Posts Tagged ‘Educational Practices’

SAT II: Subject Tests—What Are They and Do You Need to Take Them?

Friday, May 3rd, 2013

Another question that we are frequently asked is “What are the SAT II’s and do I need to take them?”.

The SAT II’s are content based tests.  They are each one hour long and are multiple choice.  Students can choose from a variety of subjects including literature, government, history, biology, chemistry, physics, two levels of math, and languages.  Students can take up to three exams on one test day.

The SAT II’s are generally required or recommended by highly competitive schools.  If you are a student that is planning to apply to schools, such as UVA or other similarly competitive colleges, then you will need to take at least two subjects.  Some schools require specific tests for particular programs.  For example, an engineering or architecture program may require that one of the tests be in the maths or sciences.   Schools that are competitive generally have a strong pool of applicants.  They use the SAT II’s as another factor in their admissions decisions.

To determine if you need to take the SAT II’s, decide on the list of colleges to which you’d like to apply.  Then, you can look up the application requirements on the school’s website or by using a college search engine like Bright Futures.  On this site, you can search for a school, then go to applying and admissions information to see what tests are required and how they are used (admissions decisions or placement only). Here is an example of UVA’s profile.  As you can see, UVA says that SAT II’s are recommended.  If a college says recommended, you should consider it required to have a strong application.

Now that you know if you need to take the SAT II’s, there are a few things to keep in mind.  Not all subjects are given on all test dates.  It is important to decide which tests you would like to take and plan a date that those tests are given. CollegeBoard has practice questions for each test and the dates that the tests are given.  Often, the best time to take the SAT II’s is May or June.  This is especially true if you are currently in the course in which you plan to test.  For example, if physics is a strength of yours and you are currently in AP physics, it is a good idea to take the SAT II around the same time that you take your AP exam.  This way, you can prepare for both tests at the same time.

Plan the calendar of test dates early.  You cannot take the SAT and the SAT II’s on the same test date.  Plan for this at the beginning of your junior year so you can map out dates for the SAT, ACT and/or SAT II’s.  If you plan to space out the testing throughout your junior year, you will avoid a very overwhelming spring when AP exams, SOL’s, and finals can make for a heavy workload.

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South Carolina Survey Shenanigans

Tuesday, January 4th, 2011

You may recall that in a previous blog post we discussed the benefits of single-gender classrooms. Well, an article over at slate.com tackles the subject as well. Only this one is focused on debunking the seemingly fantastic news coming from the South Carolina Department of Education.

The Department recently surveyed 7,000 students in its schools, asking them questions about single-gender classrooms. The responses were startling.  Seventy six percent of children K-9 say that being in a single-gender classroom has given them more confidence. Ninety three percent of girls in grades K-2 reported increased motivation.

Read more about the survey at the following sites:

The slate.com article goes on to point out some of the flaws in this survey, including what should be considered its biggest — who cares whether students say they are more motivated or confident? What’s important when studying the effectiveness of an education program is how well the students do academically. This survey had nothing to do with that.

The Slate article also listed other problems with the survey. For instance, the students couldn’t answer “no change.” Their only options were “decrease” or “increase” when answering questions about motivation and confidence. The article claims the lack of “no change” as an option makes it more likely that students would say something positive. It goes back to the youthful need to please one’s elders, the author says.

Also, the survey was only given to students in single-gender classrooms. However, in South Carolina, to be in a single-gender classroom one must opt-in. That basically means that the kids surveyed were more likely to give positive answers because they had chosen this form of education voluntarily.

The last problem cited by the Slate article was essentially the placebo effect. Apparently something similar to the placebo effect in drug trials turns up when measuring the effectiveness of education programs. Just saying that change is coming and will be studied is sometimes enough to increase people’s perception of how well a school is doing.

It seems this South Carolina survey essentially tells us nothing, except perhaps the state of mind of students. That is, no doubt, important, but when it comes to measuring how well a particular program is doing, something more than feelings are needed.

To read the Slate article, go here.

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Have No Fear

Saturday, January 1st, 2011

For Prince William County parents worried about their children’s education, perhaps they need have no fear.  Evidently it’s a great place for youth.

America’s Promise Alliance recently chose the county as one of its 100 best communities for young people. The group was founded by former secretary of state Colin Powell and his wife. A Washington Post article on the honor said that according to county officials, “Supportive educators, numerous after-school activities and volunteer opportunities that are available for students all make Prince William County shine as a place for young people…”

The mission of America’s Promise Alliance is to ensure students graduate from high school and are ready to move on to college. Indeed, graduation rates in Prince William County schools are not too shabby. In 2010, approximately 88 percent of students graduated on time. Of course, Virginia itself does pretty well graduation-wise. About 85 percent of students graduated on-time statewide in 2010. These figures are up from 2009. In that year, Prince William County graduated 84.3 percent of students while the state graduated 83.3.

But graduation from high school is just half the battle. That’s why the support of organizations like America’s Promise Alliance is so important. It is essential that students graduate high school prepared for the next stage of their education. America’s Promise Alliance does this by advocating for the five key supports children need:

  • Caring adults such as parents, teachers, mentors, coaches and neighbors
  • Safe places that offer constructive activities when young people are not in school
  • A healthy start and healthy development
  • An effective education that prepares young people for college and work
  • Opportunities to help others through service

Fortunately, it looks like Prince William County does a good job in these areas as well. So, keep up the good work, Prince William County. And all parents can ensure it does by keeping an eye on the facilities, services and support given to their children.

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Reducing Class Size: Not So Cut and Dry

Thursday, December 30th, 2010

Class sizes are booming across the country, but not everybody agrees that obese classrooms are a bad thing.

According to Education Week (www.edweek.org), the average number of students per classroom is inching its way up as school districts struggle to deal with their budget woes.

From the 1980s until 2008, the ratio of students per teacher fell from 17.6 to 15.8 students per public school teacher. Those numbers are misleading, however. They include special education and other classes that typically have fewer students. That skews the numbers down. A better estimate given by the U.S. Department of Education is that current class sizes average about 25 students per teacher. That number will probably be rising in the near future.

The conventional wisdom is that large class sizes are a bad thing and small class sizes are good. That wisdom is supported by some studies. However, the way schools implement class size reductions plays a large role in whether education is improved. For instance, a school may cut class sizes down by one or two students. But one of the main studies supporting the idea of lowering class sizes used classrooms of 13 to 17 students. Cutting one or two children from a 25-student class would hardly be enough. Plus there are schools in high performing nations that sometimes have class sizes greater than in American schools. Smaller class sizes are good, but they are not everything. And schools have to weigh the cost of shrinking classes to the benefits gained. As it turns out, cutting classroom size is one of the most expensive ways of improving a classroom.

Some schools are experimenting with classrooms that far exceed the national average. The New American Academy in New York City has classes of 60 students with four teachers. The school manages to save money and still get the job done. Still other schools use novel approaches like having teachers also run school administration, thus freeing up manpower to teach classes and reduce class size.

What it comes down to is this: Smaller class sizes are probably better, but they aren’t the only answer. And with the economy the way it is, reducing class sizes may not be the most feasible way of improving education. That doesn’t mean that schools shouldn’t look for ways to reduce class sizes; they should. But class size shouldn’t be the main arbiter of perceived school quality. Improving school education is more complicated than just saying, “Reduce, reduce, reduce.”

Check out the Education Week article to get a more detailed look at the issue.

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Merit Pay Snafu

Monday, December 27th, 2010

The Prince William County school system plan to institute a merit pay program in some of its schools may have hit a snag. The Federal Department of Education provided the school system with an $11.1 million grant to pay for the five-year Teacher Incentive Performance Award pilot initiative, but it turns out that the taxpayers will still end up footing some of the bill.

At a school board meeting, Prince William County officials found out that the school system will have to pay 20 percent of the program’s cost the first year. Then the percentage the school system pays will go up 20 percent every year until it is taking care of 80 percent of the tab in the 2015-2016 school year.

The idea is that the school system should demonstrate its ability to continue to fund the program beyond the life of the grant. Unfortunately, school board members who were so keen on the merit pay program didn’t realize when they voted for it that taxpayer money was going to have to pay for some of the program in the near term.

This news comes in the midst of a poor economy and a sour outlook for the school system’s budget. It was cut $25.6 million from last year. At the same time, enrollment increased by 2,460 students.

While it looked like this experiment in merit pay was going to be free for county schools, the reality is that there’s no such thing as a free lunch. The taxpayers must pony up.

For those that don’t remember, the merit pay program is a system where well-performing teachers will get extra compensation for their efforts in the classroom. Nobody’s salary would be affected negatively by the program, but some teachers will end up making more money than their peers. The program is planned only for the poorest schools in the system. The hope is that by offering merit pay, teachers will be inspired and student achievement will rise as a result.

The only “question” left now is how willing are taxpayers to start paying for this experiment in the near term? Everybody thought the monetary burden was going to be delayed, but instead it’s immediate, and in a tough economic time, painful.

It is generally recognized that something must be done to help students in the poorest and lowest performing school systems. Merit pay is just one experiment that is being conducted in an effort to improve the quality at such schools. Eventually, if they are to have a real chance of succeeding, taxpayers at the local level are going to have to pay. Of course, since the grant came from federal funds, the taxpayers are already paying, but the impact is less immediate.

If merit pay is effective, then it might be worth the cost. If it’s not, then the county could just be throwing money away. Time will tell which outcome is true.

To read more about this, go to Washington Examiner.

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Getting Educators Inside Your Head

Monday, October 25th, 2010

Research into the brain and how it develops has exploded in the last couple of decades. We know things about how we think and how we learn that would have been considered science fiction 50 years ago. However, it doesn’t always seem to be the case that public education has kept abreast of all the new information available.

We came across this article, which talks about how the discoveries made in neuroscience must be coupled with the strategies we use for teaching.

One of the most important things we have learned about the brain is the concept of plasticity. This means that the brain changes as it works to integrate new information and experiences. We have seen, for example, that the brains of people with certain types of damage can actually adapt to the damage and restructure to allow the person to function more effectively. That’s a more extreme example.

The article points out how a teacher might assume a student in fifth grade who is bad at math will always be bad at math. But the idea of plasticity might give a teacher a different view and cause them to find new ways of working with the student rather than writing him or her off.

Another thing discussed is the possibility that Attention Deficit Disorder may actually be a developmental disability and that child rearing can have an effect on the disorder. The article even talks about such common-sense items as the idea that children learn better if they’re interested in the subject, or that putting students in a low-stress environment can be conducive to better learning. The truth of these is usually assumed, but now there is actually data to back them up.

Though there is a wealth of information out there about findings in neuroscience, the authors of the article point out that there is still a disconnect between the classrooms and these findings. Better ways of translating the scientific discoveries into classroom-friendly strategies and getting educators and neuroscientists together for dialogue will be essential for a full picture of the learning possibilities.

Public school education has operated in a certain way since its inception, but that static way of teaching and learning is being turned on its head by modern scientific understanding. It turns out that the brain is more complicated and more adaptable than we ever thought. This understanding could lead to revolutions in the way we teach and better results in classrooms for students. All it takes now is for educators to become familiar with and apply the findings of neuroscientists.

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Online Textbooks Here We Come

Tuesday, October 5th, 2010

Educators are turning the page on school textbooks — the future is online.

A pilot program in Fairfax County will provide classes at certain schools with netbooks which will give access to textbooks online instead of in print. Social studies classes at six high schools and six middle schools will be part of the year-long study.

Fairfax is following the lead of Frederick and Arlington counties, which are moving toward the use of online textbooks.

Naturally there are drawbacks to phasing out printed books and moving online. One concern is access: Will all students have the ability to get on the Internet and access online books when not at school? And what will happen when teachers open the Pandora’s Box that is the Internet? Will students use their netbooks for accessing online textbooks? Or will they goof off during class by surfing sites like Facebook?

There are, of course, positive aspects to the plan as well. One big advantage to online textbooks is cost. The printed behemoths that have lived in our children’s classrooms for decades are expensive. Doing away with them would be a big cost-saving measure for schools.

You can read more about this at The Washington Post.

The truth is that fate outweighs opinion on this issue. As the printed page moves online in all aspects of our culture, schools are sure to follow suit. If they do not, students might find themselves at a disadvantage.

Observe the chaos in the newspaper industry as periodicals increasingly move their pages online and attempt to find new business models to sustain them.

Watch how the Kindle, Nook, and other digital reading devices transform the book publishing industry.

Pay attention as bloggers and other online writers begin to sway the conversations once left to the established American intelligentsia.

The Internet has transformed our world like nothing before, and the changes are coming whether the schools want them or not. The choice left is whether to be early adopters or latecomers to the digital party. Either way, especially with financial crisis lingering for the foreseeable future, schools will probably end up adopting online textbooks eventually.

Whether this change is a good idea or bad is something that will be left to others to decide. But is it inevitable? Probably so. And schools would do well to recognize that fact.

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