Topic: What should a report card look like to provide information to parents?

Since I’m not a teacher and it’s been quite a while since I paid attention to my grades (by college I had stopped caring about grades and started focusing on what I was learning, understanding, and retaining), I didn’t think that I would get much out of this week’s #edchat. Then again, I am going to have a kid in school soon, and I can’t imagine not caring about his report cards when he brings them home.

I’m actually really looking forward to my step-son’s report cards when he starts kindergarten later on this year. As far as I can tell, that’s the age where we really have report cards nailed down. From what I hear, kindergarteners (and even first and second graders) don’t really get grades. They get stars, happy faces, and other little trophies for good behavior or for demonstrating that they’re learning in some way. It’s not really so much about achievement as it is about heart.

Of course, at some point kids need to grow up and learn that the world is about achievement (and many other things). But are we rushing it? Is it misleading to start giving kids A’s, B’s, and C’s while they’re still in elementary (and even middle) school? What does that actually accomplish?

There are tons of #edchat participants who are outspokenly “anti-test.” I think that’s reasonable. Anyone who reads anything about education in this country knows that most teachers (and parents, and students) are getting fed up with the amount of standardized tests we put our kids through – and with the importance we ascribe to them. But as it turns out, I’m not the only “wacko” out there wondering if we’re overdoing it with the grading too.

We heard from plenty of teachers this week who think that grades are simply not the best way to communicate with parents or the best means of summarizing a student’s abilities. And that’s really what report cards and grades are for, right? It’s not like they go anywhere else but home to be signed and off to college admission offices to be reviewed.

As with all good #edchat experiences, this one serves as only the beginning of a much larger discussion. As Tom Whitby pointed out to me, the best part of #edchat is what comes afterwards. Reforming report cards is yet another item we can add to the list when we finally get around to making real changes to our archaic educational system.

Main themes from the discussion:

• How relevant are report cards, really? David Wees asked where they came from, and then later on pointed out that “back in the day” they used to be reports of how many biblical verses each student had memorized. Arguably, they’ve come a long way since then (and so have most average students), but are they really necessary? Couldn’t we replace them with something like an online portfolio or with weekly email updates on student progress? Personally, I think we could (or at least we could supplement them with these things), but it seemed like most teachers were hesitant to throw what may be the only fool-proof means of parental involvement out the window. At least, until every family has home internet.
• We need them, but they need to change! Admitting that we need report cards, are they okay in their current format? The resounding answer to that is “NO!” Everyone had one quibble with them at least, and most had many. I can’t even begin to summarize all the complaints that were voiced, so I will remind you to look for the archive of this conversation when it goes online.
• We need less of an emphasis on grades. This was one of the main points against report cards that nearly everyone agreed on. While there were a couple folks who stood by grades as a means of motivating and ranking students, many others were quick to point out how completely subjective grades are (an A in one district might be a C in another), and how they’re just as likely to demoralize a student as they are to motivate him. Still, asking all schools to do away with grades on report cards is not going to happen, especially because colleges use them as a major determining factor when selecting applicants.
• We need more of an emphasis on personalized comments. If we’re stuck with grades, how can we make report cards useful? One of the biggest points I heard a lot of people making this week was that we need to get rid of standardized comments because they mean almost nothing. Of course, the corollary to this is that teachers need to provide much more individualized feedback for each student. This can get time-consuming, and as we all know teachers aren’t exactly made of free time as it is. I suggested that we should have teachers create audio reports on each student instead of taking the time to type something up. This would allow parents to get more feedback than they would normally get on a report card without being entirely too burdensome on the teacher. Others suggested reviving the lost art of the parent-teacher conference.
• Report cards are only one way for teachers and parents to communicate. One final point that I feel needs to be emphasized (because I saw it come up more than once this week) is that report cards should not be the only time a teacher communicates with parents. It should never be a surprise when a parent opens up their child’s report card – especially if that student is struggling. Teachers need to remember to involve parents early and often, even though this can be one of the more difficult components of the job. But hey, nobody ever said teaching was easy, did they?

My favorite tweets from the discussion:

<> Good questions:

cybraryman1 I feel we have to start with what do parents want on a report card?

MertonTech How relevant is a quarterly report card when we have the ability to have access to a live report card via the internet?

davidwees Does anyone know when and where report cards first developed? What’s the history of the report card?

cybraryman1 Should grades be replaced by teacher comments & individualized assessment?

jheil65 Hasn’t the existing ed system made grades the endgame? Learning takes a back seat to grades and standardized tests.

<> Good answers:

TeachersNet Reports should be 1. frequent, 2. succinct, 3. report progress measured against past performance, and 4. show standing regarding grade level.

GTConsultant Parents in my districts don’t even look at report cards with the online grades they look at everyday!

davidwees ”The best report cards are the ones where the teacher speaks up. They’re personal. A grade – it just doesn’t say enough.” @John_Merrow

cheflincoln Report card should look like a Job Evaluation! Isn’t employability and not gamesmanship the goal?

MertonTech Portfolios of work. Students choose what they think is their best work.

<> Less grades, more comments:

jheil65 @mikevigilant My problem with grades is that there is no direct connection between grades and learning. . . Learning should be primary!

davidwees What the modern report card needs is not more numbers, but more meaningful information.

aaronmueller A modern report card should do away with canned comment codes. Online reporting can allow students to see “big picture feedback.”

VanessaSCassie Love the idea of a “work ethic” column on the report card.

Caplee62 Yep, my school had no grades. At first parents confused and then they loved it.

<> A few resources:

cybraryman1 My Parent-Teacher Communication page:http://t.co/zvwQ21nJ

delta_dc I like to use the analogy of a trip:http://t.co/QoHOBtZ3

davidwees ”What mattered in 1825 on your report card was how many lines of scripture you had memorized.”http://t.co/0C9yGqZY

cheflincoln Has anyone mentioned Shawn Cornally andhttp://t.co/Hisz9eDW his SBG gradebook? Worth a look!

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.

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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.

Topic: Is blended coursework, a combination of face-to face class time and online study, a viable option for secondary education?

I had a little catch-up work to do before this week’s discussion, mostly because I had no idea what “blended coursework” (or Blended Learning, BL, as it was referred to by most) actually was.  So, assuming that you might be a newbie like I was, let’s do a quick review of some definitions.

Blended learning (also referred to as hybrid learning, but that’s less common nowadays) is education by way of a combination of in-person classes and online coursework.  It differs from distance learning in that the students do meet with their professor in person, regularly.  And it differs from “standard learning” (my own silly term) in that not all required coursework is done in the classroom with the instructor.

“Now, hold on a second,” you might be thinking.  “That sounds a lot like what my kids already do at school!  They go into school to work with their teachers all day and then they come home and do homework on the computer.”  And I must admit, you have a point.  Indeed, it would be difficult to imagine a school that doesn’t make some use of the massive educational resource that is the internet for high-school and college students.

But the question is: should we increase our reliance on the internet?  Can some classroom time be ditched in favor of online education?  And, of course, would the change be a positive one?

The question is a timely one.  More and more schools are taking advantage of the plethora of free or very cheap resources available online as a way to maintain educational standards while cutting education budgets.  Others are embracing technology simply because they recognize the awesome potential of it.  And then, of course, there are those that are reluctant to change.

It was a lively discussion – and one that teachers, administrators, and education bloggers will be continuing for years and years to come.

Main themes from the discussion:

• We already do this.  There were a good number of teachers who pointed out, quite rightly, that they already take a blended approach to their classrooms.  They have “flipped” their classrooms to allow students to work on what is traditionally homework in class and watch/listen to lectures at home.  Or they have incorporated wikis and blogs into the curriculum.  Or they have made assignments and notes available online, and require their students to turn things in via email or a drop box.  Truly, the possibilities are limitless, and what’s nice is that you can choose what you want to “outsource” and what you want to keep old-school.  It’s very adaptable.
• What do we lose with less face-to-face interaction?  This question was brought up later in the discussion by David Wees, but I put it towards the top because I think it merits a prominent place in our thoughts as we head down this road.  It is undeniable that face-to-face interaction is a big part of education.  I remember being told by my parents (both teachers) that college was mostly about interacting with a lot of smart people; not so much about classes.  Preserving that sense of community in school is important, and we need to take care not rely too heavily on technology and forget what people add to the equation.
• What do we gain with blended learning?  On the other hand, using the internet and other technology for educational purposes carries with it some undeniable and awe-inspiring advantages.  For one thing, you get to draw from a much larger pool of knowledge when you’re not limited to just what the teacher knows.  Students also can work at their own pace more, push themselves in more diverse directions, and collaborate with people that would normally be totally left out.  Truly, the possibilities are endless, and I highly recommend going through the archive of the conversation (when it’s up) and reading all of them, as most people in the conversation chose to focus on the positives.
• What about the underprivileged?  Of course, no #edchat would be complete without a discussion of what to do for those students without access to the internet or a computer at home.  This is a theme that comes up week after week in #edchat, and while I don’t think it is an issue that can or should be easily or quickly dismissed, it is also one that I think is partially irrelevant.  Should we limit progress until everyone can join?  If so, that puts serious restrictions on what progress can be made.  Also, several people brought up some good ideas for what to do to help those underprivileged students, and I have copied several of them in the section below.

My favorite tweets from the discussion:

delta_dc What problem is blended learning trying to solve? And how can we be sure that it is solving it?

Trinity6215 @cybraryman1 My MS child has online learning. She enjoys the net, but LOVES her teachers.

kstansberry Un-blended learning is audacious in the assumption that the teacher/school/textbook is the font of all knowledge.

simplyserina Blended learning helps to cultivate and teach digital literacy, which is essential in the now and future workplace.

delta_dc Isn’t all learning blended? A combination of teacher-student mentorship, student-student interaction, and student self-study?

davidwees I think we need to remember: no one model works for everyone.

littleacorn72 I think that BL is a spectrum and teachers can choose what works best for their students/class.

ShellTerrell @MikeGwaltney @davidwees It all boils down to the training. Teachers who understand how to implement will do it effectively.

davidwees @blairteach Almost everyone in #edchat is already talking about what we gain, and very little discussion about what we lose.

MertonTech From participating in #edchat for a long time now, some concepts are echoed almost every time. Like tech access for the poor.

MertonTech Blended learning can happen anywhere, including 100% contained in the classroom.

pamwesely What if schools (and students at home) don’t have reliable online access? What are options to help with blending?

mikevigilant Until everyone in the district has internet access at home, I just think this whole blended/flipped/whatever is a nonstarter for us.

cybraryman1 @mikevigilant I know it is not the panacea but students can work with others who have access. Wish all had access.

bwasson @mikevigilant I never had a newspaper subscription at home, but still had to do multiple weekly current events assignments using one.

blairteach This whole notion of not doing something until everyone can do it disturbs me. Get the crowd moving and pick up the stragglers.

mr_isaacs Seems like every #edchat topic has the caveat that teacher’s must be willing to give up some control. I see a pattern.

ShellTerrell One of the easiest blended learning tools I show teachers to use that has a lot of buy-in are wikis!

cybraryman1 My Blended Learning (BL) page: http://t.co/YKHzR93H

TestSoup @mikevigilant I know the blogger Iserotope teaches underprivileged students and uses a BL model. http://t.co/Sw5cxuXk JJW

CTuckerEnglish I blog about my experiences teaching BL & have excerpts from my book (The Perfect Blend) — out in June catlintucker.com.

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.

I know the title is lame, but it’s also true.  Sometimes life is like that.  Let me give you a run-down on what the Campus Challenge is and you can decide if you agree with me.

You know all those nifty apps that you use on a daily – even hourly – basis on your smartphone?  Well they all have to be developed by somebody.  TradeKing is an online broker that is challenging students to become the “somebodies” who develop those apps with a contest called Campus Challenge.   They tried this program at Loyola University Maryland during the spring of this year, and now they’ve rolled it out nationwide – this time with $100,000 in prizes available!

The idea is fairly simple:  Develop an app that runs on any platform, designed in any language, which utilizes the Tradeking.com application programming interface (API) either alone or in combination with other APIs from Facebook, Twitter, Yahoo Finance, etc.  In other words, build a better online or mobile investment “mousetrap.”  Oh, and did I mention that the contest is only open to students?

That part alone is already pretty cool.  I always love the idea of teams competing to solve a problem in the best way possible.  Not only does each team learn a lot in the process, but the awareness that they are competing with other teams drives each group to perform to the best of their abilities.  Some really amazing stuff comes from contests like this.

But what makes Campus Challenge “way cool” to me is how my alma mater, Loyola University Maryland is involved.  It’s one of only five schools (out of the 30 teams that have entered) that is weaving the contest right into the classroom instead of setting up extra-curricular teams.  That mean students are doing this as their class work, not in addition to it.

This, to me, is the future of education.  Why should it be that students create nothing of value to the world outside of their university until after they’ve graduated?  It’s a totally artificial barrier.  In fact, why aren’t we challenging students to contribute to the “real world” right from the beginning?

I see contests and opportunities like this as a great step towards that happening.  The face of education is changing, and it is all thanks to schools being willing to step outside of what is considered “normal” and companies like TradeKing who believe that students can make a difference too.

Check out the Campus Challenge website here.  If it sounds intriguing to you, see what you can do to get your school to participate in a contest like this one next year!

As I write this, I am preparing to participate in my first ever #edchat on Twitter.  Is it normal to be nervous about online conversations?  I jumped into the fray at ISTE11 without much difficulty at all, and those were real, live people!  What’s the difference, really?

Perhaps it’s that the #edchat hashtag always yields a bazillion and one search results, even when it’s not technically going on (Tuesdays at noon and 7 pm EST).  I can’t imagine how much crazier things will get when I’m trying to participate live.

In preparation, I sent out a tweet asking if I should just listen for a while (something referred to as “lurking” in the online forum community) or just wade right on in.  Shawn Douglas of WritEdiTeach advised me to, “Break out the hip waders and go for it! Twitter chats can be a bit rambunctious.”  So that’s the plan, then.

It’s almost time to begin.  I’ll put this blog post on hold for the next hour.  Everything below the number signs is coming from a slightly older (and presumably slightly wiser) version of me.

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I think the only way to sum up an experience like that is: “Wow.”  There is so much enthusiasm and so many great ideas being thrown around every minute during #edchat that you can’t possibly keep up with all of them – at least not as an inexperienced newbie such as myself!

Still, it’s an absolutely worthwhile endeavor if you care about education.  You get to rub “e-elbows” with some of the most committed educators out there, and the flurry of links and great snippets of conversation should be enough to propel you back into your classroom with an incredible amount of force.

There’s also a couple ways that you can help stabilize yourself amidst the chaos.  Berni Wall, for example, has a blog that seeks to summarize each individual #edchat conversation (or point you towards blogs that do) that should definitely be added to your RSS feed even if you can’t participate in the conversations or you don’t ever Twitter.  Reading up might give you a better inclination of what to expect.

In the end, though, the best advice was to just strap on the hip-waders and get messy.  Participate in conversations.  Share ideas.  Meet new people to follow and pay attention to.  Just plug in and try to get as much out of it as you can.  I know I did, and I know it’s something that I’ll be doing every week from now on.

I also hear there’s something called #collegechat.  Got to check that out as well…

We live in exciting times when it comes to educational technology.  Not only has technology been getting better and better for many years (at a nearly exponential rate), it has also gotten significantly more affordable.

But with the rise of technology comes downsides too.  For one thing, distractions abound, from smartphones to online social networks to television to videogames.  People — especially young people — spend hours upon hours each and every day staring at screens and interacting with devices that even science fiction writers wouldn’t have predicted would exist 20 years ago.

And it’s starting to show.  Student achievement is falling or remaining stagnant by all measures.  Why is this?  Is it because students themselves are less capable?  Hopefully not.  They certainly have all the necessary tools for success at their disposal.  The resources possessed by the average school today are far and away better than those of a “good” school from many years ago.

So is it the fault of the parents?  Again, hopefully not.  They say many parents these days spend less time with their children because they’re working so much, but I think that’s a bit of a cop out.  I don’t subscribe to the belief that society is getting worse.  Maybe we’re just more aware of it thanks to how easily information spreads these days, but people have always been lazy, uncaring, and all manner of other bad things.

That must mean teachers are getting worse, right?  Honestly, I think not.  I had many wonderful teachers growing up, and I know many wonderful people who decided to devote their careers to teaching students.  Blaming teachers for everything is basically scapegoating, and I don’t think that’s fair.

The source of the problem, I think, lies with the solution: technology.  With each passing year, technology gets better and better and our lives are changed — sometimes drastically.  Do you remember when you first learned about the internet or used your first smartphone?  For me, these events were absolutely life-changing, and I say that without hyperbole.

It’s not to say that I could never live in a world without those things (not that I would choose to!), but that the amount of work these inventions save me each and every day is astounding.  The list of random things I no longer have to do thanks to new technology could fill a book, and I am truly grateful for it.  These advancements allow me to focus my life on other, more useful and satisfying pursuits.

But a change of focus necessitates a reevaluation of what we teach our children.  We can no longer waste time teaching kids things that they will simply not need once they get out of school.  A couple examples: I never write in cursive, but I do use my phone to send important emails and texts regularly.  I don’t remember how to use a library card catalog system, but I can find nearly anything on the internet.  I almost never do complex mental math, but I can use a scientific calculator quite well.

In some cases, I was introduced to these things in school.  I learned how to type in elementary school, I was introduced to the internet for research, and I had to buy a TI-83 for math class.  But I only received a cursory education about each.

I perfected my typing skills by using instant messaging programs and playing online videogames.  I figured out how to find (and analyze) truly useful online information when I began work as a research associate at a public policy institute.  And I had to teach myself how to program my TI-83 to do my work for me so that I would never have to do a complicated formula again.

These skills that I list are some of the most useful skills that I posses, and they were not adequately honed by a school system that is stuck teaching skills from the past.  Education needs to be dynamic, now more so than ever.  The best way to do that is to harness the awesome power of educational technology.  Only then will we be able to churn out students ready to succeed in the modern world.

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If you are a teacher, librarian, or media specialist and are looking to increase the use of educational technology at your school for free, check out The Back to School Giveaway.  You can enter simply by leaving a comment on the page, and there is $150,000 worth in premium edtech content available to winners, contributed by six different companies.

If you’re not an educator but know one that might be interested in entering, please feel free to spread the word.  We are accepting entries until the end of this month.

by John J. Walters

This one goes out to all the teachers, professors, and other educators who scour the internet on a regular basis, looking for ways to make their classes more engaging and their students more successful.  I’m going to keep this one brief, since you’ll have a little bit of extra reading to do at the end.  You’ll see what I mean.

It is with great pleasure (and at least a small measure of personal pride) that I announce the creation on one way for educators to bring quality edtech resources into their classroom at little or no cost whatsoever — the Back to School Giveaway!  Go ahead and click the link.  I’ll wait here.  And pretty much everything I could possibly tell you about the #BTSG (that’s our very official hash-tag) is there already.

But I know some people need a little convincing before they go clicking links and entering massive giveaways with $150,000 worth of edtech resources at stake.  I can understand that.  So allow me to explain things a bit.

If you have a Facebook account, chances are you saw this status on your newsfeed at least once in the past month or two:

Tonight a teacher somewhere in your neighborhood is getting ready for your child’s new school year, writing lesson plans or writing your child’s name in their grade book, while you are watching television. In the minute it takes you to read this, teachers all over the world are using their “free time,” and often investing their own time & money for your child’s literacy, prosperity, and future. Re-post if you are a teacher, love a teacher, or appreciate a teacher.

As the son of two educators, I can assure you that I did, indeed, re-post.  Aside from my parents, I’ve seen committed teachers go far out of their way to help me (and other students) time and time again.  In fact, I even wrote this guest blog post for Quincy Tutoring about it.  But just writing about it didn’t seem like enough.

So the TestSoup team started brainstorming.  How can we give something back to teachers for all that they’ve given?  And that’s when it hit us: why not create a giveaway?  So I got on the phone and started talking to our friends from the EdTech Karaoke event we co-hosted at ISTE 2011.

Before I knew it, we had a team of six companies who were working on coming up with prizes (and lots of ‘em!) and a site layout for the BTSG.  Over the course of the month of August — while most teachers were actively engaged in preparing lesson plans and making sure they had all their ducks in a row for the coming semester — we pulled it all together.

Today marks the start of the contest.  I strongly encourage you, if you are an educator, to sign up.  And if you’re not?  Pass the word along to someone who is.  We all have friends in the education world, and they could all use some free resources for their students, I’m sure.

Click here to visit the Back to School Giveaway page and enter your school or district today!

(Or, How to Stop Worrying and Love the SAT)

guest written by Barbara Bellisi of the CollegeBound Network

I don’t consider myself old, but since I have taken the SAT almost half a lifetime ago (gulp!), I like to consider myself wise — at least when it comes to standardized testing. Combine that wisdom with a few years’ teaching experience and I discovered that — voila! — I was a natural SAT tutor.

During my training, I had to take a practice SAT. Wow! Either the test got easier or I got a whole lot smarter. OK, so maybe I didn’t have the stress that you college-bounders  have when I was filling out those little circles — after all, my college degree is already framed and hanging nicely on a wall — but I can still understand the pressure of a ticking clock and a dull #2 pencil.

Those algebraic equations won’t solve themselves, and someone’s got to fill in the blank with the correct vocabulary word, right? That’s why you’ve got to add a little dose of humor to your test-taking strategy. That’s right, future valedictorians and NMSQT finalists — I’m telling YOU that it’s OK to look at the PSAT, the SAT, the ACT, and any other hellish acronym directly in the face and give it a big LOL.

Need some help in finding the funny? Then put down the prep books and chew on some of these test-taking tips instead of that dirty pencil eraser:

1 – Hone your concentration skills.
There are two major problems with any standardized test: 1) It is long, and 2) It is boring. Practice concentrating at home by working on one assignment at a time instead of skipping around between subjects. Too tired? Then veg out in front of the TV for a half an hour, but no flipping around the channels. Bonus points if you can watch C-SPAN for a full 20 minutes without falling asleep.

2 – Make some noise.
Do you need complete silence when doing your homework? Break yourself out of that silly habit, because you have a better chance of getting a perfect score on the SAT than you do of getting a quiet testing room. There will always be a student who sniffles throughout the entire test, and there will always be a proctor who doesn’t know how to whisper. And, if you’re (un)lucky like I was, you might be able to hear the football team in all its grunting glory practice right outside your window. Woo hoo!

3 – Perfect your circle-filling ability.
Learn to fill in those answer circles with no more than three swipes of your #2 pencil. Any more and you’re just wasting precious time — time that is better spent erasing those circles once you’ve realized you skipped a row on your answer sheet.

4 – Don’t get too wrapped up in the reading comprehension.
Yes, every once in a while, a really interesting passage will appear on a standardized test. But this is the SAT, not a leisurely Sunday morning with the newspaper. Standardized tests are not written for your personal enjoyment; get through those reading sections, answer the questions, and be done with it.

And some tips for the day of the test:

Don’t mess with breakfast. I don’t care if butterflies are playing Marco Polo in your stomach. Scarf down a granola bar before you sit for the test. Otherwise, the audible growls coming from your stomach later will cause you to lose focus.

Layer your clothing. Some people get the chills when they get nervous. Other people have hot flashes. All bets are off for what will happen to you on the day of the test, so prepare for anything by wearing several layers. If you need to remove a piece of clothing, do so quickly and quietly — this is the SAT, not a Vegas show.

Don’t make plans for after the test. Instead, go home and crash on your bed, the couch, or in your little brother or sister’s wading pool. Stay there for a while. You’ve earned it.

About the author: Barbara Bellesi is a blogger at The CollegeBound Network. Follow CBN on Twitter @CollegeBoundNet.

guest written by Suzanne Shaffer of Parents Countdown to College Coach

It’s hard. I know. I’ve been there. You want your kids to have the BEST education available. You want them to want it as much as you do. You see them making some choices that you know they will regret. You hover over them, ready to swoop in and rescue them from their poor choices. As hard as you try, you find yourself pressuring them to make the right choice and the battle lines are drawn. They dig their heels in. You dig your heels in. And the tug of war begins.

What’s a parent to do when they feel their college-bound teens are making the wrong choices related to college? Here are my suggestions based on past parenting experience and observing other parents in these predicaments:

Your college-bound teen tells you he doesn’t want to go to the college that is hard to get into, and is opting for what you consider to be sub-par.

Don’t panic or overreact. It’s possible he is scared. Try and ascertain the reasoning behind the decision. Don’t do this by badgering him or constantly asking him why. The best way to figure out what is wrong is to LISTEN. Listen to him talk about his day, about college, about how he feels. If fear is not the reason, perhaps he feels the other college would be a better fit. If that’s the case, do yourself a favor and back off. The worst thing you can do with a teenager is force him into a decision he feels is wrong. Sometimes the best lessons we learn are the ones that come from making our own decisions (right or wrong).

Your college-bound teen tells you that he simply MUST go to Private College A, even though she knows it comes with a high price tag.

Don’t let her bully you into sending her to a college you can’t afford AND one that will require a tremendous amount of student loan debt. Sit her down and explain to her the dangers of graduating in debt. Use the college repayment calculators if you have to. If she truly wants to go to Private College A, she needs to do the work (good grades, good SAT/ACT scores, great essay) to be awarded scholarship/grant money from that college. If not, there are always other options and choices. It’s your job as a parent to help her to see those other options as viable.

Your college-bound teen is not interested in college, deadlines, studying for the SAT or any other path that leads him toward higher education.

If there is one thing I learned with both of my kids (and clients), if they aren’t invested in the college process they won’t be invested in college. Save yourself some time, money and heartache and wait until they are. If not, they can learn from the college of hard knocks — minimum wage jobs are the BEST motivator!

Your college-bound teen misses deadlines, panics and comes running to you at the last minute to fix it.

The simplest way I know to avoid missing deadlines, is to get yourself a huge wall calendar and a fat red marker. Put it in a place that they have to pass by every single day. In addition, with all the smartphones and calendar apps available today, missing a deadline should be a thing of the past. At some point (hopefully when they go to college), they will have to fix their own problems. Let them do it now, while they live at home, and it will be easier for them once they are gone. Rescuing your kids all time only makes them into dependent adults and colleges aren’t impressed with those types of students or the parents that come with them. Admissions officers can spot these students a mile away, and their applications end up in the reject pile.

Your college-bound teen suddenly announces she is not ready for college and wants to take a year off.

First of all, wait. Don’t react. Just listen. Odds are the mood will change with the wind and once all her friends are making college plans, that desire that she once had will kick back in. If not, let her know that it won’t be a “free-ride” year. She will be expected to work and save the money she makes for college. Or she will be expected to work at an internship to help her determine career goals. There are so many gap year options available now that help parents breathe easier and help students prepare for college. Most colleges are also receptive to deferring admission, allowing your student to enter college the next year with all their financial aid in place.

About the author: Suzanne Shaffer counsels parents in the college admissions process and the importance of early college preparation. Her Parents Countdown to College Coach blog offers timely college tips for parents and provides parents with the resources necessary to help their college-bound teens navigate the college maze. She is also the College Prep Expert for CollegeParenting.com, a member of the Unigo Expert Network, a College Money Insider Expert and the College Coach for Galtime.com.

When we are young, our lives are defined by the summer.  We look forward to it almost deliriously.  In fact, I think the only time we weren’t counting down the days until summer vacation was when we were counting down the days to some shorter (but closer) vacation.  Three months of idleness is enough to make anyone with a full-time job more than a little jealous.

They say that summer used to be a time when students stayed home to help out on with the harvest.  This was, of course, in the days before a measly 2% of Americans called themselves farmers.  Our society has shifted from agrarian and rural to knowledge-based and urban.  Today, only 17% of people live in what can be considered truly “rural” parts of America.

Assuming that summer once had a purpose, what is its purpose now?  Are we simply so used to this rotation that we don’t dare change it?  More than likely.  Globalization has made the nine-to-five office job all but irrelevant these days, yet people still find themselves falling into familiar work patterns.  Change is hard for us to accept, apparently.

Now, let the record show that we at TestSoup are not advocating for the end of summer vacation.  Long live summer vacation!

But long live education, as well.

Today’s American students have a tough time keeping up when it comes to math and science.  We’ve already tried throwing money at the problem.  Spending per pupil in America on public education has increased from $2,500 in 1960 to $10,000 today (in inflation-adjusted dollars).  Clearly, the key to churning out well-equipped students is not to be found in expensive tech or other budget-busting fads.

Real education happens when students are actively engaged in the lesson.  This can be the result of any one — or a combination — of several factors: Quality teachers, a naturally inquisitive mind, supportive family members or friends, or even a desire to get an “A.”

That’s the first part of the equation.  The second part is the work.  An engaged student is a great and powerful thing, but if you don’t take steps to keep him or her that way then you won’t get very far.  That’s why the summer is such an important time for students.  Three months is a long enough time to forget the vast majority of what you learned during the past nine — or enough time to forge it into a solid foundation for next year.

America used to make its living with our hands and our backs.  During this time it made sense for students to neglect their studies in favor of the harvest.  But now we make our living with our minds.  Should the fact that we have no fields to plow mean that we are allowed to do nothing for three months?

Take the summer for what it is: a chance to unwind and recharge your batteries.  But also as a time to set yourself up for success next year.  Read books.  Sign up to take classes that you are interested in but had no time for during the school year.  Parents (if you have little children), send your kids to a camp that’s more than just playing outside.  And teachers, please use the time to improve your skills as well.  Our students’ futures are in your hands.

Studying for finals can be a stressful time. Reviewing an entire semester’s worth of information for all of your classes in a short period of time can be nerve racking and extremely difficult given the high-pressure situation. However, there are many ways for someone to help themselves study for exams to minimize stress and maximize scores.
First, start studying well before the given final takes place. For example, if you have a test on Friday start studying on at least the Monday or Tuesday preceding the test so you can go over everything a few times and get to all the last details. By giving yourself more time to study, you can become more aware of what topics you have difficulty with and concentrate on them and you can be sure to avoid any last minute cramming.
If you can find a study partner it would be wise to take advantage of the opportunity. Studying with a friend gives you a chance to not only study material, but also actively talk about it with someone. Talking about the material will force you to put the information into your own words and will help commit it to memory. Furthermore, it is often easier to start studying when you’re doing it with someone else. By having someone studying with you, it’s more difficult to keep putting the study session off.
There are things you can do that aren’t directly related to studying that can help with your tests as well. Living a healthy lifestyle leading up to the exams will give you a sharper, clearer mind when it comes time to take your tests. Be sure to get to bed early and get plenty of sleep. Eating healthy foods helps too, as many nutrients are associated with brain function and keeping you alert throughout the day. Eating bad foods can make you tired, sluggish and leave you struggling to find the right answer when the time comes.
On top of everything else is simply to just stay calm about finals and remember that everyone has to take them. You aren’t the only one nervous about tests and feeling stressed. Keeping in mind that everyone is in a similar position as yourself will make you feel better about your own situation and may even become a comforting, distressing thought. Get studying early and good luck!