In a highly competitive college admissions environment, every advantage counts – and that can include a higher standardized test score. Knowing clearly which exam could give you an edge is a key first step in the test prep process.
College-bound high school students face intense pressure around preparing for standardized admissions testing – including choosing whether to take the SAT or the ACT. While it’s generally recognized that neither test is “easier” or “harder” than the other overall, their formats are different – so one might be better suited to a particular student than the other. But which?
The growing energy behind STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) curricula in US schools is influencing the after-school and tutoring communities to provide new learning options.
In the US, mandatory standardized testing on the national level has primarily been put forth as a public policy strategy, with the aim of establishing stronger accountability measures for public education. … But what has not been a credible part of the standardized testing debate in the US is the idea of making such a test a high-stakes, make-or-break determinant of students’ professional aptitude, college admissions, etc. … In stark contrast is the situation in China…
Reports on an interesting info-graphic describing technology usage and preferences among college students.
High school students benefit significantly from college admissions counseling information and guidance – yet most don’t get much of it. According to the latest State of College Admission 2011 from the National Association for College Admission Counseling, “For many students, particularly those in public schools, college counseling is limited at best. Counselors are few in number, often have large student caseloads and are limited in the amount of time they are able to dedicate to college counseling.”
But is this “holistic” approach to admissions really about students? Or is it about the competitive marketing to college-bound students among the schools themselves? … And are test scores really optional at top-tier institutions just because the school’s policy says so?
Learning analytics is becoming one of the hottest topics in higher education, mostly in theoretical/research contexts but increasingly in real-world applications. Still in its early stages, it is a rapidly expanding and diversely defined subject area that intersects with data mining, data modeling, knowledge management, business intelligence, information storage/retrieval and potentially much more.
The National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC) recently released its annual State of College Admission Report 2011. … A wide range of interesting analysis has likewise appeared around the blogosphere in the wake of the report.
Already thirty-seven states plus the District of Columbia have said that they intend to apply for an SES waiver between now and mid-February 2012. If granted, the waivers would free districts in these states from setting aside hundreds of millions of dollars each year for after-school tutoring targeting the lowest-performing students. This sweeping change would effectively end SES, which has already been eliminated from the Senate’s version of the updated NCLB legislation.
