The University of California (UC) new President Michael V. Drake recently announced that all nine UC campuses are preparing for a return to mainly in-person instruction in Fall 2021. Yet, in the announcement, the UC also acknowledges their plans may be subject to change by the Fall months: …UC is preparing to welcome students back…
As many U.S. universities have not yet announced any extended test-optional or test-blind policies for Fall 2022 admissions, meaning applicants are not required to submit SAT or ACT scores for admissions, many current high school juniors (in the Class of 2022) are in limbo about the necessity of taking the SAT or ACT. Yet, given…
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…
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…
For Fall 2021, MIT admissions officers have added two optional questions to understand the context of a student’s current COVID-disrupted reality. During a recent conversation, an MIT admissions officer explained the intent of the two questions. For the first question: If there is anything we should know about your school’s grading system or course offerings,…
In response to a reported case of COVID-19, K-12 school administrators and teachers in one California district must navigate the myriad, interlocking actions as outlined below: While everything works in theory, when created in a vacuum, the theory may be less useful in practice. One teacher shared that their school nurses, working in conjunction with…
Ellie, a high school senior, wrote the following reflection for one of her college essays: In life, I have just been going through the motions, never stopping to pause and contemplate or observe anything. I chased happiness, but once I finally held contentment in my grasp, it quickly slipped through my fingers and the chase…
Confirmed COVID cases are rising at different rates amongst the different regions in the United States and globally just as many college students will be released from their campuses at the Thanksgiving Break. As they begin traveling home, students may have to quarantine once again, just as they did to start the school year, but…
To stymie cheating, teachers are changing assessments. Instead of simply reiterating the concepts learned, students are being asked to explain their answers or apply the concepts learned. However, no one shared the changes in how they’ll be assessed with students, inciting frustration amongst students as well as parents, and also teachers. Online, students have access…
To discuss the successes and implications of Bowdoin College’s iPad initiative to deliver education and maintain community ties, Bryan Alexander of the Future Trends Forum hosted Michael Cato, Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer at Bowdoin College and Creative Marbles’ Jill Yoshikawa EdM. Michael discussed Bowdoin’s ambitious program, distributing an iPad, Apple Magic Keyboard…
As a part of college applications, a recommender’s job is sharing anecdotal evidence to demonstrate the dimension and strength of a student’s character. And, in the age of COVID, when admissions evaluations may be more subjective without a standardized test score being required, recommenders can present the students’ qualifications for admissions. To assist counselors and…
Many students are dismayed, their hopes for a return to a long-established normal this fall, dashed, as school administrators continued suspending or severely curtailing in-person classes, as well as most clubs and sports through at least the end of 2020, due to the on-going COVID-related health risks. Continued distance learning has disrupted the coming of…
As the stock market indexes continue rising, for those living on Wall Street, confidence only grows. However, as the Wall Street “Bunnies” continue gorging on pancakes, the bulging bubble only thins. While those kitties on Main Street, who aren’t getting to drink their milkshakes, build resentment, whose mother is fear. Public attitudes about the economy…
In the 2020-21 school year, students, teachers and parents are not learning in pre-COVID ways. Kids commute from bed to desk, parents are deputized teachers, and teachers are now broadcast news anchors without the production team. Educators are seemingly rewriting the rules on how to learn, yet trying to rely on the old rules at…
Since 1635, the three-dimensional American classroom, now replicated amongst thousands of school districts comprising millions of school children and teachers, is relatively unchanged. Yet, starting in mid-March 2020, a single RNA sequence causing COVID-19 and the subsequent social response to the health risks, has holistically breeched the brick and mortar walls of the modern American…
