Keeping qualified teachers in classrooms would seem to be the first concern for bringing America’s students closer to the achievement levels their Chinese and European counterparts reach, but the federal dollars awarded to state school systems are not being spent there.  Instead, they are often being misspent or wasted on revamping educational goals at the state level, sending highly paid state agents into local school districts to “work with administrators” for years at a time in keeping with the phases of NCLB.  Teacher pay is being tied to the performance of students who are, for many valid reasons, simply unable to achieve certain goals, and they are now leaving the profession in droves.  Here is an infographic that shows the plight of American teachers — and ultimately of the students they entered the field to serve.

College-bound high school seniors who have been polled are overall fairly satisfied with the current level of their parents’ involvement in the college search process. Surprisingly, nearly 30 percent of the students want more, rather than less, parental involvement — and that figure rises to over 40 percent among students with lower SAT scores and lower household incomes.  Is this an indicator of a decline in student independence that could be leading to a negative trend?  After all, the home security team can’t be there to follow these students around for the rest of their lives.

“Not really,” said college admissions specialist Barbara Thomas. “If anything, what this tells us is that the students may be taking college more seriously, and instead of making mistakes that could be avoided, they are seeking out the advice of their parents.  That can be a good thing.”

Here is an infographic showing the level of involvement:

What do you think about all of this?  We’d love to hear from you. You can learn more about the national education crisis by watching direct tv.  After watching the video, please feel free to leave us your comments and questions.  We are especially interested in hearing from vested educators, and students who have recently completed advanced degrees.

You could start by taking aim at your resume.  Having an up to date, relevant resume can make all the difference in getting the attention you want from prospective employers.  Here is an infographic that can help you get your resume noticed.  You can click to make it larger:

Here are the best shows about high school and their theme songs:

90210

Does that take you back? I bet it does if you went to high school in the 90s. This TV show paved the way for television about high school. The drama addressed very current issues for teenagers during the 90s including teenage pregnancy.

Dawson’s Creek

In 2000, no show was more popular than Dawson’s Creek. The drama was all about love, heartache, and family, and captured the fashion essesence of the early 2000′s unlike any other show. Dawson’s Creek was wildly popular and catapulted it’s young stars quickly into fame. The original cast includes many great like Katie Holmes, Michelle Williams, and James Vanderbeek, all of whom have had incredible careers.

Saved by the Bell

The original Saturday morning crew. Saved by the Bell was the first sitcom with live actors to be successful during Saturday morning cartoon time slot.

If you’re a huge TV junkie, and love watching classics, you’ll be happy to know that many of these shows are still syndicated on television. Check your local cable provider channels and dish network channels for their times and days of airing. Nothing will take you back quite like watching shows about high school.

Here are some of the things you can expect to change once you have earned your degree:  expect to gain a tremendous amount of self confidence, greater knowledge, and self satisfaction. If you think you might be interested, or you want to make a change for the better, now’s the time.  Waiting will only put off those things that can make a difference in your life.

It doesn’t matter whether you want to learn online with other students who are located across the street, or with students living half a world away from you.  Maybe you want to go to a local classroom so you can get instruction in person sometimes, or so that your instructor will know who you are. Either way, there are online education options for you that are custom designed to get you where you need to be faster and with more confidence than you might ever have imagined.  You can be learning online in a matter of days after signing up at an online college or university.  There is financial aid available for students, so choose your school and find out more today.

The problem is, some people complain that there are no credentials earned for completing free online edu courses through open university.  These people often cite that the students who sit on the classes are rewarded with valuable college transcript hours that they cannot also earn;  but these people must remember, those other students who sit in on the classes have paid tuition and do attend the school.  These online courses are not made free through iTunes U for the purpose of offering free college credits, but rather for distributing information and making knowledge accessible to all.  It is a noble calling, to be so inspired as to provide for free and publicly the same college courses that are being offered at these places of higher learning.

Some people still like to point out that the most frustrating aspect to iTunes U is that no matter how many courses a person takes from any one college, that school does not offer any credit toward a degree. The credit hours system is what keeps colleges afloat in today’s iffy economy, and therefore they are not going to be very likely to give up or veer far from that system anytime soon, no matter how successful something may seem to be.

What does this all mean for students who learn the lessons of life in the open university of iTunes U?  Hope for the future, actually, because if trends are a current indicator, it seems we can reasonably expect for iTunes U to someday be a degree-granting facilitator of online learning opportunities.

One thing that makes these herbs so attractive to students is the current inability to detect them using standard drug tests.  Unlike the drug tests that screen for THC, new drug tests would have to be created to detect evidence of cannabinoid metabolism.  Though certain tests are being formed by scientists now, their arrival in drug screening centers is still a good jump into the future.  Students may feel they can use these substances without having to fear being caught by drug tests, because that is currently true.

There are signs people can watch for when considering whether someone is taking these drugs.  The typical red, glassy eyes still occur in users, just like when someone smokes marijuana.  They may experience altered sensory states and a reduction in ability to operate heavy machinery, drive a car, or do anything that involves dangerous lifting.  Because many forms of it are not yet illegal, this presents a growing problem for law enforcement officials whose job is to protect the public from intoxicated and impaired drivers.

Organization is of utmost importance.  When you take your courses online, you are responsible for remembering due dates and expectations.  All assignments are assigned with a specific due date and due time.  If you forget a due date or time, and you try to submit work after that time, it most likely will not be accepted.  For people who tend to be unorganized this can be a very serious issue.  Make sure you have a binder for each class where you can print out all of the information the instructor provides and your own notes.  Keep all of this in chronological order to make studying for finals much easier.

Study. Study. Study.  Just because your class is online, and you feel like you are able to use your notes on tests, that does not mean you will actually have time to use your notes.  Tests online are typically timed.  This time limit makes it impossible to flip through text books, notes, and lectures to find correct information.  So, when you know a test is coming up, then study for it just like you would if you would be sitting in a class taking it with an instructor watching you.  When you do and understand the information you will have plenty of time to finish the test and succeed.

Procrastinators need to re-evaluate.  If you are a procrastinator, then you definitely need to re-think how you approach things.  There is no way you can take classes online and procrastinate.  A tip for procrastinators is to write down the due dates in your planner as being due two days earlier than it actually is.  Do this well before the project starts, so you “forget” that you tricked yourself.

Keep in constant contact.  Your instructor is there for a reason.  If you have questions or comments, then your online instructor definitely wants to hear from you.  Plus, he or she will also notice that you are making an effort to do well and succeed in the class. Also, turn off the commercials about Deals on Direct TV and keep your focus!

Chris T. – “When I thought about going to college after high school, I was not excited about it, but I knew if I wanted to make something of my life, I would have to get a degree.  I don’t want to have to struggle financially, and if I have a degree, then I probably will not struggle as much as a guy without a degree.”

Shelley F. – “I made the decision to go back to school and finish my degree five years ago, and it was the best decision I think I have made concerning my future and the future of my children.  I had to work part-time and keep the home while still earning my degree, so I chose online education.  I was able to take care of my family, keep my part-time job, and get my degree.  Now, I have my four-year degree, my children are in school, and I have a fantastic job that allows my husband and me to save for our children’s college educations.”

Don V. – “My degree will give me the ability to take care of myself and in the future, my family.  I chose to go to college right after graduating from high school, but unlike a lot of my peers, I do it all online so I could make my own schedule.  I will have my degree in less than two years now, and I am so glad that I made the choice to get my degree.”

Pam D. – “I enjoy school, but when it came time to apply to colleges, I was a little bit lazy. I really enjoyed my time with my Home Satellite TV on the couch. The good news is, I went to a community college to get my two-year degree, and now I am at a major university earning my four-year degree.  Going to community college for two years allowed me to save up some money too.  When I get my degree, I am hoping to be able to find a good job that I love doing.”

These are stories from just a few of the people we interviewed, but the main consensus is that a degree will help to give you opportunities to get a good job and to make money so that you can provide for your family.  Have you decided to go back to school?  Why?