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Are you questioning whether or not college is for you? Do you have concerns or doubts?  When I made the decision to attend college, finance was my number one concern. Other fears included wondering if I could handle the the college workload, if I was choosing the right program or the right school, if my family would support my decision and and many more. 

This kind of fear and self-doubt can prohibit many people from going to a college which can vastly improve their lives.  A new website, www.college.gov identifies these common concerns and shows ways to overcome them. There are testimonials from students across the country that have triumphed over challenges such as peer pressure, lack of family support, and financial barriers. Against the odds, these students made college a reality.

More features of the website:

• Create your own roadmap.  No matter what year you are in high school, www.college.gov can create a personalized road map that will layout detailed steps necessary for getting to college.  You can keep the roadmap on your computer, or print it out and put it on your wall or in you locker.  Either way, this roadmap can put you on the path towards college!
• Find the school for you.  Universities, community colleges, or vocational schools, whatever you are looking for, this website can help you find a school to fit your lifestyle.
• Why go? What to do? How to pay?  www.college.gov  helps you realize reasons for going to school such as, increasing your income, finding your passion, proving your potential, growing with help and support, and lifting your family.  It also shows you the step for getting into college and payment options.
• Information for everyone. The website is geared towards high school students but also gives information to parents, families, teachers and counselors.

What sets this website apart from other education sites is that it was made by students for students.  The creators of this website have pinpointed real concerns that high school students have about going to college.  Through their college roadmap, they give us the tools to overcome those obstacles. 

Anyone can make their dream of attending college a reality.  www.college.gov is one tool that can help.

Six years since No Child Left Behind was signed into law, most states are failing to pass muster with the government over student testing and may lose money unless they improve quickly.

“The Education Department says 34 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico have major problems with the tests that were supposed to be in place in the just-ended school year. They will get federal approval only if they correct the problems in the coming year. In addition, Nebraska and Maine had their testing systems rejected outright.” Read the rest of this entry »

High school guidance counselors are usually busy this time of year sending out transcripts, helping parents understand financial aid award letters, and meeting with their high school seniors about the latest round of SAT scores.

For many of these students, the news about their SAT score might be disheartening considering some colleges are reporting double-digit drops in the average SAT scores of applicants this year. Scores have dropped despite similar performance in class rank, college-prep coursework and other recommended credentials.

“We need to have confidence in the test that we’re using,” says Stephen Farmer, director of admissions at the University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill in a USA Today article.
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Now that your students have received their SAT scores in the mail, it can be complicated
helping them make sense of those scores. Especially with the problem of incorrect scores affecting a growing number of students.

An article on MSN’s Encarta offered some help for high school guidance counselors to help translate exactly what those SAT scores mean.

About one month after administering the new SAT, the College Board posts individuals’ scores on its Web site. For example, scores from the March 12th administration of the new SAT were made available online on April 11.

Log on to the College Board site for:

Your raw score and 200-800-point scaled score for each Math, Critical Reading, and Writing section

Your 0-12 essay sub-score

Information about your responses, including which questions you answered right and wrong, and which you omitted

Your estimated percentile rank for college-bound seniors based on the test you took (Note: your percentile rank will help you understand how you scored in comparison to other test takers.)

A printable copy of your essay

Soon after it’s posted online, this information is sent to your home so that you have an official score report. You can also use the College Board site and your official score report to confirm the colleges to which you sent your scores.
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With standardized testing season in full swing at public and private schools across the nation, parents and students have probably experienced increased stress. Teachers are also at risk for elevated stress levels due to the NCLB Act which links tests scores to teacher performance. To naviagate the testing season without the stress, CNN put together a few questions that parents can ask before and after their children complete the standardized tests required by their school and state.

Questions to ask before testing

• Which tests are given in my child’s grade?
• What are the purposes of these tests?
• What will these tests measure?
• How will the scores be reported?
• How will the results of the tests be used?
• What do you do to prepare children for tests?
• What can I do at home to help my child prepare to take the test?
• What happens if my child performs poorly?

Questions to ask after testing

• What do the test results tell me about my child’s strengths and weaknesses?
• What can I do to help strengthen my child’s skills and abilities?
• Are the test results consistent with my child’s performance in the classroom?
• How does my child compare with his peers?
• Is the test data used to help improve instruction?
• What changes, if any, will be made in the classroom instruction?

According to a recent CNN.com article, a team of researchers at the University of Oregon in Eugene is leading a re-examining of AP courses in U.S. history, biology, chemistry, physics, European history, world history and environmental science.

“We recognize that simply having a course that requires a teacher to cover a lot of content is not the same as the best-level college course, in which teachers are facilitating in-depth study,” said Trevor Packer, Advanced Placement executive director.

Find out how the potential changes to the AP program will affect your high school students.

Testing is becoming a regular part of education for K-12 grade students. Whether it is placement tests, progress assessment tests, college entrance tests or high school exit tests, students endure their fair share of testing. With more schools incorporating high school exit tests into their educational experience, making sure students have mastered the necessary high school curriculum has new meaning.

“High school students in 20 states this spring must pass a standardized test to get a diploma. The class of 2006 will see the next major expansion of exit exams. Four states — Arizona, California, Idaho and Utah - for the first time next year will withhold diplomas from seniors who fail the final exam. Washington state will phase in the test by 2008.”

Read the full article on high school exit exams in high schools around the country.

A lot of attention has been given to the essay portion of the new SAT; most of it unwarranted. The reason being that the essay counts for only about one-third of the score of one of three sections. In other words, the SAT essay portion is only one-ninth of the total SAT score.

The essay is not the only change on the new SAT. Gone are the tiresome analogies along with quantitative comparisons and an emphasis on vocabulary. The new additions are higher level math questions, increased focus on grammar and more critical reading.
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It’s that magical time of a student’s life when making life decisions is actually encouraged — senior year.

For many, it comes way too fast. For others, it doesn’t come fast enough. And for still more, it sneaks up on them, finding them unprepared and unsure what the future should hold for them.

Whether students are prepared or not, senior year is inevitable and the job of preparing students for the next step tends to fall on the shoulders of countless high school guidance counselors.
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Standardized tests such as the SAT and ACT are without a doubt among the most important factors for students moving on to college, but convincing students of the need to take the tests seriously can sometimes present a challenge.
The SAT, ACT and other standardized test are required for admission to many schools, and admissions officers routinely use the tests to seek out exemplary students and winnow out underperformers. Read the rest of this entry »