AU Blogspot

                  Thanks to clspeace for permission to use this Photo. 

Megan Bowen is an Ashworth High School English Instructor.  You can read some of Megan’s blog posts by clicking here and scrolling to the bottom of the page.  As someone who is always thinking of new and dynamic ways to engage her students, it’s no surprise that Megan has begun hosting classroom discussions on the Ashworth Student Forum.  As an English major myself, I’ve personally enjoyed participating in these interactive discussions and have been very impressed by the insightul perspectives students have offered on their latest reading assignments. 

If you’re an Ashworth High School student or a parent of such a student, we encourage you to participate in one of Megan’s classroom discussions.  Our new student forum provides a terrific environment for students, parents, and faculty to interact—so be sure to join our Forum community today if you haven’t already. 

Megan and I hope to see you on the Forum soon!

Here are the links:

Ashworth University Student Forum

Megan’s Bowen Classroom Discussions

Ryan Rode
Interactive Services Manager
Ashworth University 

In my years as an early childhood educator, I’ve come to believe that it’s very important to keep your classroom as visually appealing as possible without overstimulating children.  Some teachers have quite a problem with this and it looks like a circus run amok in their rooms.  While most normal children may be fine with such stimulation, children with ADHD or other issues may be overwhelmed and not able to concentrate.  I think a happy medium is attainable.  One thing I have noticed over my years of teaching is that ALL schools seem to have that awful fluorescent lighting!  It has to be the harshest lighting I know of.  Here is a trick you can try to “calm” your room and the children a bit.  I swear by it and after using these light covers for one school year, I decided it made the children and me feel so much calmer; I continued to use them the rest of my 7 years of teaching.  In fact, on the last day of school, I removed them while the children were playing on the playground and they said they “hated” being in the room without them. 

To make a light cover, cut one yard of any solid color fabric (I usually used a 100% cotton fabric used in quilting).  Gently lift the ceiling tiles on each side of the fluorescent fixture and tuck the edges of the fabric in, creating a “swoop” of fabric shaped like a “U” hanging down from the light.  The fabric should not actually come in contact with the light but should drape below it.  I usually draped half of the lights in my classroom using fabric on every other light.  I used primary colors and the effect is marvelous.  There is still plenty of light for working and the light is transformed into a calming filtered light instead of harsh fluorescent.  There have actually been studies on how fluorescent lighting can cause hyperactivity.  Try it in your own class one day or suggest it to a teacher you work with in the future!

Melissa Lorenz
Early Childhood Education Instructor
Ashworth University School Of Professional Services

Primary caregivers’ number one question and concern about their preschooler is, “Will my child be ready for kindergarten?”  If the child in your care is their oldest, the preschool experience may be their only reference point.  If their own childhood education took place in programs based on scripted academic instruction, they will expect their children to be writing their ABC’s, working with math papers, and science projects.  This is how they were taught, so it must be the right way.  It is your job as an early childhood educator to help these parents and guardians understand the research and reasoning behind your curriculum.

Primary caregivers are so involved with their children that just sharing articles or handouts about developmentally appropriate practices may not be enough to convince them that their children are on track for learning.  Some may need a more “hands-on” approach.  Let me give you an example.

I once had a father who insisted that his three-year-old write his name several times daily and bring home work sheets of all sorts.  I explained that this was not a developmentally appropriate practice, but this father insisted.  I decided to host a night for parents and guardians in my classroom.  I planned this night in a very different format from others we had offered earlier.  The children did not perform, and we did not have a guest speaker.  For this special evening, I prepared copies of my lesson plans for each person attending the meeting.  In my classroom, I set up every learning area and posted the skills that children could learn as they played in the selected areas.

As the adults arrived, the children were excited to show what they were learning during the day.  We began with circle time, and I explained the theme of the week.  I then placed the grownups in the learning areas, explaining to them how I wanted them to explore and play just as their children might.  It was such an energizing experience!  The adults enjoyed the tasks they were doing.  One mother made a wonderful collage in the creative art area.  A dad and his daughter had a tea party in dramatic play.  I circulated around the areas, as I do during class everyday, asking open-ended questions about the projects.  This hands-on approach worked with almost everyone.

Do you know who still was not convinced?  That’s right—the father of the three-year-old.  Dad and child were in the creative art area when I approached him with a prepared sheet depicting an elephant.  I asked a simple question, “Do you know how long an elephant’s trunk is?”  The dad looked at me as if I had lost my mind and said he didn’t know.  I shared with him that an adult elephant’s trunk is 8 feet long and asked if he would learn that concept by coloring a picture of an elephant.  The dad shook his head, no.  Then, I shared a wonderful handout with Mr. Dad which I will share with you here. 

Four things you don’t learn when you color an elephant:

1. How an elephant smells
2. How big an elephant is
3. What color an elephant is
4. What an elephant likes to eat

This parent began to realize that there is no inherent learning value in the use of coloring sheets.  When coloring a patterned picture, a young child learns to color between the lines.  And that’s it.  This dad became one of my best resources for the rest of the school year.  He was still watchful as the school year progressed, but he did grow to understand hands-on learning and the benefits of this type of program for his child.

Deann Deloney
Child Care Career Skills Instructor
Ashworth University School Of Professional Services

 
       Thanks to Andrew Kuchling for permission to use this Photo.

The following video is lo-fi from a production perspective, but hi-fi from a content perspective, in that the message conveyed is direct, clear, and accessible to an audience of any age.  Whether you’re a student or parent from a home school background, we encourage you to consider how you relate to the type of learning lifestyle that informs this video’s central message.  Click on the image above to watch.  We look forward to hearing your perspectives.

Ryan Rode
Interactive Services Manager
Ashworth University

The following article once again reinforces the importance of Web 2.0 technologies in a progressive educational environment, a message that we have been committed to carrying to our Ashworth University students through our own 2.0 applications such as MySpace, Facebook, Ashworth University Blog, and even our preliminary experiments in Second Life’s virtual world.  It’s nice to see the more “mainstream” educational community is finally beginning to recognize that today’s education is web-based, interactive, and network driven.  Here at Ashworth, we’re committed to these principles and encourage our students and their families to become as engaged as possible in the Web 2.0 revolution: where everyone is empowered to create, learn, and connect on their own terms.

Ryan Rode
Interactive Services Manager
Ashworth University 

At Ashworth High School, we place the highest value on the accreditation status of our various program offerings.  From our high school to our masters’ programs, our curriculum development process meets the strict standards set by state, regionally, and nationally recognized accrediting agencies such as SACS-CASI, CITA, and DETC. 

Over the past several months, we’ve been closely following the unfortunate developments in Clayton County’s school accreditation crisis.  As we have a number of faculty, staff, and students originally from and currently residing in your county; this story does hit close to home.  As a school with local community ties, we’re committed to doing whatever we can to provide the citizens of Clayton County with accredited educational options.  

On April 26th, faculty and staff members from Ashworth High School will be hosting open panel discussions from the hours of 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Southlake Mall.  We’d like to encourage students and their families to take a few minutes out of their day to join us for what promises to be a very lively and informative event.  To give you a clearer sense of what these seminars will cover, here’s some of the most important issues we’ll be addressing and program features we’ll be demonstrating:

• Explain the benefits of distance education in today’s world
• Show how parents can fit into a child’s education
• View live demonstrations of course and online tutorials
• Examine our industry leading textbooks, study guides, and course related materials such as lab kits.

This is a great opportunity to meet our distinguished team of experts who develop our accredited curriculum, ask questions of our experienced faculty, and discuss with our student advisors exactly how credits are transferred to our school. 

For more information about this upcoming event, please visit our “Ashworth Options” web page at:

www.AshworthOptions.com

We’ve also created a special hotline number and email box exclusively devoted to answering questions about what Ashworth High School can do for you.

The hotline number is:

877-94-ASHWORTH

The email address is:

options@AshworthHighSchool.com

We’d like to thank you for your time today and look forward to seeing you on April 26th at Southlake Mall!

Sincerely,

Ashworth High School Faculty & Staff

                    Thanks to Olivia for permission to use this Photo. 

George Siemens is acknowledged as being one of the most innovative minds in the education field.  Through his groundbreaking analyses of how educators can use technology to their advantage rather than fearing its’ radical capabilities, Siemens has had a major impact on how teachers, students, and just about anyone involved in the education field perceives how our traditional learning models must evolve in order to effectively provide the knowledge and skills most vital in tomorrow’s “connected” world.  In the following slideshow presentation, Siemens outlines some of his main thoughts on what tomorrow may look like if we begin taking the necessary steps to reform our educational system today.  This presentation is a solid introduction to George’s theories.  We’d like to thank him for being an Ashworth University contributing blogger and would like to encourage everyone to check out his amazing elearnspace Blog.  Thanks George!

Ryan Rode
Interactive Services Manager
Ashworth University

In yet another sign that the home school education movement is gaining mainstream acceptance, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger of California has denounced a court ruling restricting the rights of parents who want to home school their children.  The following article outlines the details of this developing story.  Scharzenegger referred to the ruling in question as “outrageous” and stated that “parents should have the right to decide what’s best for their children.”  We here at Ashworth University applaud the Governor’s stance against the governmental regulation of parents’ rights and are happy to see the home school movement continue to gain momentum on the national stage.  As always, if you have any questions about Ashworth University’s Home School initiatives, please feel free to contact us at any time.  Dr. Lisa Bryde, our manager of Research and Curriculum Development, will be happy to advise you on what homeschool options best fit your family’s needs. 

You can contact Dr. Lisa Bryde at: 

lbryde@ashworthuniversity.edu

Ryan Rode
Interactive Services Manager
Ashworth University

Making students accountable for test scores works well on a bumper sticker and it allows many politicians to look good by saying that they will not tolerate failure. But it represents a hollow promise. Far from improving education, high- stakes testing marks a major retreat from fairness, from accuracy, from quality, and from equity.
- Sen. Paul Wellstone (1944-2002)

Standardized testing is quite the hot topic, to say the least. I remember spending pretty much the entire semester of Tests & Measures in college debating the validity of standardized tests.

A lot of educational institutions are being accused of “teaching to the test”. If you have to teach to a test, then obviously the test isn’t really testing what it should be, right?

Standardized tests are used for different purposes. We won’t get into the political purposes right now, but we all know that those exist. In elementary, middle, and high schools, they are used to make sure that students are performing at an appropriate level, and they are used to place students in appropriate courses at the appropriate level. These tests should be testing grade-level knowledge, reasoning and problem solving ability, writing skills, etc. A well constructed test does just that – it tests whether or not the test taker has certain knowledge and skills and can apply that knowledge and those skills.

Special thanks to SideLong for permission to use this photo.

I have seen student records where a student is earning decent grades in math courses like Algebra and Geometry, but then they are unable to pass a state exit exam in math. What is the problem here? Is it that the students are not actually learning the material? Are grades being “given” to students? I find it impossible to believe that a student can earn a B in Algebra I and Geometry and then fail a math exit exam that most likely only skims the surface of basic Algebra and Geometry. Is the test bad or are the courses bad?

The only thing I really have to go on to answer that question is that the tests are standardized while the courses are not. We see students across counties and states performing at or above level in their high school courses and then failing exit exams. What are these tests actually testing? I’m not saying the courses themselves are perfect, I doubt they are. Improvements on these courses that are being made are based on how students are performing on these tests though, and that is a little scary. Courses should be designed so that the student learns and understands the material, and the tests should be designed to make sure they have done just that.

If we are teaching to tests, especially bad tests, we are really failing our students.

Nicole Burris
Associate Registrar
Ashworth University

 
              Thanks to juanjoseixas for permission to use this Photo.

With the public school system failing, one wonders whether the federally mandated emphasis on pass/fail standardized testing (reactive) rather than ian investment in the comprehensive reform of our educational models (proactive) is anything more than a political “red herring.”  The following video features an influential educator by the name of Ken Robinson.  Mr. Robinson eloquently discusses the creativity crisis that our schools are suffering from and proposes possible alternatives to policies that undermine student creativity rather than provide an environment conducive to its’ development.  At Ashworth University High School, we take great pride in our ability to customize our program studies to meet the diverse learning styles of our students.  We’d love to hear from our home school parents out there.  Please share your perspectives in the comments section of this post.  We’ll talk again soon.

Ryan Rode
Ashworth University