I'm sorry if I sound like a complainer but I'm so fed up!
Why is it that so many nursing instructors treat their students as if they are children? I will be graduating in spring 09 and I'm almost done with school but I am just so fed up. Here's why:
Today in class we broke up into groups and the teacher individually asked us questions. (This is a college class) When someone would answer a question incorrectly, the teacher would actually LAUGH at them and make snide comments that indicated that they were stupid! I was so mad at her by the end of the class. (She didn't direct the laughter at me, but I'm mad out of principle.) Does that really promote learning?? I don't think so. I want to write her a letter telling her how unprofessional her actions were but we have a test coming up so I may wait till after the test.
It is a second year nursing class so its obvious that no one made it that far by being stupid. In college for teaching, do they teach them to be dictators? Or to treat their students like children, regardless of their age?
Am I just making a big deal out of nothing? I'm just so fed up with the way the 2nd year staff has done things and this I think was the last straw.
Should I just shut up and suck it up and go on?
I really do try not to have a bad attitude because I really do like nursing and I am having a great time in clinical. But this is just bugging me....
When I was teaching I appreciated every evaluation I got from students. Honest opinions helped me grow and do a better job.
Yes, I had students give each other baths. Usually they were the ones that pointed out their body flaws. My job was to help instill the importance of privacy even when the students were comfortable enough to leave their whole body exposed while another student was washing feet. Pretty undies were not to be exposed and talked about. I certainly laughed about the undies if they were exposed as a way of instilling that sense of need for privacy. I always explained this to students and reinforced the absolute rule of privacy. I give no apologies about laughing at hearts and polka dots being exposed, if the student being washed seemed oblivious to how wrong it was to have anyone else see them.
All courses need to be evaluated each semester for the program to be able to grow as the field expands. This is not a question for your particular instructor. It is a question for the dept. head or even a professor you do not have for nursing. It will keep you from rocking the boat while questioning the lack of eval. time.
Every instructor I know wants the nurses to be the best and provide a positive image for the program. I am sorry that the situation is seemingly student unfriendly. While in the course you will not be able to change the instructor. After getting your course grade I would approach the instructor and ask calmly and with respect about the situations that upset you. Allow her to see how it appeared to you. Give her the opportunity to share how she saw the situation. it is a good challenge for your communications skills and allows free exchange of information at a more similar human to human rather than student to teacher level.
Best of luck. Keep you compassion for others and use this experience to make you a better nurse.
Specializes in Mental Health, OB, Geriatric clinicals.
I appreciate the advice. I will probably have to wait until I graduate to approach the instructor. We have the same instructors until the end of school in May 09.
I appreciate the advice. I will probably have to wait until I graduate to approach the instructor. We have the same instructors until the end of school in May 09.
Even though you keep your grades up, the performance in clinicals still count and if a teacher doesn't like you....she can flunk you. It's sad but true.
There is somebody like this that I work with at my hospital. She use to be an instructor for this hospital we work for. When I was on orientation and even now, she snickers at some things I say. Very disrespectful! I try to avoid her all together. I don't like people like this, I won't even acknowledge people like this. I think these type of people have to do things like this because it makes them feel big or something.
Specializes in LTC,Hospice/palliative care,acute care.
I'm sorry if I sound like a complainer but I'm so fed up!
Why is it that so many nursing instructors treat their students as if they are children? I will be graduating in spring 09 and I'm almost done with school but I am just so fed up.
.
It's a good learning experience for when you have a supervisor like that. :chuckle...
Hmmm.... It seems to me that end of semester course evaluation is pretty standard in any college course. Does anyone else have experience to the contrary?
Nope, we evaluate all of our teachers at the end of each term.
You do not have to have any courses in teaching or education at all to teach nursing. What is necessary is an advanced degree in nursing, not in education. So many nursing instructors are just doing as they themselves were done to, for better or for worse. And I don't agree that the instructors have all the power. All the ones I know absolutely hate having to flunk a student and document repeated infractions and repeated attempts of the faculty to correct those infractions and err on the side of the student. I know this won't make me popular in this thread, but it is absolutely the truth. Sorry some of you got a rotten apple.
thats kind of what I figured what I would have to do... I'd rather stand up and rock the boat...heck, flip the boat over!
but how can she flunk me? Especially if i keep my grades up?
Trust me, they can find their ways. Maybe not in the "book learnin'" but in the clinical area. I didn't know until the day BEFORE graduation if my critical care instructor was going to pass me in clinicals.... to her now....LOL
Hmm Jan, let me tell you about the aforementioned witch. This instructor was known for having a shi+ list of students that she didn't feel were worthy of passing. I working as a summer intern at the hospital where the school was at. A ward clerk looked at my name tag and said "Oh, so you are Susan! You know that you and Brenda (my best friend) are on my mom's list this year?" That fall I was ready for her. Critical care rotation was at the end of my senior year. Brenda and I had 2 months to get through and I stuck it out, Brenda gave up and quit. So yes, some people get a perverse pleasure in causing others pain, anxiety and suffering.
I did confront a teacher for ridiculing our class in general. As it turned out she went to the level coordinator and accused me of disrespect, insubordination etc. And while I was an honor roll student and graduated with honors, it was not without hardship. Faculty through all levels had opinions already formed about me and the rest of school was difficult. More than one teacher wanted to see me fail. (I know because they went out of their way to tell me so). So, my advice is let it go. No, you shouldn't have to put up with a teacher who is like this, but you do want to graduate. If you do want to pursue the poor behavior, do so calmly, professionally and with witnesses. Others were witness to my confrontation and were probably the only thing that saved me. Without them, I would have been toast.
Sad to say, but there is a teacher like that in every nursing school. I recently worked with a WONDERFUL stna who was in ns. She had a problem with a professor and complained. Next thing you know she was called to the dean's office for unprofessional behavior. She asked me what she should do and I will tell you the same thing I told her:
Keep your head down, shut up and don't rock the boat. This witch can and will flunk you. Just remember how you felt and never do that to another person.
Now, when you actually have your degree and deal with people like this my advice is completely different.
I have a really, really politically incorrect view on this subject.
There are some teachers that give respect, and get it back.
Then there are some that think that just because they have "nursing instructor" as a job title, that it gives them the right to treat students as subhuman.
These same instructors, probably don't work in hospitals or anywhere else, b/c if they tried pulling that crap at any other employer in America, they would be thrown out on their butts straight toward the unemployment line.
Only in education, can you treat the people paying your salary like crap and still keep your job....oh yeah, I forgot about the DMV.
I am very nonconfrontational, but I too would have a difficult time putting up with that kind of treatment. I do agree that it probably won't do you any favors to voice your concerns/upset to her or other instructors; however I would like to suggest another thing you can do to feel better about the situation:
TELL the other students when you feel they were right, when they are doing well, when you see that they are hurt by her laughter/comments. I think it is a good thing to support others as they are learning, and by you acknowledging the correct things they do and say, you can maybe be the one that stops a potentially great future nurse from giving up because this one instructor was the last straw. Kudos to you for caring about how OTHER students (not just yourself) are treated!
I'd rather stand up and rock the boat...heck, flip the boat over!
to her now....LOL
TopazLover, BSN, RN
1 Article; 728 Posts
When I was teaching I appreciated every evaluation I got from students. Honest opinions helped me grow and do a better job.
Yes, I had students give each other baths. Usually they were the ones that pointed out their body flaws. My job was to help instill the importance of privacy even when the students were comfortable enough to leave their whole body exposed while another student was washing feet. Pretty undies were not to be exposed and talked about. I certainly laughed about the undies if they were exposed as a way of instilling that sense of need for privacy. I always explained this to students and reinforced the absolute rule of privacy. I give no apologies about laughing at hearts and polka dots being exposed, if the student being washed seemed oblivious to how wrong it was to have anyone else see them.
All courses need to be evaluated each semester for the program to be able to grow as the field expands. This is not a question for your particular instructor. It is a question for the dept. head or even a professor you do not have for nursing. It will keep you from rocking the boat while questioning the lack of eval. time.
Every instructor I know wants the nurses to be the best and provide a positive image for the program. I am sorry that the situation is seemingly student unfriendly. While in the course you will not be able to change the instructor. After getting your course grade I would approach the instructor and ask calmly and with respect about the situations that upset you. Allow her to see how it appeared to you. Give her the opportunity to share how she saw the situation. it is a good challenge for your communications skills and allows free exchange of information at a more similar human to human rather than student to teacher level.
Best of luck. Keep you compassion for others and use this experience to make you a better nurse.