Are There Home Schooling Programs Available For College Students?
In fact, there are many home schooling courses available for college students as well both offline and online.
Home schooling has been gaining more popularity in recent years because parents wanted more control over their child’s education. Parents wanted to oversee what their children is learning and teach them the right way.
There are also afraid of peer influences from other students. They may pick up bad habits such as smoking, alcoholism, gambling and violence etc.
For higher level college education, there are several types of home schooling programs available. It depends on the type of education you prefer your child to undertake. Most home schooling college programs are quite flexible in that the program curriculum can be changed to suit the student rather than the other way around in traditional colleges.
One type is religion college home schooling. They have home schooling curriculum that have religious studies as part of their education.
Another type focus on the science while another focus on the arts. It can also be a combination of the above since college home schooling is quite flexible. You can cater your home schooling curriculum based on the interest of your child.
One thing all these college home schooling programs have in common is that they can be taught at the pace your child is comfortable with. Since each child learns differently and at different pace, the college home schooling program can be altered to suit each child’s learning progress.
Are Pittsburgh Schools In Trouble?
In fact, Pittsburgh Schools were placed on the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s district improvement list in 2005, based on results that did not meet requirements on the Pennsylvania System of Schools Assessment (PSSA).
When Superintendent Roosevelt took over the Pittsburgh Schools, he needed a plan to improve the school system in order to move Pittsburgh Schools off of the improvement list. At that time, he described and implemented an ambitious plan with objectives not only for moving every student toward proficiency, but also for increasing the number of students who are achieving at the highest levels.
“When setting our objectives, we wanted to be realistic yet inspirational. We recognize that we must change the hearts and minds of everyone – kids, parents, teachers, central office staff and the entire Pittsburgh Schools community – so we share in a common belief that every child can achieve excellence,” said Superintendent Roosevelt.
To that end, Pittsburgh Schools wrote a new mission statement, which states that “Pittsburgh Schools will be one of America’s premier school districts, student-focused, well-managed, and innovative. We will hold ourselves accountable for preparing all children to achieve academic excellence and strength of character, so that they have the opportunity to succeed in all aspects of life.”
Board Chair of the Pittsburgh Schools Education Committee Thomas Sumpter also noted that, “Raising the achievement level of all students is paramount, and that is what the District must be held accountable for.”
Not only are Pittsburgh Schools working towards these goals and beliefs, but they are also offering a generous incentive plan for high school seniors. Hoping to encourage more students to graduate and continue onto college, Pittsburgh Schools and the City of Pittsburgh are issuing what is called "The Pittsburgh Promise." The promise pledges that starting in 2008; all graduates who meet certain standards will have the means of getting post-secondary education. The district and the city hope to raise $5 - $7 million a year to make college or other post-secondary education affordable. To access the money, students will have to attend a city public school, do their work, stay out of trouble, and graduate.
So how are Pittsburgh Schools doing so far? At the request of Superintendent Mark Roosevelt, an organization known as RAND completed an analysis of the implementation of major district initiatives so far, and has suggested opportunities to strengthen future implementation. RAND analyzed how each initiative supports Excellence for All, the district’s improvement plan for increasing the academic performance of all students. Findings showed improvements throughout Pittsburgh Schools so far, but more work is needed.
Are More Charter Schools In The Chicago Schools Future?
Ever since George W. Bush took the oath of president of the United States, he and his administration have instituted many federally mandated changes for public schools across the nation. Now, according to Margaret Spellings, education secretary for the Bush Administration, there may be more that directly affect the Chicago Schools and the state of Illinois. Currently, the states of Illinois, Michigan and New York have the lowest caps on the number of public charter schools allowed. Illinois has the lowest cap of 60, then New York with a cap of 100, and Michigan with 150.
At one of the charter Chicago schools in late January, Spellings stated that the president wants all school districts across the country to change their restrictions on the number of public charter schools allowed, giving school districts, like the Chicago schools, the ability to convert as many failing traditional schools to charters as they wish.
Chicago schools’ officials see this as a positive move. Over the years, they have aggressively pursued the conversion of failing schools to charters. The Chicago schools currently have 29 of their allowed 30 charter schools in place and running. With a current 185 low performing schools, the Chicago schools’ officials see conversion to public charter schools as a possible solution to improve the schools’ performance. Otherwise, their only option is to make major staff changes, since they can only convert one more traditional school to charter under current state guidelines.
Chicago schools’ officials believe that more drastic interventions are required to make these failing schools successful. Charters within the Chicago schools have more freedom over their curriculum, budgeting and scheduling than traditional schools do. They also have more accountability to the Chicago schools.
Opponents to the Bush Administration proposal for changing the state’s public charter school cap believe the president is going too far. Legislators involved in drafting Illinois’ cap are some of those opposed to the proposal. The state’s teachers’ union also is against the proposal.
Representative Monique Davis, who is a Democrat representing Chicago (and the Chicago schools) and vice chairwoman of the House Education Committee, stated in response to the proposal that the legislators of Illinois believe, as many others across the nation, that charter schools still are in the experimental stage. Expansion of the number of public charter schools should be held back until they prove themselves as a viable and successful alternative for the future. They just are not there yet.
Are Memphis Schools Getting What They Pay For?
In the Memphis Schools it made free pre-kindergarten and extra tutoring by teachers during school hours available to help achieve higher test scores and. Also, Memphis Schools’ low-income students received free extra-curricular tutoring.
However, an extensive study but the University of Memphis found that these students are not getting ahead, and the Memphis Schools are not getting what they are paying for.
The Center for Research in Educational Policy recently set up a review of Memphis Schools, and of the entire state, to measure the affects of these types of services. They explored such programs as free extra academic help (which in the Memphis Schools includes before and after school tutoring and Title 1 programs).
Supplemental educational services are provided to Title I schools that fail to achieve benchmark performance scores three years in a row. At that point the Memphis Schools are required to provide the services. In Memphis Schools the providers of these services can be companies, local community groups, programs, local colleges and universities, national organizations or church based groups.
In the Memphis Schools there are fourteen companies, groups, or schools, which provided tutoring services to 988 students in math and 512 students in reading and language arts. Some of these charged as much as $1400 per student. While business is booming for the private tutoring industry, the study did not see any improvement in the student’s scores on benchmark testing. Within the Memphis Schools the group found that those eligible that did receive assistance did not score any better than those who were eligible but did not receive the assistance.
The group tested the Memphis Schools students using the Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program and Gateway testing scores to determine how the different groups faired. In the areas of math and reading Memphis Schools showed no improvement for those tutored. In fact two of the providers of the tutoring services produced below standard outcomes during the 2005-2006 school year; and the remainder of the Memphis Schools students who received tutoring had insufficient information to determine the outcome.
One problem is keeping track of which students actually used the free services. It is unclear how Memphis Schools plan to eliminate this problem. Clearly, the private tutoring agencies need to show accountability or lose their contract. It was also suggested that teachers receive funding to oversee tutoring by non-profit groups and organizations.
Anxiety In Exams: A Solution
Exam nerves are no small issue, either. They can cause lots of problems in a person’s life. Since college has become so competitive and people are trying hard to stay at the top of their prospective classes, there is a great deal of pressure put upon students to perform. This performance pressure, as well as other mental blocks, is the basic things behind exam nerves problems. It’s important that people get rid of these problems or else they could have serious consequences.
If you feel like exam nerves are causing you severe discomfort when you go to take an exam, then you need to seek out help. Exam nerves can cause many problems in your life. Many times, feeling the pressure of exam nerves can cause severe physical discomfort. Though it’s not the kind of physical anxiety that is likely to cause you serious bodily harm, it will be enough to raise your levels of stress. In addition to that, your mind will go blank when you feel the pressure of exam nerves. When this happens, performing well on a difficult test becomes virtually impossible. You will become overwhelmed and the feeling of anxiousness will certainly multiply.
How do you treat a problem with such deep rooted mental focus? You have to completely change your mindset. You have to tell yourself that exams are not something to stress out about. This is much easier said than done, though. When you have a difficult assignment coming up, it is common to feel anxiety. The problem is in your thinking. With that in mind, you have to come up with a solution to change that thinking. One tool that has become more widely recognized for dealing with mental ailments is hypnotherapy. As a hypnotherapist, I have seen many clients who need help with their exam nerves problem.