Distance learning isn’t a perfect system. But, being home, we have the full support of our families. 😂 Some “enlisted” their family’s cooperation: But, in other situations, moms readily lend a “helping hand”: And, so do little brothers: Lastly, when students and teachers do return to the classroom, all that family “support” may be this…
Tag: Academics
The COVID Revolution
Recently, Art and I reflected about the effects of COVID-19 for our company and in our history. As an educator in private practice, I have pivoted frequently not only to meet the needs of clients, but remain competitive in the near perfectly competitive educational support industry. I, working with my partners have continuously sought to…
‘Twas A Winter Break to Remember
Twas the first days of winter vacation In hopes of relaxing from a semester of deprivation Not a teenager eschewed a multi-days long hibernation Where the XBOX was humming, punctuated by the occasional deviation To the refrigerator. All finals were taken No impending projects to be done As the holidays arrived Full of food and…
Put Down Your #2 Pencils: The University Of California Will Eliminate SAT/ACT Scores By 2025, Part 11
University of California (UC) applicants are evaluated according to 14 different Comprehensive Review points, for which no one criteria is weighted more heavily than another. Thus, students’ talents and strengths can be more fairly identified when evaluating their admissions to the UC. Ten of the fourteen Comprehensive Review points concern academic performance, validating the importance…
The Enigma of the Local Context
For Fall 2021 first year applicants, earning the academic designation, Eligibility in the Local Context (ELC) for University of California (UC) admissions, may be more difficult than in past years. Given the Spring 2020 implementation of Pass/No Pass grading systems, thus the loss of a semester’s worth of letter grades for GPA calculations, Class of…
PUT DOWN YOUR #2 PENCILS: THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA ELIMINATE SAT/ACT SCORES, COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW: PART 8
Starting in Fall 2021, without required standardized test scores, University of California (UC) admissions evaluations will likely be more subjective, as the interpretation of an applicant’s qualifications may not be balanced by a more objective test score. As the suspension of test score requirements will extend through Fall 2025, which includes current seventh graders, potential…
Normal Interrupted
Until mid-March 2020, parents and students each had defined roles and processes when working together to manage a student’s education. Yet, the COVID-induced closure of school campuses and the subsequent implementation of distance learning, upended a well-worn family dynamic. During a typical Pre-COVID school day, all students had a ready-made structure to manage their academic…
The distressing American job situation
In just the last 13 weeks, more than double the 25 million jobs created in the last decade have been lost. With the total supply of jobs not in equilibrium to demand, a job shortage exists, so anyone searching for a job will be competing more than at any time in the last decade against…
Put Down Your #2 Pencils, The University of California Eliminates SAT/ACT Scores: Part 3
As part of a series of posts, I’ll analyze each of the University of California’s (UC) 14 Comprehensive Review factors which admissions officers will apply to select their incoming first year and transfer classes. The first post can be reviewed here, and in this second post, the following factor will be examined: Number of, content…
Collaborators Come In Many Forms
Sometimes collaborators in an uber-competive academic environment may seem like an arch-rival, but is actually what we need to succeed.
Put Down Your #2 Pencils, The University of California Eliminates SAT/ACT Scores: Part 2
Since now first year University of California (UC) applicants are not required to submit SAT or ACT scores, many students ask, “What will ‘replace’ the missing information from test scores?” Yet, as Ms. Han Mi Yoon-Wu, UC Director of Undergraduate Admissions stated in her response to CMC’s Open Letter to the University of California: In…
Understanding “Why College?” Is More Important Than Ever
On May 11, administrators at Northwestern University, a 169 year old institution, ranked #9 National University according to US News & World Report with a $10.8 Billion endowment fund, announced expense reductions, including: furloughing 250 staff, halting hiring, suspending contributions to pensions, as well as cutting salaries for university administrators. For the second year in…
The counselor will see you now
Choosing an academic major, or a set of college courses in a particular speciality, is not simple. Students often equate “academic major” as “career-training“, yet academic knowledge doesn’t always immediately translate into “job”. Often, students will still need to understand their aptitude, so they can find an application for what they know, or “to get…
Why Do You Want to Attend College?
As an educational consultant, when I ask the question in the title, students and their parents are often stunned and momentarily speechless. Parents usually look at their kids, shrugging their shoulders, as if to communicate, “She’s asking you, you answer.” Then, kids often confess that although they expect to attend college, they’ve never really considered…
Easy Does It
School district officials around the country are struggling to define how instruction will continue, and more importantly how students will be evaluated, given that school sites will be closed through the end of the school year. Some district administrators have decided to emulate the actions of many US colleges, and implement a Pass/No Pass grading…