot. For first semester I had "Fundamentals Success" A course review applying critical thinking to test taking by Patricia Nugent. This book was great cause it covered everything you need in fundamentals from beginning to end. Also, my teachers had some questions on the tests that were pulled from study guides like this one. Hope this helps a little.

Good Luck!