IX. Integrating Competitive Events into the Classroom Laboratory

Your students will have the competitive edge as they enter the health care profession if you recognize the instructional and motivational power of HOSA Competitive Events Program. Using the guidelines and rating sheets in the HOSA Handbook, your students are provided simulated activites (procedures) to develop, practice, and refine their technical and leadership skills. The rating sheets developed by a National Technical Advisory Committee are valuable instructional resources because they help students to identify the elements of a successful procedure and to judge their performance against fixed standards.

HOSA does not invest its resources in developing and maintaining the most comprehensive competitive events program available to health occupations students just for "competitions sake." The mission of HOSA is not achieved by a student winning in local, district, state, or national competition. The goal is not the trophy or the medallion given to those with the highest ratings. The ultimate mission is to provide a qualified labor force that can deliver quality health care to all people. HOSA can help you attract more students to the health care industry and encourage excellence in individual and team performance. In the tradition of the Olympics, you get the best from yourself when you give the best of yourself. Grades alone may not motivate your students to give their very best.

Competition - local, state, and national - is a vehicle that can be used to motivate and inspire students to give their very best. You can use the chapter as a motivational device to encourage members to prepare themselves for competition. Outside qualified judges should be invited into the classroom (or to a special one-day event) to determine which students should represent the chapter in district or state competition. You'll be amazed at the additional effort that will be given by the event representatives once they realize they are representing the entire chapter not just themselves. The chapter delegation will work much harder as they strive to benefit the "chapter team."

The competitive events program is a curricular tool that can also mold the chapter toghether as they strive to achieve a common goal. To the students, the goal may be to win the events and to successfully represent their chapter. To the chapter advisor, your desire to integrate HOSA into the HOE classroom is to provide quality health care. The competitive events program is a tool to help you achieve the ultimate mission if the HOE-HOSA Partnership.

Competition also prepares your students for the highly competitive and demanding health care profession. A "sevice attitude" is no longer enough to guarentee success in the health care system. Graduates of health occupations programs must have a competitive spirit if they are to advance in their chosen career. HOSA provides your students with a better understanding of competition - individually and collectively.

Please study Section B of the HOSA Handbook for a better understanding of HOSA Competitive Events Program. The event guidelines and rating sheets can be easily integrated into your curriculum and classroom activites. The impact of the competitive events program will be even greater if you:
  1. Encourage all students to students to participation in local classroom competition;
  2. Assign students to event teams to practice and rate each other on the procedures to be tested;
  3. Ask students to use the event guidelines in demonstrating competency;
  4. Use the rating sheets to assess competency;
  5. Facilitate class discussion to critique the event rating sheets to better understand what standards are required;
  6. Ask students to develop additional procedures that should be tested in Nurse Assisting or other similar events. Along with the new procedures, students should develop ratings sheets for evaluative purposes;
  7. Invite outside judges to the classrom to determine which students will represent the chapter in district or state competition;
  8. Prepare news releases announcing the delegation that will represent the chapter in district and/or state competition. Coverage of this type will build the enthusiasm of the delegation and promote HOSA and health care careers to other students in the school;
  9. Provide the chapter delegation with additional practice and training to improve proficiency in their respective events;
  10. Secure the current edition of the HOSA Handbook (Section B.) Since event guidelines are constantly updated, it is your responsibility to provide an updated copy of the handbook for all your students;
  11. Read the conference and event guidelines thoroughly to ensure that none of your students are disqualified from competition due to a technicality or an oversight by the student or you;
  12. Invite past chapter competitors to the class or chapter meeting to describe the conditions under which competition was held. The more your students know what to expect, the higher will be their ratings. A basic principal to remember in competition - "don't allow your students to be surprised;"
  13. Review an event checklist with each representative to determine if they have everything they need to compete successfully with minimum anxiety. Consideration should be given to:
  14. Build your student's confidence by providing them with total information about the conference and the event in which they are participating. If you are a new advisor, talk with those who have participated in competitive events in the past, i.e. alumni, other chapter advisors, or the state advisor;
  15. Debrief the competition with the student after the event concludes. Keep the debriefing on a positive note rather than a negative one. Don't allow the student to be disappointed with his or her performance. Accentuate the positive not the negative. Don't find fault with the event guidelines, the facilities, the judges, or the event personnel. If you have suggestions as to how the event can be improved, there is a system that encourages constructive feedback to the Competitive Events Committee;
    The purpose of the event was fulfilled even before the competition began. The ultimate goal was to help the student develop, practice, and refine their skills. The competitive events program allows students to demonstrate their skills in a controlled situation and to be rated against predetermined standards. Competition is not a perfect test but it does provide a snapshot of performance under rigorous conditions. Regardless of the ratings, the students must not believe he or she failed. The real failures are those students who are unwilling to prepare themselves for the competitions. The winners are all those students who gave their very best in representing the chapter;
  16. Explain to your students the protocol followed at the awards session. Do not allow students to be embarrassed because they do not know what is expected when their names are called and they must go to the recognition area. If you have questions about the protocol in the session, talk with the state advisor or conference director;
  17. Prepare a press release that describes the events and those who represented the chapter/school/city in the competitions. This type of publicity will be a recruitment and motivational device for the next membership year;
  18. Display photographs, certificates, school-awarded trophies, plaques, and medallions in the classroom to build pride and enthusiasm among chapter members;
  19. Ask your students to prepare a written summary of their conference participation and event experiences that can be used by the next year's delegation. By building a historical file of this type, students will be better prepared in succeeding years; and
  20. Give feedback to your state advisor and HOSA Headquarters as to how the Competitive Events Program can be improved. Please share your expertise with HOSA as to how you are successfully integrating the Competitive Events Program into your curriculum and classroom.