Keep your eye on the prize.

That’s what I told myself during my marathon BSN program.

But there is no prize unless you start the process.

In part 2 of my discussion on graduate nursing education with blogger and Nurse Practitioner student Sean Dent, we talked about the difference between graduate and undergraduate education.

How does grad school differ from undergraduate education?

Be sure to follow the link and read the original post…

Talking MSN: Desire and Discipline | Masters in Nursing Blog

In this installment of the interview, we talked about Sean’s motivations for returning to school, the type of program he chose and the characteristics that he found important in choosing his program.

Why did you decide to return to school?

….follow the link below to read the entire blog post!

Talking MSN: Sean Dent | Masters in Nursing Blog

Apparently a mother is using public embarrassment as a last resort to teach her teenage son a lesson about the value of an education. I guess this mother has tried everything to get her son motivate in the classroom, and felt she needed to take some extreme measures.

Video embed didn’t work – follow the link:

http://www.myfoxtampabay.com/video/videoplayer.swf?dppversion=7885

Corner punishment is working, Mom says: MyFoxTAMPABAY.com

Corner punishment is working, Mom says

Updated: Friday, 18 Feb 2011, 10:44 PM EST
Published : Friday, 18 Feb 2011, 10:44 PM EST

 

TAMPA – A Tampa teenager has sparked an important discussion about tough love and where to draw the line.

“Until he straightens up his grades and gets his education on track, he’s going to work this corner,” said James Mond’s mother Ronda Holder.

Holder made him hold a sign that says he answered four questions on the FCAT and has a 1.222 GPA. The sign also read “honk if I need an education.”

James’ mother say all else failed, so embarrassment was the only way to convince her son that grades do matter. Many criticize, but others are less quick to judge.

“If a parent has to go that far, that means she’s crying out for help. She needs assistance,” said Glenton Gilzean, Regional Director of A Quantum Leap, a tutoring and education program for at risk students and their parents.

After hearing James’ story, Gilzean reached out to the family. Monday, he’ll start a free intensive tutoring and mentorship program with James, five days a week.

“To be honest with you, I saw myself in him,” said Gilzean.

Gilzean says at James’ age, he was a difficult student. Now, Gilzean holds a Master’s degree. He says the education system is an uphill battle for parents who have not been part of it themselves. He says his goal is to make the process less overwhelming.

“How can we help families navigate this whole education maize from birth through adulthood,” he said.

Gilzean plans to turn things around for James.

Meanwhile, his mother still has her critics.

“I got five kids. You don’t help your kid by tearing them down, you build them up,” said Bay Area man Gordie Nygard.

Psychologists do say the punishment could make the situation worse. The Department of Children and Families visited James’ home. But, Holder is standing her ground.

“He’ll be okay. In the long run, he’ll thank me for it,” she said.

Holder says her punishment is working.

Corner punishment is working, Mom says

What do you think? Put yourself in her situation. She’s desperate to get her son in a better place. To improve his future. I know, it’s extreme. But, don’t extreme situations call for extreme measures?

I’m on the fence with this one.

At least this mother cared enough about her son and his education to do something about it.

I. GOT. IN.

Wholly carp I’m nervous, excited, exhausted, anxious, scared, ‘scatter-brained’.

I got into the Nurse Practitioner program I applied for earlier this past Spring. It’s an Acute Care Nurse Practitioner program, I’m focusing on Critical Care for my specialty (although that’s a long way down the road).

I interviewed less than a week ago and I got THE phone call this morning! I was beaming with excitement. I think I shed a tear when I was talking with my advisor.

Whew…

I must tell ya the road I traveled to get here was not smooth in any way, shape or form. Going back for my BSN was a task in itself. Then going through the emotions of what to do next. I mistakenly followed the suggestions of the ‘majority’ instead of following my heart. So I foolishly thought I wanted to pursue a career in Anesthesia as a CRNA.

I filled out all the forms, applied to all the local schools, paid all the application fees (and it was a lot!). I even qualified and interviewed with one school. The whole process just seemed to be a ‘dance’ that I was performing because that’s just what most critical care nurses progress into. I was told I’d be great at it. You’d be a good CRNA! I heard it from more than one source and more than one profession.

So I thought it was meant to be.

Then I spent more and more time digging in to the heart of what I love, the meaning behind what I enjoy about being a nurse. I found myself questioning my choices, in fact I was scared of my choices. Then I shadowed a CRNA I had worked side by side with. I realized I didn’t want to be in the OR. I didn’t want Anesthesia school.

It was a miracle in itself that this opportunity was even available for me. I did the research and asked the questions, talked with professionals and discovered that being an NP is exactly what I should be pursuing.

So. Here we are now. I’ve been accepted into a highly nationally ranked program. I’m beyond excited.

Now I have to jump through all the hoops to set things in motion and learn how to be a full-time student again one last time.

I’m more than ready. This is where I was meant to be.

I couldn’t have done all this without the help of some great friends, some superb co-workers, my wonderful family and my most amazing wife. My wife especially has had to witness first hand all the bumps and bruises during my journey in to finding ‘me’. She is the only reason I am where I am, and am going where I am going. Thank you all.

Wish me luck!

Well, my first semester back at school has come and gone. I must admit, I was overwhelmed at first. Shaking off the cobwebs from the back of my brain was quite a task. It’s amazing how much you ‘forget’.

It’s been 3 years since my last ‘formal’ class. I made an attempt at continuing my education towards my BSN, but due to time, money and just plain lack of interest, I bowed out.

Fast-forward three years and here we are again. This time around I had the time and the motivation.

With my previous educational history luck would have it I only have to take a handful of classes to attain my BSN, so that in itself was motivating enough.

So my first semester was this summer. The last time I took summer classes was in nursing school, so I must say I was a tad bummed that my summer would be spent in school – but it was a needed sacrifice to get things done. My summer semester consisted of online classes. Also something I was leery about. Leery, but not unfamiliar territory. The last time I was in school was also taking online classes.

I had forgotten I much I enjoyed the freedom and flexibility of online learning. It affords you a great amount of ‘wiggle room’ in regards to getting things done.

Everything remains the same as ‘real-time’ live classes except for the part where you have to physically show up for class. All you ‘classes’ come in the form of assignments and tasks which are all time-sensitive.

Most classes give you a syllabus that will outline what is due, when its due. Each assignment and task fits the needs of the class and it’s goals. Every assignment can or cannot build on the previous assignment. It is pseudo-cumulative, meaning that what you learned from the assignments in the beginning of the semester will have applications that will contribute to the completion of the class assignments at the end of the semester.

Here is my breakdown of deciding between the formal and online classes:

Pros:

• You work at your own pace (great for the busy schedule lifestyle)
• Can do school work ANYWHERE that allows computer/internet access (Laptops)
• Everything is planned out ahead of time, so you know what needs done and when it needs done.
• Don’t have to worry about sitting in a class for 45min up to 4 hrs!
• Most of the time you don’t have to buy books – everything is online access
• You can work ahead, allowing extra time when you need it.

Cons:

• Have to have a good, sound, basic knowledge of computers and the internet (otherwise you struggle)
• The immediacy of problem solving is not there – if you have a question it’s done by email
• Waiting for responses can be time consuming (although chat clients can help)
• At the mercy of your computer and the internet (slow computers/connections can be tough)
• It is a tad more expensive per credit
• No human to human interaction
• Social aspect of school is not there.

The great thing about my first semester was I worked hard, and busted my butt in the beginning of the summer. I worked as far ahead as I could – and it paid off tremendously. I finished my semester almost a full month ahead of schedule (yes I busted my A@S).

So instead of being in school, finishing the summer semester with only a week break until fall semester starts back up – I have over a month break! SHHWEEET!

If anything else, the long break is worth any drawbacks to taking online classes. Case in point, my wife is taking summer classes as well and she’s in class all the way up to the day we leave for vacation!

Ever take online classes? I’d love to hear your thoughts.

http://friendfeed.com/bethenextstep/ea1cdb55/have-you-ever-taken-online-classes-good-or-bad-i-d?embed=1

There is education in all that we do. Whether a good experience or bad, something is always learned. And to learn is always good.

When did failure first teach you?

I’m sorry, let me rephrase that, when did you first fail at something? How old were you?

When was the last time you failed at something? How old were you?

For me (and most others) failure educated you with its lessons at an early age. Some earlier than others, but failure visited my doorstep and sat on my lap at a very early age.

I honestly can’t pinpoint my very FIRST encounter with failure, I can however tell you that failure had quite a presence during my sporting activities.

It surfaced during those ‘pick-up’ games of tag, or hide-and-seek. It reared its ugly head during those games of backyard football, baseball, dodge ball, wiffle ball, tennis ball, soccer, etc. And it slapped me in the face many a times when friends of mine would spout off, ‘let’s race’.

Failures vast educational capabilities has reached the farthest edges of my life, edges that I never knew existed until recently.

I owe a great deal to my friend failure. At first it was all about the competitive nature of youth activity and organized sport. But somehow it seeped into other aspects of my life. Hell it’s sprinkled throughout ALL aspects of my life.

Thanks to my friend failure:

• I learned how to make and maintain friendships.
• I learned how hard work in and out of the classroom actually had a purpose, and that purpose was success.
• I learned that some of the best education comes from making a mistake and then correcting it the next time around.
• I learned that just because I want something, does not mean I will get it. Hard work always comes with a price.
• I learned that anything and everything gained or loss comes with a price.

The single most important lesson I learned from failure was this:

Failing and failure are not something that I am, only something I’ve done. My failures do not define me, its what I do after those failures that define me. My failure and failures teach me how NOT to do something, and help me get one step closer to what I’m wanting.

So I ask you again, when did my friend failure first visit you? It seems to me that failure is a pretty important educational tool. It plants the seeds of determination and sacrifice while toughening the spirit for better and harder things to come.

I only pose these questions and ask how failure can be a bad thing, because apparently there are parents and educators out there who think competition and failure may be a bad thing for our youth? That having the youth ‘fail’ could be a detriment to their development??

I ask you again, when did my friend failure first visit your doorstep?

Do you think my friend failure will be back anytime soon?

I do.