One of the greatest flaws in the education system is the idea that all students can learn in the same fashion. While it is true that all students possess the basic ability to learn, certain ones might require more attention than others in order to achieve that pursuit. Likewise the study methods that work for one student may do nothing to help another. The following is a list of articles relating to study skill alternatives to the traditional methods for students who might be less than conventional.

1. An Alternative Paradigm for College Reading and Study Skills Courses:  Jim Reynolds and Stuart C. Werner, Journal of Reading

This article discusses the different approaches to handling incoming college students who are ill-prepared for the advanced academic world that they are entering. It explores the idea of a learning paradigm in which students are allowed to develop learning skills in their own way or style. It embraces the idea that not every student benefits from the traditional “one size fits all” method of studying.

2. Homeschooling Study Skills: Gertrude Elizabeth Greene

This article discusses the specialized study skills that should be taught to homeschooled students in order to prepare them for entering the more public and advanced educational realm of college.

3. 4 Helpful Study Skills for Online Learners: Stefan Knapen,

In this article Mr. Knapen discusses the different study skills needed for online learning. Because learning online requires not only a different environment but a different mind-set altogether the study skills that students find useful for in-class tutelage often do not apply as well in the online learning realm.

4. 6 Study Tips for Adult Learners: courseadvisor.com,

Re-entering the academic arena after a prolonged absence can be difficult for even the most studious persons. This article provides study tips designed to help adult students balance their work, family and school lives into a smoother experience.

Not every student responds to traditional study methods, and in particular those learning in a non-traditional capacity tend to suffer from scenarios for which these methods do not fit. With the advice contained in the above articles any student can special tailor study methods that work for their specific methods of learning and situation.

Scott Young started his blog 6 years ago while a student. Since graduating though, his interest in building skills and further education has only been heightened. We recently posted on our Facebook 

page a link video that Scott recorded detailing his latest challenge: to complete a 4 year MIT course in Computer Science in just 12 months (see the video here).

But just today we came across an audio interview Scott had with Corbett barr of Expert Enough- a site we love over here at Stepping Stone Tutors! But what I wanted to share were a couple of points Scott made in that interview that should be of value to you, as someone who’s looking to improve their knowledge, whether you’re using one of our online or in home tutors, or simply self-studying online.

Scott often refers to the way people who learn fast are able to effectively link the data and knowledge they’re processing  together, which therefore generates a much more deep rooted understanding of the topic being taken on. This is an alternative to simple ‘rote memorisation’, where students are challenged with the almost impossible of simply learning a ton of facts only to regurgitate these when asked about them. This ability to link things together- to understand in a much fuller way is what he calls ‘holistic learning’.

A method that’s often used to utilise this method of learning called the ‘Feynman technique’, which is an informal philosophy of how we can learn something deeply. As an alternative to rote memorization, which could take hundreds of hours for some subjects, the Feynman technique can be applied effectively to almost any subject. The video below will explains exactly what this is, and how you can apply this to your own studies, whether that’s for your upcoming ASVAB test, GED classes, K-16 classes, or test preparation (read about how we can help with this here) and revision.

The reason this technique works so much is because most people simply don’t know what it is that they’re trying to learn. They don’t understand which bits of a subject they need to expand on in order to full understand what it is they’re dealing with. The Feynman technique, however, highlights the exact aspects of each subject that you need to look into more in order to holistically grasp any topic you like.

The purpose of education is something I often ponder over. Rather than the ‘how’ of providing knowledge, the ‘why’ interests me something rotten.

Why do we share knowledge? Why do we set aside so much of our GDP to education? What is our motivation here? This may seem like a ridiculous question at a first glance, but when we consider the possible ‘why’s’ of providing education, such as

• ‘to create fresh generations of non-questioning employees’
• ‘to build a tolerant and creative society’
• ‘to develop the skills that will continue to raise money in our country’
• ‘to instil a strong moral dimension to our children’.

The possible reasons for ‘why’ we educate are huge, many of which are mutually exclusive (while others are compatible), and so for teachers, in home and online tutors, as well as students and pupils, this is an important question to consider- why are we doing what we’re doing, and to for what eventual purpose?

The following articles (and video) are fantastic starting points for considering this question. Please let me know what you think…

• What is the Purpose of Education in 500 Words of Fewer?
• Martin Luther King on the Purpose of Education
• ‘”The purpose of education is to develop a creative society that will ask difficult questions.”
• The Purpose of Education: Social Uplift or Social Control?

In the past few decades there have been drastic changes in the education system in the United States. These changes far outreach our grandparents’ stories about walking 8 miles to school in the snow (uphill both ways of course) and have spilled over into the actual instruction itself. Class sizes are larger, we grapple with overcrowding in many heavily populated areas, and graduation rates have slipped drastically. Currently the United States is ranked 51^st in the subjects of Science and Mathematics worldwide. So one must beg the question: are we getting soft on education? I would like to precede this discussion by disclosing that I am not an educational professional but only a student, worker bee and mother with an opinion.

Having no school aged children of my own I’ve heard horror stories from my friends and colleagues who do have children in our local public and private schools. Among the most disturbing changes that I’ve encountered has been the introduction of calling math problems math “facts”. The word “problem” apparently is considered to have too negative a connotation. For as long as I can remember in my education and professional life I’ve been weak in the subject of math. I could pass the subject but it required immersion in it, finding a way of solving the problems that I could wrap my brain around. I simply don’t “think” that way; I can’t reason it out for some reason. So for me, a math problem is most definitely a problem. But it seems illogical to me that dressing it up with a nicer, gentler name would have made me embrace it more easily. I feel that by giving difficult subjects or problems a more politically correct or easier to process name in effect we’re sheltering our children. What happens when they do become old enough to go out into the world where there are problems and that’s exactly what they’re called? Will they be searching for a softer way of looking at the issue in order to cope with it? What does this mean for their reasoning skills?

The second most disturbing trend I’m hearing about in schools is awarding each and every student for something, no matter how mundane the achievement. I’ve even heard of students as young as kindergarten age receiving an award on a monthly basis. As parents we all want our children to feel special and successful, but is celebrating mediocrity the way to go about that? What does that say for the future of work ethic? If each student comes along knowing that no matter how poor their performance they’ll be rewarded for something it seems to me that they have no incentive to work hard. If they become appeased with mediocrity beginning at such a young age they’ll know that it’s okay to slide by.

Coupled with softening the terms we use for difficult subject matter this new advent in education equals what I predict will be a much softer generation of people, unaccustomed to facing and overcoming challenges and complacent in their mediocrity. United States students performed better on the world stage in the past where problems were called problems and rewards were given only to those who worked hard to achieve something. If the system worked so well back then with regard to these two topics, why fix what isn’t broken?

By the time many of us reach our thirties and forties we have long assumed that our test-taking days are over. The idea of re-entering the classroom after what may be decades of school-free existence can therefore be rather disconcerting.The idea of taking exams for GED, ACT, ASVAB etc seems often a distant dream.  But with today’s job market leaving many long-term employees suddenly out of a job thousands are flocking back to schools across the country. So how do you re-train yourself for studying after years out of practice?

But, through self-study, and with online tutoring, and in-home tutoring, it’s important to realize that you’re never too old to study…

Unconventional Students and Unconventional Obstacles

One of the most difficult challenges facing older students is the change in their obstacles since they were last in school. When you’re going to college in your early twenties much of your existence is dedicated to that cause. You may hold down a part time job, but the vast majority of your time is spent in class or studying (with the exception of various other free-time activities that you always seem to make time for). When you’re in your thirties and forties, however, the obstacles standing in your way of studying are generally much more pressing than a part time waitressing position, like kids, home maintenance or a full-time job. For this reason unconventional students have to find new study methods and ways to cope with these challenges that differed from what they may have used the first time around.

Making Time

The biggest problem facing most older students is simply making time. You must make time to go to class and make time to study for tests, which can be a huge challenge with a family or full-time job to consider. The bottom line is that if you want to accomplish it badly enough there’s a way. It’s important to make time at least on an every-other-day basis to study material, allowing for more frequent studying around test and exam times. Try to dedicate one room or a secluded area of your home as a study area and designate certain times of day strictly for studying. Discuss the importance of quiet while you’re studying with your family and ask for their cooperation in helping you set aside that time for studying. Another new element that many older students find bothersome during study time is the new temptation to surf the web instead of studying. For many older students this specific distraction wasn’t around the first time.

Unless your work requires you to be connected to the internet try to leave your browser down all together. If you do have to be online try to keep your mind on track. Try sticking a post-it note to the side of your computer with your task written on it, and don’t leave open tabs with distracting or tempting sites. This will make it less tempting to check your email as opposed to studying. Just as you have to push these types of distractions out you must also remove psychological distractions such as worrying over bills. Remember that your study time is for studying and studying only. If you find yourself having difficulty concentrating stop what you’re doing, close your eyes and take several deep breathes while concentrating only on breathing. This will help reduce your anxiety momentarily and allow you to regroup.

For students of all ages the same traditional study tips still apply. Being rested, eating as balanced a diet as possible and removing distractions are all good tips to follow for students at any stage in their academic lives. For those unconventional students with families, finances and other distractions to consider making time is one of the most important considerations for fruitful study time.

Our last post discussed Richard Feynman’s study method (the Feynman Technique), which involves writing out a lecture to yourself, explaining in simple terms the topic you’re working on. As you’re working through this, you’ll reach points where you stop and become slightly confused, or unsure about something. At these points, you know you need to brush up your knowledge in these areas. By the time you’ve finished writing your lecture, you’ll have a far fuller understanding of the topic than hours and hours of rote memorization could produce. To read what we wrote about this, see here.

As a way to build upon Richard Feynman’s teaching and learning philosophy (especially from 40+), we came across the following video, which we’re sure you’ll benefit hugely from watching.

Test taking is a nerve-wracking experience for most people, no matter what you’re studying- GED, K-12. ASVAB. It’s the ultimate test prep.

While some can simply breeze through a written exam with no problems or intense heart palpitations the majority of the rest of us are completely bewildered come test time. The pressure to pass, the last-minute second guessing of answers and the sudden flooding of the mind with failure scenarios is enough to make anyone want to jump up and run out of the room. For those who have this completely normal fear of test-taking practice exams and test preparation tools are imperative. Practice tests in particular are an important staple in the preparation process for tests such as the GED.

Preparing For Testing-Taking

For those with an immense fear of testing the act itself can be enough to induce failure. Many find that they are unable to think straight, consumed with nerves over the implications of failing the test. This leads to rushed and scattered thinking, which can lead to rushed answering and misunderstanding questions themselves. All in all, this type of anxiety can lead to failure not because the student wasn’t prepared for the test, but because the act of testing itself caused them such distress that they were unable to recall the information they’d studied. Sitting for practice exams can help with this somewhat by allowing the student to practice test-taking tips such as breathing exercises or visualization techniques without the pressure of the actual examination.

Acclimating To Test

Anyone who has attended school for a long period of time, say K-12, knows that tests are different. Teachers ask questions differently, the types of test questions vary (multiple choice vs. essay), and even the type of material covered can vary (one teacher may harp on dates while another harps on event details). Practice tests such as those offered for the GED exam give the student a chance to see first-hand what the test will be like, including what types of questions they ask, what material they may expect to see covered, etc. This gives the student a leg-up in studying, offering them not only the opportunity to test their skills thus far in the studying process but also to get a handle on what and how they should be studying. After all, one preps differently for a multiple choice test than an essay exam.

Practice tests offer students a valuable opportunity to evaluate their study methods, acclimate themselves with the test itself and prepare themselves mentally for the act of test-taking. This experience is paramount for many pupils in their ability to adequately prepare for tests such as the GED, ACT, and SAT.

As parents we tend to get very touchy about the subject of how our children are disciplined, fed, taught or treated. To keep it simple you might just say that most parents are touchy about their children in general. So when it came to light recently that a school replaced a child’s home-packed lunch with chicken nuggets it should come as no surprise that the wagons were circled (don’t worry, our in-home tutors or online tutors would never do such a thing!)

Earlier this year a preschool student in North Carolina brought from home a lunch consisting of a turkey sandwich, a banana, chips and apple juice. A state inspector determined that her lunch did not meet nutritional guidelines and replaced it- with chicken nuggets.

In my opinion there are a number of factors awry here. First of all, the concept of declaring a turkey sandwich, banana, chips and juice to be less nutritious than what were surely fried chicken nuggets is beyond my cognitive grasp. Perhaps the least nutritious part of the original lunch were the chips, so if that is what flagged the inspector then why not simply remove the chips from the lunchbox and send the child on their way with the remainder? I could understand if their lunchbox contained nothing but M&M’s, chocolate milk and Cheetos, at that point it could be argued that chicken nuggets carry more nutritious value.

Then we must weigh the question of whether or not schools or the government should be dictating what we feed our children. Isn’t that perhaps getting just a little too intrusive into the parenting choices of Americans? My original inclination before hearing a story such as this one would be sure they should begin inspecting lunches; I would imagine that there are plenty of kids that go to school with ridiculously unhealthy lunches not unlike the horror that I described above. But then I hear something like this scenario and I’m reminded of how our government, however well-meaning they may be, has a tendency to take things too far. If I’d sent my child to school with the lunch in question and found out that they were instead fed chicken nuggets I would be furious for obvious reasons. For one thing I can only assume that they threw away the contents of the original lunch, a complete and ridiculous waste of money that I worked hard to pay for, not to mention woke up early, put together with a preschooler getting ready (any mother with a young child knows the terrors of the morning routine), and got them to agree to eat. Secondly I return to my earlier point that I have a hard time grasping how chicken nuggets are more nutritious than a turkey sandwich, banana and juice. Then I take into consideration the recent news about the “pink slime” beef being considered for school lunches and I find myself completely turned off as a mother from allowing my children to consume school-provided lunch.

If it could be trusted that situations such as this one, which is completely ridiculous in my opinion, would not happen and that our government would never feed our children the pink slime we’ve seen in the news, I would be all for the inspection and replacement method in school lunches. Until that day comes, however, I pity the fool who takes my kid’s sandwich.

It’s a tale as old as time for teachers: the struggle to keep students’ attention. Whether teaching in a one-room schoolhouse or a massive public school in modern day America the myriad number of reasons why students don’t/can’t pay attention has been an ever-growing problem. So how do you spark the interest of an otherwise disinterested pupil? Here are some things that I learned from being a student and looking back on my extensive learning experience. Lessons I learned that will come in handy for online and offline tutors and students alike. no matter what you’re studying, whether that’s GED, K-12 or ASVAB.

Everyone Loves a Good Game

I hated math in school (and still do to this day). Keeping my attention in a math class from kindergarten to college required no small Act of God. But when I was in second grade I remember that we played a game using the multiplication tables. The teacher would begin in the front of the class, the row closest to the door, and the first two students would stand up. She would hold up a card with an unsolved multiplication table on it and the first to solve the problem got to advance. The student who failed to respond quickest took their seat. As much as I loathed math, I loved this game. It kept me engaged throughout, and I learned far more from that game than any other tool used by my teachers to beat math into my stubborn artistic brain. The game was constant during the class period; it was interesting and competitive, which held the attention of each and every student. Breaking from lecturing or note-taking with activities such as this one can help you keep even the most Attention Deficit student in the learning loop.

Get Physical

Activities that get kids moving are sometimes a great way to keep them engaged. It’s hard to zone out when you’re clapping your hands, repeating a rhyme and trying to keep time with your fellow pupils. Introducing this type of interaction also makes it easier for students to remember facts and lesson material. Not to mention that getting all that blood flowing is a whole lot more engaging the listening to a lecture.

Keep it Challenging

Think about the last meeting you were in where someone stood at the front of the room and lectured about a topic that you were already well versed in. Adults get bored and disengaged when we do not have to try very hard, and students are much the same way. Being able to breeze through simple subject matter leaves them with a feeling that they don’t need to pay attention or focus on the task at hand, because they know (or at least think) that they can handle an upcoming test with ease. Making your class activities too easy isn’t doing anyone any favors. Even if it’s a game, keep it challenging. Vary rhymes or physical activities such as clapping or snapping every few minutes to keep them guessing and focused, use unusual factoids in your lesson and expect them to remember them. Perhaps most importantly, vary your test types. I can remember from school that after a while it became easy to detect a pattern in the way a certain teacher tested, what type of questions they would ask, etc. It meant that I was able to pick and choose through the material what I would need to retain and leave the rest, which meant that I only learned a finite amount of the lesson (in hindsight, something that did me no favors). One of the greatest teachers that I ever had was my U.S. History After 1877 teacher in college. All he did was lecture, that was it, which would normally have put me straight to sleep. But he introduced all types of little strange facts about history as he went and touched on pieces of history that other teachers would have never paid credence to, and they were on the test. In point of fact, you never, ever knew what to expect from his tests. It was impossible to ignore any part of his lecture because you were so feverishly concerned that the one thing you missed would be on the test, and usually it was. While it was the hardest class I ever took, it was also the one that I retained the most information from.

Keeping your students engaged may seem like an impossible act, but with some creative lesson planning and activities you might find yourself surprised. Some of your most difficult pupils may just be awaiting the right stimuli.

One thing that’s been intriguing me lately is the use of blogging in education. Not just in traditional ‘classroom’ situations, but also for online and offline tutors.- the use of blogs to spark discussion, reinforce lessons and extend on topics that there wasn’t time to extend on in situ.

The past decade has brought so much of our world and our daily lives online. The world wide web and good ole’ fashioned reality collide in these days of social media and Google searches. One of the newest forms of online communication and expression is blogging. This platform can be used in several different ways, with some opting to utilize it as a publicized online journal and others using it to voice their opinions. Blogs can be informative, enticing, entertaining and occasionally… well, boring.

With much of the rest of our existence taking place online it was always a matter of time before we began to ponder online education platforms. These days students respond more to their Facebook status updates than to their teacher’s droning lecture (not that students were ever more apt to pay attention to a teacher than the not-so-private lives of their friends). As students become more stimulated by online media and platforms, some educators are reaching outside their classroom boxes and stretching their muscles online. But can blogging be an educational tool?

Blogging and other online educational tools could have what I call the “cool effect”. Students tend to respond better to technology that they know and use when outside of the classroom. It’s similar to the effect of rolling a television into a classroom: it may just be an educational film, but students are more likely to be engaged by it than a traditional lecture. Watching TV and blogging are “cool” for use in their free time, so utilizing it when they’re at school feels less like conforming to antiquated learning methods and more like learning on their own terms. Much like other forms of online education blogging makes it possible for students to interact with other peers across the globe, a feature that could be immensely useful for cultural or foreign language studies. Most blogs can also be pretty well controlled by an administrator (or teacher), even to the standard that comments cannot be published on the blog until approved by them. Blogging could also be highly effective in spurring discussion about topics that may even continue after school hours.

So outside of the possibility for foul play on the blog (which can be very well managed with platforms such as WordPress), it seems that educational blogging could provide a stimulating and modern way for students to gain, share and expand on their knowledge. If utilized correctly I believe that blogging could open up a whole new world of resources for educators and young minds alike.

For anyone undergoing any form of study- whether you’re studying for your GED, SATs, K-16- whatever qualification you’re working toward- there are plenty of fantastic commencement speeches that ring true for you as well as for the undergrads they were originally aimed at.

These are our top 5 commencement speeches to build up that motivation and inspiration you need to push your studies to the next level.

1. Steve Jobs, 2005, Stanford University

“Remembering you’re going to die, is the best way I know, to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.” – Steve Jobs

2. Ellen Degeneres, 2009, Tulane University

 “Really when I look back at it I wouldn’t change a thing. I mean it was so important to me to lose everything because I found out what the most important thing is – To be true to yourself. Ultimately that’s what’s gotten me to this place. I don’t live in fear, I’m free, I have no secrets, I know I’ll always be okay because no matter what, I know who I am.” - Ellen

3. Bill Gates, 2003, Harvard

“Even with the advent of the Internet and 24-hour news, it is still a complex enterprise to get people to truly see the problems. When an airplane crashes, officials immediately call a press conference. They promise to investigate, determine the cause, and prevent similar crashes in the future.

But if the officials were brutally honest, they would say: “Of all the people in the world who died today from preventable causes, one half of one percent of them were on this plane. We’re determined to do everything possible to solve the problem that took the lives of the one half of one percent.”

The bigger problem is not the plane crash, but the millions of preventable deaths.”

So, no matter what you’re studying for- whether that’s in school, or through an in-home or online tutor- these messages, stories, and lessons ring true for all of us, whether we’re undergrads, grads, or not.

Just today I came across Jonathan Martin’s posts detailing the “Open Internet” tests that he’s piloting with some teachers at St. Gregory School, Arizona, and I’m just loving the thinking. One paragraph truly stood out at me:

‘We know that content memorization must no longer be the goal of our learning programs; what our goal must be is that students can make the most sense of the voluminous and fast-accelerating quantity of information which will forever be at their fingertips, and about which they must be able to think critically, to select, to evaluate, to apply, and to amend as they tackle challenging problems. So why shouldn’t our school-tests evaluate our students ability to do exactly this? Why not structure tests appropriately, and then invite and welcome (and require) our students to use their computers on their tests? Isn’t this real world, and real life, preparation?’

The thinking behind this idea is, I feel, spot on. Although we’re still deep within the rote memorization aspect of education, in the future- that fast accelerating future that’s heading toward us at an alarming rate- what does that hold?

For sure, it must necessarily hold education, examination, coursework, homework and teaching which takes full advantage of the powerful tools at our fingertips. At Stepping Stone Tutors, we’re already doing this, providing online education for ASVAB, K-12, K-14, SAT etc tests. But we’re massively excited to see where these more modern forms of education might go.

We imagine a world where test are not based on mere memorization and writing ability, but that use the Internet, smart phones, laptops and the like to place students in like-working-environments, where they can use the knowledge they have gained in simulated real-life scenarios. Surely this would be a more telling, less ‘monotonous’ way of testing?

We also see places where where lessons are held online, with feedback being streamed through Google Hangouts, or Twitter Streams. We see children using interactive materials (ebooks, interactive PDFs), which use entertainment and interactivity to the best advantage whereby knowledge retention is hugely increased, compared to simple ‘paper-based’ learning.

The possibilities are simply Amazing, and we’re delighted to be a part- if only small- of this shift.

Over the past ten years the Internet has undergone some major changes. With the advent of YouTube, Myspace, Twitter and, of course, Facebook large chunks of people’s personal lives are now lived online.

When you think about all of the advancements that the internet has made in the last decade, is social media the first thought to leap to your mind? Does that seem sad to anyone else? Thanks to search engines and the sprawling knowledge available through the internet the phrase “I wonder” should be a thing of the past, an outdated and archaic thought used by those who used to have to get their information from books or teachers instead of their Smartphone.

When you see teenagers huddled around a computer at the library it’s less likely that they’re contemplating questions for SAT test prep than watching a video where a kitten dominates a pit bull. With the better uses of the internet being overshadowed by the more social and shallow pursuits perhaps it’s time to point out that Facebook is NOT the internet.

Facebook Statistics

To make my point, I feel that it’s important to share some of the 2011 Facebook statistics as they were compiled by www.onlineschools.org. Some of the key points are as follows:

• As of 2011 there were 500,000,000 active Facebook users worldwide. Which means roughly 1 in 13 people across the globe use Facebook.
• Liking “drugs” was up 1131.9% in 2011.
• Facebook was the most searched term in 2010 for the second year running.
• 57% of people talk to people more online than they do in real life.
• 48% of young Americans said they find out about news through Facebook.
• Of the 18-34 group of Facebook users, 48% check Facebook first thing in the morning, and 28% check it on their Smartphone before they even get out of bed.
• There are 206.2 million internet users in the United States. 71.2% of them are on Facebook.

What Does It All Mean?

What do these statistics say about internet use today (besides that most of us are compulsively drawn to Facebook not unlike a drug addiction)? While they may not spell it out directly I think that these statistics make a pretty good case that most young people today spend a great majority of their time online on Facebook.

I myself have found myself falling victim to the pull of the mighty Facebook while attempting to study. While taking my real estate licensing course I had a terrible addiction to Farmville, one of Facebook’s most popular games. I would come home from work, prepared to devote only a small chunk of winding-down time to Farmville.

An hour later I would realize that I’d clipped off some imperative study time tending imaginary crops and livestock. So I had to do the unthinkable: quit cold-turkey (no pun intended).

I was able to do so in order to finish my license work, but I found myself stricken by the impact of such a pointless endeavor. Is it really necessary for me to see what pointless and mindless chatter my friends (450+, perhaps 15 of which I really know at this point) are posting before I begin my daily work?

And when did imaginary crops become more important than pursuing my coveted real estate license? I had to proverbially smack myself out of it.

What Does This Mean For Students?

For me, Facebook was becoming a serious hindrance on my ability to concentrate on school work. After all, with one simple click of the mouse you could be learning about what Mindy bought at the grocery store today!

Might not seem too exciting to the common lay-person, but when compared with studying biochemistry Mindy’s yogurt choices start looking pretty cool! For parents of high school age and younger children I think that it’s important to set Facebook boundaries now.

There are plenty of online parental control programs available that will allow you to restrict your child’s online choices, even if only for certain time frames. Helping them to set and understand the importance of parameters with respect to their study time now might help them develop healthier online decision making in the long run.

Otherwise you might find that by the time you’ve spent a small fortune on K-12 tuition for the best education around the only thing you’re left with is a child with a Master’s degree in Likes. Take time to make sure that they understand the vast resources of the internet for help with their school work. If ever there has been a place to find actual interesting teaching tools the modern internet is it!

Don’t get me wrong: Facebook has many great features. It’s a great way to connect with long lost school friends, it really is a pretty good way to keep up with current events (believe it or not!), its strength as a marketing tool is ever-expanding, and it can be a great way to vent the small but humorous happenings of your life to others. Much like you shouldn’t let alcoholism or other addictions take over your life, however, it’s important that you pay the same close attention to your Facebook time.

Because contrary to the belief of teenagers everywhere, Facebook is NOT the internet.
 

For centuries the game has remained the same: Teachers have struggled to find new and interesting ways to engage their otherwise bored-of-stimuli students. In today’s classrooms, however, there are a number of new and interesting tools available to teachers that can hold the attention of even the most cool-for-school. So in keeping with further introducing the power of the internet to the classroom is it now time that we try using social media platforms as a teaching aid?

The Pros

Nothing holds a young adults attention quite like Facebook. Ask any teenager and you’ll probably find that they spend some 20-50% of their free time on Facebook, Twitter or some other manner of social media. So how about it we try this out for size: that it stands to reason that if you could find a way to implement your instruction to a social media platform you might find their attention is more easily swayed than by the trees blowing in the wind outside the classroom window. Secondly, one of Facebook’s greatest features is that it allows users from across the globe to connect with each other. Particularly in foreign language or cultural studies this could prove a very engaging and useful tool. It could be useful to pair students in class with other’s across the country for SAT test prep sessions. Lastly, statistics have shown that young adults are learning something on Facebook: 2011 Facebook statistics released by www.onlineschools.org shows that 48% of young adults say they find out about news through Facebook. So people who would otherwise be uninterested in current events are absorbing it using social media platforms.

The Cons

In particularly when using social media I think it would be difficult to keep students on track without constant observation and monitoring. For instance, if you were to give them each their own computer and allow them time to chat with a peer from another country you’d probably want to monitor each chat to make sure they’re not deviating from the subject matter, if you will. After all, as a teacher it’s unlikely that you would want to be the cupid in charge of spurring a romantic online relationship between your student in Ohio and a nice boy in India. How would you keep them from discreetly ditching their task for a chat with a friend? Perhaps the best way to utilize social media for educational purposes would be by holding the controls yourself, teaching from a large monitor or projection screen. Another important thing to watch out for, especially in using Facebook, is the occasional hacking spree with leaves your account spewing out pornographic invitations to everyone on your friends list. More than one parent might object to their K-12 tuition dollars being used to subject their child to any form of pornographic material while at school, no matter how brief or accidental that encounter. The mere unpredictability of social media in this manner and others might be a serious hindrance to any good that might come for using it as an educational tool.

Social media has a definite place online. It’s a great marketing tool, a way for friends and family spread across the globe to stay in touch and it can offer some educational components in it’s own right. For cultural studies it could be a groundbreaking tool. But using it as an educational supplement will require some definite attention to monitoring and controls that I haven’t seen available as of yet. Until you can ensure that your students stay on task and that online predators and hackers won’t present objectionable material to young minds under your supervision it might be best to leave social media to the after school hours.

The term dumb jock has often been used when speaking of student athletes. While the term may have once had some merit in social circles and science clubs, research shows that it is far from accurate. In fact, recent studies indicate that students who participate in activities tend to have higher GPA’s, better attendance records, lower dropout rates, and fewer discipline problems than non-active students.

Studies of various high schools across the nation conducted by the National Federation of State High School Associations conclude that activities are inherently educational and foster success later in life. Through participating in sports students learn teamwork, winning and losing, sportsmanship, build self-confidence, the rewards of hard work, self-discipline, and cultivate skills to handle competitive situations. Also, sports participants generally take average or above average classes.

A poll of individuals in executive level positions at Fortune 500 companies revealed that 95% of the corporate executives participated in sports in high school. Often, participation in activities is a predictor of later success as athletes are more involved in school activities and typically remain involved in their community after graduation. Sports encourage students to be more independent and self-sustained, and teens that are active with sports and other activities (i.e. employment or productive hobbies) are more likely to succeed. It has also been show that minority athletes specifically are more socially involved than there non-active counterparts.

A survey of high school principals in all fifty states indicates 95% believe participation in activities teaches valuable life lessons. Participation in sports simply helps students have a better attitude. There is a positive correlation between athletic participation, academic performance, and self-esteem (Braddock, Jomills H., II. “Race, Athletics, and Educational Attainment – Dispelling the Myths,” Youth and Society, Volume 12, Number 3, March 1981, 335-349). Lack of participation in sports is associated with a greater propensity to be involved in delinquent behavior. Aspirations of African-American youth appear to be positively affected by participation in athletic activities (Picou, J. Steven and E.W. Curry. “Athletic Success as a Facilitator of Adolescents’ Mobility Orientations – A Black and White Comparison.” 1974, Atlanta).

Committing to having your student involved in a sport or school related activity will prove to have far reaching benefits. Your student will improve academically, socially, be more involved in the community, and have a higher predisposition for succeed later in life.

So, is dumb jock an accurate assessment, or are might athletes be the better students after all?

“Showing our children that we value learning and education is important and will pay off in the long run as they mature. When parents are involved in their children’s educations, student achievement improves.” (http://www.pta.org/topic_student_success.asp)

It is that time of year again! It’s the time when students, somewhat reluctantly, return to school and begin another part of the ongoing adventure that is education. No matter what their age, as your student heads back to school there is bound to be excitement, anticipation, and even some trepidation.

As a parent, the most important thing to remember when sending your student back to school is that they need your help and guidance in order to be successful. Time management and organization for a student of any age is important at school, but also in the home. The precedent modeled at home will be reflected at school. Doing simple things like committing to a schedule including time for chores, homework, dinner, and family time on a nightly basis will create consistency in your student’s life.

Set expectations for your student. Some parents feel as if setting expectations too high will cause a child to fail, and by doing so will create struggles with their confidence. Just the opposite is true. Setting challenging yet attainable expectations for your student allows them to better understand and realize their full potential. Obviously a student with no expectations will never do more than they want to, but also a student with low expectations will become complacent. Challenging your student in a comfortable, safe, home environment will help them mature and prepare for future challenges that define life. Help your student understand that failure is ok as long as they return to the drawing board, correct the mistake, and try again.

Your student’s success begins with you, and begins at home. Often times creating a home environment conducive to their success and showing that you care will go a long way. Also, establishing appropriate expectations and helping your student attain them will also facilitate success. Below are a few general keys to Setting your Student up for Success:

• Approach every year as a clean slate: Every year is a new opportunity to face new challenges head on and accomplish new successes
• Communicate: Ask your student specific questions about school (i.e. Are you still learning about China in Geography, or have you started a new topic? Tell me more about that.).  Talk to their teachers regularly, and offer advice when asked.
• Develop sound time management in the home. Have a routine for when homework, chores, and other activities need to be completed, including “chill” time
• Develop sound organizational skills at home that will be reflected at school. Set a designated place in the home where studying should be done and homework completed.
• Set expectations for your student, hold them accountable, and help them attain their goal

UBC’s Learning Commons diagram has expanded on David Kolb’s Experiential Learning theory to include new factors in learning brought about by online technologies we use today. The integrated theory now includes Honey and Mumford’s experiential learning theory, which follows the same pattern as Kolb’s.

Similar to Kolb’s learning theory, Honey and Mumford view the learning process as a cycle that includes four phases, which also matches four learning types. These learning types include Activist (prefers doing and experiencing), Reflector (observes and reflects), Theorist (wants to understand underlying concepts, reasons and relationships), and Pragmatist (likes to try things and see if they work).

All these theories were incorporated into a flow diagram found at the UBC Learning Commons post. According to the diagram, the learning cycle consists of four quadrants divided by two types of learning activities: perceiving and processing. The upper right quadrant consists of Diverging Processes, which makes use of both concrete experience and reflective observation to create a myriad of experiences, which the in-home tutor creates through field trips and actual demonstrations.

Learners draw information from those experiences during the processing in lower right quadrant, which consists of Assimilating Processes. Assimilating consists of reflective observation and abstract conceptualization. This phase usually requires advice, guidance or support from the in-home tutor.

A student learns when the concepts gleaned from assimilating information from experiences are tested and proven true. This occurs when abstract conceptualization meets active experimentation. The results of the Converging Processes in the lower left quadrant lead to validation or approval from the in-home tutor, the parents, the teachers and the society, in general. This is the reason why scores and grades greatly affect a student’s performance in school.

The upper left quadrant seals the process of learning since it requires Accommodating Processes that encourage the student to repeatedly apply, tweak and improve on the skills and knowledge gleaned from previous processes. Whatever the student learns has to be adapted to the way society functions. Thus, it is not enough that a person learns something new, but that person has to develop a depth of knowledge that society expects him or her to possess after a certain period of study.

Do you sometimes feel as if you want to open your skull and inject some magic serum into your brain just to make it work? If you ever felt frustrated with your studying methods, then stepping back and seeing how the learning process occurs might help you figure out the best method for you to learn.

According to David Kolb, author of Experiential Learning Theory, the learning process combines experience, perception, cognition, and behavior. Learning is a cycle of four stages, which consists of concrete experience, reflective observation, abstract conceptualization, and active experimentation. When simplified, the concept means that we learn through doing, seeing, thinking and planning.

Based on this learning theory, Kolb identfied four learning styles, which correspond to each stage:

* assimilators, who learn better when presented with sound logical theories to consider
* convergers, who learn better when provided with practical applications of concepts and theories
* accommodators, who learn better when provided with “hands-on” experiences
* divergers, who learn better when allowed to observe and collect a wide range of information

The styles highlight the best conditions that learners absorb information and develop new skills.

However, a post from the University of British Columbia Learning Commons site identified the absence of other factors in learning. These factors include personal values and cultural influences, the values of the institution and the learning community created by the instructor, and an individual’s peer and support network.

The UBC post integrated these factors as well as the effect of social connections made through online technologies. In effect, Kolb’s learning theory is integrated with Honey and Mumford’s theory to come up with a new experiential learning theory that we can apply to online learning, which is a new phenomenon in education.

Perhaps, APD is more of a learning disorder than ADHD because it involves auditory processing, which is necessary for interpreting information through verbal communication. As we all know, verbal communication is necessary in the learning process.

Auditory Processing Disorder (APD) symptoms include difficulty in paying attention and remembering information when coursed through multiple modes, such as audio and video at the same time. Better comprehension occurs when information is visual, such as images and videos.

Persons with APD also have trouble following directions or instructions when delivered in succession. They need to hear or read the instruction a step at a time. If the in-home tutor delivers the instructions orally, then the in-home tutor should speak slowly and clearly while delivering each step’s directions.

In-home tutoring for children with APD requires a quite location. Persons with APD do not like background noise. They also need more time to process information. This means the in-home tutor should exercise more patience than usual and provide some extra time for the student.

Let us look deeper into ADHD and understand how this disorder came to be. Some experts believe that people who have ADHD retain some of the “hunter” characteristics associated with pre-agricultural humans. ADHD behavior works well when applied in work that require searching, such as treasure hunting, or tasks that take risks or involves competition, such as sports.

Thus, in-home tutors who work closely with children with ADHD must integrate physical activities with learning. For example, instead of asking a child to write down the answers to a short quiz, the in-home tutor creates large cutouts of words and asks the child to select the right answer from the words and stick them on a large corkboard.

Another idea for in-home tutoring children with ADHD is to create a game wherein the child quickly finds answers to questions in different areas inside the study room. The child receives a reward for every correct answer found.

In another perspective, ADHD may have developed during pregnancy. The mother could have been drinking or smoking or she had exposure to lead, which causes pregnancy-related mutations. Likewise, a 2007 study linked to delays in learning rates and behavioral problems in children with the use of organophosphate insecticide chlorpyrifos on fruits and vegetables

Among schoolchildren, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder is the most common diagnosis by child psychiatrists today. This disorder has been controversial for many reasons, one of which is the frequent over-diagnosis of ADHD.

Some teachers, in-home tutors and parents see children who display too much energy or talk too much as disruptive, which leads them to think that those children have ADHD or ADD. Precociousness used to be an adorable quality in children. However, this same quality now elicits suspicion and disapproval.

ADHD has three subtypes:

• Subtype I – predominantly hyperactive-impulsive
• Subtype II – predominantly inattentive
• Subtype III – combined hyperactive-impulsive and inattentive

A child with subtype II ADHD may sit quietly, but may not be paying attention to what they are doing. Because the children get along well with other children and do not display behavioral problems, parents, teachers and some in-home tutors often overlook this subtype of ADHD. Children who commonly receive an ADHD diagnosis have subtype III, which shows six or more symptoms of inattention and six or more symptoms of hyperactivity-impulsivity.

Subtype I and Subtype III are what we understand as ADHD and Subtype II is actually ADD, or Attention Deficit Disorder. All types exist along with other behavioral problems or learning disorders.

More than thirty years ago, the existence of Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Auditory Processing Disorder and Oppositional Defiant Disorder were unheard of. Today, these three disorders were the bane of many children who had to take medication, undergo counseling, and go to special classes that help them cope with schoolwork. As a result, in-home tutors and one-one-one tutoring sessions for these children have become more important than ever to help them cope with life, their surroundings and their studies.

Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

Since its discovery in the 1970s, ADHD continues to be the most studied and diagnosed psychiatric condition in children. Doctors diagnose ADHD more commonly in boys than girls, though this may be due to subjective bias from teachers. The frequency of diagnosis and the mode of treatment for ADHD made it a controversial disorder in children.

Children with ADHD struggle with their homework, often lose their things, and have difficulty following instructions. They fidget and squirm, which shows they cannot stay in one place too long. Constant motion and talking non-stop disrupt their day-to-day activities as well as the work of their classmates and family members.

Central Auditory Processing Disorder (CAPD)

Relatively new to modern psychiatry, Central Auditory Processing Disorder or CAPD is an umbrella term for a variety of disorders affecting the way a brain processes auditory information. The children do not have any hearing impairment; they find it difficult to recognize and interpret sounds of speech.

Doctors often misdiagnose CAPD as ADHD, Asperger syndrome or other forms of autism. Although the problem exists in auditory processing, this disorder extends to reading because the written word is just a visual notation of verbal language. In effect, children with CAPD have difficulty reading and writing as well as comprehending speech.

Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD)

The most recent of the three disorders, Oppositional Defiant Disorder, is predominantly a behavioral problem. Because of the ongoing pattern of disobedience, hostility and defiance, children diagnosed with ODD have difficulty with authoritative figures, such as teachers and parents. Most children with ODD grow up as juvenile delinquents with anti-social behavior.

Temper tantrums, stealing, bullying and vandalism are some of the key symptoms of ODD. The child’s behaviors often disrupt his or her daily activities as well as those of others around them. They may deliberately disturb the work of other people or blame them for failures.

Most parents and teachers think play and study are two different activities. One is merely recreational while the other is more practical. In the past, parents see playing as wasting the time better spent on rote learning.

Today, the opposite happens as parents view schoolwork as too overwhelming for children that they do not have time to play and enjoy their childhood. Thus, the rise of new learning concepts, such as play as a method of learning, and learning integrated into playtime.

Studying, which means reading text and learning it by heart, remains a priority among all school-related activities. Learning, after all, is measured by how much a student remembers from the classroom discussions, and not how deep the comprehension was and how skillful the student is in applying the solutions to varied situations.

Almost all societies today give the highest value for education, which is the result of studying. It costs so much, but many people seem to think it is all worth it. Studying teach children all the things they need to know to earn a living.

On the other hand, play has an important role in human development. It helps children develop important motor, sensory and social skills. Play delights the imagination. It is through play that children examine and experiment as well as discover their abilities and talents.

Since the modern educational system has become more demanding and stressful, more children lose the opportunity to go out and play. Instead of spending time to interact with other children through group games where they can hone their leadership and interpersonal skills, they had to use those times for studying.

As a result, modern children miss the chance to exercise their minds and bodies as well as enjoy their childhood. The social skills they would later need in adulthood lack completion in development. Whatever social skills they needed to learn were soon displaced with the eye-to-hand coordination skills they needed to reach higher levels in their favored video and computer games.

Many parents worry about the consequences of their child’s lack of playtime. They think they had to sacrifice child’s play for their children to learn anything. However, neither playing nor studying needs any sacrificing. This dilemma can best be resolved through integration of study and play.

In-house tutoring combines work and play, which makes studying fun for students. Professional tutors weave learning together with playing by using fun games, colorful visual aids, and unique school activities to encourage children to think and become involved in the learning process.

Studies on human development show that children learn through play, which involves experimentation, exploration and experience. Their intense curiosity and lack of inhibition drives children to explore their world and test different theories no matter how bizarre they may seem.

Left alone, children can learn by discovery, which is a form of self-learning. This concept serves as the basis of progressive educators to question the present education system in the United States. For them, it limits the vast knowledge that the child can gain through self- discovery.

They believe that the present education system only hinders a child’s learning.
They believe that education is too strict and restrictive, which hinders the creativity and intellectual growth of the children.

On the other hand, children cannot learn all things by themselves. They need to be guided. This is what education provides – learning facilitation. Schools provide curricula to help the child learn systematically, which put the learning process through a controllable environment.

Each step is observable and measurable, which help educators to develop each child’s potentials. The results of each step for each subject help children discover their interests and inclinations. It helps them choose the career path that they would want to pursue in the future.

There has been a long-standing debate over matters in education. Some believe that there is something wrong with the system, while others think it works perfectly well. When one thinks deeply about it, all the points presented seem right. In fact, everyone agrees that education is very important, but that it should not prevent the child from exploring and discovering things on his own.

In-house tutoring fosters learning in another way. It brings the child away from the restrictive nature of the classroom. This gives the child more time for self- discovery and learning. Professional tutors create a teacher-student relationship that is different from that of the classroom.

Most children seem distant towards teachers, but in a tutorial setting, they can build closer ties with their mentors. This makes children feel more comfortable and free to explore their capabilities and strengthen their weaknesses.

Children with autism live inside their own little world, which is separate from the rest of us. Unlike other children, they have difficulty relating to others or their environment. Even their parents may have a hard time relating to them.

Autism carries a wide range of manifestations. Some children may have delayed motor-skills development. Some children find it hard to get along with other children or people. They may act and react differently towards events happening around them or to objects near them.

Children with autism hardly communicate, which educators may find as one of the biggest challenges in their careers. Experts say that most children with autism can be educated for them to function well in the society. They just need to be in the proper institution, with good support from the family.

Specialized programs for teaching these special children exist. Various schools dedicated to children with special needs, including children with autism, help them learn how to communicate, to be self-sufficient, and to cope with both internal and external stimuli.

According to an article by Lucy Ward, published in UK’s The Guardian, an in-home tutor can help develop the IQ of children with autism. This conclusion comes from a British “early intensive behavioral intervention” (EIBI) study, which exposed toddlers in the program to intensive one-on-one in-house tutoring for two years.

The results showed that by the end of the study, some toddlers enrolled in the program increased their IQ by 40 points. The method allowed autistic children to enroll into mainstream classrooms so their peers will not leave them behind in their lessons.

This goes to show that having an in-house tutor can be very helpful in the child’s development. This also means that children with autism have the hope of living a nearly normal life.