Get the report or don't get the report ...

[Pixilated]

For my program, we need a police clearance report (cost $45) to do our placement.

Also, a new wrinkle has been added to the program: a math test in which (without using calculators) you must get 100%. You get three chances. We've already had the first test; I did not get 100% (only one person did, much to the chagrin of the program coordinator).

Math is my weakest point. I haven't had to do any higher math functions in literally decades. I can do them but I'm extremely slow and the loss of the calculator makes the likelihood of my making some small error even greater.

In short, I think it extremely unlikely that I'm going to get the required 100% on this quiz. So my question is, should I even bother to get this police clearance report, since I'm fairly sure it won't be needed -- since I'm fairly sure I won't get as far as a placement? I'm already looking at alternatives (other programs at college and other possibilities that don't involve further schooling.)

[Pixilated]

Also, I've just found out I'm failing two labs ...

This really does not look good.

[sms001]

If there isn't a time factor involved, hold off on the report. No sense beating yourself up over throwing money away if you don't pass the other prerequisites. Still, you have two more shots, and it sounds like it's a pretty tough quiz - lots of others in the same boat as you. Can you do anything about the labs?

[Pixilated]

Thanks, sms001, that's sort of what I was thinking. There is in fact a time factor -- and the window's closing -- but I'm increasingly doubtful that I'll pass the year so at this point to rush to get the clearance would be wasting money.

The one lab I'm failing -- nearly everyone in the class (including some of the best students in the program) is failing it! The teacher's a nice guy but hasn't really explained things too well. I'll keep trying but ...

As for the second lab -- I just keep making stupid mistakes. I can -- and will -- try to do better in the time left.

[Seshat]

Ask for help.

Almost every tertiary education place in Australia has tutoring available for math - it's common for people to have trouble with it. I would be surprised if that isn't true in other countries: and also, surprised if your college doesn't have one.

For the lab you're failing: point out to the supervisor for the whole program (not your lecturer) that many others are failing it as well. Perhaps have a group of students go with you. Ask for supportive tutoring; perhaps a student of a later year could teach you all, or a post-graduate student. Just someone, anyone, with a better gift for explaining things than your lecturer.

And ask questions of your lecturer! When you don't understand something, ask him to explain it in a different way. Or to provide an analogy. Anything. But ASK.

[Chromatix]

What sort of level is the maths test - what subjects does it cover?

[Pixilated]

This is pretty wordy, so please bear with me.

Seshat: One of the labs I'm failing is taught by the program coordinator. Literally from Day One, her response to any question asked in lab has been either, "Figure it out for yourself" or "You should know that." I don't mean to sound like I'm making excuses, but asking her for help is pointless.

As for the math, it's less a case of my not understanding the math than it is a case of: math has always been my weak point (so why did I enrol in a program with a heavy math component? Good question, LOL. Methinks I should have done a lot more research into the program before I got into it.) I do understand it but I'm fairly slow at it, and I have to work out problems step by step. Said program coordinator is telling us we should be able to do virtually all the math in our heads. For me to be able to do this would in all likelihood involve reincarnation.

I should add that the teacher of the second lab I'm failing took me aside today and patiently ran me through a "quiz" to help me understand some of the things I'm having trouble with. I appreciated it and it will help -- but given the time left, and the number of labs left, it may not help enough.

The problem I am having with the two labs is also the incredible amount of detail involved in each. The labs involve filling prescriptions for individuals and for people in longterm care institutions. There are a multitude of steps involved, both in the computer programs and once you get the prescriptions printed off, and increasingly I am making stupid mistakes that (in most cases) I should not be making. Add to this the fact, in the program coordinator's lab, we are also expected to answer phones and double-check our fellow students' prescriptions ... and it begins to look more as if I am just no longer able to multitask at that level (if indeed I ever was).

I suspect that, in small independent pharmacies, the pace of business is not quite this bad, but unfortunately I must get through this program to get there.

Chromatix: the Do or Die Quiz is all about figuring out dosages. The questions in general are certainly not impossible, but we are all increasingly aware we're under the gun (this is a new wrinkle in the program; it's been instituted only this year) and that a single error, no matter how small, invalidates your whole test. And while I'm not dependent on calculators, they do help, especially in cases in which time is of the essence.

I'm not giving up ... but I do think that, between the two labs I'm failing and this math quiz in which no quarter is given, my chances of passing this year are not good.

I'm not devastated, by the way. I've given it a lot of thought and I believe this just strongly indicates that, unfortunately, this is not a line of work I should be in, even though jobs are plenty. (By the way, the Do or Die Quiz will also be given in both semesters in second year.)

I've been told that, with the training I have now (even if I don't pass the year), I could go looking for work as a pharmacy assistant rather than a pharmacy technician. I'd be much more limited in what I could do, and I'd be locked into a lower-paying position, but I suspect the stress levels would also be a lot lower, which to me is worth a lot.

[Seshat]

Ah. Then - forgive me - your program coordinator has no business being a teacher.

Not that my opinion on this matter is going to be any practical help to you right now. But I would consider this to be as much - if not more - her failure as yours. Her JOB is to teach. To take willing students - which you ARE! - and provide them with every tool possible to actually learn the information.

Also, to identify which students are not actually suited to the course as early as possible, and to try to guide them towards a placement which is more suitable for them. In the case of some of Sapphire Silk's students, they're definitely not suited to nursing, but they'd never accept her telling them that.
But it sounds like YOU would have preferred being told 'you need more ability to multitask and to do math in your head than you seem to have - have you considered being a pharmacy assistant rather than a technician?' earlier in the course.

<le sigh>

Anyway: in your copious free time, if you have a good relationship with a pharmacist or two local to you (or maybe one of the pharmacists on the board), check whether they'd hire someone with your current knowledge as an assistant. (hypothetically - if they needed one at the time)
As you said: less money, but less stress. If pharmacy assistant will give you a realistic living wage, that's all you need.

[PepperElf]

a math test in which (without using calculators) you must get 100%

Since you already took it once, you know what's going to be on it. I'd recommend finding similar math problems to practice with.

My math was VERY weak when I took calculus back in 09 cos I hadn't done any serious math for 14 or 15 years. It was a serious struggle.

But it reinforced something I learned a while back... I did better when I practiced more. For example, doing my math homework *right* after class made it stick in my head better and got it out of the way.


Also - a little trick from one of my high school math teachers. If you have scratch paper, right after the test starts write down any formulas or information you'll need quick access to. That way you don't have to worry about remembering the information while you're working on the test, and you can refer to those notes as much as you want.

This is one trick I held on to in college. My teacher said not every math teacher likes this idea but... that was back in the 80s. I've never had a teacher fault me for doing this. and really, they *can't*.

[Pixilated]

Seshat: Definitely agree about the teacher! She is one of the worst I've ever had, especially since she doesn't actually teach us anything!

This is March Break so I will be getting some practice in on the type of problems we get on the test. Can't hurt and who knows ... it might even help ...

I only just moved back here last summer so don't really have much in the way of contacts but I'm going to send out my resume anyway. The worst anybody can do is ignore it.

Pepper Elf: we're not allowed to bring scratch paper of our own, nor does the teacher provide us with any, but there's no reason I can't write down stuff (conversions, etc.) on the test paper.

Also, I've applied for other programs (that do NOT have heavy math components!) for this September. Already been accepted for two; we'll see about the third.

[PandaHat]

Pixellated: I had a horrendous tutor that seemed to think that the best way of teaching me (one on one I might add) was to tear me to shreds, regardless of whether we were talking about the subject or personal opinions. My mum said something that has really rung true:

"Anyone can make a student look and feel like an idiot. Of course they don't know anything, that's why they're students. A great teacher is someone who can take a mediocre or even a failing student, and make them into a great one."

Also, expecting 0% errors in real life is unrealistic. That's why you have safety checks, preferably by multiple people!

[Pixilated]

PandaHat: yeah, she sure doesn't qualify as a great teacher -- nor even a great program coordinator. We are getting contradicting information from the various teachers but if you put something down that a different teacher told you, it's likely to be marked wrong.

I understand their focus on avoiding errors; this is a profession in which you can literally kill somebody if you screw up. However, one student said there is a 3% margin of error allowed in pharmacies (precisely because people are NOT perfect) so ...

We've had the second test. Seven more people passed. I wasn't one of them. I know for sure I got one question wrong. We are reviewing the test on Tuesday so I'll find out how many more (if any) I got wrong. I will be pleased if I at least got fewer wrong than last time!

This means they've now get 8 students for the second year, so the college is somewhat less likely (I think) to lose the program ... At the start of this one teacher said they were worried they'd only have 15 students (out of 30) for next year. Now it's debatable whether they'll have that.