Difference Between Social and Academic Friends

In life we all have different circles of friends. There are your work friends, gym friends and for some, our friends with benefits! So why is then that in school we seemed to only have one set of friends? And furthermore, when it came to achieving well at school did these friends have your best interests at heart? Reflecting on those school years now it's easy to see that the people who achieved well at school had their friendship groups sorted well before you and I. They knew the real benefits and difference between social and academic friends.

Social friends are your mates, they are the ones you played sport with, hang out with, shared the same music tastes and, god forbid, dressed the same as. They are also the people you most likely got into trouble with at school, and as a result, your social friends are also the ones that sabotage your study habits. Remember the last time you sat down to study with one of your social friends and all you ended up doing was talking about that party on the weekend or that hot guy or girl at school. Let's face it, there was no study completed at all. This is because with this particular group of friends you are accustomed to a certain level of fun, enjoyment and conversation. The relationship with social friends is exactly that, social. They are not designed to have your academic needs in mind, and they probably don't even realize that they have leaded you astray.

Your Academic friends, however are the people you study with or team with to do group assignments. They are the friends that have your academic interests at heart. The reason for this is because they also wish to achieve at the highest level possible and are willing to put in the hard work like you to get it. This group of friends may have some of your social friends in it, but the likely hood will be low. Looking at your friends now, you possibly only have one or two close friends that manage to mix across your friendship groups but rarely will each group be the same people. This is because each group you have serves a purpose. The academic group's purpose is to create an environment of success and achievement at school, where as, the social group creates the fun, laughter, trust and the good times. Each friendship group you place yourself with contains other like minded individuals looking to achieve similar outcomes.

The idea of social groups is not new, however, for any educators or parents reading this article, it is an important conversation worth having with your student. It requires self-discipline and a number of hard decisions about possible friendship groups. Although, if you think about the wonderful relationships and support you receive from your friendship groups it makes perfect sense to create these networks earlier in life.

Chris is school teacher who was looking for another way to help students achieve their desires at school. He found that most students were struggling at times to complete study and homework at home without help. Therefore his online maths tutoring was born in order to provide an environment where students and parents can experience success through learning.

How To Gain Greater Success In Formal Examinations

INTRODUCTION

I grew up in the years when the scholarship examination was still an important step in the education process. Each Friday morning, the scholarship classes, the final year in primary school had a two hour test examination on English, Mathematics or Social Studies. At high school, there were many 2 and 3 hour exams at the end of each term leading to the formal external Junior and Senior examinations. Most of my first degree assessments at University of Queensland were 3 hour exams. As an evening student, it was essential to develop good exam technique. This article reflects these experiences.

PREAMBLE

Up to 50% (sometimes more) of the test instruments used in Schools are the traditional pen on paper examination held under strict examination conditions. For many students this can be a stressful situation where they do not perform at their best. Apart from a good study program, the best preparation is to teach the student how to best do the actual examination/Test. Below are the steps I teach my students from Term 1, Year 8. I repeat it prior to every examination/test right through to the end of Year 12. This procedure can be used in all year levels and subjects successfully. In primary school, teachers might introduce these ideas slowly and actually go through a practice exam explaining to the class how to do these steps. I have even done this with my secondary classes. Remember it is an on-going process.

As well, I remind them of these issues:

(1) Get a good night's sleep.

(2) Have a good breakfast/lunch, etc.

(3) Drink plenty of water.

(4) Don't study "madly" during the last 30 minutes before the test.

All these ideas are to ensure the student is in the best physical condition possible to do the exam.

STEP 1 Read the examination/test paper at least twice.

Decide which questions are easy are harder. Mark them hard or easy.

Decide on the order that you will do them.

Do the easy questions FIRST.

Why? - They take less time; therefore you gain extra time for the more difficult questions.

- Success creates confidence.

- You don't miss out on marks you can get.

- You give the impression to your marker you know your subject.

Write out a short plan of how you are going to answer the question.

STEP 2 Work out a time/mark allocation. This give you a rough estimate of the time required per question. Use the first few minutes to plan; the last few to check over and edit where necessary.

Allow time at the beginning of the exam for reading and at the end for checking.

If you are doing a more difficult question; DON'T spend all of your time on it if you are not succeeding.

Go on to others. When you return; read the question afresh and what you have done before you continue.

Continue to try all unfinished questions to the end of the exam/test time.

STEP 3 Checking is a compulsory part of every test. There are several ways to check:

1. Check you have copied down all the correct data for the question.

2. Check that your answer (its size, etc.) fits in a practical sense into the scenario of the question.

3. Check, in fact, that you have actually answered the question fully.

4. Towards the end of the exam time, check you have done or tried every question and every part of each question.

5. In Maths questions or questions involving calculations, check every step as you do it.

STEP 4 Make sure you have been:

- Neat

- Tidy

- Organised

- Logical

- Clear

- Concise

And you have

- correctly numbered questions

- your name and teacher's name appear on each page

In other words, make sure it is easy for you and your examiner/teacher to understand/follow what you have done. This gives the examiner/teacher every opportunity to give you the marks your efforts deserve. It also gives you the best opportunity to check your answers and ensure they are correct and that you get the most marks possible.

REMEMBER: you have biros, pencils, eraser and ruler. (Coloured pencils/biros can be useful, too.)

Rick Boyce has taught for over forty-five years. Early in his career, he taught English, Science, Geography and Mathematics.For the fifteen years before his retirement, he was the Head of Mathematics in a large Australian school. Examination technique was a process he taught all his students. He gained a reputation as an innovator in the teaching of Mathematics and as a presenter of professional development for Mathematics teachers.

It is important that you: The Young Teacher's Guide to Problem Solving in Mathematics

The key to teaching Problem Solving in unfamiliar contexts in Maths is to begin as early as possible with all students. Give your students as much experience as possible as often as possible. This experience does not need to be for extended periods but should contain many short, sharp exercises in a great variety of contexts.

What we need to do is to build up our students' confidence by giving them lots of opportunities, rewarding them, not so much for a correct answer but for being involved in 'having a go'.

It is important that you, the teacher, must become a problem solver if you are to be an effective teacher of problem solving.

Here are themes/ideas that I use to develop this confidence:

• Adopt the premise that problems are 'easy'. Teach your students to start by looking for a simple approach.

• The word 'problem' has a negative connotation. Perhaps the word 'challenges' is a better way to speak about our 'problems' in unfamiliar situations.

• Mistakes are to be welcomed. They are learning experiences.

• Finding a dead end in an exercise should be regarded as a success not a failure. You have just proved you cannot do it that way.

• The seeds of the solution are always in the problem but often students overlook the obvious. So teach students how to interpret questions.

• I would often model verbally and on the board how I approach a problem and work towards a solution.

• I encourage my students to find and share different ways to solve the problems.

• Persistence is an important habit to develop. Include in your work, occasionally, long problems to solve. They don't need to be difficult but just have many steps.

• We need to give students greater opportunities to follow through with a problem. Give hints rather than solutions initially. Solutions should be given when all else has failed. Allow successful students to explain the solution to the class or group.

• Charles Lovitt, a well-known Australian researcher into Mathematics teaching, has a thesis that goes like this: "It's not the question that is important BUT how you ask the question." Mental Arithmetic in Middle and Junior High School is a great way to ask the same question in a variety of ways. I use it often.

Here are some simple examples of the one question:

• 7 plus 5

• Find the sum of 7 and 5

• What do I add to 7 to get 12?

• What do I subtract from 12 to get 7?

• What numbers have a sum of 12?

• What numbers, whose difference is 2, have a sum of 12?

One last point

I do all the problem solving 'challenges' I give first, before I give it to my class or I treat it as an unseen problem and do it for my class showing them that I am human and can be 'stumped' initially. Then, I treat it as a group exercise.

Rick Boyce has taught for over forty-five years, the last fifteen years as the Head of Mathematics in a large Australian school. There, he devoted much of his time developing ways to help students develop confidence in using their Mathematics in unfamiliar contexts. An eBook on problem solving to expanding this article and another with problem solving exercises will be available on our web site, soon

Teaching British Abroad

Do you like to save or do you like to spend money?

The standard of living you can attain in the country you plan to teach in and the value of that currency is relative to the question of...

Do you like to save or do you like to spend money?

If you usually spend all of your income, you may spend even more if your income is doubled. You may want to travel, eat at fancy restaurants and enjoy your teaching English abroad experience fully or if you can live on a tight budget and save, you will do that anywhere you live.

How do you know if you're being offered a good income or not?

Your standard of living teaching English abroad in comparison to the rest of the population in a country is a major factor. Check into other jobs on the internet to see what is being offered in that particular country, be sure to talk to people who've taught in that country before. That will help you to establish if you've been offered a fair salary to teach in that country.

Can you afford to work there?

That question can be tricky. If you're being paid 4500RMB ($650 US) per month to teach English abroad in China, it may scare you at first because well...let's face it, the cost of living in the US can get expensive, however in China, you can rent a furnished apartment for 230 RMB and feed yourself for under 150RMB a month. You will have money to "play" with an you will be able to explore China and enjoy a good local standard of living. If you have financial responsibilities back at home, you may have trouble exploring China to the fullest.

How can I make money teaching in an English-speaking country?

It's not easy to make a good living in an English-speaking country these days. Most of the jobs are temporary and very casual. TEFL teachers are usually paid a small hourly rate and teachers move between jobs and may be working 2 or 3 jobs at a time. Student numbers vary and TEFL instructors are sometimes asked to move on.

Locking in a full-time position brings in a regular income and permanent position can be difficult to obtain as many teachers are in search of these types of jobs.

Can You Make Money Teaching English Abroad?

You won't become rich teaching English abroad, but you can make a pretty good living and you will have a chance to see the world. You will make friends from all parts of the world and that can be a huge plus when looking for accommodations for a few days. Teaching English abroad isn't done necessarily for the money but you just may find it to be a rewarding career!

Meaningful Art Lessons for Blind and Visually Impaired Students

1. Use play trays to keep art materials in a defined work space. They are typically available in both small and large sizes.

2. Mark crayons, colored pencils and paint containers in Braille so that your student can independently choose their own color themes.

3. Keep items marked with Braille (Braille ruler, Braille crayons, colored pencils, stencils, small tactual art items, watercolor paint, etc.) in a separate container for easy access.

4. Provide verbal descriptors for reference such as: green as the grass, blue as the sky and yellow as the sun.

5. Accept individual creativity for color schemes and color choices.

6. Use a thick black permanent marker, bold colors or tactual markers such as dried glue, tactual or textured marks for outlines and hands on demonstrations.

7. Include use of a tracing wheel for raised outlines of your student design ideas. A fabric tracing wheel will do the trick.

8. Offer a variety of foundations to create your special projects including: embossed Braille paper, corrugated cardboard, foam, canvas, bubble wrap, velvet, wax paper or other tactual background material.

9. Provide textured materials for design construction on your foundation such as: cut out foam pieces, glitter glue, sand paint/glue, puffy paint, cotton balls, removable glue dots (commercially available), paper crimpers (commercially available offering various textures such as corrugated, bubble and diamonds), foam noodles and craft sticks offered in various shapes and sizes. Use materials with auditory components.

10. Have materials prepared (prior to each lesson) and ready for use in small bins labeled in Braille.

11. Provide a description of the project in Braille format. Braille descriptions should be kept in a marked Braille folder for reference.

12. Use tactual markers to help your student outline their creative designs prior to painting or construction.

13. Be verbally descriptive when speaking about or showing art projects to the class or when speaking about or showing peer work including: visual, tactual and auditory components.

14. Enjoy brainstorming special tactual art projects and the time that you have with your blind students. These experiences can be professional/educational growth experiences that can change the way you view future lesson preparation and teaching techniques.

15. Finally, be sure to show off your blind students tactual art projects along with their sighted peers on hallway bulletin boards. Art projects should be hung in accessible areas at student level so that they can be enjoyed tactually by your blind and sighted peers.