Set you up to fail?

kimtab · Dec 16, 2003

Originally posted by JuicyJem
I happen to have made a 79 in my first A&P class, which is a C. I also happen to be graduating at the top of my class, this Thursday night, and I am the only person out of 23 who made an A this semester in advanced Med-Surg. I have had no C's, only A's and B's throughout nursing school. You are correct, there was no remediation from my nursing program.

Whoops- In my passion to correct people who over-generalize, I overgeneralized. Congratulations on your A, JuicyJem.

I guess we can all only look at it from our own point of view. What I see in my program is lots of unprepared people being let in and failing out in droves and some very prepared people being left behind for the wrong reasons. It makes me sad, it makes me mad.

Kim

JennInColumbus · Dec 16, 2003

I truly think it is all about attitude and hard work. When you hear that 50% of a class is expected to fail, do you think "oh my god, I'm going to fail" or do you think "I won't be one of those unfortunate people"?

On the first day of class when the teacher tells you that historically 10% of the class will get A's, 15% B's, 20% C's and the rest will not pass, what is your first thought? (This actually happened this quarter, I didn't make it up). My first thought was I'm going to have to bust my butt to get an A in here, and I did.

I really believe that people make a decision the first week of class whether they will pass or not, or what grade they will achieve. If you are happy with a C you will work hard enough to get one. If you can't stand the thought of anything but an A, you will work hard enough to get one.

Just my humble opinion.

Jenn

crispynurse2B · Dec 16, 2003

The thing that bothers me about our program is that grading is based on tests only.. Clinical is pass/fail. You have to have a 75 to move on. According to what we've been told 74.9 is a fail.

The difference between pass or fail can be one test question. I wish there was consideration for all of the other parts of nursing school (other than tests). Some people in my program who failed were terrific in clinical and passed clinical but were within 1 point of the 75 and are not going to be allowed to continue. These are people who studied and worked not the goof offs.

Anyway....I agree its hard and there needs to be a line drawn but I'm sad to lose a couple of really good people just because they aren't the best test takers.

crispy

JuicyJem · Dec 16, 2003

Originally posted by kimtab
Whoops- In my passion to correct people who over-generalize, I overgeneralized. Congratulations on your A, JuicyJem.

Thank you, and no hard feelings. :)
I agree with you Crispynurse, they should consider other aspects. I have classmates who are so great at pt. care, but they struggle with tests. It all comes down to the numbers, and in our program they don't round either, if you have a 77 you pass and a 76.99 is failing. So you think, "what the heck difference does it make if you have a 76.99 or a 77.01?" Then, in clinical, although they do actually grade the papers we turn in to them, its pass/fail. You bust your hump all semester for a P on your transcript, that doesn't help your GPA at all.
I have had the same frustrations. I am glad it's over!!!!!!!!

geekymomma · Dec 17, 2003

Let me give you guys a view from the other side. I am an A/B student in Nursing Theory. I've passed all my lab test-outs the first time every time. I have recieved positive feedback from my patients that I care for, other nurses that I work with and my peers. Imagine my surprise that I failed the clinical portion. 2 1/2 years of hard work and sacrifice down the toilet. Why, because of bad chemistry between that instructor and myself. Now I'm not going to say that I didn't make mistakes. I did. Did I make life-threatening mistakes-no, not in my opinion. I watched other classmates make similiar mistakes (or worse) and the instructor spends more time with them to help them. In fact, she spent so much time with other students that she "didn't get around to me" until the last 3 weeks of the semester. I am not going to get into all the gory details but in my opinion she set me up. I am in the process of going through a formal grade dispute. That is how sure I am of my ability to continue on. I don't want to wait another year to repeat the last 8 weeks.

teeituptom, BSN, RN · Dec 17, 2003

Only one person can set you up to fail, and that is yourself. You have no one to blame other than yourself.

cat26 · Aug 15, 2006

Hello! I'm new to this site. However, i failed the nclex the first time and it's not going to bring me down. I know that i will make a good nurse and no one can tell me different. I made straight A'S and B's before nursing school. I did not get all A's through nursing school. However, i did not get all C's in the same case. I can say that i was never a good test taker even through out high school. Some people have good hands on skills and have the knowlege to be a compentent nurse. To put icing on the cake do people really think that all doctors and lawyers pass thier boards on the first try!!! I don't think so not being funny in any type of way just making a point. If you don't make it the first time on a test like the Nclex pick yourself up and try again. I don't think it can justify who you really are. We had some top seniors in our class and people who thought they new it all who are not lasting in the nursing world right now. I personally think the nclex should go back to pencil and paper that way everyone will have the same questions. This way people won't get so anxious about when the computer is going to cut off that's half the problem. :lol2: And in closing I had A's in both of my A&P courses.

jschut, BSN, RN · Aug 15, 2006

I'll go along with the "weeding" theory...

Look at it this way, the instructors are there to see who is strong enough to make it as a nurse and who isn't. SO nursing school is hard? Yep! Sure is! And those who whine and complain or make too many bad judgements or mistakes are going to fail, just as they would fail on the floor in the "real" word of nursing. It is the instructors place to se this doesn't happen.

But one thing I can say is that every teacher I have ever approached with a problem has been there and listened with an open ear, and has taken time to help me in any way possible.

They ARE approachable! They ARE real people! They DO want to see us succeed!

Maybe I am just fortunate in that aspect, but I wholeheartedly respect all of my instructors, and realize that they are being fair, but are also molding us students to be competent nurses.

willdgate · Aug 15, 2006

I just completed and passed my first nursing class and I'm excited to move on to clinicals next year. It was difficult, but I made it. Many students did not make it and I've talked with a few who believe that the school purposely set them up to fail. Some of them believe that there's this conspiracy to have only a few students graduate even when there's a nursing shortage. I myself don't believe in this "conspiracy" not because I was one of the few who passed because I believe I'm in control of whether I pass or fail. The one thing I didn't like is when the faculty and staff would mention that half of the students who were currently in the nursing program would not pass. Some people automatically gave up (subconsciously) when they heard this while others were determined to pass. I was determine to pass even when I procrastinated from beginning to end. I'm tired of students who refuse to own up to their own mistakes. They need to stop blaming others.

You say that now, but continue on and it will seem that. I knew people in nursing school, that I knew with about 99% certainity would pass, and did not, things change and people change in nursing school, it is like an evolution. You will see. :idea:

husker-nurse, LPN, LVN · Aug 15, 2006

When I was in my first semester of nursing school, I was overwhelmed. I approached my instructor and asked her if she thought I had a chance at passing nursing class; she looked me in the eye and asked me, "How bad do you want it?" That stayed with me every day of class, right up until the day that I graduated with honors! Conspiracy? Horsefeathers!

RNsRWe, ASN, RN · Aug 15, 2006

This thread is three years old!

It was picked up again to discuss an entirely different issue. Cat26, it would be best to start a new thread, one that titles the topic you want to discuss....that way, the people who are interested in THAT topic will be able to read and respond :)

And posting your thread on the NCLEX forum would probably garner you the best responses overall! :)

firstyearstudent · Aug 16, 2006

There are conspiracy theorists at my school, too. With this type of thinking being so prevalent throughout nursing schools, you would think the faculty and staff would bend over backwards to disavow students of this notion. But they don't.

The thing that I find strange is students sometimes think they are being singled out in the classroom. Clinicals, I might buy, but our tests are multiple choice and are the overwhelming majority of the grade. How does an instructor single you out to fail a multiple choice test -- the same test that everyone else is taking?