A teacher’s perspective on the last nursing class
Whenever I come to the end of a Nursing course, I always think of a book called ‘Your Last Nursing Class: How to Land Your First Nursing Job‘ by Beth Hawkes.
To say there is something greatly significant about the last nursing class is an understatement.
It is not yet a goodbye as there are still practicums to follow, but it does qualify as an ending.
As I am standing in front of the class, I hear ‘all the best‘ and ‘thank you,’ but there are a great many things that are left unsaid.
Since the beginning of the semester, students have been preparing for the changes that are to come.
The relationships that they have with each other will change. Even if they undertake the same course in the future, they may no longer sit next to each other.
Many will go in very different directions and some may even leave nursing and take up other careers.
As a teacher, my aim is to prepare them as best as I possibly can for these changes.
Something that I always ask myself in the last class is, ‘Have I really done that?‘
I know that for those that are entering the nursing profession, they will be continued to be supported by VU Employ (the university careers team) who have been working with the students on job search and interview skills throughout the last semester.
For the students who will continue on with their studies at the university, they will find support through their transition from VU Polytechnic to higher education through the Student Mentoring Program.
Students who have accessed the student peers in the mentoring program have found that talking to their peers has been very helpful and most of all, inspiring.
So as the final class ends, I stand and face them and take a big breath.
It is time to let go, and allow the students to continue on their own path.