Education & Careers » grades

5 Study Tips for Moms Returning to School

Lindsey Clair, Moms in School — Tue, 12 Oct 2010 17:41:52 +0000

As a mom who is returning to school, you may be wondering: “How in the world am I going to find time to study, or even find peace and quiet to study?” This is definitely an excellent question as I remember wondering the exact same thing. Guess what? It can be done all the while making good grades. How? Here are five studying tips I came up with while I was a mom returning to school. Keep in mind, if you have made this decision to return to school, you have to be the one to make it work.

5 Studying Tips

If you have little ones that take naps, make this time your study time. At least you can get some peace and quiet for one to two hours.
Study after the children are in bed. Turn off the TV and or radio, go to your favorite comfortable spot and study as much as needed.
Condense all of your study notes onto one to two pages, etc.
so that you’re not scattered all over and feeling overwhelmed. This will help you keep your focus on the materials that you have to know prior to a test. Making it easier on yourself is key, especially as a mom.
Don’t over-study! If you over-study, you may become lethargic which makes it harder to focus. Study enough that you know the material then move on. You should do great on the tests using this method.
Get a study buddy. Sometimes studying with a partner makes studying time go by quicker and you may learn faster than if you study alone. This, of course, is up to you since some prefer to study alone.

How about you? Do you have any study tips or advice that seems to work for you or has worked for you in the past? Please feel free to share in the comments. The more studying tips for moms, the merrier.

If you want more tips on better studying habits go to Study Tips for more information.

Easy ‘A’ for College Athletes?

adam — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 13:47:40 +0000

Do college athletes get an easy college education?

Whether you’re an athlete or a non-athlete, we’ve all seen it (or heard about it) before: The rumor that college athletes get an easier A than everyone else. With free tutoring, permission slips to miss tons of class, and make-up tests that might not be as difficult as the real test, many students believe that college athletes have it easy when it comes to college education. And we haven’t even mentioned all of the alleged “assistance” they receive during their college searches.

The flip-side of the argument, of course, is that college athletes work twice as hard as everyone else. They don’t have as much time to focus on class, their bodies are drained from training, and when they aren’t practicing, they are spending their time studying. And, lest we forget, college athletes are often the people responsible for bringing much-needed funding into the schools. Sports fans pay big bucks to watch their favorite athletes perform, and this is often the money that funnels back into everyone else’s classes in some way or another.

As an avid runner and college athlete, I found myself in quite a predicament when I became an adjunct professor at a reputable state university and my students began to request more and more assistance and time off for their sports endeavors. Was it difficult to help them catch up on missed work and tests? Yes. Did it take more of my time? Yes. Was it worth it to me? Absolutely. I feel that sports are an important part of college life, as well as “real” life. Sports help us gain valuable life skills like goal-setting, motivation, teamwork and dedication.

However, were my non-athlete students upset by the help I gave the athletes? I’m really not sure. Looking back, I realize non-athlete students had other equally important commitments: Families, work, etc. They didn’t get signed permission forms from school officials to miss class, so they did not have it as easy as the athletes did. If they missed class, they received a “0” from me. If they missed a test, they didn’t get to make it up. (Of course, I made exceptions for students with extenuating circumstances, but it still wasn’t as easy for them as it was for athletes.)

As a result of these realizations, I came up with a few tips for all of you non-athletes out there who have other important commitments that might cut into some of your classroom responsibilities.

Before your semester starts, decide what commitments you have that are so absolutely important that you can’t miss them. Make sure they can’t be rescheduled.
Set up an appointment to meet with your professor to discuss these commitments. Make sure to tell your professor why they are an important part of your life, why they can’t be rescheduled, and most importantly, how they will enhance your experience as a student (and prepare you for life after school).
Ask your professor what you can do to make up missed work beforehand to show him/her that you are really serious about taking the class and doing the work. Be willing to go above and beyond what was originally required of you in order to satisfy your professor.
Follow through with what you discussed with your professor. Failing to live up to your end of the bargain will not only result in a lower grade for you, but it will also make your professor less likely to make exceptions for anyone else in the future.
Stay in constant communication with your professor. Remind him/her of your upcoming event and when you will miss class. And of course, remember to say “thank you” for any exceptions they make…your commitment means extra work for them!

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Community Colleges: No Longer a Last Resort?

adam — Fri, 04 May 2007 16:19:52 +0000

Recently, The New York Times published an article entitled "For Achievers, a New Destination" in which they noted that community colleges are no longer a last resort for unmotivated or underachieving students. On the contrary, more and more community colleges are becoming an attractive alternative to students looking to earn their core academic credit at a significantly reduced cost before transferring to a four-year school to complete their bachelor’s degree.

Citing the College Board, The New York Times observed that the average tuition at community colleges is less than half the cost of a state school ($2,272 compared to $5,836) and almost one-tenth of what it might cost at a private school, which, on average, is upwards of $22,000. As a result, the face of community colleges is beginning to change — to be more precise, it is getting younger. Quoting The Times:

Many two-year colleges are now recruiting students who fit the traditional profile of baccalaureate undergraduates: 18- to 24-year-olds who have strong high school records and are moving directly into higher education full time. Such students are helping to lower the average age of community college students, which has steadily declined: 42 percent taking courses for credit are under 22, compared with 32 percent a decade ago, according to a 2005 federal study. No longer wed primarily to a work force-training mission, these colleges consider it a major, if not predominant, goal to prepare students to transfer to four-year institutions.

The article also notes that many community colleges are becoming increasingly successful in placing graduates in top-flight four-year schools. In other words, top-flight schools are beginning to recognize that students from community colleges are academically competitive, which means that community colleges offer a comparable education to that of four-year institutions.

If this report is true — if you really can get a competitive education at half the price — then it means that community colleges offer more bang for a student’s buck than either state or private schools. Sobering thoughts. I wonder if we’ll be reading a similar article about online education soon …

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Benjamin Welch has been a college instructor in writing and composition for nearly six years. When he’s not teaching or playing golf, he offers advice for students seeking information about online education and online degrees.

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