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3Jul
When is Hiring a Tutor a Good Idea?

It seems so simple. Your child’s grades are troubling in math and reading. You might consider hiring a tutoring service to get the professional coaching he or she needs. But is that the right point in time to hire tutors? Should you wait until your child’s grades dip in algebra, geometry, writing or reading to hire a professional tutor? Is that the best strategy for you and your child?
“Of course it is never too late for a child to improve his or her study skills. When test grades are negatively affected however, you may have missed a valuable opportunity to make the optimal difference,” states a tutor from Huntington Learning Center of Boynton Beach, FL. “If you can gauge your child’s learning challenges early, professional tutoring can make all the difference.”
Confidence is key when a child is test taking and professional tutoring can help build it. Mastering the skills it takes to ace a test is the ultimate confidence booster.
Not only should tutoring ideally take place before a child’s grades suffer; math, writing and reading tutoring should ideally be in the form of relatively small increments of learning to avoid frustration for any child, especially during test taking time. This is the time that it’s crucial to get the child the extra tutoring he or she needs.
If caught early enough small problems can avoid becoming large problems. If your child finds himself or herself in the position of needing a little extra help, the key is finding out early. Don’t wait. Consider getting your children tutors early, before you need one.…
20Jun
From The Tutor: Important Advice On Getting The Most From Your Tutoring Session

Tutoring is very much a shared responsibility. As the tutor, I have preparations I have to make before we get together. Here are the things YOU need to take care of ahead of time.
1 – Equipment
Have all of these things ready to go:
— paper
— pencils
— calculator, if needed
It takes at least 2 or 3 minutes to run back and forth in your house to gather simple equipment. My clock is running! Let’s sit down and get started.
2 – Class Materials
Be sure to collect these items also:
— textbook and/or other reference material
— list of current homework problems
— relevant class handouts and notes
— current study guide or practice test (if any)
I care passionately about you and your success, but remember that I work with a number of different students on various subjects during the week. Set out ALL of the books and papers from your class – even OLD stuff can help me be quicker and better and help assure that YOU move forward in learning right NOW.
3 – Recently Graded Papers
The first things we should look at, even before today’s assignment, are a graded:
— test
— quiz
— homework assignment
If I take a detailed look with you NOW at questions that stumped you on a quiz, it’s a good bet this will help solidify your understanding of the subject. This will also help us figure out what your teacher is looking for on tests, and I will be able to use that understanding in the way I guide your preparation work.
4 – Questions
If we are going to be working through a current homework assignment, make sure that YOU try some of the problems yourself first and WRITE DOWN questions that occur to you as you do.
If we are reviewing for a quiz or test, be sure that you are clear about what subject matter will be covered. If you have a practice test available, you should try as much of it as you can on your own before we meet.
5 – Challenges
A very important step in your preparation is to ask yourself the question, “What in this class has given me the most trouble since my last tutoring session?” (If this is the first session, ask, “What in this class has given me the most trouble in the past week?”), and expect me to ask you this question when we begin our session.…
16May
Be Successful In College With These Tips

 

College can be one of the greatest experiences of your life. Although going to college may seem overwhelming, by following proper advice you can ensure that you get everything out of college that you need. This article is jam packed with tips to help you have a fantastic, worthwhile college experience.

A great skill that you should learn going into college is cooking. This is very important as it can help you to construct the types of meals that you desire and will also assist in saving money on eating out over time. Also, this skill can make you more valuable to your roommates.

Buy your school books a couple weeks before the term begins. Spend an hour familiarizing yourself with each of your books. If you have access to your course syllabus, check it out and see where in the book your class will be starting. This way you can get a bit of a head start.

Networking is one of the smartest things that you can do while you are in college. This will help you to not only broaden your group of friends, but also expand your possibilities when you are out of college looking for a job. Do not dismiss anyone in college, as they could be valuable to your future.

A credit card is often necessary, particularly if you are going to school far away from home. However, be smart about your decision. Research your options and select a card that has a low interest rate. Also, make sure there aren’t any annuals fees and don’t be tempted by high credit limits. Those are just a recipe for disaster.

You should be respectful of your roommate’s wishes. You need to learn how to work with him or her so that it makes your time easier. Sit down when you first get to school and find out what you both expect out of a roommate so you can both be happy.

It is important to choose your classes wisely. Try to avoid taking a lot of classes that you are going to have to devote a lot of time and attention to all at once. Instead, alternate these harder courses with easier ones to make your semester and college experience a much easier one.

Don’t focus on your friends back home or a boyfriend or girlfriend in your home town. Chances are you will not stay together through four years of college and you will grow apart. Just enjoy college, meet new people, and feel lucky that you have the opportunity to get away from home to better yourself and branch out.

You will need to study a lot to keep your grades up, but take one day a week off to relax and regenerate. Approach your learning by immersing yourself in your courses. Talk about the subject to others, look for references to it in the world around you and apply it to your life in general.

As was mentioned at the opening of this article, your stay at college can be one of the most amazing experiences of your life. In order to ensure that you get the most out of your time in college, apply all of the great tips and advice you’ve learned about in this article.…
5May
A Lot For Which to Be Thankful

As I typed the title of this post I stopped to wonder how many of today’s adolescents would have resisted the urge to put the preposition at the end of the phrase — i.e. ‘A Lot To Be Thankful For’. I continue to worry about the texting and video-gaming culture America’s future leaders are growing up in. No, actually, the culture in which they are growing up!
Anyway, we’ve made it through mid-term conferences and at this point most parents have a pretty good feeling for where their kids are stacking up in the classroom. Even if you’ve learned that your child has a bit of an uphill climb in order to achieve classroom standards, he or she still has something for which to be thankful. That of course is you–a parent who is spending time on this site in a search to find what is best for the child’s progress. You taking the time to read this means that you care more about what’s best for your kids than the average Joe.
Two of my three children are school age, and their conferences generally went well. That said, there is always more we can do to help our kids excel. The conferences provided great opportunities to fully frame the picture in my mind of how each of my children interacts in his/her classroom environment. Even though I participate in volunteer activities at their schools, it is always great to have a formal meeting of the minds with the teacher. Hopefully that meeting of the minds confirms that you both know the areas of needed improvement to be the same. That was indeed the case in my kids’ conferences. But if not, then, well, that’s why we have the conferences, to get onto the same page!
So now I go forth, re-focused and re-energized to help my kids improve. I go forth with assurance that my kids’ teachers are focusing on the same improvement areas, and I go forth with determination to mold my kids as best as I can.
As I sign off now, I can see our Nintendo Wii sitting in the corner of the family room. It’s autumn, it’s cold, windy, rainy, and prematurely dark outside. How easy it would be to sit the kids down and let them blast away at each other in a game of Star Wars Lego, or to immerse themselves in a meaningless virtual race of Mario Kart.
I shall resist. Anybody want to go to the YMCA to shoot some hoops or have a swim?
Happy Thanksgiving, everybody!…
22Apr
Tips For Finding Tutoring Jobs

Anything that you want to accomplish in life starts by having a plan, your best laid out design for achieving your goal. Knowing what it is that you are looking for before you start the search is the only logical way to go about it. Theses three suggestions will make it easier for you and keep you from floundering around in the dark. Use them to give yourself an edge and increase your chances of being successful in your hunt for a tutoring job.
When you attempt to find a tutoring job for yourself, make sure that you understand it’s very important to start on the right path and stay focused. If you don’t, your results are going to suffer. You could be in the situation of being forced to take a less than desirable job, or, even worse, not being able to find a tutoring job at all.
1. Decide exactly what type of tutoring job it is that you are looking for
You’ll want to decide exactly what type of educational job it is that you are looking for, whether it be private jobs, starting your own business, or working for a franchised learning center, since it avoids the long and unnecessary situation of going through the application and screening processes for positions that you have no intention of accepting anyway. Doing this incorrectly may delay you in finding an appropriate position or missing out entirely because the position that you were perfect for was filled while you were wasting your time somewhere else.
2. Decide how you would like to work
Almost as important as deciding exactly what type of educational job it is that you are looking for when you are trying to find a tutoring job for yourself is to decide how you would like to work. This decision is of vital importance to your success as a tutor. It may help to spend some time thinking about how comfortable you would be working with a student in your home, in their home, at a public location like a library, or in a more controlled setting like that in a learning center. The more of those areas that you are comfortable working in the more tutoring jobs that will be available to you.
3. Decide what kind of schedule you want to work
Finally, when trying to find a tutoring job for yourself you’ll want to make sure to decide what kind of schedule you want to work and figure out how it will fit into your lifestyle especially if tutoring is not going to be your main income source. This can help with filling in your schedule if you need to earn a little extra money if you already have other employment. Some tutors choose to work every day, some only select days, and some choose to work many hours while others only work a few hours a week. You will want to decide this upfront so that you can match the right job opportunity to your preferred schedule.
Keep these three key decisions in mind as you start your search for a tutoring job. Knowing what you want to get out of it is the best way to find that perfect tutoring job.…
21Mar
Ways of Fighting the Plagiarism in the Urdu Literature

The Urdu language started from poetry. In the beginning there were no novels in the Urdu language however soon the trend of novels and short story writing picked up in Urdu language. So in fact, the Urdu literature started off at a very good base. Both the poetry and the prose were well received by the masses as it used to stimulate the minds intellectually.
As with any other literature the Urdu literature too continued to evolve. The evolution is a test of the health of any literature and the Urdu literature successfully passed this test. The Urdu language has always been fortunate enough to have extremely good writers and poets on board.
However there is one acute problem which can sap the vitality of the Urdu literature. This problem is the plagiarism in the Urdu literature. Unfortunately the plagiarism in the Urdu literature is much more than the literature of other languages. There are several reasons for this trend. The main reason is the lack of ethical awareness among the masses and publishers desire to make money through the wrong means.
The following are the some ways through which the plagiarism in the Urdu literature can be fought and be eventually eradicated.
Passing and implementing strict copyright laws and punishments
If we see the developed nations in this regard, we would immediately notice about their strict copyright laws and policies. It is because the governments of these nations deeply respect their artists, poets and the authors.
Introducing strict punishments for people who plagiarize stuff is the right way to deal with this problem.
Cooperation of different countries, especially India and Pakistan
The Urdu speaking communities are all over the world. Most of the literature activities are going on I India, Pakistan, U.K and the Middle East. Sometimes the publishers lift the intellectual property of a person residing in a different country and publish it with a different name. The original author does not know what to do about it. This practice is very common between the people of India and Pakistan. Both countries do not respect each other right in this regard. The need of the time is that these countries should cooperate with each other to fight the plagiarism.
Creating awareness among the masses
The people of the subcontinent too are not much aware of the terms, “artists’ rights” or the ‘intellectual property’. So they do not know how to respect it. Public awareness must be created in the subcontinent, so that people stop buying plagiarized Urdu books. This trend would discourage the publishers who publish plagiarized books.
Controlling the price of the original books
Sometimes the extremely high prices of the books by the original authors push people to look for the copied versions. Many people are aware that it is plagiarism and it is wrong but they say that they cannot afford buying original Urdu books. There must be a price control authority for the books of Urdu literature to keep the prices in check.…
7Jan
Parental Tenacity – You Won’t Find a Better Example Than This

If you have a child with some kind of special learning need, it is important that you do not assume that the schools are automatically going to meet your child’s learning need. In an ideal world, you can expect that needs will automatically be met. But we all know that our world falls a little short of ideal. Sometimes it takes a little–or a lot–of extra tenacity on your part.
Almost 15 years ago I got a phone call from the mother of a 7th grade boy asking me to tutor her son in math. I wasn’t looking to take on any new tutor students, especially a student who wasn’t in high school. But this mother wouldn’t take NO as an answer. She stressed that she had checked on various tutor recommendations and wanted me to be her son’s tutor because he had some learning issues. I agreed to meet them and make my decision after that.
When they arrived at my home and came into my dining room, my tutoring room, my first impression was how little this young man was. I generally only tutor high school students, so this 7th grader seemed really little. And, then, he sat in his mother’s lap! That was a first for me! That image of this young boy sitting on his mother’s lap has stayed in my mind. It was so indicative of the affection this mother and child shared, and it was indicative of this mother’s intention to make sure her son was always comfortable and getting what he needed. As we talked it became obvious that she was a very tenacious lady. She stressed that it was obvious that her son had some kind of learning disability so math had always been difficult for him. His previous school experience had been that the school refused to test him. I couldn’t say no to either one of them.
I took on this little 7th grader at the beginning of that school year and we worked together until the end of his junior year of high school when he finished 2nd year Algebra and met his graduation requirements for math. But this article is really about his mother. During that 7th grade year, she pursued, she pushed, she demanded, and worked her way up the administrative channels until she managed to get her son tested. The results showed a very severe learning disability that qualified for special education help. So for the remainder of his middle school and high school years he had constant help with his reading and writing, and occasionally his SPED person would call me and we would discuss strategies for me to use. And his mother? She was on top of everything that happened. She frequently sat in on tutor sessions and took notes, so she could help her son with his math at home. Having a parent sit in on tutor sessions was also a first for me; but it proved to be very effective for her son. And she admitted that she learned a great deal of math herself.
During her son’s sophomore year she started looking into colleges. I think most people really thought her son would not be able to be successful in college. But his mother kept working and kept looking. She found several colleges that actually had SPED programs and would meet her son’s needs. They visited several different schools and made the decision on which school best met his needs. Her son continued to work with his SPED help at high school and he and I made sure he had his math requirements for college.
After he graduated from high school, I returned to full-time teaching and I lost touch with both of them. I thought about them frequently and wondered what happened to him. This past summer I received in the mail a letter with a picture of a very tall young man I didn’t even recognize. He was wearing a cap and gown. The letter, of course, was from his mother announcing that her son had graduated with his Master’s Degree! Her letter was sent as a thank you letter to all the people who had made her son’s success possible. Not only had her son grown very tall, he had also graduated with both his Bachelor’s Degree and his Master’s Degree, and he had been hired as a speech therapist to work with stroke victims–his way of “giving back” to all the people who helped him along the way.
I was thrilled to hear what all this young man had accomplished, and I felt honored to be included in the group of people who had made his success possible; but, of course, the person most responsible for his success is his mother. From the day they arrived at …