AU Blogspot

The primary objective of Ashworth University’s home school blog is to provide our home school parents with information, resources, and analyses on the contemporary educational environment that their children experience.  We attempt to be a support system for you, parents of a different generation, that will be seen as a trusted resource you can depend on to better understand the techno-social trends influencing every aspect of our educational system.  In terms of concise explanations of the Internet’s most popular and mainstream  social media applications, the media production company, Commoncraft, is perhaps second to none with their accessible videos designed to teach novices exactly how things work.  In this video, the general concepts behind online photo sharing services are broken down in simple terms.  Photo publishing/syndication technologies are second nature to your child’s generation, so we recommend that you become as informed as possible.  It only takes a few minutes to familiarize your self with the basics.  Click on the image above to watch this video and be sure to share your thoughts.

Ryan Rode
Interactive Services Manager
Ashworth University

Young Spartan is learning to be a therapy dog at an Iowa school, reports The Hawkeye.

Already, at 4 months old, Spartan has calmed behavioral disorder students, tagged along on a home visit to a family whose three children had just lost their mother and given a truant girl incentive to return to school so she could do her work in (counselor Kent) Strabala’s office with Spartan at her side.

Special thanks to Kevin_Miller for permission to use this photo.

He also has spent time in the severe and profound disabilities classroom.

“Those kids love him,” Strabala said.

During the limited time he spends in school, Spartan also hangs out in the office, greeting visitors and sometimes giving comfort to students who get sick and must wait in the clinic to be picked up by a parent.

Teachers sometimes ask shy students to read aloud to a dog. Dogs don’t snicker if you make a mistake.

Joanne Jacobs
Author of “Our School: The Inspiring Story of Two Teachers, One Big Idea, and the Charter School That Beat the Odds.”
Ashworth University Contributing Blogger

*Joanne Jacobs’ solution-based perspectives on education reform have earned her a reputation as one of the most trusted education bloggers on the web.  We’re honored to have Joanne as a member of our AU contributing bloggers’ network.  For more insights into Joanne’s life and work, please visit her highly informative website here and check out her acclaimed book linked above.  Thanks Joanne!

                  Thanks to Jay D for permission to use this Photo.

Effort, not superior intelligence, is the key to success, writes psychologist Carol Dweck in Scientific American. Telling children their success is a result of their ability leaves them “vulnerable to failure, fearful of challenges and unmotivated to learn,” she writes.

• Teaching people to have a “growth mind-set,” which encourages a focus on effort rather than on intelligence or talent, produces high achievers in school and in life.
• Parents and teachers can engender a growth mind-set in children by praising them for their effort or persistence (rather than for their intelligence), by telling success stories that emphasize hard work and love of learning, and by teaching them about the brain as a learning machine. (more…)

Homeschoolers should take heart.  Ashworth University is revamping its high school correspondence program to better fit their needs.  Formerly James Madison High School, the new Ashworth University High School has not only changed names, it has embarked on a massive revision effort to give more curricular support to parents and students who are looking for alternatives to traditional public school.  

Since 1996 the school has provided a SACS and DETC accredited program serving students seeking a self-paced, less stressful distance learning approach.  By March 2008 special modifications in the curriculum should be ready to market to homeschoolers.  These modifications include a straightforward layout in the study guides, a parent/teacher guide to help enrich or reteach special content, and a portfolio guide to provide students who wish to attend college the type of documentation that will impress admissions personnel.

Special thanks to artlung for permission to use this photograph.

We have made the decision not to include what some would label as “faith-based curriculum” in this restructuring.  However, the parent/teacher guide will include examples of how to provide students with faith-based applications and character development in a number of courses.  In the meantime, if you wish to have input on the process, please respond to this blog.

Bill Tinkler
Academic Principal
Ashworth University High School