Becoming a Successful Student
Learning Objectives
1. Define, spell, and pronounce the terms listed in the vocabulary.
2. Assess the importance of developing professional behaviors as a member of the allied health team.
3. Examine your learning preferences.
4. Interpret how your learning style affects your success as a student.
5. Apply time management strategies to make the most of your learning opportunities.
6. Apply problem-solving techniques to manage conflict and overcome barriers to your success.
7. Discuss the role of assertiveness in effective communication.
8. Integrate effective study skills into your daily activities.
9. Design test-taking strategies that help you take charge of your success.
Vocabulary
critical thinking The constant practice of considering all aspects of a situation when deciding what to believe or what to do.
empathy (em′-puh-the) Sensitivity to the individual needs and reactions of patients.
learning style The way an individual perceives and processes information to learn new material.
perceiving (pur-sev′-ing) How an individual looks at information and sees it as real.
processing (pro′-ses-ing) How an individual internalizes new information and makes it his or her own.
reflection (re-flek′-shun) The process of considering new information and internalizing it to create new ways of examining information.
Scenario
Shawna Long is a newly admitted student in a medical assistant program at your school. Shawna is anxious about starting classes and very concerned that she may not be a successful student. She had trouble with some of her classes in high school and must continue to work part time while taking medical assistant (MA) classes. Based on what you discover about the learning process in this chapter, see whether you can help Shawna take steps toward success.
While studying this chapter, think about the following questions:
• Why is it important for Shawna to understand how she learns best?
• What is the role of assertiveness in effective professional communications?
You have taken the first step toward becoming a successful student by choosing your profession and field of study. The medical assistant profession is both challenging and rewarding. Becoming a medical assistant opens the doors to a wide variety of opportunities in both administrative and clinical practice at ambulatory or institutional healthcare facilities. Medical assistants are important members of the healthcare team, and as a healthcare professional, you will be expected to practice certain professional behaviors (Figure 1-1). These professional behaviors include demonstrating dependability, respectful patient care, empathy, initiative, a positive attitude, and teamwork. To become a successful medical assistant, you first must become a successful student. This chapter helps you discover the way you learn best and provides multiple strategies to assist you in your journey toward success.
Who You are as a Learner: How Do You Learn Best?
Think about what you do when you are faced with something new to learn. How do you go about understanding and learning the new material? Over time you have developed a method for perceiving and processing information. This pattern of behavior is called your learning style. Learning styles can be examined in many different ways, but most professionals agree that a student’s success depends more on whether the person can “make sense” of the information than on whether the individual is “smart.” Determining your individual learning style and understanding how it applies to your ability to learn new material are the first steps toward becoming a successful student (Figure 1-2).
Learning Style Inventory
For you to learn new material, two things must happen. First, you must perceive the information. This is the method you have developed over time that helps you examine new information and recognize it as real. Once you have developed a method for learning about the new material, you must process the information. Processing the information is how you internalize it and make it your own. Researchers believe that each of us has a preferred method for learning new material. By investigating your learning style, you can figure out how to combine different approaches to perceiving and processing information that will lead to greater success as a student.
The first step in learning new material is determining how you perceive the information. When faced with a new learning experience, students decide how they will go about learning the new material; that is, either by watching and observing the new activity or by doing something active to learn about it. Individuals who learn by analysis, observation, and reflection are considered abstract perceivers. Abstract learners analyze new material as ideas that require thought to process. They study the information and build theories to help them understand it. Abstract perceivers prefer structured learning situations and use a step-by-step approach to problem solving.
Individuals who learn by “doing” are concrete perceivers, who learn information through direct experiences of acting, sensing, or feeling the new material. Concrete learners prefer to learn things that have a personal meaning or that they believe are relevant, and they rely on detailed information to learn new material.
The second step in learning new material is information processing, which is the way learners internalize the new information and make it their own. New material can be processed by two methods. Active processors prefer to jump in and start doing things immediately. They make sense of the new material by using it immediately. They look for practical ways to apply the new material and typically do not mind taking risks to get the desired results. They learn best with practice and hands-on activities. Reflective processors have to think about the information before they can internalize it. They prefer to observe and consider what is going on. The only way they can make sense of new material is to spend time thinking and learning a great deal about it before acting. Complete the activity in the Student Study Guide to help you determine your learning style preference.
Using Your Learning Profile to Be a Successful Student: Where Do I Go from Here?
No one falls completely into one or the other of the categories just discussed. However, by being aware of how we generally prefer first to perceive information and then to process it, we can be more sensitive to our learning style and can approach new learning situations with a plan for learning the material in a way that best suits our learning preferences.
Your preferred perceiving and processing learning profile will fall into one of the following four stages of the Learning Style Inventory, which was created by David Kolb of Case Western Reserve University.
• Stage 3 learners have an abstract active style. Learners with this combination learning style want to experiment and test the information they are learning. If you are a stage 3 learner, you want to know how techniques or ideas work, and you also want to practice what you are learning. Your strengths are in problem solving and decision making, but you may lack focus and may be hasty in making decisions. You learn best with hands-on practice by doing experiments, projects, and laboratory activities. You enjoy working alone or in small groups (Figure 1-3).
To get the most out of knowing your learning profile, you need to apply this knowledge to how you approach learning. Each of the learning stages has pluses and minuses. When faced with a learning situation that does not match your learning preference, see how you can adapt your individual learning profile to make the best of the information. For example, if you are bored by lectures, look for an opportunity to apply the information being presented to a real problem you are facing in the classroom or at home. If you are an abstract perceiver, take time outside of class to think about new information so that you are ready to process it into your learning system. If you benefit from learning in a group, make the effort to organize review sessions and study groups. If you learn best by teaching others, offer to assist your peers with their learning. By taking the time now to investigate your preferred method of learning, you will perceive and process information more effectively throughout your school career.
Time Management: Putting Time on Your Side
One of the most complicated tasks for a professional medical assistant is to manage time effectively. No other workplace can compete with the distractions and demands of a busy healthcare practice. Do you think you practice effective time management skills? Do you believe that you are in control of your time, or do you think that other people or situations control it? How frequently do you say that you just do not have enough time to do what you are supposed to do, let alone those things you would like to do? Time management gives you the opportunity to spend time in the way you choose. Effective time management is also crucial to your success as a student and as a future healthcare professional (Figure 1-4).
How to Put Time on Your Side
The following time management skills are designed to help you deal effectively with the demands on your time. Highlight the ones that you think will be most useful in helping you deal with your situation.
2. Identify your main concern. Besides school, what other demands do you have on your time? Based on the learning goals you have established, what do you need to do to accomplish your goals?
• Plan time: Schedule projects in advance, and make notes to yourself on deadlines.
• Use down time: Take your work with you everywhere you go. Do small bits at every opportunity.
• Discover time: Steal time from other activities in your schedule.
• Assign time: Ask for help when you need it from friends and family.
3. Be organized. What materials (e.g., books, research, supplies) do you need to have an effective study session? What preparation is needed to make the most of your time?
4. Stop procrastinating. If you avoid working on your goals, you may not achieve them. Examine the following suggestions as ways to break the procrastination cycle.