Did you know there are white water rafting programs for special education kids, autistic kids, and kids with down-syndrome? Did you know that one ride down the river for these kids will be an event of a lifetime? Think about it. Best of all when kids of this nature experience something so radically different and new, it causes them use parts of their brains that have yet to be used much. Yes, that’s right it helps with brain development, just as if they were learning how to ride a bike, sing a song, or learn how to do a new skill. Okay so, let’s talk.

Some folks involved in providing such trips down the river for special needs kids tell of how it becomes a life changing experience, so to do the parents. Occasionally, it’s almost to the point that there was “little Junior before the white water rafting trip, and little Junior after.” Some parents note the difference is that profound – to which I say; wow. When I first heard about all this, I thought to myself, no, it couldn’t be that good, but the parents swear by it and the kids after doing it, they’ll never stop talking about it.

My question is; why does it work so well? Perhaps, because special kids maybe apprehensive about the water, fearful, and yet excited at the same time, well, that is just about everything you need for strong memory imprintation isn’t it? Okay so, I’ve read research papers on how the simple task of learning how to play a musical instrument, learning how to ride a bike, or interacting with an avatar on a computer helps develop these brains, and the empirical evidence has been show to prove it so. Thus, maybe these white water river rafting trips are akin to those other activities, but even more so, perhaps that’s why only one trip down the river is enough to trigger changes.

It’s not that normal (whatever that is) kids don’t also go away with experiences and memories that they cherish for years to come, they do too when it comes to river rafting, but for the special education kids who may not get the chance to do all those other activities that regular kids do consider it the most fun they’ve ever had in their lives, and it shows on their faces and their excitement every time anyone mentions it for long into the future. Indeed, I hope you will please consider all this and think on it.

Title: The Education Enigma

Author: Bruce Deitrick Price

Publisher: Word-Wise Publishing

ISBN: 1-4392-3035-8

ISBN-13: 978-1439230350

The Education Enigma is a book of essays pertaining to America’s education system. The question Price poses is: What Happened to American Education? Price proclaims, “The simultaneous decline of American education and the language used by America’s educators is a historical fact.” Over the years I have done some research on this topic, in particular through editing and proofreading of college papers. I found this book very interesting and agree with much of what Price states.

The main crux of Price’s essays deal with the failure of our teaching methods to actually teach children to read. He explains the difference between teaching children to read using whole word strategy and phonics, favoring phonics. According to Price, “When we examine education throughout the 20th century, we see a puzzling array of unproductive ideas. But no failure is as primal and destructive as the inability of American public schools to teach reading-the one essential skill.”

Through his essays Price also touches on the subjects of math, history, science and art. In addition, he provides a history of the American education system along with its downward turn referring to it as the “dumbing down” of America. From John Dewey to Maria Montessori to Rudolf Flesch to Gilbert Highet, Price explains their philosophies and the affects on this country’s education system. He concludes, specifically in regard to Dewey and his followers, “Make no mistake, this was a secret conspiracy.”

Along with this Price argues an excellent point that I always disagreed with: children need to memorize facts and figures even if they can look the answers up, whether in a book or online. I always believed that as long as children were taught where and how to look up answers there is no need for state tests that cause stress for many of our children from fourth grade up. His comment toward this kind of theorizing is: “But will they? No, people usually muddle through with what they actually know in their heads.” I do tend to agree with this point even though I still feel there is too much emphasis placed on state tests.

The Education Enigma is full of information and history pertaining to the American education system. Through some of the titles of his essays it’s easy to see that Price has a sense of humor: Jay Leno: Educator of the Year; Phooey on John Dewey; and Educators are Best Understood as “Ignorance Engineers.”

It is important to mention that Price is not hurling these jabs pertaining to the ineffectiveness of the school system at the teachers in the trenches. It is aimed at those in control of creating and enforcing inadequate teaching strategies. In Price’s words, “When I speak of “educators,” I never mean teachers. I mean that small group of managers at the top, with Ph.D.’s, who effectively control the public schools.”

A final quote from this book that I especially liked: “…Another famous government report, A Nation at Risk (1983) concluded that our public schools seem to have been created by an enemy power. Exactly. An enemy that would want Americans to read feebly and count inaccurately.”

About the author: Bruce Deitrick Price is a novelist, painter, poet and education activist. He graduated from Norfolk Academy and Princeton (with Honors in English Literature). Throughout his career, Price was writing about education. Aside from the arts, his main passion is Improve-Education.org. Price is a member of PEN and Mensa.

What does education mean to you? Let’s turn our attention to solving one of the nation’s most important problems, education. Education is one of the most important, if the not the most important foundation that needs to be instilled in today’s children. The fact is that it’s every parents dream to see their children choose and eventually accomplish a higher level of education. Are we being surpassed by other countries, are they quickly becoming the world’s leading authority and provider of higher education?

Its clear that we have a need of higher education. We are in an economy that is based on education, we have doctors, lawyers, engineers, scientists and the list goes on. If we can’t hire the workers with the training and skills we require, major companies will find it necessary to move to those countries where the talent resides. To simply state the position simply as possible, we must hire the best work force in the world to stay competitive. We are outsourcing our needs because we don’t have the level of expertise that is required to maintain our own economy.

The need to outsource is only considered as a last resort because we can’t keep up with the rest of the world. Many times we don’t have much of a choice; we need raw materials and advanced technology to compete and that only comes with an advanced education.

So, how do we maintain our education and not sacrifice our economy? First we must develop self discipline and give out teachers the tools needed so they can make a positive impact. We must do more to ensure teachers have the training to teach the subjects they’re presenting with a deeper understanding of the curriculum. The fact remains “the U.S. has the lowest high school graduation rate in the world”. If we are going to compete in a knowledge based economy we must devote more resources to our teachers. Teachers must reflect an increased focus on science and math to better prepare students and allow them to compete on a global based level.

While other countries are graduating scientists and engineers at an impressive rate our students are straying away from these fields. We have many students that are looking for a quick fix. They are not willing to put in the time and effort to really understand the curriculum. I witnessed this first hand when I was in high school and college. Many students that did their homework the night before, no research or real effort was put into their work. I remember many students that had a great memory and were able to retain just enough to get by.

Understanding is the key to success in anything you do, if we complete our work without a thorough understanding; we will not be prepared for higher “University” based education.

Our education level will play a major role, on whether or not our future will succeed in today’s competitive marketplace. If performance and test scores are declining, who needs to step in and take charge? Should it be our parents, our schools, our government, or a combination? The debate and dilemma will continue, until this growing problem is addressed.

Student participation is inextricably linked to most educational research and those related to various aspects of teaching and learning. This may involve a single student or many, depending on research focus and intent.

Advantages to using students in research may include the fact that they are easily accessed especially if you are the teacher and are using your students as research participants. There are a number of students in an educational institution, therefore, the opportunity to engage in relatively large-scale research projects. Researching with students in one own class or educational institution facilitate easy follow-up sessions. Students also bring varied perspectives and are from varied backgrounds which could potentially lead to rich data.

Despite these advantages, one key challenge is ‘pinning them down’. By this I mean, not just getting their consent and promise to participate as interviewees or respondents, but their actual involvement. During the data collection phrase utilizing students has participants there are 4 strategies I employ in the pinning down process.

Pinning down strategy 1: Link data collection to scheduled lessons.

A key feature of this strategy involves incorporating interviews or questionnaire distribution and completion during lessons that I teach. I also solicit the help of colleagues to do the same at a convenient time during their teaching/lectures. In using this strategy I plan interviews before or after students’ scheduled lectures. This is especially useful when employing a focus group data collection method. I have found that students getting ready for, or leaving a lesson are in ‘learning mode’ and seem mentally ready to answer research-related questions. It is also important to keep these sessions within the advertised length.

Pinning down strategy 2: Link data collection with students’ availability.

Find out from potential student participants, what time is convenient and schedule the interview as appropriate. This strategy is most important if they are not in your class and also decreases the drop-out or ‘no show’ rate. This, however, must be accompanied by timely reminders. After setting and agreeing the date and time send a reminder a week or few days before the actual event. Use emails, texts, calls, social media (as appropriate).

Pinning down strategy 3: Use an alternate format.

Given the pervasive nature of the internet and online environments and students use of these, the use of an alternate format e.g. survey monkey, or ones built-in the University’s Learning Management System or Virtual Learning Environment is a sure way of getting their actual engagement in the research, not just a promise to do so.

Pinning down strategy 4: Reward participation.

Some students participants like to know ‘what’s in this for them’ so strategy number 4 is to offer an incentive, for example, a gift certificate (if appropriate). However in some of my studies using student participant they were willing to participate as long as I gave clear information about the time commitment and some freely gave of their time because they were contributing to a bit of research that they value.

As a school psychologist, as well as the mother of a child with a chronic health condition, I understand all too well the intimidation that accompanies entering the “bargaining” sessions of IEP meetings. There are ways, however, to stack the proverbial cards in your favor. Read on…

To begin with, be prepared for anything. Keep accurate documentation and note the dates and times that everything occurs. I am not exaggerating – EVERYTHING. Every phone call, every progress report, etc. Nothing is more intimidating to IEP teams than a parent who has prepared for their meeting. A parent with a Plan of their own is scary for us, because what if we look like idiots, or offend you? You have to come into meetings prepared for anything, almost as if you’re documenting for a Due Process hearing. You never know, you might have to “go there.”

Second, know your rights. Ask for a copy of your State’s Parental Rights in Special Education (PRISE) for your review before you attend any meeting at all. You can find the PRISE for your State by entering a search on Google.

Third, know you are an active participant and that no one can force a program on you or your child. For example, some schools will hand you an IEP that they’ve already devised before you got there, with hopes that the meeting will go quickly and you will just sign and leave. But that is like going to an Italian restaurant and all that’s on the menu is spaghetti. Your child is unique and to truly devise an individualized plan, all of those involved should plan on spending at least one hour talking through the parts of the plan that are going to affect the child academically and socio-emotionally.

Know what you want before you go in there. Have a Mission in mind, know your goals, and outline your strategies before you even step foot in that room. For example, you will need goals for your child. Make sure you’ve broken them down to the smallest components before you ask for them – you will be surprised how much more you get out of your request.

I.e., Goal: I want my child to be able to get – and hold – a job when they graduate.

Well, that is plain, isn’t it? If you broke it down, however, you would have:

I want my child to learn:

How to respect authority;

How to type;

How to honor time commitments;

How to respectfully interact with peers;

Etc.

Now, doesn’t that look more like what you were thinking?

You may not get all of them, but you will get some – and that is way more specific than “get a job,” so there will be a bit more work required of your Team. Good.

Third, know you will run into snags. There will be red tape you will have to circumvent; you will meet people whose goal it is to keep children from receiving services (yes, after all of those years of education, you would think we’re all in this for the children. Yet some of our colleagues are actually naysayers); you will hear all about how “this is not how we operate” when you present documentation proving otherwise; etc. You will certainly learn a lesson in frustration tolerance.

If you are lucky, you won’t have to deal with any of the above. But I doubt it.

Fourth, learn from the negatives and appreciate the positives. You will also learn some positive things, such as knowing when to give up. By this I don’t mean walking out on your plan, but knowing when to compromise.

Fifth, know your child is entitled to individuality. If you look at evaluations, they might all seem the same. You don’t want your child’s IEP to be just like everyone else’s, or they will be ignored. Trust me on this one. I have seen 1,000’s of IEPs and rarely does the school hold itself responsible for child failure. It is always “Johnny X” or “Johnny’s mom Y.” Make sure your child’s IEP delineates what has NOT been done for him – not just what has been.

“You just want us to fix what you’ve done wrong.”

Did that statement infuriate you? It is what most school staff thinks when you demand fair treatment.

My advice? Listen more than you speak and ask very specific questions – questions that merit elaboration on the part of your Team. Most of all, remain respectful. No one likes a bully, or someone who blames everything on everyone else.

Oh, and smile graciously as you lay your tape recorder on the conference table… 😉

Are you the parent of a child with a disability receiving special education services? Are you considering filing for a due process hearing on procedural violations of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)? This article will explain the changes to IDEA that occurred in 2004 when it was reauthorized, in the area of procedural violations, and explain what you as a parent need to know, about this change.

A procedural violation means that the school district did not follow the specific procedures that are required in IDEA. For example: IDEA requires that parents are equal participants in the Individual Educational Plan (IEP) meetings for their child. If special education personnel refuse to allow the parent to give input, this would be a procedural violation. Or if timelines are not followed for testing this would also be a procedural violation.

Before IDEA was reauthorized in 2004 when a parent filed for a due process hearing, the hearing officer could find that a child was denied a Free Appropriate Public Education if procedural violations occurred. Things you must know about the change:

1. IDEA now states that any procedural violations must be substantive or in other words substantial. The procedural violation must rise to the level of preventing the child from receiving a free appropriate public education (FAPE).

2. There are 2 ways that a school districts procedural violation rises to the level of denying the child FAPE. They are:

A. The violation significantly impeded the parents opportunity to participate in the decision making process regarding the provision of FAPE to the student or

B. The violation caused a deprivation of educational benefit.

I would like to discuss each of these:

1. Many school districts have tried to convince courts that parents have participated in the IEP process if they just simply attended the IEP meeting. But a few courts have stated that it is not enough for the parent to just attend the IEP meeting, they must have “meaningful participation!” One court was extremely clear that if a district rejects a specific recommendation for placement or services need by the parent, regardless of evidence that the placement and services are appropriate for the child, and will meet the child’s educational needs, this may result in a procedural violation that denies the child FAPE.

In a well known special education case the school district refused to provide a child with Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA), even though there was a lot of evidence that the child required it. Special education personnel were ecstatic with the child’s progress with the private ABA program, but they refused to pay for it. The court in that particular case stated that the school district was not going to agree with the parents request for ABA, no matter what. Therefore the parents were prevented from having meaningful participation in the development of their child’s IEP, and this denied their child FAPE; which made the school district liable for paying for the program.

2. Denial of educational benefit is a little harder to prove, but I think it is doable. If the school district refused to listen to parents about a related service that their child needed, and it prevented FAPE, then this would be a deprivation of educational benefit.

Another example would be if a parent had an Independent Educational Evaluation (IEE) that stated that their child needed a Multi sensory reading program for 1 hour 5 days a week with a trained teacher, and the school district refused to listen to them. This would deny the child educational benefit and could be a denial of FAPE.

While this change has made it a little more difficult to prove denial of a free appropriate public education at due process, it makes it a little more clear for parents as they are preparing their case. Good luck and remember your child is depending on you!

The pursuit of lifelong learning-whether to enrich our lives, follow a new dream, or simply challenge ourselves, is certainly something that appeals to many of us. For some professionals, however, ongoing training in their fields of expertise is more important than for others. Individuals working in the medical and dental fields are entrusted with the safety and comfort of others on a daily basis. Should they choose to rely upon their initial training indefinitely, ignoring ongoing developments and technological advances, they would be putting their practices at legal risk and jeopardizing the health and welfare of their patients. In these fields, it’s simply not an option to assume that there is nothing more to learn.

Dental continuing education is essential for anyone working within the dental field. As in the medical field, technological advances in the field come at a rapid-fire pace, and staying abreast of the latest research, tools and treatment methods is crucial. Ongoing training for dental professionals is so important that most states require that dentists and hygienists complete a certain number of dental continuing education activities each year in order to remain licensed to practice. These requirements vary from state to state, and in some cases also apply to dental assistants.

Pursuing continued education in the dental field can be beneficial in several ways. For a dentist who is currently in practice, ongoing continuing education ensures that his or her patients have access to the latest diagnostic, preventative and treatment methods. For an individual just beginning a career in the dental field, dental continuing education can open new career pathways, provide opportunities for advancement and improve earning power.

A wide variety of dental continuing education activities are available for both working and non-working individuals. If your goal is simply to stay informed about new research findings and updated industry best practices, there are plenty of low-cost, self-paced online courses that can help you to meet your state’s continuing education requirements and enhance your ability to perform your current job role. If you are interested in furthering your formal education, however, in order to advance your career in the dental field, you may wish to pursue a degree or certificate program. For example, a dental assistant may discover that she is interested in pursuing a career as a hygienist-whether to earn a higher salary or simply to experience more personal fulfillment in her job role. In this case, she would need a degree from an accredited dental hygiene school in order to obtain her license.

Regardless of the pathway you choose, as a dental professional you should consider your pursuit of education to be a lifelong endeavor. Doing so will not only better position you to advance within your chosen field; it will also ensure that you’re able to provide the best possible care for your patients.

Professional continuing education can be completed in a variety of ways. The most important thing is the professional learns something from the course (s) they take. Hopefully, the course will education them and help them provide better services for their clients. The worst thing a professional could face is a waste of time and money. If the course doesn't help them provide better services or make them more knowledgeable in their field it is a big waste of time. In this article we are going to discuss some different professions and ways continuing education is completed. We are going to cover online education, classroom education, and self-study.

Online continuing education is becoming more and more popular among adult learners. It doesn't matter if you are looking to go back to school for a master's degree, get continuing education credits for your insurance license, or need help budgeting a large project. There are classes online for everyone! These courses are usually the most flexible and easiest for full-time working adults to complete. They are mainly asynchronous so the student does not have to be online at a specific time. Many times the course can be spread out over time as well. So the student may start the course on Wednesday and complete it on Sunday. This allows for even more flexibility for the student.

Another popular form of continuing education is sitting in a classroom and listening to a lecture. The classroom is very interactive and conducive for visual learners. Sometimes they need to see and read things multiple times and ask questions. Live chat is not always an option in online learning. Insurance agents in Florida for example do have to have to complete an examination if they sit in a classroom for their continuing education credits. But, if you are an adult learner looking for a master's degree you will be writing papers, completing case studies, and taking exams to get your degree. Classes are held at a specific time on a specific day so they are not as flexible as online courses.

The third type of continuing education is self-study or correspondence courses. This is where the student will order study materials online and have them delivered to their home. This is not available for every type of profession. Students can study at their leisure then take an exam either online or at a testing center depending on what is required.

As you can see there are many different ways you can continue your education, you will just have to find the easiest and most convenient method that fits your needs.

One of the challenges for financial planners in dealing with Baby Boomers approaching their actual (hoped-for) retirement dates has to do with assisting them in addressing their oft-substantial debt loads. Carrying debt has long been a fact of life for Americans, as taking out loans to pay for life's "finer things" has become not only more fashionable, but a standard practice. Gone, for example, are the days when significant numbers of people would expect to wipe out their home mortgages before they actually retire; a desire to continue to improve the size and quality of one's residence, as well as the temptation to cash in on the accumulated equity in order to buy this or that, have made carrying a mortgage into retirement now typical for so many entering their Golden Years .

Well, as it turns out, it's not just mortgages, car loans, and credit card balances that folks approaching retirement are seeing fit to keep as a part of their financial profiles; add education-related debt to the list, as well. That's right, I said education debt. It's not, however, what you may be thinking. I'm not talking about Boomers who are still working to pay off school loans they took out as undergraduates, or even loans they took out more recently when they decided to return to college as working adults. The education-related debt plaguing a growing number of retirees and near-retirees pertains to the loans they took out to assist children and grandchildren with the costs of their educations.

According to the LIMRA Secure Retirement Institute , adults in the age category of 65 to 74 are presently carrying almost six times more education debt than they were 25 years ago. Up significantly over the recent decades, education-related debt now represents roughly 15 percent of the total installment debt retirees are taking with them into retirement. For so-called pre-retirees, in the age category of 55 to 64, the picture is uglier, with education debt now representing 30 percent of the total in installment debt they're lugging around. The weight of these obligations is only going to compound the financial difficulties now facing retirees, who are already carrying record amounts of other debt with them into the land of fixed incomes.

The fact is that as the financial circumstances for so many in America remain very challenging, more people are going to have to re-think just how it is they hope to assist younger family members in meeting the expenses associated with higher education. While it's nice, on the one hand, that a lot of older Americans are very willing to take on this kind of debt for the benefit of children and grandchildren, the reality is that this is not a sustainable financial profile with which to enter retirement. The answer, in part, may be for the "seasoned" members of the family to engineer broader discussions with children over how education-related expenses should be met. As younger family members are approaching college age, it may be appropriate for grandparents to be more vigorous in suggesting options like garnering the first two years of post-high school education at state community colleges, or to recommend that young folks work while taking just a few classes at a time. In situations like these, wherein students will not be facing enormous expenses to attend school, parents and grandparents can make contributions to education costs, if they so choose, that are just that … singular contributions, minus the ongoing obligations. In any case, this growing debt load for retirees cannot continue, and so it will take smarter approaches to expenses … by everyone in a family … to spare all members of burdensome financial hardships.

The information contained here is for general information purposes only. Bob Yetman disclaims responsibility for any liability or loss incurred as a consequence of the use or application, either directly or indirectly, of any information presented herein. Nothing contained in this article should be construed as a solicitation or recommendation to engage in any financial transaction. You should seek the advice of a qualified professional before making any changes to your personal financial profile.

University of Phoenix Online Focuses on Team Learning

Unlike some other schools, the University of Phoenix Online focuses on Team Learning. For all classes, team assignments can make up to 20% of the student’s total grade. Consequently, students get more than they bargained for when pursuing an education at Phoenix’s online university (UoP online).

Online Education for those Working Full-Time

UoP online believes that distance learning shouldn’t be a solely individual or isolated effort. In an effort to help their students do better in their careers, UoP online believes that its students should get more practice working effectively as a virtual team. Besides submitting individual short answers and papers, students must also work as a part of a team, usually on a single course long project where the work on one week builds on the week done previously.

UoP online targets mature adults who have been in the work force for at least five years. The majority of UoP online students have been career oriented for some time. By designing their online classes so that they don’t require meetings at set times, UoP online helps busy individuals advance their educations. But don’t get the wrong idea; UoP online is not set up like other distance learning programs, say a correspondence course, where you set your own timeline. UoP requires you to be online at least four times a week to participate and you need to post assignments on a weekly schedule.

Effective team work is an integral part to a successful career. Many an interview has revolved around a person’s “team spirit.” Even online jobs require collaboration to a certain degree. UoP’s stance on online team learning might educate you on more than what you signed up for, too.

University of Phoenix offers degree programs in the following fields:

o Accounting

o Health Care

o Administration

o Human Services

o Business

o Information Systems

o Counseling

o Management

o Criminal Justice

o Marketing

o eBusiness

o Nursing

o Education

o Technology Management

o Finance

Online college courses lead to salary increase

Take online college courses that you can work around your schedule. Why go back to school? How about for more money? Studies show that the more education a person has, the more that person will make over coworkers who do the same thing but are less educated.

The more education you have, the more you get paid

Another reason you should consider distance learning courses is that it can help you change careers. If you’re sick of your current job and want another career, quit dreaming and starting working toward your goals. Recognizing the need to accommodate “non-traditional” students, more colleges are setting up online courses to help educate students via online campuses. They aren’t stopping with courses either. Many colleges offer complete degree programs that you can get entirely online.

When considering what online program you will enroll in, look at the following factors:

o Costs

o Accreditation. For example, the only state that will let you sit for the bar if you get an online law degree is California.

o Program requirements. What courses do you have to take to graduate? How many classes can you CLEP out of or get credit for courses you’ve taken elsewhere?

o Distance learning tools. What does the school use for its virtual classroom? Not all schools use the same online tools.

o What kind of financial aid is available to you?

Online programs are constantly being improved so if you looked into them a few years ago, you owe it to yourself to learn what educators have been up to in the meantime.