blockhead's Blog

Perhaps you are at career crossroads, and you are looking for a more fulfilling and interesting way to utilize your skills. If you are interested in teaching and traveling to exciting and interesting destinations, then you might want to consider teaching English as a foreign language abroad. English is the most commonly spoken language in the world today, and desire of those in other countries to learn the English language is growing at a steady rate. Therefore, there is a demand for bright and motivated individuals to teach conversational and written English to those abroad, both young and old.

The benefits of teaching English as a foreign language in another country are numerous. Not only are you providing a service to those who desire it, but you will benefit from those you teach as well. In choosing to teach the English language in one of several locales such as Southeast Asia, South America, Western Europe, and the Middle East, you will learn about new cultures and traditions. You will have the opportunity to shatter stereotypes regarding our own American culture. You will have the opportunity to do a large amount of traveling to neighboring nations. You will become self-reliant and self-assured on your journeys, and you will certainly make many new friends.

Teaching English as a foreign language can have many benefits for your career as well. Your exposure to new surroundings and your experience teaching will garner you excellent communication skills. You might find that your prior work experience coupled with your new teaching venture will provide you with a considerable amount of career options when you have completed your teaching duties. You will have opportunities to change your life and career on a global scale. Because the demand for instructors to teach the English language abroad has increased, so has the demand for more qualified individuals to apply. Language schools are highly discriminating when it comes to hiring new instructors. That is why it is important to get your certification in TEFL/TESOL (Teaching English as a foreign language/Teaching English as a second language) if you intend to apply for a position with a language school. Certification demonstrates to potential employers that you are serious in taking on this challenging new career. Certification can be achieved by taking courses at a number of campuses nationwide, and there are even certification course programs available online. Receiving your certification for teaching English as a foreign language will certainly prepare you to be a more effective and successful teacher by instructing you on how to teach grammar, how to teach vocabulary, how to teach speaking, how to teach writing, how to motivate your students, how to manage a classroom, and how to construct lesson plans. Receiving your certification will also better prepare you for a move abroad, which can be daunting and stressful. Having the peace of mind in knowing that you are fully qualified to perform your new job will help to alleviate some of the stress in throwing yourself into an entirely new country and culture.

Teaching the English language to students in foreign nations can be exciting, fulfilling, and highly enjoyable. It is a mutually beneficial experience for you and your students. Not only are you representing your own country and culture, and imparting your personal knowledge of the English language and your culture onto others, but you are also learning about other individuals and their various experiences and traditions. While broadening your mind and experiencing something totally unique, you are also embarking on an exciting new career, one that has the opportunity to open many new doors for you professionally.

Find the essential information on where and how to learn a new or second language at Teach English Language

Ever wonder how you could get your child the help he needs in math? The answer you maybe looking for is math tutor software. Such software allows your child to learn at his or her own pace, review topics he may need to reinforce, and do all of this in the comfort of your home. Tutoring software of all kinds is available. Some are more general and focus on grade level, and other software is more specific and focus on a single subject, such as algebra. Whatever the software, it is sure to help your child learn math.

As your child tries math tutor software for the first time, he may review some topics that he already feels he knows. Though he may be tempted to skip such sections, it is best that he follow the software and re-learn those topics. Often times, it is a misunderstanding of the basics that causes problems down the line. It is important to pinpoint the problem areas as soon as possible. Math tutor software may be better the child's teacher in this respect, because the teacher does not have the time to review all previous topics with the child to pinpoint the origin of misunderstanding, whereas the software does. As a child uses the software, he will gain a better understanding of the subject through learning to soft problems step by step (answers are usually explained step by step) and by repetition. Since most math tutor software titles are loaded with extra problems, he will have the opportunity to practice more.

So, how can your child get the most of the tutoring software? There are a couple of ways. The first is to USE the software. I've heard countless parents complain that a new such-and-such package goes completely unused. Sit down with your child and make a specific, realizable schedule. Rather than tell your child 'use this math tutor software,' and expect him to run off and become a math wizard, take the time to help him use it. Then, once he gets going and learns to use the software, put aside a set amount of time (one hour is usually good) for your child to use the software on his own. A time limit will prevent him from rushing through.

Another tool that comes with most math tutor software is the games. Kids love games, and they will get more practice on the subject matter the more time they spend with the software. By playing with games on the software, he may learn more without even realizing it. But, it is important to remember that the games should only supplement experience, not dominate it. The bulk of the software should be devoted to learning problem solving skills--learning the fundamentals step by step until they are understood.

So, as you can see there are definite gains to be had from math tutor software. They teach material a child may have had trouble learning in class, they reinforce subject matter through repetition, and they make learning fun for the student. I hope you and your child enjoy using computer software to help you learn more about math.

When I left for college I had no idea how to evaluate a school or a degree program. I based my decisions on what other people thought I should do and what was easy instead of sitting down and asking myself some simple questions. I'd like to offer some questions I should have asked myself about my goals and the programs I was evaluating.

First, something everyone should answer before going to school: Why are you going to school and what do you hope to achieve? Even if you are undecided about your major or future career plans, you should know why you are going to school. Are you going to school merely for the sake of learning? Are you hoping to improve your skills for a current job? Are you going to school to prepare for the career you desire?

What sort of degree do you need in order to accomplish your goal? Do you need a technical or professional certification? Do you need an associate's, bachelor's, or master's degree? If you are unsure, try researching the fields that interest you. The Occupational Outlook Guide on the Bureau of Labor Statistics website not only provides statistical data on job growth and pay rates, but detailed job descriptions and training requirements. Some fields such as automotive technicians and massage therapists may require a technical school education that focuses on hands-on training as opposed to the classic 4-year college education.

What are your interests and aptitudes? Are you good with numbers, working with your hands, words, animals or people? The Myers Briggs and the Keirsey Temperament Sorter are good resources on the web that can help you figure out what sort of careers you might be best suited for based on your personality type. (For example I am an INFJ, so I’m suited to careers dealing with counseling and writing.)

How much time and money are you willing to invest? Are you willing to take out loans or work full time while you are in school? Have you applied for federal aid, grants and scholarships? It's as simple as filling out a FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) form. Student loans are among the loans with the lowest interest rates and recent years have seen them the lowest they have ever been. When it comes to time, are you willing to sacrifice leisure time, family time or work time?

Consider technical training as an alternative to the traditional 4-year college. Inventory the benefits and disadvantages of a career college versus the traditional college. Scheduling may be more flexible and programs may be shorter meaning you will be out in the workforce sooner. (watch out for my next article which will cover the differences between the two types of schools)

Choosing a program is just as important if not moreso than choosing a school. Some people choose a school first, allowing time to explore the options of that one school; while others may know exactly what they are looking for and will choose a school based on the programs offered. Hopefully, you will now be better prepared to make that important decision to benefit your mind and your future.

People learn from two different sources. They learn when they are presented with information and they learn from instruction. Information simply provides data about an event, about something or about someone. Instruction is when a learner is guided or assisted to learn some information or skill. Most information, however, can be improved by adding instructional design techniques to the information to assist the learner in learning the information more effectively. Some information will not benefit from instruction design techniques. It was just meant to inform.

For example information about the latest airplane crash is provided through various information media channels, such as newspaper, radio and television. Not much instructional design went into the creation of these presentations, although there is a fair amount of “motivation” built into their delivery. On the other hand, information about an historical event could be advanced through instructional design techniques. The information could be related to other events during the same period, motivation could be provided to ensure history does not repeat itself, the information could be broken down into several other steps or events, it could be compared to a similar event which had a different outcome, etc. These techniques will improve the possibility of learning.

But how do we know when learning has occurred? Learning has occurred when the learner’s performance has improved. Most organizations measure performance of the students through the test results of the course tests. Course test results are a small indicator of any possible performance improvement. The best measure is how well the information or skill can be applied to the non-classroom situation. For example, if an employee attends a “Call Centre” training course and that person scored high on the course tests, this is small indicator of whether or not learning has occurred. If that same person has a measurable increase in the amount of successful calls, then that is the better indicator. The on-the-job results are the true indicators that performance has improved and therefore that learning has occurred. On the other hand, if the amount of successful calls has decreased or remained the same, then this is an indicator that learning has not occurred.

Instruction should be implemented with the main objective of improving an individual’s performance. This improved performance will allow the learner to bring benefits to the organization. It is surprising that organizations implement a learning strategy with no consideration for performance improvement or performance improvement measurement. Some courses of instruction do not even include tests. While I do not agree with the course tests as a prime indicator of the learning that occurred, it does provide a certain amount of motivation and a small indication that learning has occurred. Testing and assessment is a whole complex subject on its own, and requires lot of experience and practice to perfect. Some tests are designed so poorly, that what they are actually testing is not how well the learner has learned the content, but how to take a test.

How do measure the success of instruction? The first measurement could be the results of the test scores. These scores can be tracked and observed by the individual and by the course. The next, more important, measurement is the direct performance results. These results should also be tracked by the individual and by the department. It may be difficult to isolate the direct impact of the training, however. Other external events could also impact the individual’s performance and could skew the observation. The learner may have been doing their own research and study; they may now have more experience; etc. This is why the measurement should include past performance, current performance, performance of the individual, and performance of the department and any other statistical approach. All of these measurements can be compiled and compared with the results of the course tests to provide a good indicator of the effects of the instruction.

So, when implementing an organization learning strategy, it is important not to focus on the amount of training course that are being offered and taken. The true measurement of effective training is whether or not learning has occurred and whether or not the individual learner’s performance has improved. This will ensure that business value is being provided by the instruction.

According to an August 14th article in the Detroit Daily News, an unintended consequence of the Michigan schools funding crisis is a growing number of recalls within the Metro-Detroit area. The grassroots efforts attempt to oust school board officials, who make unfavorable decisions within the Detroit school districts.

With the funding crisis within the Michigan schools, many local district school board members have been forced to make many difficult decisions to cut costs. Buildings have been closed, and employees have been laid off.

Recall of elected local Michigan schools’ officials is to be used for officials who do things that are illegal, immoral or negligent. Voters, however, are using the recall to target their local Michigan schools’ board members for making unpopular decisions.

Such grassroots actions create the need for special elections. Even if tacked on to another local election, it is costly. Some recall elections can cost as little as $15,000 or as much as $50,000. This is money that could be used directly for student curriculum.

There have been two unsuccessful local Michigan schools recalls in the Livonia and St. Clair Shores Lakeview school districts. Voters, who did not believe it worth the cost of a special election, sidelined the St. Clair recall. Current petition drives for a recall are raging in Garden City, Redford Union, and Van Buren school districts, as well as Port Huron.

Five Garden City school board members are being targeted for voting to eliminate 29.5 custodial positions and four food service workers. The local school district, which faced a $2.7 million deficit, will save $2.1 million over the next three years due to the board’s decision.

Five Van Buren board members also are being targeted for recall. Residents believe they have mismanaged money and have twice floated failed proposals to pay for a new high school. Many people believe that something can be done with the current high school, rather than building a new one.

Brad Banasik, an attorney for the Michigan Association of School Boards, is astonished by the recall fever. He states it is an unprecedented number of recall attempts. Unfortunately, the Michigan schools funding crisis continues, which means more difficult decisions by local Michigan schools’ officials, who must cut spending in order to meet more important budgetary needs. Yet, the community is basically saying, “Do something we do not like, and you will be recalled!”

It is frustrating for local Michigan schools’ officials. Lisa Gubachy, a targeted board member in the Redford Union school district, summed it up best when she said, “Somebody was going to be unhappy no matter what decision the board made.” She wonders why she keeps doing it, but then quickly reminds herself, it is “for the kids.”