Mom Behind the Curtain

every mom wants to be an all-powerful wizard

Why my son won’t attend a liberal arts college, engineering – how to choose a college Part 5/5

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Liberal arts college engineering degree options: 3-2 engineering programs, how they work, and computer science degrees at liberal arts colleges.If you’ve read my previous posts about a liberal arts education at a small liberal arts college, starting with Consider a Liberal Arts College, you probably didn’t expect the title of this post. But sometimes you consider an idea and then find it to not be the best fit. In my last post I covered some reservations I had about a liberal arts degree. But our biggest issue was that we were looking for a college with a computer science degree, a liberal arts college engineering degree. And yes, that turns out to be a contradiction.

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College Rankings, the truth about what they really mean – how to choose a college part 3/5

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The truth about college rankings -  Looking at college rankings? College rankings aren't based on what you might think. They're based more on incoming freshmen than outgoing graduates.It might seem like the easiest way to figure out which colleges and universities are good, or the best, is to just look at the college rankings.

The short answer is that is not a good idea.

In fact, it’s a TERRIBLE idea.

If you want to know why, read on….

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Consider a Liberal Arts College – how to choose a college part 1/5

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How to choose a college - reasons to consider a liberal arts college over larger, highly ranked, research universities. And reasons not to.It’s that time of year again. College application deadlines are approaching and seniors are trying to figure out how to choose a college or university to apply to. Where do they want to go to college? And why should they choose one college or university over another. What are the different types of colleges and universities? There are lots of choices!

At freshman orientation for our second child, I greatly appreciated that the principal started trying to address how competitive our high school had become.

He pointed out that 90% of the class will not be in the top 10%.

Obvious math, I know. But he was pointing this out because the idea was becoming prevalent that if you weren’t in the top 10% of the class, you were doomed to attend a second rate college or university and wouldn’t be successful. Therefore, “everyone” was chasing the top 10% so they wouldn’t be left behind. But when you embrace that reasoning, 90% of the kids sitting in orientation would be “left behind” and doomed to be unsuccessful.

A depressing idea.

90% of our children are living with constantly being told that they are failures.

No wonder everyone is scared and chasing the top 10%!

As an alternative to having the goal of attending only elite universities, he suggested considering the colleges proposed in Colleges that Change Lives, by Loren Pope.…

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Project Based Learning – Most Likely to Succeed Part 7/11

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Most Likely to Succeed presents the best solution I've seen to the problems of run-away tests and hours of homework - project based learning.The response at our school district’s showing of Most Likely to Succeed was overwhelmingly positive. The film did a good job of pointing out all the weaknesses of our current system, but left you with an uplifting feeling. This was a welcome change from all of the other research I’ve done that has confirmed my fears that something is drastically wrong with our current educational system, but with little to offer in the way of change other than patching over some real problems.

I think the positive response was also in part to a growing concern I have seen in our district about the amount of homework and anxiety in our kids. Parents did bring up some valid concerns, some of which were answered by other parents present who work for testing agencies, state education agencies, and universities. The concerns were mainly centered on project based learning.

As I said, the documentary gave the impression that project based learning was the only option. Even though it was acknowledged early on in the discussion in our district that it was just one option, the discussion stayed pretty much on project based learning. The long and the short of it is…

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What is required to get accepted to a a good college? – Part 4/4

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Once I faced up to the reality that an Ivy League school or elite university wasn’t a real possibility for my kids based on the chances of being admitted to an elite college, the price of an elite education (and location – they are all far away for us), and other information I gathered, I still needed to know what was really required to get accepted at a “good” college….

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What are your chances of getting into an elite university and how much will it cost? – Part 3/4

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It’s one thing to calculate the numbers for the chances of getting into an elite university and how much it will cost. But you have to wonder, are the numbers really true?

Do the calculations match up to reality?

You can find some arguments that the chances of a “qualified applicant” getting into “at least one” elite college are actually higher….

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What is the cost of an elite or Ivy League school? – Part 2/4

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Long before you start filling out college applications, these days you have to start deciding how many AP classes you’ll need to take before your freshman year of high school . But do you really “need” to take a bunch of AP classes to get into a good college? The answer for attending an elite or Ivy League school is “maybe.” In my last post I looked at the chances of getting into an elite school, even with a steller resume. But assuming you get in, you then have to consider what an Ivy League education would cost? What are the chances of getting a merit scholarship?…

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Outliers Book Review – Obsession to success, Part 4/4

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Outliers Review - obsession to success - Obsession to success - Develop an obsession with something you consider worthwhile, enjoy yourself, and let the chips fall where they may.My dissatisfaction with the current overbearing schedule for students in high school, has led me to do quite a bit of reading.  (To see my reading list for books about success and education, click here.) One of the first books I read was  Outliers: The Story of Success, by Malcom Gladwell.

In the first half, Gladwell showed how the success of Outliers can be tied to luck, to timing, to “Opportunity.”

In the second half, Gladwell showed how the success of Outliers is also affected by where you come from and your culture, “Legacy.”

In my third post, I looked at my own conclusions from Outliers about what you needed to do to be successful. Hint: It has nothing to do with being a straight-A student.)

But the book is about what makes people an outlying success, like Steve Jobs. What factors does Gladwell think it takes to be an outlying success? Obsession….

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AP classes don’t challenge students

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How Children SucceedIn How Children Succeed, Paul Tough found that good grades and lots of homework aren’t future predictors of success. Students need to learn how to set and approach goals with mental contrasting, grit, the ability to take on challenges and face failures, and the ability to persuade other people to give them what they need.

Providing challenges is often given as a reason for AP classes (Advanced Placement courses, or IB courses, college courses designed to be taught in high school and success measured by a standardized exam.) But in our personal experience, that isn’t happening for several reasons. In How Children Succeed, there was evidence that agreed with this view….

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Are you dreading the packed schedule of school activities and homework?

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Back to school is now in full swing! If you haven’t already started, your kids have probably at least picked up their schedules. Or they might be frantically trying to finish their summer projects. In the last week, I’ve heard so many parents mention that they’re dreading the start of the school year. I think the parents might even be dreading it more than the kids!

Are you dreading the school year busyness? (Yes, I looked it up. That’s really a word. “Business” doesn’t mean the same thing that it used to, and so now there is also “busyness.”) Are you dreading the calendar running your life? The hours of homework? The school activities with early morning and late night practice? The lack of sleep?

It might be time to take a good look at why your kids, or you, have signed up for all the activities and advanced classes that are taking up all your time and then some….

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