i just had my exam last night and here are a couple of things i find that are very annoying before, during , and after an exam.
1) students all 50 of them discussing class content openly ! seriously, i'm already confused and stressed as it is... the last thing i need to hear is s/s of this and that, treatments of this and that, and values of this and that. if you don't know it 5 minutes before the exam you won't know it now. i literally had to sit there with my hands over my ears so that i couldn't hear them and remain just a little of my insanity before taking this exam.
am i the only one who gets annoyed when students talk about content right before or as the instructors are handing out the exam ?
2) during the exam make sure we can't hear your phone ringing and vibrating just in case you didn't know its distracting ! and just because you and your friends finish first it doesn't mean you can stand outside the class and talk loudly!
3) after exam don't expect for me to remember each question and answer verbatim. no i honestly don't mind discussing the exam with you, but i need a little more info than just " what did you get for the one about the women with pre-eclampsia... ?" uh , we had about 5 questions on pre-eclampsia... which one ???
does anyone else have weird things going on before, during, or after nursing exams ?
i agree. these people are grumpy.. i say if its a bunch of ppl studying out loud before a test.. move around.. people study different. and if its a bunch of people. and you're singled out..then i guess you're just out done.
I don't really dislike any of these students, some of them are friends of mine (and trust me, they've heard about it from me). I just don't understand why in general people can't be more courteous of others. I'm 100% certain I am guilty of it at some point as well, everyone is.
This is just a vent - it shouldn't be taken as anything more than that!!
Wow. Cell phones going off during an exam? My instructors would kill us students (slight exaggeration ) if that occured, and yes, that includes the vibrate function.
I totally understand that each person has their own way of preparing and processing their exams. I personally think school is stressful enough and I don't like to aggravate that unless it's truly justified.
So I honor my classmates process by letting them do their loud, stressful, last-minute cramming inside the classroom, while I sit quietly and calming outside the classroom. I wouldn't say I dislike anyone more or less because of their personal patterns for getting ready.
I'm sure part of this is also because I work as a massage therapist at a hospital and I view stress management as one of the most important parts of my job. I've seen the lasting effects of stess and burnout in so many settings, and worry that some of my fellow students are creating some habitual stress responses that will not serve them down the line when they are REALLY in the thick of it....
But again, to each their own. In most situations you have to make the changes not everyone around you.
Your allowed to have phones during an exam? If a student were found with a phone during our exams they would get an automatic zero! We are allowed nothing but a pencil and picture ID that must be turned in at the door and picked up from the proctor when we leave.
I was thinking the same thing. We are only allowed an ID and A car key. Nothing else...no hats, no purses, no sunglasses on the head, no pens, no pencils. The instructors answer NO questions during exam time, no exceptions. If your phone goes off, you're outta there with a zero.
maybe they shouldnt be doing it before, during, or after exams, but its just human nature. in my nursing class, 75% of the students tend to talk to their friends studying for the test, sitting on the desktops, just relaxing like we're at home and talking not necessarily in an indoor voice. the teachers just come in and get ready, so we utilize that time to relax, talk like we're not in class, and get everything out of the way before class.
the students who dont like this usually stay in their cars before the exam, or find a quiet room on the floor above. i understand if everyone in your class comes in, is studying quietly or talking quietly among your friends. if at THAT point, one or two people are being loud, then yes, those one or two should go somewhere else.
its just like driving on the interstate. sure it says 55 sometimes, but usually the flow of traffic is 70. you wouldnt stop and expect everyone else to go 55 right?
just be flexible is all i can say. its your grade, so dont let other people bother you. and definately dont get stressed over it.
It drives me nuts when I'm sitting by myself trying to study for the exam and people will sit right next to me and start talking about something irrelevant at the time. If that happens I usually will get up and walk away. I need to be by myself before exams so I can relax. Having 80 other panicking people around does not help!!!
I may be wrong but do you have permission to use your classroom for a study group before an exam? I'm pretty much put off my your answer that if that bothers someone, don'e show up until the last minute. Sure, everyone studies differently but there is something called common courtesy to your fellow students. What helps you may not help others as you admit in your own post but your way is not necessarily the correct way and 'just accept it'. Earplugs don't signify a 'bit more mature response'. It really works both ways. Why should your fellow students be put out because of your study group?
We are actually encouraged to use our classroom. We spend atleast 10 hours a week there outside of class time studying together with our teachers' blessing and encouragement. We live in our classroom, complete with the occasional nap between classes in our lab hospital beds (not me, but others), a big green tub of snacks, a coffee maker and a small fridge of our drinks and lunch foods ect. We have a small class though (less than 10 atm halfway through) so it works for us where maybe it wouldnt work for others. Our program is the "baby" of the college so where other classes would not be open, ours is for us. They even talked about getting myself and one other student a key, because we are there so much. We have cakes there, do fundraisers for the nursing home we have worked at, ect.
As someone else in the thread said, you cant change other people's behavior, you just have to adjust. If my study group couldnt function there we would go somewhere else. It boggles me that you would show up before a test (esp when everyone stresses about nursing tests as much as they do in my school atleast) and not expect everyone to talk about the test. I hate that people talk about their tv shows and all other nonsense when I havent had time to watch tv in two weeks, but there's not much I can do about it so I dont dwell, but whatever.
I was being facecious about ear plugs being more mature, by suggesting that putting your hands over your ears was kinda silly. I read that and my first thought was that my 3 yr old did that last night when I told her it was time for bed.
I dont like loud people either, and it makes it tough for me when people start shouting ect before the exam, but as I said, not much I can do with it other than refuse to participate. I guess that my way of dealing with nursing school is to refuse to care about drama and things like that and save my stressing for my grades.
I actually do so much better on my tests when we discuss things before the test. Not in replacement for studying independently, but I always learn something that I hadnt thought was important, and atleast one of those tidbits is almost always on the test. We are quiet when we study, but we do continue until the teacher pulls out the test (assuming its when class first starts). There is only one student in our class who doesnt like to study/discuss before the test, and she is always talking about things that are completely irrelavent and distracting, so she's just the class "annoyance" and everyone else is either discussing the test in the class, or pacing the halls/sitting in the hallway studying right up until the teacher pulls the test out.
Specializes in Cardio-Pulmonary; Med-Surg; Private Duty.
Noise-canceling headphones and classical music work for me.
I normally don't listen to classical at all, but I've gotten in the habit while studying this year, and I've found that it helps me focus. (I can't listen to 'regular' music with lyrics, though, because the lyrics will distract me.) Now I actually prefer to study with the music instead of in a quiet room.
When I've got my noise-canceling headphones on, I can study ANYwhere, including in the ice rink at my son's hockey practices or in the living room while he's watching cartoons. I once had a classmate think I was blowing her off because I didn't hear her talking to me when I had my earphones on.
Also, people are less apt to come up and start conversing with you if you've got your head in a book and earphones on.
A lot of my instructors will take your test, give you an F and throw you out of the room if they either see or hear a phone during the exam. My patho instructor has had a lot of issues with students cheating in her class, so she makes us put all of our belongings (including coats, hats, scarves...) at the front of the room and only have ourselves and two #2 pencils at our desk. When we are finished with the test, we have to sit there until the full 1 hr is up. People still keep their phones on them during the test and will take them out once the instructor collects the test, but she has also thrown students out and given them F's for that, too!
Noise-canceling headphones and classical music work for me.
I normally don't listen to classical at all, but I've gotten in the habit while studying this year, and I've found that it helps me focus. (I can't listen to 'regular' music with lyrics, though, because the lyrics will distract me.) Now I actually prefer to study with the music instead of in a quiet room.
When I've got my noise-canceling headphones on, I can study ANYwhere, including in the ice rink at my son's hockey practices or in the living room while he's watching cartoons. I once had a classmate think I was blowing her off because I didn't hear her talking to me when I had my earphones on.
Also, people are less apt to come up and start conversing with you if you've got your head in a book and earphones on.
Give it a try!
Thats a great idea. I think I'll try the classical music. :) I, like you, cant deal with lyrics because I try to listen to them, but I think I could listen to classical, and I love classical. :)
Prettyladie
1,229 Posts
i agree. these people are grumpy.. i say if its a bunch of ppl studying out loud before a test.. move around.. people study different. and if its a bunch of people. and you're singled out..then i guess you're just out done.