Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Online Entertainment Educational Or a Threat to Your Child's Safety

Are parents giving their children the best start in life by allowing online entertainment to take place in the home i.e. video - music and game downloads.
The internet is definitely without doubt the biggest global information centre. Online education is welcomed by parents so that their babies can be taught from an early age - or for the older child to better themselves. But, how many parents welcome online entertainment. Sadly due to stories we hear about kids and what they get up to on the internet leaves many parents in a predicament - where decisions have to be made regarding the child's safety.
Lessons for toddlers online will normally include pictures and music so they can focus better. However, online entertainment will also include pictures and music keeping the older child focused too and especially more so if the wrong pictures are showing. But the good news is, mom and dads are now in a position to point their child in the right direction with the option of parental control.
Online entertainment can be very educational but on the other hand depending on the online activity taking place it can also be threatening to a child's safety. Parents worry every time their kids log on to the internet, but how do you tell a child they can not play their favourite tunes or games without an animosity build up. Well the approach on this matter will depend on how a parent sees the situation and feels fit to deal with it.
Children can learn a lot of things from online entertainment, so why not spend a little time with your child while their presence is on the net. The kids will love company and enjoy having you at their side. If time is an issue to play games then "you" choose the websites that you feel is suitable for the child to visit in your absence, this will put your mind at rest. There are many websites offering free music - games and film video downloads - however there are also bogus ones which fail to deliver their promise. Let your kids learn while having fun under your supervision. Yet another lesson in learning is, to teach your child how to safely download files and by doing this you have protected them furthermore because you did it for them.
Not every parent wants to hear this but it is not the inappropriate material that pops up on the computer screen which is the real threat to our kids, it is from those who take advantage. Unfortunately kids are vulnerable and easily led into revealing personal information about them self. Teenagers are especially at risk, because some choose to ignore parental warnings. Stop Inappropriate material i.e. obscene photos from being displayed with regular adult supervision, or only allowing parental lists of approved sites,
When teaching young children you will find that there are ways to configure Microsoft Internet Explorer so that only approved can be visited. It is best to have a second computer for the older child who is studying because they will need to access other sites for their research. If you only have the one computer then this action can be disabled at any time. Online entertainment downloads for all the family can be found below. One of the most popular and sought after entertainment centres for children and adults is the Sony play station 3 games console, in abbreviation PS3.

Tuesday, October 23, 2012

Audio Books can Help You Get a University Education

Brian Tracy is one of America's top business speakers and he used a phrase that I thought was quite appropriate in today's technological age.
"University on Wheels."
What he was talking about when using this phrase was the valuable knowledge that can gained by listening to professional audio books while driving to and from work every day.
It is well known that many people spend as many as 2 or more hours each day traveling to and from work.
What do they do during this time?? Some people listen to music, others just let their mind wander off into the abyss with their own daydreams. Either way they are spending hours each day doing nothing, effectively. However, there is something that can be done to change this.
Let me share an interesting bit of information with you.
Did you know that listening to the right professional audio books as you travel to and from work every day could give you the equivalent to a university education within some years??
Now, your first reaction may be to doubt this statement, but let me explain my reasoning behind the thought.
Many university students are only required to spend an average of 10 hours per week attending lectures. After several years, depending on the degree, they are handed their degree.
So what are they doing during these 10 hours a week??
They are listening to the lecturers!!!
Therefore, using audio books you can get similar information on the subject that you choose to learn about, and hear it all while you are doing something that has to be done every day anyway.
Now, don't get me wrong... I realize that this sort of learning is not going to be the exact equivalent of a university degree... there is more to gaining a degree than listening to a lecturer and repeating what they have said at the end of the semester, so unfortunately there are not any universities that will hand you a certificate once you have listened to a series of audio books but you will have gained a huge amount of information on your chosen topic and you did not have to take hours out of your busy schedule to read the information. You gained this new knowledge just by driving to and from work as usual and listening to the book.
Also, this new knowledge of yours is more likely to be retained as it was a specific topic that you chose to learn about because you were interested in it.
Even more good news follows, because there are, in fact, certain professional audio book series that will send you an exam to sit once you have listened to the set. Once completed the audio book company can issue you with a certificate of completion, which, in some cases can be used as confirmation of your expertise in that area.
So, now that I have told you all of this, are you going to continue to "waste" your valuable time on your daily commute?
I challenge you to use those hours to learn a new skill or get informed on that subject that you have always been interested in.
Just ask yourself what topic has always fascinated you, jump onto the internet and look it up. You are more than likely to find an audio book that you can download immediately and therefore, begin your education on your next trip to work.
Don't forget that audio books are portable. They can be copied onto cd for use in a car or a portable cd player as well as mp3 players. This means that you can listen to your audio books in more places than on the trip into work. Try listening to it while exercising or even doing the housework. There is plenty of activities you do every day that can now become more valuable.
A website that I recommend for audio books. They have a massive range of books, fiction and non-fiction.
There is no membership needed, therefore no monthly fee that is charged by many other sites.
There is also no software to download to use their audio books. So the only thing taking up room on your hard drive is the audio book itself.
It is an easy 3 step process to download the audio book you choose, and there is a full support staff on hand to answer any questions you may have.
So what are you waiting for?? Start gaining new knowledge today!!!
Angela Bryson is a mother of 3 young children. She now works from home, internet marketing, so she can find a good balance between work and family life.

Tuesday, October 9, 2012

The Educational Crisis Is Creative, Passionate, Happy Teachers

I come from a long line of teachers. These women were creative, passionate, joyful, multidimensional human beings out of necessity. That's what it takes to be a really good teacher, and they were some of the best. They loved their students and their work. They believed in the children they taught. My grandmother taught in a one room school house when she was a young woman in Iowa. I loved listening to her stories and
all the different things she had going on in one room with children of so many different ages and abilities.
When I was in graduate school I would tell her that it sounded impossible to do the things she did with so many children. Grandma Rose would laugh deep and often. She would tell me her favorite saying "Life is messy and chaotic at best". She also said teaching reminded her of riding a roller coaster. Sometimes its easy. Sometimes its scary. But it is always thrilling and joyful if you just hang on and go for the ride.
As human beings we are hard wired to smile, jump, run, laugh, giggle, explore and ask why throughout our lives. Being too serious for too long is not only boring, it is bad for us physically, mentally and emotionally.
We have trillions of cells that create, maintain and renew our bodies and brains every second of the day.
Laughter and using your creative energy is vital to main balance in every aspect of your life.
Teachers are being made to feel powerless and stressed out on a daily basis in their classrooms, and in the news. Teachers are amazing, loving, giving, creative care givers of this planets most precious resource, our children. Recently I have reading a several great books that I would highly recommend to any teacher interested in creativity. The Element - How Finding Your Passion Changes Everything by Sir Ken Robinsion and Creative Thinkering by Michael Michalko. These books are filled with research that shows us how creativity and the body mind connection balances human beings of all ages.
Balanced, happy, passionate teachers have more influence that any other single human being in a child's life. They spend hours everyday with the children of this planet. There are so many great teachers in the educational systems around the world. It is time for them to make their voices heard in and out of the classroom. An educational revolution is in the making. It is my hope that revolution is created by balanced, informed, strong, happy, professionals who understand what real life long education is about. We need long term vision, not short sighted solutions for a few, that will improve and heal our systems for the children who trust us to take care of them.

Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Cross the Financial Hurdle for a US Education

SO you've got or think you will get admission into a college of your choice in the US. Now what? The next question many students struggle with is how to pay for it.
The number of students from India studying at colleges and universities in the United States rose to a total of nearly 105,000 during the 2009/ 10 academic year, according to a report published annually by the Institute of International Education (IIE) with support from the U. S. Government.
But, the report goes on to say, 62 per cent of international students in the US funded themselves with only 38 per cent finding funds from other sources. In other words, competition for financial aid is intense. Aid comes in three main formats - full or partial scholarships, teaching or research assistantships where you work a set number of hours a week in exchange for tuition waivers and a stipend, or loans, which often require a guarantor, usually in the US. And who gets the coveted aid? It seems that winning financial aid has become somewhat of an entrepreneurial endeavor. While merit still rules, careful planning, calculated risk taking, positioning and resourcefulness have become critical.
Let's begin with where the money comes from. The top sources for aid were US colleges and universities (24 per cent), current employer (5.2 per cent) and home government or university (4.6 per cent).
Pure Science and Engineering subjects have higher demand, than say, something like education. So getting an assistantship is easier. Your schools ranking is important - most of the top schools are well funded. Where the school is located will also make a difference. The same money, which pays your tuition and part of your rent in New York, will buy you tuition, rent, groceries and leave you with leftovers in Ann Arbor. It pays, then, to carefully research the schools on your list and position yourself accordingly - what kind of funding they have offered in the past, their ranks for your field of study, their location, how many international students they take in every year, whether the school is private or public, their size of undergraduate population and their areas of research (an indication of research assistantships).
For PHDs, most universities are dying to get good students so they compete to give aid. A full scholarship sounds wonderful but is not always the option. Many students take the approach of a patchwork of different kinds of aid instead of one big grant.
Others decide to take the risk of sponsoring themselves or taking a loan for a year, transitioning to scholarships or assistantships in a few semesters. As you start your search, most recommend a broad, pull out all the stops search. Start with the universities website or admissions package, visit websites and offices of US and Indian foundations (such as United States India Educational Foundation and the Tata Scholarships), reach seniors in your target universities through social networks such as LinkedIn or your college's alumni associations, ask your professors for recommendations, write to professors (or professor's assistants) in your target university who are conducting research in your field of interest.
And in the midst of all this, beware of 'paid services' or scams out to get you and your personal information. The good news is that funding for international students from US colleges and Universities has actually increased by 9 per cent in the last year.