My classmates using Test Banks in Nursing school

Nursing Students General Students

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Please note: I do NOT promote the use of any use of test banks.

This is something I've kept in the back of my head for a few years and never really had a chance to speak about it until very recently. This situation involved a group of 5-8 students in my cohort. I'll just refer to them as my classmates.

During my last year of nursing school and in the beginning of preceptorship, one of my classmates invited me to a study group for our last Med/Surg 2 rotation final. We have gone over almost everything we could cram into our heads. Prior to my departure, one classmate mentioned something called a Test Bank. At first glance, I thought it was practice questions copy/paste from Quizlet. My classmates said that they have been using it since third semester as a study guide. I declined and didn't want to bombard myself with more information. I would just look up Quizlet for any practice questions when I got back home. After the final, my classmates asked me not to say anything. I ignorantly nodded my head as my mind checked out for Spring Break or anything nursing related.

I would hear the words Test Bank again from other college students while I was prepping for Preceptorship in my nearby Starbucks. I googled it out of curiosity and discovered its controversy with all college students and staff.

I hate to say, I chose to NOT do anything. I had no proof. Preceptorship was days away and reporting this to my class advisor would be another thing I have to add on my busy plate. Initially, sought advice from this forum and seen variations of They are cheating themselves. They will not pass NCLEX. I left it at that and minded my own business.

This was over three years ago. I graduated. I passed NCLEX. I found a job. I focused on my own nursing goals. I forgot about my classmates until I recently ran into them. We did a lot of catching up and found out they all passed NCLEX (most under 100 questions) and are all happy with their jobs.

not.done.yet said:
You have no proof, so here is what you do. You put your head down and you do the right thing for YOU. The less you worry about your classmates the better off you will be. You have no moral obligation here. Accusation will reflect badly on you, not them, because you have no way to prove what you are saying, therefore making this about slander, not about academic honesty. I would like to say it will come back to bite them, but often it doesn't. That isn't your concern. Yourself and your own level of knowledge and standard of nursing practice is.

Good luck in school!

Thank you! This happened a few years ago. I kept my head down and minded my own business. I did not want to go through the whole accusation/slander process without having any proof. On top of my ongoing busy plate to of preceptor ship at the time. It was just another thing I would have to go through administrators. I did not have the time for that.

Specializes in Trauma, Teaching.
Spring18RN-App said:
Sorry I tried googling and still don't quite understand...

Are teachers giving exam questions similar to nclex questions and that's why they use a test bank?

Test banks are for instructors to use in compiling exams; provided by the publisher of the textbook. They aren't general things hovering out it space, they go with the book itself. I go through and look for questions that are relevant to what I want students to concentrate on. It is very difficult to write multiple exams, that have clear questions, with no misleading answers etc. Even so, if they majority of a class misses a question we look very hard at the question.... was it the way it was worded or did we not present something clearly enough? Test banks provide a lot of questions for every chapter, with rationales about the answers. Nursing school banks mirror NCLEX style, with different levels of difficulty, and varied emphasis on different areas.

Using test banks to study is one thing (but students should not have access), looking up only the answers cheats you out of learning.

Test banks are intended for the instructors, period. Exams are often given directly from this resource — a resource that is not intended for students but only for educators to use. They are not "practice questions," they are potential exam questions. Does that clarify?

Ooooooooooh - gotcha! Thank you!

Specializes in PhD in mental health nursing.

In some universities you can ask for a copy of the previous year's exam. Thats not cheating. Some of them you can access on line.

Furthermore if a student has a family member who is a teacher then they too would have access to knowledge that others don't.

I personally don't think that access to "test banks" is a big deal unless it is specifically forbidden in the school's policy.

If the instructor uses the test banks verbatim from the text book that is a problem that they are creating and this practice should be covered in their school's policy.

One of the people I went to school with emailed me some test banks to study with before an exam. I never thought anything of it, we did questions in class all the time. 70% of the test was in those questions though. I just figured the school got lazy and they happened to use the same test banks. Now mind you I also studied my notes as usual and there were maybe 200-300 questions spanning several chapters that I did. But in all honesty now reading what people have said I still don't feel bad about it. I still studied a lot, and I liked the questions cause the answers had explanations so I learned why I answered wrong if I answered wrong. A great teaching tool the school didn't use(never got our tests back to see what we got wrong).

I think i would need some testbanks as well. Do you know any way around getting them please.

I would need some test bank too. Please recommend where i can get them if you know .

Specializes in Med-Tele; ED; ICU.
slimfranklin82 said:
I would need some test bank too. Please recommend where i can get them if you know .

They are *very* easy to find with even the slightest effort with the search engine of your choice. They're going to cost you, though.

Fun little story. Friend of mine in nursing school got some textbook test banks and thought she would just study those... she barely passed her tests. I personally have used those same textbook test banks but just as a practice resource. I spend all week rewriting my notes and then 3 days before the test I have about 5 different books that I d practice questions out of and read the ratoinals of why I got an answer wrong. I don't think textbook test banks are cheating. You still need to understand the concepts and at most I have seen maybe 7 questions from the text banks that were actually in the 50 question tests.

HalfBoiled said:
To clarify, there are two types

1. NCLEX testbanks

2. Nursing School Textbook testbanks

NCLEX testbanks are paid public resources for New Grads. Acceptable and execte

Textbook testbanks are suggested Exam questions made by the book manufacturers (probably a little more info for this) sent primarily for educators. There shouldn't be any reason why a student would have access to this resource.

They're obviously not stupid, they passed the NCLEX first time.

You had a chance to speak with your instructors prior yet you didn't. This seems like crying over spilled milk.

Next time you want do something do it. Because nothing can or would have happen now.

Are you asking for advice?

Specializes in RETIRED Cath Lab/Cardiology/Radiology.

Test bank discussion is within the Terms of Service.

However, asking for test banks is not.

Please keep posts within the Terms of Service.

Thank you, and thanks to all who have responded within the thread.

Specializes in Psych, Geriatrics.

We had this problem at our school too - students would get the questions from the class before them and use them any way they saw fit. One of our worst cheaters is now a CRNA; I'm sure she cheated through grad school too. Scary to think of those people putting you to sleep, caring for you, difference between life and death.

Sometimes the school will crack down, sometimes the school just gives up due to the huge legal mess of expelling a student. Our school choose to do the latter.

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