What Am I Doing Wrong?

BrendanO, MSN, RN · Sep 28, 2016

What do you define as "slightly above average"? What kinds of questions are you getting wrong on your tests? Are you covering/reading a lot of stuff on your own that you're not being tested on?

Generally speaking, school gets harder the further you along you go. People who were straight-A students in high school without studying are often shocked at their first B in undergrad. It might not necessarily reflect that they're not working hard enough (although that's possible), just that the content is getting harder than what they've seen before.

AvaRose · Sep 28, 2016

This is going to sound strange but pay attention to HOW you read the chapters. Are you reading each and every word of the chapter each time you read the material? If so, DON'T. The first time you read you should skim the chapter for main points..maybe even write an outline of the chapter as you identify the topics. Second time you read for sub-topics, then the 3rd time you read for details but still not every single word. You can read between the lines for things that will likely make test questions (lab values, pathophysiology, medications, procedures, tests, etc). In addition, read the boxes and tables in each chapter since many teachers like to pull test questions from the side boxes. Finally, get familiar with NCLEX style questions especially select all that apply (SATA). Teachers test like a mini NCLEX and when I sat my NCLEX it was nearly half SATA (29 of 75 questions).

hennezzy · Sep 28, 2016

Above average as in borderline low B to a high C. The kind of questions I get occasionally get wrong are either when two answers are close enough and I end up choosing the wrong one, select all that apply sometimes and ones where I second guess my first choice.

I have spoken with the instructor whom I trust the most and I explained that I am may just be rambling but they do not particularly give us a guideline to idea of what to study. They give us power points and expect us to just know the material from each chapter which is vague and causes some confusion and anxiety on what to study.

I am not blaming the faculty or curriculum in any way but they cannot expect us to succeed without guidance and further development of our intuition as student nurses. We all come from different backgrounds and feel as though I'm a disadvantage due to being a non-traditional student.

hennezzy · Sep 28, 2016

I have recently attempted to try more nclex-styled questions and it has helped tremendously. However, I do not like skimming because it seems to slow me down when I feel as though I grasped enough of what was to be known within the chapter.

Select all that apply are one of the hardest ones that I hate but I am beginning to familiarize myself with it. I currently use The Point and PrepU, do you recommend any resources or books?

BrendanO, MSN, RN · Sep 28, 2016

I hate getting things wrong when I second-guess myself, but I also know that I have caught errors I've made when I go back and review my answers. I try to trust my gut unless I have a REALLY good reason not to. I'm a non-traditional student, too, and I actually found it to be to my advantage, because I have often been more motivated and experienced than the 18 and 19 year-olds I have been sitting next to. Do you feel like you're just "out of practice" at learning?

I think I see you saying you'd like to be given more guidance of what to study. Well, at the level of school you're in now, I think the answer is simple: all of it. Unless the professor specifically tells you not to study something, expect to learn it all.

That's where skimming can come in very handy, if you don't have time to read everything in detail. AvaRose gave great advice with the 3-pass method. It might help to think of learning a chapter like making a drawing, if you're at all artistic. You don't make a drawing by starting at the highest level of detail in the top left corner and then filling in the whole page at that level of detail until it's done. You draw the main shapes and correct the proportions first, then you do medium-level detail like shadows and colors, and then you start focusing on small items like texture, blending and shading. Textbooks are typically written so one idea follows from or depends on the one before it, in a logical sequence. Use that to your advantage. Knowing generally where you are headed is a very useful thing for understanding where you are.

People's lives are potentially going to be in your hands when you're working as a nurse; you can't anticipate only studying the things that will be on the test, as you can't possibly be tested on everything little thing you're supposed to be learning. The names of two different drugs can differ by a letter, the placement of a decimal point creates an order-of-magnitude difference in dosages, etc. There is no "close enough". If you want to get straight "A" grades, you should expect yourself to know ALL of the material backwards and forwards, not just things you can memorize but the also the things that need interpretation, application, and analysis.

Are there study groups for your classes? Extra help sessions before tests? Students who have taken the class before that you can talk to? Do your professors have office hours when you can go and just explain your understanding and get corrections if needed? Yes, people can learn things by themselves, but if you're struggling, it can really help to interactively discuss it with other people who understand it or are also learning it, as opposed to getting the same information multiple times via different non-interactive modalities (i.e. books, videos, online resources).

NICUismylife, ADN, BSN, RN · Sep 28, 2016

Welcome to nursing school, where you run yourself ragged 60 hours a week and earn "B"s.

For what it's worth, I am top of my class, was awarded the annual "departmental award" for academic excellence and professionalism for all of Allied Health at my school, and I received a B in Med-Surg both 2nd and 3rd semesters. A 4.0 in nursing school is a mythical creature that I am convinced does not exist. That's not to say you shouldn't try! But don't beat yourself up and feel like a failure if you can't achieve A status.

The president of our SNA is a student who has barely passed each semester. You don't have to be the best to be president. You just have to be willing to put in the time. It actually wasn't a highly sought after position as it does require sacrificing much-needed study hours in order to participate.

As far as studying, study in short bursts to maximize retention, get plenty of sleep (this is when short-term memory is committed to long-term memory), color code your notes, study to your own learning style, utilize the internet: watch videos, use quizlet, etc. If study groups help you, join one.

And remember, this too shall pass. Good luck!

HouTx, BSN, MSN, EdD · Sep 28, 2016

. . .
As far as studying, study in short bursts to maximize retention, get plenty of sleep (this is when short-term memory is committed to long-term memory), color code your notes, study to your own learning style, utilize the internet: watch videos, use quizlet, etc. If study groups help you, join one.

Not quite accurate, although I really wish it was. Sleeping is much more enjoyable than plowing through really dense information. And you're leaving out an important step - Working Memory.

Information can only be moved into long-term memory with effort. This means you have to 'process' it a bit in your Working Memory. The processing can be as simple as figuring out where that bit of information related to all the other information you have stored or even just reflecting (thinking) about what you have read. Processing can also be enhanced by using multiple input channels - e.g., reading aloud, reading and writing down or drawing pictures of what you have read.

la_chica_suerte85, BSN, RN · Sep 28, 2016

Being the president of your school's SNA chapter has little to do with academic performance. If anything, if you feel you are putting a ton of work in and not getting the results you expect, your real question should be whether or not you can handle taking on a position that requires a lot of professionalism and leadership skills. I had a leadership role during nursing school and chose to take it on as a means of networking and gaining experience working with faculty and seeing how nursing school works from the inside.

I know you feel your instructors should be guiding you more but this is the #1 complaint on the list of 100 Most Common Nursing Student Gripes. I taught myself a lot during nursing school and got mostly As because I chose to go deeper into the materials during clinicals and outside of theory lectures. The people who kept ******** that the instructors weren't doing their jobs were the ones who saw C grades as their new normal. When you work as a nurse, you are responsible for keeping your knowledge base nice and well-rounded. No one will put the pressure on you to do so. It seems that the people who are able to take initiative and dig deeper into the material are the ones who maintain As during nursing school. It helps if you already have a background in medicine, however (and being non-traditional shouldn't be a huge detractor -- I was non-traditional, too).

At any rate, consider if you have the time to devote to an extracurricular like SNA president. It's something that can open a lot of doors and help broaden your professional network if you do it right.

Lemon Bars · Sep 28, 2016

Definitely focus your reading. There material is too complicated to absorb all in one reading session. Look to any lists of objectives your instructors have provided and concentrate there. Learn the key points listed at the start of the chapters and do the questions at the end of the chapters. At first I was trying to read and understand everything but it was too much.

planetgreennnRN, ADN, BSN · Sep 28, 2016

I just graduated last year so I know the feeling. At the beginning it was fairly easy but as someone pointed out it only gets harder. The thing that worked for me was what AvaRose said. Another thing I did was try to apply what I was learning to some sort of scenario or some sort of quirky way I'd remember it. Another thing I'd say is don't second guess yourself. Most of the time you chose the right answer because it made sense and then you think to far into it. Which brings me to another point...don't think so much about it. Don't think of anything except what the questions are asking you.

Hope this helps!

Lemon Bars · Sep 28, 2016

La-chica you may have just provided a good answer to a different threat I just started. To the OP I agree with La-chica that being SNA president and being a top student are two different things. I think being SNA president is more about leadership and social skills. It could be that you will be an average floor nurse but will still end up being the department manager in your future job, if that's what fits your personality and goals. Or you might be great at both, because school is not the same thing as work. It will take time away from your study time, though, so consider if you can afford that.