Online Education

Laurie Hurley
117

Hiring a tutor can be an overwhelming experience, especially if you have never done it before. The following five qualities are the most important ones that you should look for when matching a tutor with a child:
1) Their ability to “connect?with your child and you.
2) Their teaching style ?does it match your child’s learning style?
3) Their ability to be patient and empathic when your child is truly struggling.
4) Their reliability and dependability.
5) Their tutoring experience backed up by current references.
It is imperative that the tutor immediately makes a strong connection with your child. The tutor should use part of the first session getting to know your child by asking questions about their likes, dislikes, strengths and weaknesses. Setting the rapport is important so future sessions run smoothly and productively. The tutor should also be able to easily communicate with you after the session and give you adequate feedback regarding what he or she accomplished during the session.
If your child is a visual learner, the tutor should bring appropriate materials (a small white board, for example) so the learning process compliments your child’s learning style. Conversely, an auditory learner would benefit from reading out loud with the tutor or talking through math problems. A kinetic learner will need the sessions to be very hands-on and interactive.
There is nothing worse than a tutor giving up and getting angry with a child when the going gets tough. Patience is definitely a virtue and every tutor needs to posses this quality to put your child at ease. An inpatient person will have the opposite effect. Chances are good that your child will not want to be cooperative in the future with anyone who can’t relate to their problems. The reason you hired a tutor was to find someone who can repeat themselves numerous times if necessary or present information in a different way until it “clicks?with your child.
A tutor who is constantly late or just doesn’t show up without calling should immediately be terminated.
Checking a tutor’s references is imperative. Written references should not be older than a year old and you should call the author of the letter anyway, just to confirm they wrote it. The best references are from individuals who have observed the tutor teaching or tutoring. Other parents who have used the tutor are the best references, but don’t dismiss your gut feeling about someone you are interviewing.
An extensive interview must be done to be sure you are selecting only top-notch teachers and tutors. You will want to conduct a thorough background and criminal check and call all of the references provided.
Most importantly, a visit to every home to meet the family before attempting to place a tutor is imperative. This complimentary visit proves invaluable when making a “match?with you child.
Bright Apple Tutoring Service, Inc. has been offering tutoring services above requirements are met and that you get only the best tutors. If you are looking for a tutor, or looking to start a career in tutoring, contact Bright Apple Tutoring Service, at http://www.hometutoringbusiness.com 1.888.847.0033

Michael Tipper
438

There comes a time in every student’s life when those things that you dread begin to loom on the horizon. Depending upon how confident you are about them, your horizon will either be measured in months, or maybe days. What am I talking about? Of course I mean examinations. You may be about to go into mid term mock examinations or you could be facing your final tests.
Whatever your situation and whenever you are going to be sat in an examination room it is never too early to start getting ready for those tests. Thorough preparation will provide you with a strong foundation and will give you the confidence and belief that you can do them and that you will get the grades you want.
But where do you start and which of the hundreds of study tips and study skill ideas do you use?
I am often asked for my top ten tips when it comes to exam success and over the years I have accumulated many ideas, some of which are more effective than others. However if I were to limit myself to just the top 10 that I felt were the most powerful based on all of the work I have done in this field, here are the ones that I think are the most powerful:
1. Find your own deep and compelling reason to successfully learn your subject and pass your exams.
This really is the most important of the study tips I shall share with you here because your success will be deeply rooted in your motivation to learn. Many kids at school do not want to be there and can’t be bothered to try which is often why they fail. It does not mean that they are unable to learn, it just means that they have not applied themselves to the work at hand. I know that this is often true because I have met literally hundreds of people who “failed” at school by conventional standards yet later in life made the decision to go back to studying a subject because they wanted to do it. And because of their motivation to succeed the did.
So what does that mean to you? Well understand that you are driven by emotional needs and not necessarily logical ones. If we were driven by logic, the world would be a much better place. So you have to find a deep emotional reason for achieving success as a student. And if you can dig deep and find that reason then nothing will stop you because you will find a way.
2. Plan your time to include study, revision and social commitments – a balance of having fun, taking breaks and studying is vital.
Balance is very important to have a successful and rewarding life and the same is true when you are a student. OK you could spend every waking hour reading every book you could find and learning everything you could and yes you would pass your exams provided you had not burnt out. But it would not be fun, you would have no friends and you would definitely be out of balance.
Taking appropriate breaks and giving yourself little rewards when you have finished an essay or learnt something new for your exams is vital for your success. This is because it keeps you in balance and gives you a degree of variety that keeps you fresh and alert. Yes having a night out with your friends is good for you – but only if it is as a reward for doing good work and is as part of your overall plan.
3. Use multi-coloured Mind Maps for your notes.
My friend and mentor Tony Buzan developed the most powerful thinking tool ever (and I am not exaggerating here) when he invented the Mind Map. Imagine being able to get the key facts from an entire book on a single page in a way that was not only easy to remember but would stay in your memory for as long as you wanted it.
Imagine having a thinking tool that allowed you to prepare essays and assignments in a fraction of the time than you do at the moment AND have them much better. Imagine being able to give a powerful hour long presentation from a single page of colourful notes that you put together in about 10 minutes.
Well all these are possible with the Mind Map. It is an amazing tool that combines the power of association, the fact that we have a very strong visual processing mechanism and that it combines right and left brain processing.
I have seen what Mind Maps can do for students of all ages and all abilities and if I had my way it would be a compulsory tool taught to kids from a very young age.
4. Review your notes regularly to reinforce your new-found knowledge.
This is another very simple but extremely powerful tip for you. The experience of most students is that the learning that takes place in the classroom is really an information gathering exercise. When it comes to revising for their exams at the end of the year they go to their notes and often can’t remember ever seeing that information before. They know they must have because the notes are in their handwriting but they can’t remember anything! So the preparation for exams becomes a re-learning exercise.
This study tip is so simple and powerful yet most will not bother. If at the end of every day, every week and every month you quickly scanned what you have learnt, made a few key word notes and then reviewed those ultra-condensed notes regularly, you would be amazed at how much you could remember. This only need take 10 minutes at the end of the day, half an hour at the end of the week and maybe an hour or two at the end of the month.
Each time you review what you have learnt, even in condensed key word format, it is more deeply engrained in your memory.
5. Swiftly skim through your text books and course material before you read them in depth to give you an overview of your subject.
Now there is not enough space here to explain why this tip is important because it is a fundamental part of learning how to read faster and absorb more information. Just trust me on this one and before you start reading, skim through your book (no more than 10 minutes) to get a feel for the contents.
As you read in greater depth later on, some of what you have got from the quick scan will help put into context that information and allow you to make the necessary links in your mind and memory.
Doing this will often stop you from getting stuck at any point because you will have a flavour of what is to come later in the book and this added preview can help the understanding of earlier information.
6. Learn how to remember lists of things by linking each item to a location on a journey or route you are familiar with around your town. You could even use your own home.
At some point, once you have understood your subject, you will need to be able to memorise it. Many people think that just understanding it is enough to learn it but unfortunately that is not the case and so some memorization is necessary.
The most powerful way of doing this is to create a “filing system” in your mind. One way to do this is to create a little journey in your imagination (it can be a real place or you can make it up). See for example the chair, the bed, the TV, the door and the window in your bedroom. If you wanted to remember a sequence of items you would link an outrageous (and therefore memorable) picture to each location.
To recall the information, simply revisit the journey in your own mind and “see” the information in the silly pictures you have created.
7. Before you do any revision, warm up by doing some gentle exercise to relieve any tension in your body and to get a rush of healthy oxygen flowing to your brain.
There is a saying – “a healthy body, a healthy mind” – and nowhere is this more true than when it comes to learning. Two things happen when you physically warm up before studying. First of all you get rid of any physical tension that will create stress in the body and mind (not good for learning) and secondly you will get a rush of oxygen to the brain which will help you think more clearly (definitely good for learning).
8. Do past papers under thorough exam conditions as often as possible to familiarise yourself with the format and the pressures of working under exam conditions.
If you are training in a sport or practicing a musical instrument, you will practice the plays or rehearse the pieces for the big day. It would not make sense to spend months doing push ups and then turn up on the big day and expect to play soccer really well. It would also be unwise to only practice scales on your instrument and then when the big performance comes up expect a perfect recital.
So the same is true of exams. Fortunately these days you can get hold of past exam papers from previous years. Do these, under the same exam conditions, over and over again so that when the big day comes you will have exam experience under your belt.
Doing this will give you more confidence, much better exam techniqe and an insight into how the examiners for your subject think. Remember practice makes perfect.
9. In an exam, make sure you read the question completely and fully understand what the examiner wants before you allocate your time and begin answering the questions.
This is commonsense but you would be amazed at how many people do not do this. Take your time, plan what you are going to write and then write it.
10. If you are faced with a mental block breathe deeply, relax and ask yourself “If I did know the answer to this question, what would it be?”
This might sound silly but if you do it with a positive expectation that your very powerful subconcious will give you the answer, then you will be amazed at what comes to mind. The combination of the breathing, relaxation and expectation is the key. Of course you have had to have done the preparation beforehand because this won’t work with information that you have not previously learnt or covered in class.
So there you have my top 10 tips. Each are very powerful and just doing one of them will make a big difference to your success…but if you do all 10…Wow!
Good luck and please do let me know how these work for you.

Brent Sitton
23

When it comes to home schooling, parents need all of the resources they can muster. Designing curricula, scheduling field trips, and tailoring lesson plans to children in different grade levels can be challenging. Using children’s literature to enrich the curriculum you teach in the home learning environment can be rewarding to both you and your children.
Charlotte Mason, a British educator whose life spanned the last quarter of the nineteenth century and the first quarter of the twentieth century, fervently advocated the use of literature in children’s education. Often referred to as the founder of home schooling, Mason pioneered a liberal arts approach to children’s education. In contrast to the rigid memorization required of students during her time, Mason’s educational theories embraced the concept of instilling a love of learning in children and exposing them to a wide variety of subjects.
Today, many parents use the Charlotte Mason method as a home school resource. Several of Mason’s key concepts relate to reading in the home learning environment. The first is the avoidance of what she termed “twaddle,” or books that today could be called “junk food for the mind.” You’re probably familiar with the type, such as chapter books based on TV shows that use overly simplistic sentences and rely on illustrations, rather than words, to engage a child. Instead, the Mason method opts for children’s literature that is well written and captivates the child’s imagination with words.
Another of Mason’s key concepts that relates to reading is that of “whole books.” She advocated that a child read a book in its entirety, rather than simply reading book excerpts. Any parent of a child educated in the public school system knows that language arts textbooks are typically anthologies of book excerpts. Mason felt that a work should be read as it was written, as opposed to reading only a portion of the complete book.
Narration is a third concept advocated by Mason. In contrast to rote memorization and recitation, or testing that focuses on what a child doesn’t know, Mason felt that children should have the opportunity to explain what they do know. After reading a book, for example, a child could talk about what he or she learned, could write about the book in a journal, or could paint or sculpt a depiction of what he or she learned. Charlotte Mason’s teaching methods are easy and inexpensive to integrate into home education. Developing an effective avoiing “twaddle,” by reading the whole book, and by incorporating narration as a measure of comprehension – is an integral component to the Mason method. Utilizing children’s book reviews will help in this effort, as will broadening the reading experience by incorporating related individual and family activities.

Nicholas Pinhey
471

Using a Scientific Calculator In Mathematics Exams
With exams approaching this is a short article with reminders and advice for anyone about to take a mathematics exam and who will need to use a scientific calculator.The most common calculator problems are:
- setting up the calculator in the right mode
- not being able to find the calculator manual !
- remembering to change calculator modes
- rounding and inaccurate answers
Why Use a Scientific Calculator?
Scientific calculators all use the same order for carrying out mathematical operations. This order is not necessarily the same as just reading a calculation from left to right. The rules for carrying out mathematical calculations specify the priority and so the order in which a calculation should be done – scientific calculators follow the same order. This order is sometimes abbreviated by terms such as BODMAS and BIDMAS to help students remember the order of doing calculations.
1st. Brackets (all calculations within bracket are done first)
2nd. Operations (eg squaring, cubing, square rooting, sin, cos, tan )
3rd. Division and Multiplication
4th. Addition and Subtraction
Being aware of this order is necessary in order to use a scientific calculator properly. This order should always be used in all mathematical calculations whether using a calculator or not.
Scientific calculator check
There are two types of scientific calculator, the most recent type being algebraic scientific calculators. Algebraic scientific calculators allow users to type in calculations in the order in which they have been written down. Older scientific calculators need users to press the mathematical operation key after they have entered the number.
For example to find the square root of nine (with an answer of three) press: [button]
Algebraic scientific calculator: [SQUARE ROOT] [9] [=]
Non algebraic scientific calculator: [9] [SQUARE ROOT] [=]
Both these types of scientific calculator are fine for exams, but make sure you know how to use your type.
If you are not sure whether you have a scientific calculator are not, type in:
[4] [+] [3] [x] [2] [=]
If you get an answer of 14, then you have a left to right non-scientific calculator.
If you get an answer of 10, then you have a scientific calculator as it has worked out the multiplication part first.
Lost Calculator Manuals
Calculator manuals tend to get lost very easily or you can never find them as an exam is approaching. A frequent request is what can you do if you have lost your calculator’s manual? If it is a relatively new model then you can download a copy from the manufacturer’s web site. If it is an old Sharp or old Casio calculator manual then you can probably find one on the internet. Even with search engines, finding these manuals can take some time – use the following quick link for Casio: website and old calculator manuals; Sharp: website and old calculator manuals; Hewlett-Packard calculators and Texas Instruments calculators:
http://www.gcse-maths-revision-cards.co.uk/maths_calculator_exam_paper
Calculator Mode
Now that you have your calculator manual you can set your calculator to the correct settings. The standard settings are usually:
COMPUTATIONAL:
(use MODE button ?choose normal not stat) NOT: SD or REG
DEGREES:
(use MODE or DRG button) NOT: RAD OR GRAD
NORMAL:
(use MODE or SETUP and arrow keys) NOT: FIX, SCI, ENG
Many calculators have a reset button on the back that can be pressed in using a pen or paper clip if you want the original factory settings.
The most common mistake is to leave your calculator in a previous mode and forgetting to CHANGE IT BACK AGAIN ! (We’ve all done it, just try to avoid doing it in the exam !)
Common Calculator Mistakes
(a) Pressing the DRG button by mistake and not doing trigonometry questions in DEGREES mode. (If you are doing more advanced work then forgetting to change out of DEGREES mode !).
(b) Borrowing an unfamiliar calculator or getting a new calculator too close to the exam and not being familiar with the keys and how to change modes.
(c) Forgetting to write down and check work. Any exam with a calculator should have a warning on it! It is essential to write down the calculations that you’re doing so that you can get method marks. You should also try and double check all calculations in case of pressing a wrong button.
(d) Round only at the end of a calculation. Store calculations in the memory and use all the decimal places during calculations. If you use a rounded value too soon then you will lose accuracy.
(e) Forgetting to use brackets on division calculations (e.g. when dividing by ALL the bottom part of fraction).
Many calculators are now very powerful and have amazing computational power. Some of the programmable calculators are mini computers. Although they will all calculate 100% accurately every time, unfortunately they are only as good and as accurate as their operator!
It is often the case that candidates perform better without a calculator as it is very easy to make simple mistakes when using one. If you can do so, it certainly helps to have an idea of the rough size of the answer, so that you can see if an answer is sensible or not. It is also a good idea to repeat all calculations just in case you have made a mistake.

Ruth Wells
409

It may be a new year, but you are probably still dealing with the same old “kid problems.” The bad attitudes, disrespect, peer conflict, lying, school failure or family problems didn’t change when you flipped the page on the calendar. Don’t let last year’s problems create another difficult year. Resolve to stop using last year’s failed solutions, and instead substitute updated, more effective methods like those contained in our books, instant ebooks, workshops and web site. This may be the right moment to stop using methods that didn’t work well in 2005, and will fare no better in 2006. If you don’t decide now to switch to updated, more effective methods, you may continue to find your job discouraging and frustrating, and your students may continue to struggle and be very hard to manage. What better time to make the switch than as you flip the page on the calendar? You might actually discover that working with difficult kids doesn’t have to be so difficult. Resolve in 2006 to try these 6 new ideas to replace some of those worn-out, failed interventions that you should leave behind in 2005:
1. Chronic Problems Don’t Have to Be Chronic
Classic chronic problems– like students misbehaving when they need help– do not have to be “the way it is.” You can change chronic problem areas, and you should, because these problems take a huge toll on you, and on your students.
RESOLVE to Stop Chronic Problems
Here is a brand new intervention to use with students who act out when they need help in class: Teach your students “1, 2, 3, Help Me.” It’s a system that students can use to easily communicate with you when they need help. “1″ means “I can do it on my own.” “2″ means “I need help starting,” and “3″ means “I’m going to need help the whole way through.” Now, even non-verbal students can easily get help without acting-out.
2. Stop Guessing What to Do
Do you want your doctor guessing how to cure your illness? No, you want her to know what to do. Are you guessing why children are mute or absent? Do you wonder how to contain severe acting out? Guessing is often ineffective and can be dangerous. If you have to guess a lot, it may be a sign that your training may not have sufficiently equipped you to understand the increasingly serious emotional and behavior problems that today’s students present.
RESOLVE to Stop Guessing
If you use the same generic interventions with your entire broad range of students, that’s like having a single wrench in your tool box. You would have to use that wrench when you really needed a screwdriver or a hammer. How well would that work? Upgrade your skills with your students to fit all the different types of students and problems that you work with. Start with conduct disorders since conventional methods like character ed, can actually make them much worse– and these are already your hardest-to-manage students. Visit this link to get the introductory basics: http://www.youthchg.com/hottopic.html.
3. Stop Relying on Talk
Students only remember what you say for about 30 minutes, and even then, they tend to remember only about about half of what you said. Verbiage is not the best access channel to reach all students so stop making it your sole or primary approach.
RESOLVE to Use a Wider Range of Modalities
Here is a dynamite intervention that doesn’t rely on what you say. It gets the job done better than mere speech. It’s our popular Poster #37, “If You’re Rude, You’re Our Dude,” reduced in size to become a handout. If you click the link, you will be able to open the handout and then print it to use with your students. It is from our brand new “Behavior Change Handouts: Becoming a Motivated and Prepared Student and Worker” ebook. This series has nearly all our dynamic handouts and you can own and print them in just seconds. You can find the ebook at http://www.youthchg.com/printable.html. You can get the handout version of Poster #37 right here if you have PDF software on your computer: http://www.youthchg.com/poster37.pdf. If you need PDF software, get it free at http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html.
4. Explore the Endless New Tools that Exist
If your tool box contained just a wrench, you’d be so happy to discover hammers and screwdrivers. That analogy may apply to the tools you are using to teach or counsel. Are you aware that there is an endless supply of more effective interventions that could make your job easier and your students more successful?
RESOLVE to Try 1 New Intervention Every Week
Here is an easy way to get 52 new methods incorporated into your skill set. Add a new, improved technique each week. Our Help and Solution Center at our site (http://www.youthchg.com/favori.html) has hundreds of methods that will work better than your old approaches. Here is one to start: Some older students think they “know it all already.” Don’t use the conventional method of confronting that belief. Instead, ask them to explain what “repair and deduct” means when said by a tenant with a bad landlord. Few youngsters will know that term even though it could be terribly important. (It means that a tenant can arrange needed repairs when a landlord has failed to do so– plus the tenant can deduct it from the rent. Don’t know this? You might have to live without plumbing or heat!)
5. Put Technology to Work Solving Your “Kid Problems”
You no longer have to go looking for answers. Now you can make answers come to you. If you haven’t heard about RSS (Really Simple Syndication) you are missing out on the hottest new way to put the internet to work for you.
RESOLVE to Try RSS
It is so easy to learn about RSS. Start with our site’s sign up page at http://www.youthchg.com/education.html. It will explain what RSS is, and let you sign up for our feed. Every time we add new interventions, add a new resource, post another free handout, or publish another issue of this internet magazine, you will be the first to know because you will be alerted by receiving an RSS feed. No more hunting through our huge site to find the new ideas or best methods, they will come to you through RSS. Technology will have done a lot of the work for you.
6. Make Technology Your Assistant
So many of you are being asked to do more with less. Because of recent technological advances on the internet, technology can do automated tasks for you, freeing more time for you to work with students.
RESOLVE to Use RSS Feeds to Save Time
When you want to know the newest requirements of “No Child Left Behind” or what decisions were made by your state Department of Education, you now probably take time to read the newspaper or go to a web site to get an update. RSS Feeds can do that work for you. For example, instead of going to the Indiana Department of Ed site to hunt for the update, you can set up a feed that brings the update to you. You no longer have to read the newspaper to get the news on schools and children. A feed can bring it to you. An example of a news feed that delivers just the news about schools and children, is shown on our web site as an example at http://www.youthchg.com/contact.html. Look for the moving scroller that is most of the way down the page.

Cathy Warschaw
96

Many of us have been told that a college degree is necessary in order to land a satisfying career that has a good salary. However, while experts agree that most careers do require postsecondary training or education, statistics show that only a small percentage of jobs will demand a bachelor’s or professional degree. If you are undecided about whether or not attending a four-year college is right for you, what is a reasonable alternative?
A great option to a four-year college is a vocational training program. Vocational training programs offer specialized instruction to help students develop the knowledge and skills necessary to perform a specific job. In addition, these programs often have small class sizes — which allow for one-on-one communication with the instructor — and are completed in a much shorter timeframe. Many training programs are also offered on the Internet, enabling you to study from the comfort of your own home and on your own schedule.
There are also an unlimited number of careers that can be had through vocational training. A great job such as working the front desk of a dental office is easily achieved through vocational training. Additionally, vocational training prepares students for immediate employment by focusing only on the material that matters; while a four-year college expects students to take a variety of courses that usually have nothing to do with their interests and end up costing them a lot of wasted time and dollars.
On the front and back end, vocational training is much lower in costs than college tuition. Today, the average price of a four-year college is somewhere around $15,000 per year; while a vocational training institution averages 60-80% less. And the costs don’t end at graduation either. Many college students end up paying back hefty loans that they had to use in order to pay for school ?before they even land a job!
In short, it is important to understand now what your choices are for postsecondary education. A great part of graduating high school and becoming a responsible adult is learning to make the decisions that are right for you. So mosey on up to the counter and take a good look at all the options available on the menu before you decide to order what everyone else recommends.
“Changing Lives…One Career at a Time.”

Chris Davis
137

The SAT may be the most important test a student will ever take. When it comes to determining college admissions and awarding scholarships, no single exam is more important. It has recently undergone some major changes, and every college-bound student must pay close attention to the new format.
Partly because of criticism that the old SAT failed as a indicator of college success, the College Board (the makers of the test) have recast the assessment instead as a measure of achievement and college preparation. Its new name, the SAT Reasoning Test, reflects its new emphasis on critical thinking skills needed for college. The changes go far beyond the name. Overall, students are likely to find the new version more challenging than the old.
The new SAT is 3 hours and 45 minutes long and is divided into three parts: Critical Reading, Math, and Writing. Each section contains important revisions from the old version. In the Reading section, the much hated analogy questions have been removed. Instead, students will answer critical thinking questions on a series of passages, ranging in length from sentences to long passages. The Math section now includes Algebra II level problems, in addition to geometry and many other high school level problems. The College Board says that this is to keep pace with the ever more sophisticated high school curriculums, but many students are likely to be unprepared for such advanced work. The multiple choice section and the student response questions of the old version have not been removed. The Writing section will cover grammar usage as well as essay writing skills. Students are allowed 25 minutes for the essay. This may be one of the more worrisome changes for students. Anyone hoping to bluff their way through this part of the test will be disappointed. Two graders will read each essay, and judge it on how well the student’s thesis is developed and supported. Certainly, the addition of the essay makes the SAT a better measure of the skills needed for college level work, but this is a skill that many students just do not pick up from the standard English class.
Clearly, the changes to the SAT make additional preparation, beyond regular course work, a necessity. The simple test taking techniques taught in so many tradition prep courses will no longer be adequate. Smart students will seek out prep courses that also offer tutoring on weak subjects, stress the fundamentals of writing good essays, and provide opportunities to take practice tests multiple times.

Jillian Gregory
65

Are you a first year teacher? Have you taught in the past and are returning to the classroom? Do you crave knowledge about specific tips and tricks that will help your school year run smoothly? You might be brand new to the education scene or have a few years of teaching under your belt. Either way you can learn from teachers, professors, and educators with years of experience in the field of education through audio books.
After grading papers and reading all day long, your eyes may be fatigued. Give your eyes a rest and listen to educational strategy books instead. You can curl up on the couch to listen or learn while commuting home from school. The extra knowledge you can garner from listening to these audio resources is valuable and will affect your teaching in a positive manner.
What audio books should you check out? If you are a first year teacher then you definitely want to listen to “The Essential 55″ by Ron Clark and “Educating Esme” by Esme Raji Codell. The Essential 55 discusses 55 rules that Ron Clark employs in his classroom to great success. Every teacher should be aware of these rules as they will make their teaching experience enjoyable and effective. The rules range from having students properly follow classroom protocols to standing up for what you believe in. He also provides tips for dealing with parents and discipline issues, both of which are a recurring theme in teaching.
In addition, you will want to listen to Educating Esme before your first year of teaching. Many new teachers are excited, but nervous at the same time. Educating Esme provides a hilarious account of a teacher’s first year. Take comfort in the joys, successes, and setbacks that Esme endures during her first year of teaching. This audio book will help inexperienced teachers feel like they are not alone.
Psychology plays an important role in education. You need to understand the needs of each child and fill those needs appropriately. Spend some time listening to “The Education of Children” by Alfred Adler. This timeless book provides insight on personality, social development, and the role of the parent.
Other great audio books to check out are “The Closing of the American Mind” by Allan Bloom, “Cultural Literacy” by E.D. Hirsch, Jr., and “Dangerous Minds” by LouAnne Johnson. You might have seen the movie Dangerous Minds in the 1990′s. Listening to the audio version, with a focus on teaching, will help you succeed in a difficult classroom. By adding these audio books to your listening library, you will cover social issues in education that are hot beds of debate today.
You have stocked your classroom with the basics such as pencils, paper, and textbooks. Now it is time to take your supplies a step further by listening to these entertaining education titles. They are a resource that will prove immensely useful in your classroom experience.

Leonard Williams
525

If you’re planning to take the GED Test soon, it’s essential to understand the essay section since many test candidates find it one of the most difficult aspects of the language arts exam. Understanding what this part of the GED test expects -?and how it’s scored — is an excellent way to reduce difficulty and improve scoring.
The GED, the common term for the General Education Development credential, is the adult’s alternative to a high school diploma. The GED credential is awarded after passing tests in science, social studies, math, and reading and writing, or language arts.
Most of the GED test is multiple-choice. But part of the language arts writing test requires the candidate to write an original essay, based on a provided prompt. The essay will need to make an explanation or present a point of view. Two pages are provided for the essay, but there’s no requirement that all the space is used. Still, at least 200 words are recommended.
Timing for the test is flexible. A total of 120 minutes is allowed for both parts of this language arts exam, with 75 minutes slotted for the 50 questions in part one and 45 minutes slotted for the essay test. However, GED candidates who finish the first part in less time can devote the remaining time to the second part. Or, if more time is needed for the first section and less for the second, a candidate may use remaining time from the essay and return to the multiple-choice section of the writing test.
The essay is scored on a 4-point scale, and scored by two trained GED essay readers.
The two GED readers’ scores are averaged. If the essay receives a score of 2 or higher, the essay score is combined with the language arts multiple-choice score to form a composite. If a GED candidate receives a score of 1 or 1.5 on the essay, there’s no composite score, and the candidate must retake both the essay and multiple-choice portion of the test. GED Essay readers may not be more than one point apart in their scoring. In those cases where the readers are more than one point apart, the chief reader for the GED scoring site will set the score by agreeing with the reader whose score follows the GED Testing Service scale.
Individual essay scores are not reported, but the score accounts for 35 percent of the test.
Essay scoring is based on five areas, and measures the overall impression of the essay:
1. Does the paper respond to the assigned prompt -?did the candidate use the topic on the test, and remain on-topic?
2. Can the reader see or follow an organized plan for development?
3. Are there specific and relevant details to support the paper’s focus?
4. Are the conventions of language (grammar, usage, and mechanics) generally followed?
5. Is the word choice precise, varied, and appropriate?
Here’s a good way to understand these five requirements. The essay is scored on organization, essay focus to the prompt and how well the ideas are developed and supported. The essay is also scored on appropriate English mechanics such as grammar, punctuation, along with word choice and sentence structure. However, the most important measure is organization, focus to the main prompt, and idea development.
Prompts differ from test to test, cover topics of general interest and are not released in advance of the test. Here’s an example of a prompt:
‘What is your most important reason for obtaining the GED credential? How do you think it will help you achieve a goal in the next year? In your essay, identify your most important reason for obtaining the GED and the most important goal you plan to achieve with it. Explain your point of view and support your goal, using your own experience, background and knowledge to support your essay.’
So, what’s the best way to prepare for the essay test? Practice. To best prepare, practice writing two-page essays in the 45-minute time period. Ask for critique and guidance to determine how well your essays are organized, focus on a particular subject and explore ideas that support your main topic. You’ll also want to know that your grammar and use of English mechanics are sound.
Additional Resources
– The American Council on Education, the administrative agency for the GED, provides information about testing, official test sites, GED scores, example test questions and GED transcripts.
– More detailed testing advice is available about the GED test, including the essay exam and scoring at http://www.passGED.com. The website also provides a short movie, with answers to the most common questions about the GED, at http://passged.com/onlinecourses/index_preview113802.htm.

Keith Taylor
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Here’s a way to introduce the structure “used to” to your ESL students.
1 Find or draw on the board a picture of someone who looks like they could have just won some money. A photo from a magazine of someone driving an expensive car, or sitting in a luxurious room, for example, would work well. Give the person a name, and set the scene for your students of someone who has just won the lottery, or elicit it from them (“Why is Jane driving an expensive car?”; “How did she afford her expensive clothes?” etc.)
2 Ask students about Jane’s life after winning the lottery. Depending on the imagination of your students, you might have to prompt them a little (“Where does she live?”; “Does she have a job?”; “Is she happy?”; “Where does she go on holiday?” etc.) Then ask students to describe how Jane’s life was different before winning the lottery (“Where did she live?”; “Was she happy?”; “What was her job?”) After you have built up some facts about Jane’s life before and after her lottery win, put your picture to one side and tell them to remember Jane because you will be returning to her later in the class.
3 Next, as a group, brainstorm important inventions in history. Take one suggestion (it doesn’t matter which one, as this is just an example to model the exercise which will follow). Elicit what life was like before this invention, and how life changed with the invention. For example: “The internet. Before the internet, most people wrote letters, but now most people send emails.”
4 Now put students into pairs and have them think of three more important inventions, what life was like before the invention and how life has changed with it. When they have done this, have each pair share one of their ideas with the class, but this time introduce “used to” by rephrasing their ideas as they give feedback. For example:
Student: “The aeroplane. Before the aeroplane, people travelled long distances by ship. Now they fly.”
Teacher: “Good! So, people used to travel long distances by ship, but now they fly.”
5 After the first round of feedback, students will be starting to catch on, so now do a second round, asking students to use the new structure with their second invention. They will probably still need some prompting, but by the third round of feedback, using their third invention, they should be producing “used to” without too much help.
6 Use one or two of the students’ ideas to highlight the written form of the structure on the board. Don’t forget the question and negative forms!
7 Now it’s time to go back to your picture of Jane. Ask the students if they remember Jane and why she is driving her expensive car. Then ask them once again to tell you about her life before and after winning the lottery, this time using “used to”. (“She used to live in a small flat, but now she has a mansion”; “She used to work, but now she doesn’t”). Be sure to give students plenty of practice with the question and negative forms as well. You could have one student ask another a question about Jane’s old life, and ask some questions yourself that require a negative response.
8 For further controlled communicative practice of “used to”, you could devise a questionnaire about students’ childhood for students to use in pairs. This could contain some prompts, such as “go to school”; “live”. One student in each pair must then form a question (“Where did you use to live?”) and the other must answer (“I used to live in Paris”).
And there you have it, an easy way to introduce “used to” to your ESL students.