Carol J. Carter

Carol’s Summary:

High schools nationwide are beginning to offer dual enrollment to “high-risk” students, with the goal of improving the students’ options and opportunities to go to college. Dual-enrollment programs place students in college level courses for credit while they are still in high school, and have traditionally only been offered to high-achieving students.

Now researchers are finding that these kinds of programs also benefit students at risk for dropping out of high school, by giving those students more insight into the process of transitioning from high school to college. and showing them that going to college is a realistic goal to reach for. The programs guide students through the college application process and applying for student loans.

Sometimes they offer mentoring and job shadowing. However, currently only 15 states have colleges and universities that accept dual-enrollment credits. It seems implementing more of dual-enrollment programs nationwide and improving correspondence between high schools and colleges could significantly increase high school graduation rates. The percentage of high school students who choose to attend colleges and universities will likely improve as well.
The transition from high school to college can be difficult for many students, especially if they come from less fortunate economic backgrounds or are the first in their families to have the opportunity to attend college. It is crucial for all students to understand that they are capable of pursuing higher education if they so choose. Majoring in the Rest of Your Life is a guide to preparing for college and succeeding in life after secondary school. For more information on our books, visit www.lifebound.com or e-mail contact@lifebound.com.

Article:Dual Enrollment Programs Show Promise for Non-High Achievers
By Dian Schaffhauser

Is it possible that getting high school kids–even those who considered “high risk”–into college courses as part of a dual enrollment program could increase their chances of success and improve school retention efforts? That’s the conclusion of a recent study on the topic.

Dual enrollment programs give students in high school the chance to take courses for college credit. Typically, they’re taken by students who are doing well academically. While dual enrollment courses are true college courses, they may be taken in the high school–in fact, the authors reported that 74 percent of college classes are taught in the high school. Or they’re taught at a college campus or via online delivery.

To read the full article: www.thejournal.com

Remember those comprehension questions on SAT tests that ask, “Rudder is to ship, as bridle is to _________ (correct answer: horse)? Well, a similar analogy can be applied to high school and college… High school is to college as gym class is to team sports. In gym class you get exercise, just as you do when you play sports. But playing on a team involves a deeper, more focused commitment.

Likewise, what you can expect from college is a different kind of experience than high school. It’s more intense, and – for many students — more rewarding because it relates directly to their future. One thing’s for sure, knowing what to expect can help you make a smoother transition between the two worlds.

A is for Academics – Original thoughts count more in college. While you’re still in high school, strengthen your study habits. If you’re having trouble in a subject, don’t delay in getting help. And when you get to college, attend classes regularly and visit your professors during office hours.

I is for Independence - In college, you will become more independent than you were in high school. This means you need to make wise choices about your personal safety, finances, and overall well-being. You need to know when and where to get help in case you get sick or have trouble with a class.

M is for Marketability – The only goal of most high school jobs is to earn a little extra cash. But in college, you’ll need to think more strategically about work. You’ll want to look for internships, work study programs, and summer jobs that relate to your field of interest. Talk to someone who works in that field, and/or set up an appointment with a guidance counselor at school. Find answers to questions such as: Which college majors are ideal for this career? What kinds of skills are needed? What are the personal traits of people who are successful in this job (enjoy details, like to work alone, able to lead, etc.)?

Now, armed with a clearer picture of what will be expected of you in college you’ll know how to take AIM.

Carol’s Summary:
The method by which to identify gifted students at a New York City high school is now being challenged, as the school admits students based on the results of a single test, which is written by a teacher at the school. This test ultimately determines a student’s eligibility to attend, and has  sparked a debate about what qualifies a student as gifted, particularly because this test has caused a decline in black and Hispanic student enrollment at the school.

Critics say that the test gives certain students an unfair advantage, whereas many others who come from less fortunate backgrounds may not be as well-prepared to take such a test. The cost of prep materials and tutoring gives wealthy students a good chance at being accepted, while students who come from less fortunate families may not be able to pay for the preparation.

Therefore, they may not be as well-prepared to take such a test. They say that the admissions tests should utilize several kinds of evaluations, including portfolios of students’ past work, essays, and interviews.

There are currently 3 million students nationwide who are identified as gifted, and it is believed that there are many more who have not yet been noticed or who have undergone one-sided tests such as the one previously mentioned. It is necessary to employ various strategies to identify gifted students, so that they may receive the education they deserve.

To hold back a student who is gifted may make the student likelier to grow bored with school and possibly even drop out, because their abilities are not being recognized. At LifeBound, we believe it is incredibly important to tailor teaching to individual students, their abilities and their needs. In our curriculum that accompanies each of our books, we have included activities for both gifted and at-risk students, so that no child’s needs are left unattended to. Visit www.lifebound.com or e-mail contact@lifebound.com for more information about our books and curriculum.

Article:
Identifying Gifted Students
By Walt Gardner

The latest chapter in the gifted student saga was on display at Hunter College High School in New York City when a graduating senior delivered a commencement address that called into question the basis for admission to the storied school (“Diversity Debate Convulses Elite High School,” Aug. 5). The school uses a single, teacher-written test that has not changed for decades. Although the test is defended by Hunter College, which oversees the high school, as “very valuable in terms of preserving the kind of specialness and uniqueness that the school has,” it has resulted in a decline in the percentage of black and Hispanic students enrolled.

To read the full article: www.edweek.org

Carol’s Summary:

The Mount Olive school district in New Jersey has recently eliminated the D grade from their schools, in order to encourage students to achieve more. Now that students can only earn A’s, B’s, C’s and F’s, it may cause students to see how important it is to get better grades, rather than to put forth minimal effort and earn a barely-passing D in their classes.

Students in the district have openly expressed their disdain for the new policy, saying that it puts more pressure on students and will cause more students to fail. The new policy will allow increased opportunities for make-up work on failed or missed assignments, which will provide students with a better chance to improve their grades before report cards are sent home.

The elimination of the D grade in Mount Olive schools has brought attention to this new policy, but a similar strategy was used in the 90’s in a college classroom in Kansas. The policy is new in the Mount Olive district for this upcoming school year, and administrators hope that it will be effective for improving student work ethic and achievement.

Many students need an extra push to understand that they are truly in control of earning their grades. The work they put forth academically as well as in all aspects of life will appear in the results of their work. Students, especially at high school age, must learn how to take personal responsibility for their study habits and school work.

Our book, Study Skills for High School Students, provides students with tips for improving memory, being more involved in their class work, how to be an independent learner, and how not to procrastinate on assignments. Visit www.lifebound.com or e-mail contact@lifebound.com for more about LifeBound’s books and materials.

Article:
Little as They Try, Students Can’t Get a D Here
Michael Appleton for The New York Times

MOUNT OLIVE, N.J. — Who wants to pay for “D”-quality plumbing? Fly the skies with a “D”-rated pilot? Settle for a “D” restaurant?

Exactly.

The way the Mount Olive school district sees it, its students should not be getting by with D’s on their report cards, either. This fall, there will no longer be any D’s, only A’s, B’s, C’s and F’s.

To read the full article: www.nytimes.com

Carol’s Summary:
Several colleges and universities nationwide are dealing with an increase of problems associated with plagiarism—the act of using information without giving credit to the source, largely due to students’ use of the internet while doing research for essays. Students at schools like DePaul and the University of Maryland have recently been caught plagiarizing, after their professors noticed that their text was copied verbatim for websites like Wikipedia.

A professor at Rutgers University found that 40 percent of 14,000 undergraduate students surveyed from 2006 to 2010 admitted to copying a few sentences from sources when writing essays for school. Only about 29 percent students today feel that taking information from the internet is a serious offense and should be considered “serious cheating”. Some professors believe that plagiarism inhibits student’s creativity and writing skills.

In education, plagiarism is a serious offense, and students who are caught “stealing” information usually have to take a failing grade for the classes in which they plagiarized, and some may even be suspended from school altogether. Although it may be a tedious process, professors must be more aware than ever of plagiarism. Many colleges nationwide utilize computer software that tracks plagiarism attempts from students when they turn in their essays.

Our book, Study Skills for High School Students, talks about plagiarism and how serious of an offense it is. Plagiarism not only robs the original source of the credit they deserve but also takes creativity and credibility away from the student who plagiarizes. For more information about Study Skills for High School Students and other LifeBound books, visit www.lifebound.com.

Article:
Plagiarism Lines Blur for Students in Digital Age
By TRIP GABRIEL
At DePaul University, the tip-off to one student’s copying was the purple shade of several paragraphs he had lifted from the Web; when confronted by a writing tutor his professor had sent him to, he was not defensive — he just wanted to know how to change purple text to black.

To read the full article: www.nytimes.com

Carol’s Summary:

A report by the Education Testing Service shows that the achievement gap between black and white students, and efforts to narrow the gap have been stagnant for 20 years. The Educational Testing Service has examined the achievement gap and efforts to close it since 1910.

Some experts have developed a theory that standardized testing alone cannot account for the results of the study, and that social and environmental factors must also be taken into account. In order to close the achievement gap any further, it may be necessary to break the cycle of poverty first. However, the cycle of poverty is not only a result of the achievement gap, but also one of its main causes.

In order to further narrow the achievement gap, it will be necessary to provide equal opportunities for academic growth. Textbooks in poverty-stricken areas would need to be of the same quantity and quality as books for children in middle-class areas. Standardized testing results will have to take into account more than the scores alone but also the advantages and disadvantages, and individual needs of the schools and students.

Teachers who work in schools in impoverished areas will also need to be trained in such a way that they can identify and connect better with their students and the issues that students face both in and out of the classroom. LifeBound visits with teachers from schools in both middle-class areas and areas where people are disadvantaged, and we coach them with our books and curriculum so they can collaborate and work with all students, regardless of their background. To learn more, visit www.lifebound.com or e-mail contact@lifebound.com

 Article:

Report: When/why progress in closing achievement gap stalled

Progress seen over several decades in narrowing the educational achievement gap between black and white students has remained stalled for 20 years, according to data analyzed in a new report.

Called “The Black-White Achievement Gap: When Progress Stopped,” the report by the Educational Testing Service examines periods of progress and stagnation since 1910 in closing the achievement gap.

To read the full article: www.washingtonpost.com

Carol’s Summary:
Twenty-seven states have adopted a nationwide standardized curriculum that was proposed around two months ago by the Department of Education, partially due to the Race to the Top competition, which will award billions of dollars in funding to states with plans to implement education reform.

Massachusetts, New York, and Colorado are among the states that will adopt the new set of curriculum. The standards contain a detailed description of what students at each grade level will be expected to learn and comprehend, and what academic skills they should have at each level. However, the process of implementing the new national standards is estimated to take years to complete.

Education reform and the implementation of national standards is predicted to save states money in the long run, as states will no longer have to make their own individual curriculum standards. Some educators are also worried that the cost of re-training teachers may be more trouble than it’s worth initially. When LifeBound has coaching sessions, we do so with the goal of showing teachers how to communicate and connect with students effectively and in a way that allows for long-term success. Training teachers is a highly effective way of ensuring future success with students.

As society continues to change, the education system must catch up and be restructured as well. The way that children learned fifty years ago is much different from how they learn now, and it will take possibly years of trial and error to fully restructure the education system as it has been proposed. What’s most important is that education fosters the goals and needs of all children, and of the whole child, not just academically speaking.

Article:
Many States Adopt National Standards for Their Schools
By TAMAR LEWIN
Published: July 21, 2010

Less than two months after the nation’s governors and state school chiefs released their final recommendations for national education standards, 27 states have adopted them and about a dozen more are expected to do so in the next two weeks.

To read the full article: www.nytimes.com

Carol’s Summary:
Over $1 trillion is spent on education every year, by the K-12 school system as well as colleges and universities. Schools are constantly looking for new ways to teach students, whether it is with the use of new technologies, using new books, and changing curriculum.

Most recently, the U.S. Department of Education has created a $650 million education innovation fund; this provides many entrepreneurs in the education industry with new opportunities to share their ideas and products with schools nationwide.

However, it is often a costly and time-consuming process for schools to adopt new strategies and products for educating their students. The funding can connect the entrepreneurs to education researchers, which would provide schools with a smoother transition to implement new curriculum and technologies.

Recently, education reform has been a “hot topic”, with the Race to the Top competition entering its final stages, and the debate over whether our nation’s schools should adopt one standardized curriculum. It has become evident that we are beginning to witness major changes in our education system, particularly with funding from Race to the Top and the education innovation fund.

Being well-acquainted with new books, technologies and curriculum enables schools to provide their students with the tools they need to succeed. At LifeBound, we aim to provide teachers and students with books and curriculum that they can apply to the classroom as well as to life outside of the classroom, in order to ensure that students are well-rounded. Critical and Creative Thinking for Teenagers is a book that helps to inspire teens to think outside of the box, and to be open to all sorts of possibilities. To be innovative is to foster success for the future.

Article:
Educational innovation gets boost under new programs
July 30, 2010

A movement is under way to make it easier for entrepreneurs to navigate the lucrative and sometimes-tricky education market and introduce new technologies and products into classrooms.

An educator at the University of Pennsylvania wants to create one of the nation’s only business incubators dedicated to education entrepreneurs. The U.S. Department of Education (ED) is also getting into the act with a $650 million fund to boost education innovation.

To read the full article: www.ecampusnews.com

Carol’s Summary:
A survey of K-12 students nationwide shows that many students feel that their use of technology, both at school and home, contributes positively to their overall learning experience. The survey, called “Speak Up 2009: Creating Our Future: Students Speak Up about their Vision for 21st Century Schools,” collected data about technology in relation to education, to assess the way that students utilize technology both in and out of the classroom.

Technology is becoming an increasingly important aspect of learning, and each year more classrooms are adding technological activities to their curriculum and school activities. Findings from the survey revealed that more students are turning to social networking websites to discover new information, as well as conducting their own research on various topics, without the instruction of a teacher or within the structure of a classroom.

The emergence of the digital age in our nation becomes more evident every day, and its presence in education is undeniable. As students have more access to the internet, they become more informed about a wide range of topics that may or may not be discussed at school. The second edition of our book, Making the Most of High School, has a chapter about how to use technology in a way that is safe and beneficial to one’s education and career goals, as well as technology tips in each chapter.

As students become more aware of the world around them, their classrooms and curriculum must be adjusted to fit their needs. Also, teachers will have to be flexible to incorporate learning with these new tools, so that their understanding of the tools equals that of students. It is vital that digital applications are applied to academics in order to ensure that students are prepared for a future where technology is becoming an essential aspect of everyday life.

Article:
Digital access, collaboration a must for students
By Laura Devaney
In a national survey that reveals K-12 students’ use of technology at home and at school, students overwhelmingly agreed that access to digital media tools and the ability to collaborate with peers both inside and outside of school can greatly enhance education.

To read the full article: www.ecampusnews.com

Carol’s Summary:
At Skyline High School in Oakland, California, there is a program that provides students with a focus on careers in the education field. The program, called Skyline education academy, provides students with classes that focus on the education field. It includes a college-prep style learning system, and field trips to elementary schools, where students have the opportunity to act as student-teachers for the day.
Skyline is one of a growing number of schools in California that is working to increase high school graduation rates through an initiative called Linked Learning. Linked Learning merges high school courses with work experience based on the career subject of the program. It has been found that students are more engaged in their coursework when they can apply it to real life. The career-based academy gives the students an in-depth view of various industries to study, such as education, architecture, and graphic design.
Skyline and other schools that use Linked Learning have reported higher attendance and graduation rates as well as better test scores. Programs such as Linked Learning could definitely benefit other states nationwide, because they will enable students to not only apply what they learn to their futures, but also to see just how many possibilities are out there career-wise.
When students are goal-oriented and know that the purpose of their education is to prepare them for success in career and life, they will be more motivated to strive for the best. Books like Sophomore Guide to College and Career are geared towards getting high school students to think about potential careers and what happens after high school ends. To learn more about this book and other LifeBound books and materials, visit www.lifebound.com or e-mail contact@lifebound.com.

Article: Linking courses to careers improves grad rates
James E. Canales
Sunday, July 25, 2010
When Cynthia Gutierrez arrived four years ago at Skyline High School in Oakland, she was neither an academic superstar nor someone who struggled with school. Like most kids, she says, she was “somewhere in the middle.” Bored with her classes, she’d left behind a trail of C’s and D’s, and with some bad luck, she might have even lost interest in school altogether. “I didn’t know what I was doing,” she says.
Instead, Gutierrez had a stroke of good fortune. During her freshman year, a teacher told her about Skyline’s education academy, a small school within the school centered around careers in education. When she heard the program included regular field trips, she signed up. Gutierrez and 25 of her classmates spent the next three years taking classes together on education-related topics like child development and how people learn, combining a rigorous college-prep curriculum with student-teaching trips to local elementary schools. In the close-knit environment of the academy, Gutierrez found new motivation, and she discovered a love of teaching.

To read more: www.sftimes.com