“I almost failed my CPR class,” a frantic student confessed after barely passing the skills assessment. “I kept putting it off, and then suddenly the deadline was here. I was so stressed, I could barely think straight.”
This scenario isn’t unique.
A staggering number of students – despite knowing the critical importance of CPR training – find themselves scrambling at the last minute, jeopardizing not only their own certification but potentially the lives of others.
Procrastination in CPR training isn’t a minor inconvenience; it’s a serious issue with real-world consequences. It can lead to incomplete training, forgotten skills, and ultimately, a lack of preparedness in a real emergency.
Procrastinating CPR training isn’t a minor inconvenience; it’s a serious issue with real-world consequences.
Plus, procrastination can jeopardize your organization’s compliance, prevent your staff from fulfilling other responsibilities, and even endanger lives by causing them to be unprepared in the actual event of an emergency.
So, how can instructors combat this pervasive problem and ensure their CPR students are truly ready to respond? Understanding why students procrastinate will help you set clear expectations and create a CPR training environment that is engaging and supportive and encourages students to hold themselves and each other accountable, targeting and eliminating procrastination early.
Here’s what you need to know about procrastination and how to help your staff stay on track to complete their CPR coursework on time.
Understand Why Students Procrastinate
Before you can eliminate procrastination, you need to understand why it happens. Many factors can cause students to procrastinate, but they fall into two main categories: psychological and external.
Psychological Factors
In most cases, procrastination does not stem from laziness but psychological causes like:
- Fear and anxiety. Students may avoid completing their work because they’re afraid of failing or they experience anxiety related to the course material. Until those fears and/or anxieties are addressed, they will continue to feel psychological resistance to completing the work.
- Lack of motivation or unclear goals. Students may not know where to begin, understand what’s expected of them, or feel that the work is valuable or relevant to their lives. Setting clear expectations and goals and emphasizing the importance of CPR certification can help motivate them and provide direction.
- Overwhelm. Students who are balancing CPR coursework with other responsibilities may procrastinate because they’re too overwhelmed. These students may need help with time management, prioritization, or lightening their loads outside of CPR class.
Students may or may not be aware that they are struggling with one or more of these factors. Consider building information about procrastination into the beginning of your course so students are equipped to recognize its causes and work to overcome them.
External Factors
In addition to the above psychological factors, external factors like professional responsibilities, family obligations, and other classes can cause students to become overwhelmed or deprioritize CPR certification.
Likewise, distractions in the classroom or an inadequate learning environment can make it difficult for them to pay attention or put in the effort to earn their certification.
The good news is that, as the instructor, you have some control over the classroom environment. Ask students to put away distracting technology during class, design each lesson to encourage student participation, and stress that CPR certification should absolutely be prioritized.
Set Clear Expectations & Goals
As the instructor, it’s your job to ensure all students know exactly what is expected of them. Provide specific, achievable goals by:
- Clearly communicating due dates for all assignments, tests, and final certifications.
- Expressing that timely CPR certification is critical for both career and safety reasons.
- Breaking the coursework into smaller, more manageable tasks.
- Creating a roadmap to certification that students can use to track their progress.
Give this information to the students at the beginning of the course. Then review it regularly to remind them of upcoming due dates, alert them of any unexpected changes to the schedule, clarify any points of confusion, and confirm that everyone is on track.
Use Engaging Course Content
Take advantage of multimedia tools, simulations, real-life scenarios, and other strategies to create an engaging classroom environment that holds students’ interest and encourages them to actively participate.
For example, instead of describing a hypothetical example of an emergency and telling students what to do, set up a simulation of a real-life emergency scenario and have your students work together to decide how best to respond.
Similarly, instead of lecturing the whole time, hold periodic quizzes and interactive discussions that require student response.
Finally, consider using gamification to encourage students to participate. Offer small rewards or badges for those who complete course milestones on time, and foster friendly competition to motivate students to stay on track.
Foster Accountability
If students are left to do everything on their own, it’s easier and more tempting for them to procrastinate. To avoid this, build accountability into your course so the students can help support each other. This could include:
- Progress check-ins. Set regular check-in points for students to report on their progress or voice concerns. You could also offer one-on-one feedback or hold periodic group discussions to keep everyone on the same page.
- Peer support. Encourage students to use the buddy system. Have them pair up to compare study notes, hold each other accountable to deadlines, and fill the gaps in each other’s knowledge.
- Incentivized early completion. Invite students to work ahead where appropriate, and provide certificates, discounts, or recognition for students who finish early.
The more students feel they are part of a community that will support and hold them accountable to complete their work on time, the less likely they will be to fall through the cracks.
Create a Supportive Learning Environment
The type of learning environment you create greatly impacts student success. Make sure you offer students plenty of support, both in and outside of class, to help them avoid feeling lost or overwhelmed.
This could mean providing access to digital tools such as forums, message boards, or chat groups they can turn to for round-the-clock assistance. Or it could simply mean encouraging students to ask questions, seek help outside of class, or share their own experiences.
Above all, it’s essential to create a non-judgmental space where students feel comfortable asking for clarity and assistance, and where mistakes are treated as learning opportunities. Be empathetic to your students’ personal challenges, be they internal or external, and be flexible when possible to accommodate special needs or circumstances.
Reduce Barriers to Completion
Once you’ve identified what causes your students to procrastinate, you can offer them tips, resources, and strategies to help reduce the barriers standing in their way.
Time Management Strategies
Students with too much on their plate or who struggle with prioritizing may benefit from time management tips and strategies. Try introducing them to effective techniques like:
- The Pomodoro Technique: Working in short bursts (usually 25 minutes) with regular five-minute breaks. Each student may need to adjust the times to suit their own learning style.
- Time blocking: Organizing one’s schedule into “blocks” of time with like tasks grouped together.
- The Eisenhower Matrix: A tool for prioritizing which tasks to do immediately, which to schedule for later, which to delegate, and which to remove from the to-do list altogether.
- Eating the frog: Completing the most difficult or unpleasant task first for a boost of accomplishment and momentum.
Additionally, encourage your students to use planners or digital apps — whichever tool works best for them — to track their progress and approaching deadlines.
Streamlined Coursework
Streamline your course so it’s as simple as possible without sacrificing key learning objectives. Every layer of complexity in the course material and training platform adds to the overall difficulty of completing the course — and the likelihood of your students procrastinating.
This is why we designed our group CPR training platform to streamline CPR and first aid training and renewal processes and support flexible training methods.
But whatever platform you use, make sure it is user-friendly and accessible to all staff, keeps information secure and organized, sends automated reminders about deadlines and certification renewals, and integrates well with your organization’s existing systems and processes.
Maximum Communication
Err on the side of overcommunication so your students know exactly what you expect from them and what they can expect from you.
Clearly explain — verbally and in writing — the requirements for course completion, where to access course materials, and how to contact you for additional assistance. Make sure your instructions are easy for students to follow, and encourage them to ask for clarification anytime they need it.
Once the course is complete, begin communicating with students three to four months before their certifications expire so they have ample time for the renewal process. However, be sure to address renewals during the initial course as well so your students know to anticipate these reminders.
Offer Motivation & Encouragement
While you can’t force students to complete the coursework on time, you can encourage them to put in the required effort through positive reinforcement. Celebrate all forms of progress — no matter how small the win may be — to boost students’ confidence and motivate them to continue.
Also emphasize the importance of the course material. CPR training isn’t just another class they’re required to take — it’s a matter of life and death, and completing it in a timely manner can potentially impact their entire careers.
The more you communicate your passion for teaching them to save lives and reinforce the value they’ll get from completing the course on time, the more motivated your students will feel to take the material and deadlines seriously.
Address Procrastination Early
The longer a student procrastinates, the more difficult it will be for them to finish on time. As the instructor, it’s essential that you recognize the signs of procrastination in your students and intervene promptly to guide them back on track.
Monitor students’ engagement throughout the course term so you can identify any who are at risk of falling behind. Offer frequent reminders and support, so students know you are there to help them get back on track, and encourage them to ask for help if they’re feeling overwhelmed.
Finally, when possible, build buffer time into your deadlines so that any students who do fall behind — whether because of procrastination or unavoidable circumstances — have a chance to catch up.
Avoid the Stress & Frustration of Procrastination
Procrastinating on CPR coursework and certification can cause significant stress and frustration — not to mention compliance issues — for you and your staff.
By understanding the cause of students’ procrastination, setting clear expectations, and creating an engaging and supportive learning environment that uses positive reinforcement to hold students accountable, you can help them avoid procrastination and stay on track.
Above all, help them understand that staying on top of their CPR coursework and certifications isn’t just about finishing on time or fulfilling a job requirement — it’s about gaining and retaining the skills they need to save lives. As such, procrastinating doesn’t just waste time — it risks them not being prepared to handle an emergency.
Keeping Students on Track
To help your staff avoid the readiness and compliance issues that can come as a result of procrastination, try implementing a few of these strategies in your next course to keep students on track and motivated:
- Learn and inform students about what causes procrastination.
- Establish clear expectations and goals.
- Engage students through gamification and interactive learning tools.
- Foster accountability through progress check-ins and peer support.
- Incentivize early completion.
- Create a supportive learning environment.
- Offer tips and strategies to reduce barriers to completion.
- Use positive reinforcement.
- Regularly emphasize the importance of CPR.
- Monitor students for early signs of procrastination and intervene promptly.
Remember, some students will benefit more from certain strategies than others. Start by experimenting with one or two of the above tips so you can determine the ones that work best for your staff.
Looking for more ways to make CPR training easier for your staff? Contact us today to take advantage of ProTrainings’ real-time certification tracking, automatic training reminders, and online training with hands-on skills evaluations.