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AP Exams and the 2018 NC Teacher Walk-out

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As if taking an AP exam weren’t stressful enough, now students in the state of North Carolina are dealing with having their AP exams disrupted on Wednesday, May 16, 2018 due to the teacher walkout. Don’t misunderstand; I fully support every teacher in the state. They absolutely deserve to be paid far more than they are being paid. It’s just yet another fight that they shouldn’t have to fight. However, on May 16th, thousands of juniors across the state were preparing for their AP English Language Composition Exam. While the AP Macroeconomics and Italian exam are also administered this day, the AP English Language exam is one of those exams that have some bearing on their college applications. It’s the one they want to do well on to show colleges they really can write. Unfortunately, for every county in the state that is walking out – each one is handling this differently. Wake County is requiring those students who are to take the exam to come to school anyway – I won’t address how
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Up and Writing Again

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It's been a while since I've posted anything to my blog. OK, a while might be a bit under-stated - it's been half a decade. Looking at my past posts, I've made a couple of observations about the field of education. First, issues in education never really seem to change no matter what the decade is. It wouldn't be education if we didn't have major concerns centered on money. There’s the sky rocketing cost of education in public, private and higher education to worry about, as well as the lack of money needed to fund those institutions. There are continued concerns revolving around preparing our students: preparing them for the next grade level of school, preparing them to take standardized tests, and preparing them to get into college. And then there are the concerns about insuring that we produce the world's best students – which we seem to think we should be the best at in everything. This has led to schools and colleges competing to see who ranks as the
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Should you be filing a FAFSA?

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It’s the new year and for parents of high school seniors and college-aged kids, it signifies the arrival of this year’s FAFSA . For those of you unfamiliar with the term, FAFSA is the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. It is the tool that helps determine a family’s eligibility for federal grants, loans and work study as mandated by the Higher Education Opportunity Act . Essentially, the completion of the FAFSA allows the government to use your tax returns to determine what your Expected Family Contribution to your child’s education should be and what type of aid you may qualify for. So how does this process work? First, using your 2012 tax return, complete the FAFSA application on line. This should take about 15-30 minutes. Once you submit it, you will immediately receive your Expected Family Contribution (EFC). Your EFC is the amount of money, based on your reported income and finances, that you are EXPECTED to contribute to your child’s education. The EFC does take into acc
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In defense of counselors and independents

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An article appeared to today in the NY Times regarding high school counselors. This is my response: An experienced public school teacher and administrator, I am saddened to see yet another member of the system being flogged in front of the public. Having supervised many a guidance counselor, I understand first hand that their job, just like the rest of us in public education, is often an impossible job. While there are those guidance counselors that are fortunate enough to work in very small high schools with low student ratios, the vast majority are not so lucky. Most counselors would love to spend their day guiding and advising students regarding the opportunities that await them in higher education. Unfortunately, mandates from NCLB and other initiatives dictate that their day is spent on anything but advising students. Instead, they are forced to attend truancy meetings, attendance committees, drop-out prevention meetings, oversee testing and scheduling, and obtain training in
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Wealthy students will have a better acceptance rate in 2010

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In response to the US News article on January 15, 2010, it is sad, but true, that students who can afford to pay for college will have better acceptance rates in 2010. While colleges are a non-profit, they are still a business and have bills to pay. While it is unfortunate for students who have financial need, it makes sense to seek out qualified candidates that can pay, especially when there is a huge candidate pool of qualified wealthy students. In response to a previous comment regarding how a college could know...Unfortunately, college applications are full of questions that reveal things about a student that parents don't even realize. The biggest indicator is the glaring question of "will you be applying for financial aid". This tells a lot about an applicant. Also, every school submits their profile when they submit a student's transcript. This too allows admissions officers to see where a student is from. Attending a wealthy school, regardless of your
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Step 2 of the College Search

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As discussed earlier, the process of beginning the college search entails more than looking in your backyard and picking a school based on your favorite team. In Part 1, the search process began with looking at the size of the school. Having determined the size of school that will meet your needs, it's then time to look at the next factor. Step 2: Setting Just as looking at size entails a great deal of thought, the category of setting is also important. Like many students across the nation, those of us in the Triangle, and all of North Carolina, are fortunate to have a plethora of excellent schools to search from. However, determining which school to look at requires consideration into its setting. With thousands of schools to choose from across the nation, the choice of setting can range from remote to urban. The setting of the school does NOT indicate the size or caliber of a school. Dartmouth is located in a remote area of New Hampshire; the commute from the closest airpor
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Step 1 of the College Search

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Now that the holidays are over and students are in their second semester of classes, it's time for high school juniors to really focus on the college search. But before you start getting out the maps and making reservations though, it's important to make sure that your college search contains a list of schools that are truly a fit. Living in an area that is home to some of the nation's best universities, it can be difficult to look beyond your back door, especially when those schools happen to be amongst the best values in college educations nationwide. However, it is crucial to a student's academic success to do your homework and really look at what you want in a college education, before you jump straight to choosing a college based on its perceived ranking. Step 1: Size In determining what size school you want to attend, it's important to understand the difference between a college and university. A college typically focuses on undergraduate education, awarding
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