Learning and Life Skills

New NAEP Math scores for 4th graders show little change since 2007

 
The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), a program of the Federal Department of Education, released the results of its 2009 national mathematics assessment this week.  Results, when compared to the last test in 2007, show that gains have flattened out for 4th graders, with advances for 8th graders.

This particular assessment focused on mathematics skills, which included an assessment of: number properties and operations; measurement; geometry; data analysis, statistics, and probability; and algebra, according to the DOE's website. 

Parents should visit the website to view the NAEP report results for themselves.  The site provides an interactive graphical presentation of the results, sorted by a variety of criterion.  Interesting to parents may be the analysis by state, ethnic groups, school type, and social economic status.  

Home schooler transition to college not different from those of traditional students

With the number of homeschooled students increasing annually, comes also an increase in the number of "homeschooled-through-high school" students who are entering college.  One of several research studies interested in homeschooled college students examined the transition issues of homeschooled college freshmen.

The 2007 study is both reassuring and instructional for parents of college-bound homeschool students.  After following the transition of six freshman homeshoolers at a Midwest college, the main finding of the study was that there was "...little distinction between the transitional issues experienced by homeschooled students and the issues experienced by traditionally educated students". Transition issues identified were:  loneliness, meeting others with different values, living in residence halls, and the experience of having greater independence.  The author of the study was herself a home-educated student,  interested in understanding whether colleges might need to provide special supports for the transitioning homeschooled student.

Thinking to Learn makes the New York Times - In Manhattan, Preparing for Kindergarten Admission Test - NYTimes.com

Test preparation has long been a big business catering to students taking SATs and admissions exams for law, medical and other graduate schools. But the new clientele is quite a bit younger: 3- and 4-year-olds whose parents hope that a little assistance — costing upward of $1,000 for several sessions — will help them win coveted spots in the city’s gifted and talented public kindergarten classes.

Read the entire article here:  via www.nytimes.com

Thinking To Learn is mentioned in this article in the New York Time discussing how parents of young children are accessing resources to prep for high-stakes testing in New York City.

Parents need to understand how to spend time with their children in ways that are meaningful.  My position has been that teaching and developing a child's thinking skills is one of the ways to spend that time.  Those skills are being assessed on reasoning tests like the OLSAT (Otis-Lennon School Abilities Test) with high-stakes implications - access to gifted programs where curriculum and learning are differentiated to meet the intellectual needs of the child.  With the economic conditions what they are, and private school tuition what it is, parents are more keen on the idea of enrolling children in public schools, but hoping to have them placed in the gifted and talented programs.  

Regardless of whether a child earns a qualifying score for acceptance into these special programs, parents need to attend to the importance of developing their child's reasoning and problem-solving skills.  The resources we recommend to parents at Thinking To Learn, imbed critical thinking skills in the content, or teach those skills directly.  I recommend them to all parents, regardless of your child's ability.  These skills, at their core, are learning skills important for life.

Watch over your child's use of social networking sites

as the information they disclose may be used by college admissions officers and future employers to evaluate them. Kaplan, in a survey of medical students,  found that many students 'friend' college admissions officers or leave pages open to inspection by potential employers.  Important to note is that college admissions officers are using that information. 

My advice for parents is to review your child's privacy settings and friend list. Help them understand why they should not be friends with a college or college admission officer.

Here's the link to Kaplan's site and article  www.kaplan.com.