Topic: What would be a better alternative to present leadership hierarchy we’ve come to accept in public education?

This week’s #edchat topic was an especially welcome change of pace for me, because once again I was forced to really think about an aspect of teaching that I, as an “outsider” and non-teacher, had never previously considered. I like topics like that. They force me out of my usual style of thinking and put myself in the shoes of someone else.

As someone who studied business in college, I sort of took it for granted that schools would have the same structure and hierarchy as businesses. There would be a couple big-wigs at the top, several layers of bureaucracy below them, and then a legion of teachers (“employees”) that were managed relatively closely but given the appearance of autonomy.

It turns out, I was at least partially right. There are several layers of bureaucracy above teachers, and there is a prevailing sense that teachers don’t exactly have as much autonomy as they need. But the point that I was missing was this: why should schools function the same as businesses? Why should it be this way?

I guess I had figured that the school my father teaches at was the norm. I would hear him complain about all the bureaucracy at his school regularly over dinner. It was just the same type of complaining I imagined I would hear if my father worked in an office or in a factory. There’s always a big boss who has forgotten what it’s like to be an employee. And there’s always stuff to complain about.

The point is, though, it doesn’t have to be that way. There were a few #edchatters this week who said that they were quite happy with their schools’ hierarchy and leadership. They were well supported and those at the top knew how to communicate and prioritize.

Unfortunately, we all know that this is not the norm – not in business and not in education either. The question is: what can we do about that?

Main themes from the discussion:

• Things are too hierarchical. One prevailing theme I saw this week was that there is too much of a division between teacher and administrator. Administrators got to make the decisions, but it was teachers that had to abide by them. That makes teaching really difficult because teachers know that the rug can get pulled out from under them at any moment and they won’t have any say in the matter. That’s not a good way to do things. We need more communication and more collaboration. Decisions need to be made together. In fact, we should even be making more of an effort to involve students and parents in the making of important decisions.
• Administration is out of touch with the needs of teachers. Even though the majority of teachers were very sympathetic towards administration, I did see quite a few complaints that administrators have forgotten (or never knew) what it was like in the classroom. That’s never a good thing. When those in charge of making decisions are out of touch (and collaboration across hierarchical levels is discouraged) they are not likely to make the right decisions. The solution? Have administrators spend more time in the classrooms for observation purposes only. They shouldn’t only show up briefly to judge a teacher and make an arbitrary decision. The “cream of the crop” administrators seem to know this already.
• The way things are is a hold-over from the industrial age. I have heard it said before (and I really do believe it) that many conventions in education were created during the industrial revolution to prepare children for factory work. America has moved way beyond that for the majority of workers, yet still we continue to do things in much the same way as we did “back in the day.” Apparently the educational hierarchy is no different. Why should there really be such a division between principal and teacher? Shouldn’t it be the administration’s job to support the teachers, and not the other way around?
• Is there too much weight on the principal’s shoulders? I was surprised to see so much sympathy for principals during this week’s #edchat. I would have thought that teachers would be ruthless, complaining that these folks get more money for doing less difficult work. Instead, I saw a lot of teachers pointing out that there are simply too many responsibilities for the average principal. And while delegation and prioritization can solve some of those problems, they can’t solve all of them. The solution that I liked best was to split the job in half (or in thirds) and have one principal look after education and the other(s) look after the business side of running a school.
• Sometimes, the current system works very well. It should be mentioned that more than a couple #edchatters seemed genuinely happy in the way their schools ran day-to-day. They felt like their administrators were in touch with their needs and had not forgotten what it meant to be on the front line. This, I think, is a very good point that gets lost in #edchat from time to time. Sometimes, things work out really well. Let’s not forget that there are a lot of great teachers and administrators out there right now, and that in general things are only getting better. The tendency for the elite is to focus on the negatives, but we need to remind ourselves that there are plenty of positives as well.

My favorite tweets from the discussion:

tomwhitby I believe the leadership of schools was set up as an industrial model.

USCTeacher Perhaps we need to look at hierarchy as more of community; something we have access to and can collaborate with?

John_DAdamo I would argue this is not a phenomenon exclusive to public education. Private schools all have layers of bureaucracy as well.

cybraryman1 I personally agree with more collaboration. Must include students, parents, and community in this process.

Mamacita When opportunities for parent input do occur, VERY few parents bother to show up. They seem to prefer whining after the fact.

MrBernia Many schools around the world have a lead teacher rather than a principal. Is our setup just closest to the industrial model?

ShellTerrell Current model has a few make decisions while those who are expected to implement them aren’t included in the decision-making process.

drdouggreen I don’t think superintendent, principal, teacher structure is the problem. It’s all about the vision in this food chain. Principals and superintendents should view teachers as customers whose needs must be met.

PrincipalPC It’s not the model — it is the poor implementation of the model. We are talking about the symptoms, not the disease.

cybraryman1  I always felt there should be two leaders in a building. One for curriculum/learning  and the other for business matters.

rliberni  Much of what principals do is buildings, payroll, and everyday business that all schools have to do, so it would be easy for one “business principal” to do 2 or 3 schools.

John_DAdamo I have seen the 2-headed dragon (two principals) fail because no one was held accountable.

A few resources that were shared:

delta_dc Schools would benefit from structures like this: http://t.co/WF2rKMeC

cybraryman1  Walkthroughs are good ways to learn but I would like to see more modeling by administration. http://t.co/i7LDUk5x

###

To follow the complete discussion, look for the full archive here.  They’re usually posted up by the end of the week.

Looking to discuss #edtech in depth? Check out the LinkedIn group: Edutech Trends, Visions, Passions.

New to #EdChat?

If you have never participated in an #Edchat discussion, these take place twice a day every Tuesday on Twitter.  Over 400 educators participate in this discussion by just adding #edchat to their tweets. For tips on participating in the discussion, please check out these posts:

• Edchat: Join the Conversation
• Using TweetDeck for Hashtag Discussions

More Edchat

• If you would like to join others in transforming the discussion into action, please feel free to join the Edchat group on the Educator PLN ning.
• Jerry Swiatek does an incredible job of posting each archived transcript on the #edchat wiki created by Steve Johnson. This way you can look back at your favorites!
• Find previous summaries here on this blog – see #edchat category on right sidebar
• Follow other Edchatters and make sure you are on this Twitter list if you participate in #Edchat!
• Read summaries of the 7pm EST/1 am CET Edchat discussions.

Challenge:

If you’re new to hashtag discussions, then just show up on Twitter on any Tuesday and add just a few tweets on the topic with the hashtag #edchat.

What do you think? Leave a comment! We would love to hear from you.

guest written by John J. Walters

This is the second “announcement post” I’ve written for TestSoup in about a month.  If we don’t stop soon, our hubris will no doubt become our undoing.  But today we focus on happier things, because today I have the pleasure of announcing to you that TestSoup’s entire flashcard line is now available as apps on Apple’s mobile operating system.  So if you have an iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch, check us out!

The good news is that all these announcements havene’t gone to our heads.  Our apps are the same, low price as the online cards.  I mean, come on!  It’s not often that you can find a convenient way to study for an upcoming standardized test for less than the price of a fancy sandwich.

I won’t lie to you.  We actually have questioned our sanity on that issue.  But our loss is your gain, as they say.  Maybe we’ll wise up down the line, but for right now we’re simply kicking back and enjoying the increased cool factor that comes with being in some way associated with Apple’s lineup.

We’re also working on creating free trials with 10 sample flashcards of each set (for those who like to try before they buy) literally as I type this post, so I expect those to be finished and available quite soon.  Watch our Twitter feed for updates on that.

The goal, as it has always been, is to make test prep affordable, mobile, and intuitive.  We’re still keeping our “sign up and start studying in under 60 seconds” thing going.  We’re just trying to make it so you don’t have to be seated in front of a computer to use our system.  As a side note, if you’re a fan of carrying around 850 page tomes that prove beyond the shadow of a doubt that you are, indeed, studying for the GMAT, then our service might not be for you.

TestSoup means to change the way people study for tests.  We started our quest to end expensive, ineffective, and inconvenient test prep a little over one year ago with our online flashcards and similar apps for the Blackberry operating system.  Now we’re moving forward once again with our iOS apps.  And, before you send me any angry emails, let me be the first to state that our Android apps are already in development.  Patience.

We’re also looking to expand both our offerings and our reach.  Already, more than 25 schools endorse TestSoup as an official way to help improve your scores on standardized tests.  And we’ve started a similar partnership program with qualified tutors.   Finally, if all that isn’t enough for you, we have plans to begin working on eBooks and online quizzes in a continuing effort to make studying more interactive and more efficient.  So stay tuned.

Mondays are busy days for me.  Unfortunately, they are also the days that I am most prone to distractions, with the possible exception of Fridays.  When you work in an office, distractions like funny websites and coworkers to chat with can be a problem.  When you work at home and can technically do whatever you want without anyone knowing, distractions can become a disaster.  Students find themselves in an awkward place here: they are constantly asked to do work at home — and they aren’t even getting paid for it!

When I was in school, there were certain things I had to do if I wanted to get any real studying done.

1) Listen to music without words. On the other hand, I knew a lot of people who could only study in complete silence.  Whatever works.

2) Find a place where you have to be productive. For me, this was either the library or my desk at work, which involved a lot of down time.  At either of these places, distractions were at a minimum for me, and the more I got used to studying in these places the more natural it felt.  Find these places for yourself.

3) Silence the phones. How much studying are you going to get done if you’re chatting?  Remember, the sooner you get things done the sooner you can catch up with people.  Let that be your motivation.

4) Schedule your day. I had to plan when I would work and when I would take a break in advance.  Trying to “catch as catch can” always led to forgotten assignments.  I used (and still use) daily to-do lists to keep myself on track.

5) Only work when you’re productive. Some days I know that I’m not going to get much done.  So I take care of the bare minimum and do some rescheduling to be more productive the next day.  This way I’m not fighting my own inertia.  I also try to work/study only during the day, because after dark I am completely useless and would much rather goof off.  If you’re better at working during the night, try scheduling your personal time during the day and your work time after dark.

Remember, the habits you make now will dictate how you work in the future.  If you spend four years getting used to procrastinating and scraping by then those will be hard habits to break.

If you want some more concrete tips, here are two excellent articles I found (that pretty much say the same things but differently).  The first states things more generally (take short breaks, limit inputs, start the day off right, etc. etc. etc.) while the second has some great tips with a more specific “business feel” to them.  I recommend them both.

To close, I’d like to bring up an idea that I first learned from a high-school history professor.  He was diagnosed with ADHD as a child but his parents didn’t believe in medicating him for this.  So instead, they taught him to meditate.  He learned a number of quick meditation techniques that he would use before (and during, if necessary) every test he took to help him stay focused.

So arm yourself against distractions with some of these basic tips while finding what works for you alone.  Then you’ll be ready the next time they strike.

I’m always amazed at how excited people get when their classes get cancelled.  Here you are at an expensive university, paying good money to get a quality education, and yet you get excited when you miss out on a chance to learn something?  Something’s not right here.

College is not supposed to be a mere extension of high-school, where you pretty much are rewarded for how well you can regurgitate information in a form that matches your textbook or your teacher’s PowerPoints.  That’s basic education, where you learn the building blocks necessary for participation in a world that revolves around knowledge.  But college is higher education, where you learn to think critically in a way that can actually advance the knowledge that’s already out there.

Think of higher learning like the Beatles thought of love: where in the end the love you take is equal to the love you make.  Sure, you can still scrape by doing the minimum: signing up for the easy classes, registering for the easy major, and choosing the most lenient professors.  But in the end all you will have is a diploma and not much else to show for your four years in college besides a lot of goofy pictures of you and your friends holding solo cups and cigarettes.

My dad, a professor at Loyola University Maryland, always said that what you’re paying for in college is not the classes but the opportunity to be around a lot of smart, motivated students and professors.  Your course work and textbooks are important, to be sure, but less so than all the chances you have to engage others in intelligent conversation and to find something that you’re passionate enough about to devote the bulk of your life working on it.

The habits and relationships you make there will set the tone for the rest of your life.  Are you going to be content doing the bare minimum to get a decent grade and collect a pay check or are you going to want more?  If the never-satisfied culture of America has anything to say about the matter, you’re going to want more.  How do you get it?  By working hard to discover and self-actualize.

My system for studying was a little different than most of my friends.  Instead of cramming for tests I would take careful notes during class and while I read my textbooks.  Then I wouldn’t look at them until after the test was over.[1] That way my grade was an accurate reflection of how much of the material I actually understood.  It felt weird to study for a test that I had already taken in the beginning, but it eventually gave me a much better grasp of the material that stayed with me long after the course was over.

I’m not sure I would recommend a strict adherence to my unique policies to everyone — my GPA (a cumulative 3.5) lagged behind the 4.0s that many of the others in my advanced business program.  But I would recommend working hard to really get involved in your education so you get the most you can out of it.

There are thousands of over-qualified candidates to jobs these days with excellent GPAs.  These days, the way to get ahead is through a voracious appetite for education and self-improvement that will be evident long after your formal studies have concluded.  But you have to start cultivating that as early as possible, or overcoming your own inertia will be a difficult task indeed.  So stop celebrating class cancellations and start working on finding which parts of your schooling get your excited.  Challenge yourself and you will be rewarded, if not with a perfect grade then with a life you enjoy.

Going to school and running a small business have a lot in common.  You’re always supposed to be doing at least ten different things, talking to ten different people, and making time to do even more later on.  There’s never really a moment when you can say, “Alright, everything is done.  Let’s take a nap.”  It’s a busy, hectic life.

On the other hand, both attending school and running a business can be very rewarding.  We are often asked to do things quite outside of our range of experience, and in rising to the occasion we find that we are actually more capable than we may have previously thought.  There is a great sense of achievement in growth and accomplishment.

So how do you manage both?  You could put things on hold, but if you’re the entrepreneurial type (or the type who reads up on study tips online) it’s safe to say you’re not the type of cook who likes to keep things slowly bubbling on the back burner.  You have to find a way to do both and, as we find when we attempt to most things in life, almost nothing is impossible.

I stumbled across an interesting (although simplistic) article on running a business while studying on Twitter today.  It’s amazing what you can find just by searching for a word like “studying” on that site — the sheer quantity of new information and different perspectives boggle the mind.  Anyway, following a rule I read somewhere on the internet that says that 80% of everything (including this) is crap, the article basically can be boiled down to the following.

Studying is hard.  Running a business is hard.  But you can do both!  How?  By following these three hints:

1)  Make time for both — this means actually make a schedule and adhere to it.  “Catching as catch can” may sound appealing but it results in too many missed opportunities, forgotten assignments, and rushed jobs.

2) Remove distractions — I know I just told you how much I love Twitter, but I must confess that I am much more productive when I don’t let myself surf the net between every item I check off my daily to-do list.

3) Stay organized — buy yourself a planner (or use an electronic one) and keep it up to date all the time.  Streamline the way you file important documents to avoid clutter or the loss of important data.  Make an effort to be like “that overly neat guy/girl” you know.

The article stops there, but I would add another item to the list: be adaptable.  In school, professors change their minds about assignments, classes fall behind (or move ahead), and group meetings require constant rescheduling.  Business is much the same.

Things rarely move at the same rate as you might expect.  That’s why you need to be ready to make use of each and every available moment.  A few spare minutes in a waiting room is a great time to answer work emails or study if you subscribe to a service like TestSoup.

Last but not least, set daily, weekly, and monthly goals for both your studies and your business so that you always have a clear picture of what you could be doing to achieve them when life throws you a curveball.  Then, when it inevitably does, you’ll be ready to take advantage.

I have said it before and I will say it again: sadly, summer is coming to a close. So, there is no time like the present to reflect on it right!? Let’s take a journey through your summer internship. How do you decide if it was worth it? Was it worth your time, your efforts, your free labor? Here are a few simple steps to help you decide.

1. Look at the cost versus the benefit. How many hours did you work? Where did you work? A lot? Not much? Somewhere in the middle? BUT, how much did you gain; either monetary or experience. Personal example my internship called for approximately 10 hours a week, unpaid. However, the experience I gained from the opportunity was priceless. A few things I learned were how to effectively market a product using social networking like Twitter and Facebook; provide feedback as well as look at mock-up websites or product logos with a critical eye; and that it is ok to make a mistake as long as you learn from it.
2. Evaluate your relationships. How would you rate your boss on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the best)? We you in agreement with the decisions and business practices of your boss? Did you respect the way situations were handled and did her/her share the same mutual respect for you? Personal example: I felt and still do feel very involved in the company/product I worked with this summer. I receive update emails regularly and have been included on teleconference calls with the board of advisors and was able to speak and share my thoughts. Additionally, I know I have made a long-term contact with not only my boss but with the company. I feel as though I was a part of its building and whenever I look back on it and see its progress I will know I was a part of it and that is where my real hands-on learning/experience began. In other words, I will know who and what to thank!
3. Remain in contact. Once your internship ends, do you feel a desire to remain in contact with your product/task and/or boss? Do you feel connected to it in some way? Personal example: in years to come I plan on looking back on my internship company and seeing how far it progressed after my time. In fact, I plan on checking on it and even using it within the next academic year!
4. Resume. Do you feel as if your resume deserves a new section called Internships? Did you learn enough and perform well enough to add this to your resume and as a possible reference? Do you feel that you, even in a short period of time, required a wealth of skills to utilize in the academic setting but also in the real world (like for your next internship or job)? Personal example: My summer internship was my first formal one. It was a very positive experience and provided me with a  wonderful sense of the real world, accelerating my drive even more to do my best and get out there and make my mark as soon as possible.

All in all, summer and/or any internships are great. They provide everyone with valuable learning experience, especially in the area of communication. However, I will leave you with my one line of caution before accepting an internship: get a BlackBerry before your internship!

These days it is more difficult than ever before to stop working.  Nearly all of us are carrying around miniature computers that allow us to receive calls, check emails, and access our company’s website 24-7.  While we love our blackberries, iPhones, and androids for how much easier they make things, we also curse them for being such unforgiving masters of our work life.

This age of constant communication is a boon for business but can be a major source of stress for employees.  Americans have never been great at taking all of our vacation days, but at this point more and more people aren’t even allowing themselves a vacation at all.  The pressure to perform, especially when so many have been laid off, drives us to push too hard.

There are lots of people talking about this already, often on a macro scale.  What do we do when we find that our lives have grown too busy; too complex?   Simplify, simplify, simplify — right?  But easier said than done.

The important thing to understand about this “go go go” lifestyle and work ethic is that it has immediate, short-term effects on the quality of our output on top of the long-term, “stressed-out” feeling we get from being our own slave drivers.

In short: there is as much a need for us to simplify in our day-to-day schedule as in our lives in general.  Cluttering each day with so many little time-sinks is the stress-inducing equivalent of having too many possessions.  The stress that they create just isn’t worth it, and more importantly they make us worse at paying attention to the stuff that really matters.

Change does not have to be a radical, life-altering sacrifice.  It can begin as a simple effort, each day, to take some time to yourself to make sure that you’re not running yourself ragged.  Sometimes one of the most productive things you can do is choose to be truly unproductive for a short while so that you can come back to your work refreshed and ready to start again.

What works for you may be completely different from what works for other people, but the basic idea of taking a break every now and again — a real break — is solid across the board.  Do some experimentation to find how you decompress most effectively.  And, to get the ball rolling, here are a few suggestions.

America’s most reliable network maybe be Verizon, but YOUR most reliable network is YOU.

You are what you make of yourself. You create your future. You have to weave the web that becomes your catcher’s mitt for contacts.

Here are some tips to master the art of networking:

1. When you meet a good contact, KEEP it. Make sure you always follow up and never let an extended period of time go by without contact. Always send an update and let them know that you are thinking of them and have their best interest in mind. Never forget about the RELATIONSHIP. Never be selfish; do not focus on yourself! Put your customer’s/contact’s needs FIRST. Make sure they know you have their best interest in mind. Never lose track of who you are trying to please… THE CUSTOMER, not yourself!
2. Keep your address book safe! Once you have developed a reliable and respectful list of contacts (it will always be ongoing) make sure you keep your records straight. Make sure you know a bit of history of the contact, get the spelling right, and make sure you keep the email address and phone number safe!
3. Speak the same language as your contact. No, this does not mean literally, but more important, figuratively. If your contact is working with you on a business endeavor, and is a computer wiz, make sure you know a little bit about computers! Personal example: Working with TestSoup and being responsible for a lot of web marketing such as Twitter, I knew it was an subject area I was unfamiliar with. So, I did some research and bought a book written by TK (General Partner of WV,LLC) called Web Advertising and Marketing. I have been reading it and it has genuinely improved my knowledge and understanding.
4. Make a killer FIRST and ALWAYS impression. (Notice how I did not say LAST)! Always dress in Business casual. For example, you can wear jeans, but pair them with a pair of heels like dressy ankle boots (for females!) and or dressy flats. Try to arrange a top that is accompanied by a blazer or tailored jacket. Make sure your hair is in place and makeup neat. Accessorize with jewelry and maybe a scarf but do not be overly gaudy or flashy. You are not going out to a party, but to a business meeting. Try to dress and act on the same playing field as the person you are meeting with. Last but not least…always be prepared!:

• Have all recent emails printed out in date order
• Turn your cell phone on SILENT and put it away
• Have plenty of highlighters, pens, and post-its
• Have your planner out and ready to schedule a next meeting!

5. Be sure to begin and end the meeting in a professional manner. Greet your company with a firm handshake and close the meeting by thanking your guest for their time and remind them what a pleasure it is working with them. Be sure to remind them that you will be in touch!

From a very young age it is so important to have a goal in mind whether it is athletically, academically, or socially. Goals are what you get places in life. Without goals, we would not have motivation.

Here are a few ways to draw your  personal, educational  roadmap:

1. Select an ultimate destination. For example, Harvard Business School.

2. Learn everything you can about the destination like:

• Where is it?
• How long does it take to get there?
• How do I get there?
• How long can I stay?
• What does it have to offer me?
• What do I have to offer it?

3. Using step two, find directions.

•  Seek out a great high school: public or private. If you know you want to study business, research schools that specialize in business tracks. For example, each high school in my district specializes in one area of study like Global Studies, ROTC, Humanities, Business, Law, Communications, etc.
• When you arrive at your respective layover (high school), take as many additional specialized classes as you can to further your knowledge base. For example, don’t stop at Microeconomics…take a Marketing elective or a Website Design class.
• Once your reach that crucial junior year in high school: BE PREPARED for the SAT/ACT. By that time, TestSoup will have its’ SAT/ACT flashcard system up and running!
• After you dominate the college admissions tests, you begin the search.

4. Repeat step 1-3 but this time as it applies to College. Extra Tips:

• Research alumni networks; measure the strength
• Research job placement rates
• Research graduate schools alumni attended
• Read Extra! Extra! Be all about it: The First Year College Experience

5. Arrive at your destination and share your experience with others!

College is no easy transition…for anyone! New place, new people, new opportunities! The key: never let the door close…always OPEN it!

Now that you know how to tackle your anxiety and manage your time, you can certainly MASTER your first year of college. Here are a few tips to guide you to the top (academically, professionally, and socially):

1.Check your email! The first week of school is PRIME time for clubs and activities to solicit you to join them! Actually READ your email! You never know if you only read the subject line! *Personal example: First week of school, I checked my email and found out about SIFE(Students in Free Enterprise) which soon granted me the opportunity I have today working with TestSoup!

2. Read your school’s newspaper/magazine. Even if you only scan the top story headlines, at least you will know what is going on around campus. If you have mastered planning, it is likely that your friends will look to you for plans and or advice around school. You can be the one who is the responsible source for information.

3. Form relationships with your professors up-front. Make it a point to attend their office hours to introduce yourself and do not be shy: ASK QUESTIONS! Professors are passionate about learning and even more passionate about students who crave the same educational success they do. Students can also help professors and educators improve their teaching style and influence the way they approach topics.

4. Always be ahead of the game (sometimes even the professor!) Never wait until the last minute to complete an assignment! Always do it as far in advance as possible, this way if any confusion arises, you can clarify it! You may also save the rest of the class (and maybe the professor) from making the same mistake you did (ie. Typo or unclear directions).

5. Do not be shy as a freshman, or any college student with inexperience. In college, drive matters more than age. Just because you are a freshman, it does not mean you cannot be a leader. Go the extra mile and put yourself out there. If something interests you and you feel passionate enough about it, go for it! *Personal example: September of my freshman year, I became Project Manager overseeing 5 teams (20 total people) working on 5 of Wasabi Ventures, LLC startup companies (TestSoup included!). It was great experience and led me to become co-President of SIFE for the upcoming academic year.

6. Participate! In class, especially in a bigger school, make sure the professor and classmates know your name! A name to a face is very important now and down the road. Participation also demonstrates confidence. A student with confidence is one to admire.

7. Communication is KEY: with friends, professors, advisors, etc. Socially, keep in contact with friends and develop relationships. Relationships and your own support system are very helpful in college when discussing goals, personal lives, and during stressful exam times! Academically, keep in touch with your most talented and influential professors-you never know when you will need a reference or a friendly face to chat. In terms of advisors, especially if you hold a leadership position of any sort, retain contact and always encourage new ideas and never stop developing new ideas. Most of all, don’t forget about your forever-supportive family at home

8. Back to Planning is Proactive: PLAN AHEAD! Bring an umbrella, always have your graphing calculator, and highlighters are MUST! Most importantly, combine your Time Management skills with these new skills and prepare for ALL EXAMS/Quizzes/Papers AHEAD of TIME! For example, by Junior year (if not sooner) start planning for Graduate School. Create a favorites folder in your web browser for top B-Schools, Med Schools, or one of your choosing.  In accordance, plan for your admissions by seeking references, editors/critiques for résumés, and admissions essays. Last but certainly not least, prepare for ENTRANCE EXAMS such as GMAT, GRE, or even AF PDG in advance! Your best resource is for this kind of test prep is TestSoup. TestSoup provides AFFORDABLE, FAST, and ACCESSABLE test prep with its web and mobile based flashcards: BlackBerry ready(iPhone and Android coming soon!) Check it out! Try 25 Free today! www.testsoup.com