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Is The Rise of Technology In School Systems Making A Difference?
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Increasingly, we are seeing technology take over every aspect of society and itÂ’s becoming not only useful but necessary to engage in the rise of advancements that our school systems are installing into classrooms. Children and teenagers are no longer attending their local library to take out books for research projects and book reports. Instead, they are going to the resource in which they are most familiar with having grown up in a more developed generation: the computer. However, itÂ’s questionable whether schools spending budget money on the addition of upgraded technology is truly having a positive effect on students.
There are two sides to the debate of whether technology is worth the emphasis educators are placing on students being technologically competent. On the one side, many people view technology as being distracting and hindering students’ performance in schools, rather than having a positive effect on their education. In a New York Times article titled, “In Classroom of Future, Stagnant Scores,” Matt Richtel quotes Professor Cuban, an educator at Stanford University, who says, “There is very little valid and reliable research that shows the engagement causes or leads to higher academic achievement.” Computers allow children and teenagers access to an entirely new digital world, which could actually hinder their educational performance. Instead of using the computers to do research and homework or write papers, they are browsing the internet on celebrity gossip sites, video games and social media networks, such as FaceBook and Twitter.
On the other side, there are those educators who are avid supporters of technology, saying that technology has increased students’ enthusiasm for learning. Matt Richtel quotes Ms. Cator, a former executive at Apple Computer, who states, “Test scores are the same, but look at all the other things students are doing: learning to use the Internet to research, learning to organize their work, learning to use professional writing tools, learning to collaborate with others.” Although technology might not have led to an astronomical increase in test scores, children and teenager are learning other skills that will help them in the future as they pursue higher education and eventually a career in the real world.
So which is the case? Is technology actually helpful to school systems? Right now there is too little research on the matter to take sides, but itÂ’s definitely a subject that should be further investigated to determine whether spending a good deal of school funding on technology is actually worth it in the long run.
A while ago, we had another blog called "The effect of technology on education." It was written by Anton Lebedev, our other blog writer and gives somewhat of a different perspective on the issue.
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| (Published: Mon, 12 Sep 2011 20:11:51 -0400) |
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Parents' Need to Be Involved in Their Child's Education
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Children and teenagers look to their parents for advice and guidance throughout their adolescent years. Parents are considered an influential factor in the development of their child's behavior and personality, which is why it's essential that parents are involved and an active part of their child's education. Education is one of the most valuable aspects of children and teenagers' lives, so it's imperative that parents are aware of how their children are doing in school.
In an article titled "Parents, Get Involved - Your Kids Need You!," it states 'When parents are involved with their student's education, the student has better social skills, attends school regularly, and passes classes, thereby earning more credits. The student also earns higher grades and tests scores, is more likely to enroll in higher level programs, graduate and go on to college." Parents need to emphasize the fact that a child's education is important in determining how successful a child will be in life. If children see that their parents are taking education seriously and being a part of the journey, then they will typically follow suit and take education seriously also. Although at times it doesn't seem like it, most children and teenagers do listen and care about what their parents have to say.
Now the question is how do parents get involved? There are so many possibilities to what a parent can do to be a significant part of a child's education, including attending PTA meetings, parent/teacher conferences, open house, as well as monitoring and checking homework, asking questions about school days, encouraging their children to read and stressing the importance of education. By being attentive of what's going on in their children's school, parents are setting an example for children to be engaged in what's going on in their school system also. If their parents are attending PTA meetings and parent/teacher conferences, students might be encouraged to attend club meetings and join sports teams. It's important to understand that children imitate a lot of the things their parents do without even meaning to. Parents need to make sure they don't become left in the dark when it comes to their child's education because it could have more of an impact than they think!
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| (Published: Sun, 11 Sep 2011 22:59:35 -0400) |
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Private Tutoring May Be The Perfect Answer
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Private tutors can offer an easy way for you to help your child when they feel overwhelmed with schoolwork. You can arrange for a tutor to come to your home on a schedule that can be set up to meet the needs of you and your child. Private tutors are available for just about any subject that you can imagine. Your child's teacher may simply have a general knowledge of the subject. A tutor that specializes in the subject matter will quickly be able to pinpoint the areas that are giving your child the most trouble and be able to provide specific answers and exercises to improve those areas.
Private tutors in a one on one setting can also provide your child with the inspiration to want to improve in not only a specific subject but in all subjects in general. Large class sizes in today's schools means that your child may not be getting the individual attention that is required for understanding. A tutor in a one on one situation can aid them in comprehending what they are being taught in class as well as provide them with opportunities to seek further knowledge in fields that have piqued their interest.
Private tutors can set up a personalized system of study that will meet the needs of your child in terms of classwork and in terms of how your child learns best. Not every child learns the same way and a private tutor will be able to determine which method works best for your child. The speed at which the program of study is covered can be adjusted to fit the exact needs of your child, moving faster or slower depending on the needs of your child in specific areas of the subject.
A teacher in a classroom has a difficult time overcoming many of the problems that can leave the students feeling overwhelmed and if these issues are not addressed the situation can get out of hand quickly. Private tutors can remove many of these frustrations and act as a guide leading a student through the learning process allowing your child to learn the material that is being presented in class as well as helping to eliminate that feeling of being overwhelmed.
Private tutors can be the ultimate answer that you are looking for in your search or a way to help your child with any potential struggles with schoolwork. We can help you to locate the perfect tutor for your child, helping to insure that both your goals and the goals of your child are met by the tutoring experience. A good tutor can help your child to overcome today's difficulties and to prepare for anything that the future may bring.
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| (Published: Wed, 7 Sep 2011 00:04:12 -0400) |
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Are high school students being prepared well enough for higher education?
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College is a huge step in teenagers' lives, as well as an entirely new experience unlike the primary and secondary education they are used to. There are an entirely new set of rules and policies that students have to learn and follow, in addition to being completely independent and in charge of their own fate. Therefore, it is important that students are fully prepared before they enter this new stage of their lives.
In an article from Education News titled "Are Public High School Students Fully Prepared for College?," it's stated that "New data show GPAs decline markedly with more and more students feeling out of their depth at university." The article continued, saying "The data shows these students struggle to get a B average as freshmen at the state's universities and community colleges, even after leaving top-performing high schools with good grades." College work is definitely more complicated, but students should not be struggling the way studies show. So now it comes down to the question of whether educators or the students themselves are to blame.
Teachers have completed a college degree, so they have the skills and knowledge of what it takes to be able to survive at the college level. There should be no reason that students should be graduating with high grades at the high school level but failing to keep up at the college level. Is the work more complicated in college? Yes, obviously, it takes an adjustment to get used to the larger workload, but it's nothing that a student with a high school diploma cannot handle. Unless that is of course, the teachers aren't putting enough effort in preparing their courses in alignment with freshman-level college courses. Another problem that arises is grade inflation. You hear stories all the time of students who are receiving higher grades than they deserve from their teachers in high school. For whatever reason, some teachers would rather have their students like them than fairly distribute grades, but in the end it's the students who suffer the consequences.
On the other hand, there is another factor that plays a role in lower GPAs, and that's the social life. College has always had a reputation for being party time, and some believe that this is a huge reason why students aren't doing well their freshman year. Students enter a completely new environment that involves access to a whole new world of illegality and mischief. Many get caught up in their new found independence and lose sight of what they are really at school for. However, there are many students who are able to find time to both study and party, so what is the true reason of why students cannot seem to get it together in college?
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| (Published: Mon, 5 Sep 2011 22:13:56 -0400) |
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Updates
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Recently, we have been blogging a lot more than before. We are trying to explore numerous educational issues, not just tutoring-related issues. We are an edublog. If you want to learn more about edublogs, read the Wikipedia Edublog page.
Due to excessive comment spam, we are no longer accepting comments.
We also accept well-written blog entries from guest blogger. If you are interested in guest blogging for us or have any comments, please e-mail me. My e-mail is amlebede [at] plusplustutoring [dot] com
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| (Published: Sat, 3 Sep 2011 13:10:39 -0400) |
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Are zero-tolerance policies effective within the primary and secondary school systems?
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Zero-tolerance policies are in effect nationally throughout primary and secondary school systems, which makes it universally known that those students who misbehave receive suspension or expulsion as consequences for their actions. In "An Interview with Anne Marie: Alternatives to Zero-Tolerance", Anne Marie says, "Zero-tolerance policies bring attention to what behaviors schools are unwilling to accept. They are successful at removing a misbehaving student from the classroom and the school." However, can these policies be considered a success if the consequence is doing more harm that good?
When students misbehave, our school systems kick them out of the one place where they are confined to following the rules. There are two problems with this. The first is that most children and teenagers who act out in school don't want to be there in the first place. They are thrilled to hear that they are free to do whatever they want for a couple of days and releasing them from monitored supervision puts adolescents at risk for getting into trouble within the community. The second problem is what are these policies actually solving? Nothing really. Zero-tolerance policies are just avoiding the problem for a period of time. If a student is suspended, what's to say he or she isn't going to return to school and behave in the same exact manner. If a student's expelled he or she can transfer to another institution or even worse, drop out and get involved in crime.
Educators need to keep those students who misbehave in school where they can be supervised and treated accordingly. Most individuals who act out are doing so for a reason. It's important for teachers and faculty to understand the reasoning behind why certain students choose to disobey the rules. Throwing students out of school for a short or extended period of times does nothing to get them on the right track. It only encourages children and teenagers to search for entertaining things for them to do during their newly available spare time.
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| (Published: Fri, 2 Sep 2011 20:49:41 -0400) |
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A Multicultural Approach To Learning
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While reading an article by Matthew Lynch on the importance of culture within the education system, there was one quote in particular that stood out. The quote stated that "culture is the software of the mind." Now comes the question, what exactly does this mean and how will this affect the education system in the United States as our country continues to grow in the number of immigrants migrating here?
Students behave at school in coordination with their culture and what's acceptable in that culture. Children and teenagers are influenced by the interactions in their environment, as well as values, symbols, rituals, stories, lessons and norms that coincide with their culture's beliefs. As the United States continues to become a more and more diverse society, teachers are facing the difficulty of having to come up with a way to get across to such a wide range of backgrounds and ways of thinking.
Within the primary and secondary school system, a multicultural approach, which involves encouraging students to take pride in their culture and embrace their differences, is ideal. Teachers need be adaptive and educate through various teaching methods that can reach students' wide spectrum of cultural learning differences. Otherwise, there will be a barrier that prevents children and teenagers from correctly understanding the information a teacher is relaying to them.
A diverse culture needs to be accepted within classrooms nationwide because culture is the foundation of why students behave, think and act the way they do. In order to properly reach students and understand how they learn best, teachers must first be open-minded to finding out more about the unique cultures they see in the classroom, which will in turn reveal knowledge of why certain students learn the way they do. As a result, teachers can figure out how what methods will work best with each new set of students that come through their classroom doors.
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| (Published: Thu, 1 Sep 2011 13:19:02 -0400) |
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Are the arts taking a backseat within school systems' curriculums?
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It seems that throughout primary and secondary education, there's a universal hierarchy that is established, which stresses the idea that certain school subjects, such as math, science, English, history, language and even physical education hold a higher value in achieving success later on in life than the fine arts. More and more, we are seeing teachers neglect the arts because they find them to be inferior in the school system. Most educators believe there are no job opportunities available for those pursuing this field of study. I mean, unless you become a famous artist or musician, why is learning about the fine arts even relevant? Right?
Wrong. The fact is that the fine arts can play a significant role in a child or teenager's development. In an article titled "The Global Search for Education: More Arts Please," C.M. Rubin quotes Sir Ken. Robinson, one of the most internationally recognized leaders in the development of education, creativity and innovation and a strong supporter of placing the arts on the same level as other disciplines within the school system. In the article, Robinson says, "we have constructed education systems that are like production lines." Our educational culture relies on standardized testing based on right or wrong answers. There is no room to for students to have their own perspectives and opinions because they are taught to search for the one and only correct answer with no room for an alternative explanation.
The problem is that our society's educational system isn't geared towards all student's personalities and learning abilities. By stressing the importance of the fine arts, students will be free to think outside of the box and be encouraged to provide an interpretation that is unique and has not yet come to the surface. Robinson believes that if the students are taught the arts properly, meaning there is a balance between creating art and comprehending other people's work, then students will learn key skills and techniques that are imperative to obtaining a degree, just as in science, math, history, English, etc. In addition, by promoting the arts throughout school systems, students will be encouraged to think more dynamically both in the classroom and in their lives instead of thinking there is only one way to do things or only one answer for everything.
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| (Published: Tue, 30 Aug 2011 23:22:14 -0400) |
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One On One Tutoring Provides Students With The Best Learning Experience
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A good education has never been more important than it is right now in today's fast paced environment. With technologies changing the world rapidly, children are faced with the need to learn more and learn it more quickly than ever before. The pressure to succeed in the highly competitive arena created by the current economic crisis can overwhelm even the brightest of students. One on one tutoring can aid a student in overcoming this increasing educational burden.
The amount of material that teachers are required to cover in the classroom continues to increase while the length of the school day remains constant. This leaves little time for individual instruction in a classroom setting. One on one tutoring can make up for this and help your child to fully benefit from the education provided by schools and to be best prepared for the challenges that will be faced after leaving school. Success in later life may very well depend on the quality of the education that is received as a child.
Each student has their own way of learning and a tutor in a one on one situation will be able to discern which methods work best for each individual child and custom tailor a program to meet a child's needs. This personalized attention not only improves the student's chances of academic success, but may also improve a student's self-esteem and confidence in other areas of life. Success leads to more success and tutoring can provide that first step forward.
One on one tutoring can be beneficial for any student regardless of their current age, grade, or level of success. While being able to aid those students who are having difficulty with schoolwork, tutoring can also benefit those gifted students who feel held back by allowing them to advance at their own pace without having to wait for the other students in the class to get caught up. Tutoring also allows students to explore other areas of interest that may not be covered by the current curriculum of their school.
One on one tutoring improves students' classroom performance, scores on standardized tests, study and learning skills, and overall confidence. One on one tutoring is an investment in the future of your child that will pay off handsomely. Plusplustutoring.com can aid you in finding the perfect tutor for child and help them in achieving all of their academic goals. Being successful tomorrow starts with laying the proper foundation today.
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| (Published: Tue, 30 Aug 2011 19:42:48 -0400) |
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Educational Websites Can Never Fully Substitute for a Qualified Tutor
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A good tutor can be an asset to any student's academic performance. Tutors are often engaged to assist a student to brush up on particular academic subjects and may even be asked to help a student prepare for standardized tests or entrance examinations to private academies or college. Whatever the student's ultimate academic goal may be, a tutor works with them on a one-on-one basis to help guarantee academic progress and eventual success.
However, engaging a tutor can also be quite expensive. It may be so expensive, in fact, that many students will avoid tutoring or seek other alternatives. As the Internet has permeated everyday life to a greater and greater extent over the last decade, many students have begun to look to online classes and other web-based resources to enhance their educations. This can be a tricky proposition. Some websites that purport to be educational in nature are created by well-meaning amateurs who aren't actually qualified to provide authoritative instruction. Others are put up by entrepreneurs or companies with the goal of inducing users to either buy something or click on advertisements. In both cases, their educational content should be considered with careful scrutiny.
Similarly, even authoritative online sources may be problematic. Students may be able to find some useful information on websites produced by a government entity or a college or university. The websites of professional organizations and media outlets like newspapers and television stations are also usually relatively trustworthy. However, even these types of sources can have a particular political or ideological bent. Students must evaluate both the source of the information on a website and the purpose behind the source providing that information. Are they attempting to sell something or is their sole purpose the dissemination of accurate, verifiable information?
Even if an online source is completely trustworthy and accurate, and though such authoritative websites might provide some initial insight into a given subject, they can't substitute for the care and interaction of an experienced tutor. Most websites don't allow for the kind of interaction that drives learning. Students may browse any number of sites providing pertinent information without acquiring a real understanding of the subject matter. Perhaps they gain an idea of the 'what' but are still perplexed as to the 'why.' The student can't ask a website to provide clarification, but a tutor is equipped to handle just such queries.
It might also be difficult for students to find authoritative resources to provide adequate practice. A student who struggles with decimals may find a site that can provide some basic background information and a few examples, but what if he or she needs more practice? An experienced tutor is able to facilitate as much practice as necessary and can be relied upon to not only provide appropriate exercises and study guidance, but assistance in developing critical understanding of the subject at hand.
One interesting innovation is the concept of online tutors. In many ways this grants students an excellent opportunity to connect with an experienced tutor who may not live locally. They have the convenience of being able to meet online anytime and anywhere, and these services are generally somewhat more affordable than those provided by a traditional tutor. An online tutor may be able to assist a student on demand in the midst of a challenging homework assignment. As students work to complete their projects and encounter roadblocks, they can contact the online tutoring service for immediate assistance. However, most importantly, tutoring delivered online provides at least some of the same guidance for developing critical thinking and real learning, rather than just absorbing information, as an in-person tutor.
Whether with the capabilities offered by online tutoring services or with the assistance of a tutor actually present, the Internet becomes a much more valuable learning tool. The experience is interactive and potentially available to students whenever necessary. Hiring an online tutoring service is a far superior approach to learning than simply surfing the Internet looking for relevant sources, and engaging a personal tutor can take online research to the next level of usefulness with the personalized, targeted guidance a traditional tutor can provide. Tutoring services allow for more efficient use of time and a reputable tutor can facilitate an overall more valuable learning experience than attempting to sift through random references online.
Students may need a tutor for a variety of reasons. While the search for help can begin with looking up information online, such an exploration can only take the student so far. When academic support is needed for any reason, putting off finding real help will only lead to a more difficult situation later on. Hiring a tutor for even a short period of time can help a student succeed in school and cement their burgeoning self-confidence.
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| (Published: Thu, 11 Aug 2011 17:34:06 -0400) |
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| ( Source: http://www.plusplustutoring.com/blog/xml-rss2.php ) |
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