What can I do if I think a nursing instructors is out to get me?
I think I must have made someone upset without knowing it or meaning to do it. Apparently politics is much much worse than I thought it could be in nursing school.
Recently I was blind sided by a male instructor in my Pedi Ob course who approached me and said that he heard from a female instructor that I had been complaining about him. I wasn't complaining about him, but I was expressing some frustrations with the current process in place for completion of certain assignments. Frustrations that were not intended to be directed towards any person. Since that happened I seemed to have been labeled as a "problem student" and I'm getting concerned that I'm being singled out and targeted. I'm sensing danger, like maybe I'm being set up for a course failure based on BOTH of the pedi-OB instructor's evaluation marks (opinion marks that can't be proven one way or the other). It seems as if they talked it out, and decided to agree on me not making it through this course with a passing grade.
Resolution: To anyone that may find themselves in a similar situation. I followed the advice of some people on here and decided to clear the air by talking and apologizing for any misunderstanding. I would say that in the end, this situation proved much easier to resolve than I had anticipated and I was probably a little on the paranoid side of things in thinking that the professor was looking to scalp me. Although I did find out that the instructor was upset with me, he was much relieved to learn that I knew enough to apologize for inadvertently hurting his pride as a professor. (A mistake i'm not likely to repeat again) This was one experience I can simply chalk up to failure to keep my opinions to myself as a nursing student.
Discretion seems like a lost art, and yet, in this age of going public with everything and everyone, it's more necessary than ever.
Thank you, OP, for being mature enough to own your mistakes and make the effort to clear the air. And thank you for sharing your example. I hope the rest of your student career is a positive experience.
Specializes in Critical Care; Cardiac; Professional Development.
Well done! I am sure this is a lesson that will serve you very well in life and not too costly to you to boot. Thanks for coming back with an update. Very few have the courage to do so.
It's funny, before nursing school..I was really worried that my fellow students would be catty, gossipy, and cliquey. I was pleased to find very little of this.
However, I was shocked to find this behavior rampant among the professors and instructors! Kiss up (yes I'm cringing as I'm writing this but it's necessary) to get the recs you'll need, but they are not your allies!
I am very proud of you for speaking with your instructor, it is not the easiest task. I would recommend working extra hard in that class to prove your seriousness towards the program. Again, congratulations!:anpom::w00t:
People call me a "kiss-ass". I'm not a kiss-ass. I'm a student that enjoys learning. If I don't like how an instructor is doing something usually it is because I'm not used to doing things their way (even if their way is STUPID). Approach him and tell him that you were complaining because yes you don't like how he is doing things because it isn't how you are used to doing things. Tell him he is a good teacher because he is different but since you've had him it's made you struggle but it's made you grow as a critical thinker. Make him realize what you are complaining about is the material content's complexity and not his teaching (even if it is!!!). He will be more willing to help you especially if you appear honest (and are honest) in your willingness to learn.
Good-luck!!
Be honest and not defensive with him. That will make him have respect for you!!
It's great to see an OP let everyone know what finally happened and give us all closure! Too often people come on here to rant and seek advice, and we never find out what the outcomes were! Thanks for the update.
People call me a "kiss-ass". I'm not a kiss-ass. I'm a student that enjoys learning. If I don't like how an instructor is doing something usually it is because I'm not used to doing things their way (even if their way is STUPID). Approach him and tell him that you were complaining because yes you don't like how he is doing things because it isn't how you are used to doing things. Tell him he is a good teacher because he is different but since you've had him it's made you struggle but it's made you grow as a critical thinker. Make him realize what you are complaining about is the material content's complexity and not his teaching (even if it is!!!). He will be more willing to help you especially if you appear honest (and are honest) in your willingness to learn.
I know this post is 2 years old, but the topic at hand is timeless. With all due respect to you (and any student), I do not think it inappropriate for YOU to tell your instructor that you don't like the way he/she is doing things, because its not what you're used to. Even though manners and respect have seemed to fall by the wayside in recent years, I would never dream of being that blunt with my someone who is in a higher position than me.
Be honest and not defensive with him. That will make him have respect for you!!
Honesty is one thing, but diplomacy needs to be considered. Absolutely, not being defensive is key. But to me, saying "I don't like the way you're doing things because that's not how I learned it" IS being defensive. Leaving the first part out of the state to would be the ideal response.
I'm always guilty of joining in on old threads and getting reminded that "the post is 4 years old", etc. Often I consider the topic completely relevant and do not share the mentality that these issues must be "live" or even recent to be important. I often find great advice from threads here that are 1, 2, 8 years old. This is one that should be left open because it happens all the time and there are lessons to be learned not only about instructors, but coworkers and bosses.
I'm always guilty of joining in on old threads and getting reminded that "the post is 4 years old", etc. Often I consider the topic completely relevant and do not share the mentality that these issues must be "live" or even recent to be important. I often find great advice from threads here that are 1, 2, 8 years old. This is one that should be left open because it happens all the time and there are lessons to be learned not only about instructors, but coworkers and bosses.
Agreed. But I felt the disclaimer was necessary, because some people immediately discount the reply, because of the date of the OP. I get email notifications on posts made years ago (keeping in mind I've been a member for almost 10 years... Wow!)
utadahikaru
78 Posts
Resolution: To anyone that may find themselves in a similar situation. I followed the advice of some people on here and decided to clear the air by talking and apologizing for any misunderstanding. I would say that in the end, this situation proved much easier to resolve than I had anticipated and I was probably a little on the paranoid side of things in thinking that the professor was looking to scalp me. Although I did find out that the instructor was upset with me, he was much relieved to learn that I knew enough to apologize for inadvertently hurting his pride as a professor. (A mistake i'm not likely to repeat again)
This was one experience I can simply chalk up to failure to keep my opinions to myself as a nursing student.