Students Without Self-Confidence

[Neb.EMT]

This is a pretty straightforward question. What are some tips to help students gain some self-confidence. I have one student in particular who definitely knows the material and knows the skills. This student however lacks ANY amount of self-confidence. Positive reinforcement, compliments, encouragement, etc... just don't seem to help with this student. I'm looking for things I can do as an instructor to help this student gain confidence in herself. Any and all suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance,

Neb.EMT

[medicKristina]

Wow. That sounds a lot like where I was in Medic school - PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE Until you are capable and CAN do it, that confidence is lacking. The first time I ran a code, I was scared poopless. Today, I helped a 60 y/o man down in full arrest on the side of the street and had full scene control and CPR initiated as soon as I could assess the patient then handed patient care to Columbus Fire. I swear to you that in March of 06, I would never have done that.

Another big issue that I don't think you will have much say in is the maturity of the person. At 27, I am confident in who I am and the abilities and knowledge I posses. That may take some time for her to come to realize.

Good luck and if you know she can do something, help her take that initiative to be the first in the class to try or the first to present a case or essay. In the long run, it will pay off

[snoopy911]

I agree with kristina. Just keep doing what you are doing. I have struggled with no self confidence almost my whole life, and I still struggle with it greatly. Especially this week, having started a new job, and had to drive the ambulance for the first time. I doubted myself, and I was really nervous and upset. But when I backed into that bay, I was really proud of myself, and with some positive feedback from my instructor, I felt better. It's not just an issue of no self confidence, but I believe its a deep low self esteem, and it doesn't change overnight. But with me, I know that if the encouragement keeps coming, it makes a difference. And even if you don't see results right away, don't give up. Sometimes it takes time for your outward attitude to change. Good luck!

[emtannie]

Good thread, Neb.... I hope there will be a lot of posts on this one.

How old is this student? Are they the youngest student in the class? Are there more male students than female students? Do they only show the insecurities when in front of the class, or in a group? Or do they also show the lack of confidence when they are doing a skill or scenario by themselves, with just you watching? I am curious about the class dynamics.

I am an instructor, and I am also currently a student, so I get the benefit of being on both sides of the fence at the same time.

Have you spoken to this student one on one, with no other students around, and with no other students knowing you are talking to this student, to tell them that they are doing well, and that the only thing lacking is their self-confidence? Are they really nervous in front of the rest of the class? How long has this class been going on? If they are quite far into the course, and are still showing signs of poor self-confidence, you definately have a challenge on your hands.

Whatever you do, don't single that person out in the class. Be careful of praising them more than other students, so they don't feel more conspicuous.

Have you done a lecture as part of your class on what it takes to work in this field? It might be worth covering that in your class, to emphasize that self-confidence is key. Ask the class "If you don't have confidence, how can you expect your patient to have confidence in you?" Or, have the students prepare an assignment on the topic, and things that can be done to help self-confidence in themselves and others. Maybe make it a presentation day, where each one brings an idea.... Or, just have each student prepare a short presentation on something (I have my students each prepare a short 5 - 10 minute lecture on a drug in their protocols, and they have to explain it, the mechanism of action, the dose, and when it would be used) to get them in front of the class.

I know I have types a lot of "have you"s in this post, and you probably have done most or all of them. Although as instructors, we never want to see a student of ours be unsuccessful, there is always the one that can't make it in the long run. Despite your best efforts, and then some, this student may have walls that are too hard for you to climb over.

I will try to dig through some of the reference material I have, and if I find anything I think will be helpful, I will pm it to you.

As good as this person may be at skills, she will never succeed if she can't get past that lack of self-confidence.

[DwayneEMTP]

I think we often train a lack of confidence into students.

The whole, 'You're ok! You did your best!" is SO destructive to the educational process as it simply tells me that you, as my instructor and temporary leader, not only believe that I am too weak to accept criticism, but to dumb to learn from my mistakes.

Telling me that I did 'ok', or 'my best' or 'that was fine, you'll do better with experience' makes the instructor feel like a kind person, but it carries no information. If I can't trust you to teach me when I'm scared and defeated then I can't really trust you at all. What I need to feel confident is the knowledge to fix the problems I have today and the trust that my instructor will take me and my education seriously enough to help me do so.

Also, I see too many skills taught as a single 'thing.' "Ok, this is how you cspine. Now lets everyone practice." At which point everyone starts to flounder around and bump into each other. (exaggerated, I hope, to make the point.) This is not one skill. Manual cspine should be practiced until they are comfortable with it, and then collaring should be practiced, SEPARATELY, until they are proficient, and then positioning the pt, separately, log rolling, separately, etc, etc. It's called Daisy Chaining behaviors. People fail at most skills because one part of the skill falls apart trashing the whole. Each part of a skill needs to be practiced and mastered separately before attempting to be put together as a whole.

That's all I've got for now...Don't treat your timid students as if they're breakable, and daisy chain behaviors and I think you'll see a dramatic difference in their behavior as a whole.

Dwayne

[emtannie]

Very good points Dwayne - it is not an instructor's job to coddle students. It is our job to make sure that they are competent.

A criteria I use is "is this student good enough to work on my family member?" If the answer is no, they aren't good enough, and I tell my students that. I ask them directly "Do you think you are good enough to work on your best friend's family member?" That usually gets them to think again about how good they think they are.

I also agree with your "you did OK" thoughts. The OP said that this student does know the material and the skills, but seems to lack confidence in front of others. I suspect in this situation, it isn't a lack of confidence in knowledge or skills, but an overall self-confidence issue that needs to be aqddressed.

EMS is not for the faint of heart, and students need to realize that early in their EMT-B. The student really needs to take a good look at themselves and figure out if they can break out of that personal bubble of lack of confidence, and learn to project confidence even if inside they are thinking "holy sh*t." If they can't do that, they will never be successful.

[EMS49393]

One thing I often worry about when I see this type of student would be "how much is this an act?" Really, I've seen a lot of students, and I hate to say this, but a lot more female students feign this no confidence "I'm never going to get this" attitude because they are seeking attention. The more time you devote to telling them how good they are and that they can do this job, the more a person that needs attention is going to crave what you're feeding them. As a result, you'll be spending all your attention focused on one student and making sure they know how good they are then on your group of students, many of whom will probably end up going on a lot further in the long run.

First things first, make sure this person isn't playing the "show me attention or I'm going to cry" game. If they truly have no self confidence, I'm not sure it's something that can be taught. They have to be comfortable. Unfortunately, if they never get to that point, they won't go far as we are driven by confidence and have to master it before we can really function by ourselves. People will see though a weak person and consequently, they'll walk all over them on a scene.

Once again, another fantastic post by Dwayne. People don't need smoke blown up their butts, the need quality educators that understand the learning process and are able to teach effectively. I am all forward a daisy chain learning approach. Master one small skill and move on to another small skill. Eventually all the small skills will equal one gigantic mastered technique.

[FireMedic65]

Making class fun and enjoyable helps quite a bit. Don't just stand there and read from a slide show or from the book. Get the students involved. Positive reinforcement. Do not discourage. Gain their respect! Don't speak monotone.. that's boring and some will lose interest. A lot of the material can be dry. Try to keep it exciting, but remember they aren't "kids". Also remember.. the brain is directly proportional to what the butt can handle.

[joesph]

This is a pretty straightforward question. What are some tips to help students gain some self-confidence. I have one student in particular who definitely knows the material and knows the skills. This student however lacks ANY amount of self-confidence. Positive reinforcement, compliments, encouragement, etc... just don't seem to help with this student. I'm looking for things I can do as an instructor to help this student gain confidence in herself. Any and all suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance,

Neb.EMT

Have them review a section they already know for the class no warning, spontaneous. Only step in if they bomb and then only to refocus them. Often you learn as much by teaching as learning.

[Neb.EMT]

This class has 21 students. There are 3 females in the class. All of us that are teaching this class agree the student in question knows her stuff and then some. She has problems with overall self-confidence however, which in turn finds it's way to class and EMS too. She has terrible test anxiety and struggles in this area as well. She can answer any question you throw her way. She doesn't just know the answer either; she can tell you the reasoning behind it too. Overall, we are just trying to find a way to get her to feel more confident so that she succeeds.