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Overcoming Procrastination When Writing Papers

July 11, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

Whether you are pursuing an online college degree or trying to make good grades in a high school English composition class, procrastination can be a problem. Writer’s block can strike even the best writers in the world, so the key is to learn how to deal with the problem when it arises.

Identify the Pressures Involved in Writing Papers

People procrastinate for a variety of reasons. Fear of a bad grade or the unpleasantness of the task may be possible reasons for putting off writing a paper. The fact remains, however, that an online college degree, a high school diploma and other academic accomplishments require that papers be written. To deal with this pressure, identify the core issue. It may be that your ideas for the paper haven’t crystallized or that you don’t feel secure about your writing skills.

Face the Challenge

Once you’ve identified the reasons behind the procrastination, focus on solutions for each problem. People sometimes procrastinate becomes a task seems too overwhelming and large. Break down the task into smaller pieces. If the topic of your paper is complicated, make an outline and tackle one subtopic at a time. If you are struggling with how to organize the paper, speak to your professor for guidance or look up an essay writing resource.

Reward Yourself

After you’ve tackled each small challenge, reward yourself. Your reward may be a fresh cup of coffee before you sit down to work again. You might watch 20 minutes of your favorite television show after writing a few pages. Be sure to return to work after each small break or reward. Before you know it, your paper will be finished.

Filed Under: Education, Reading and Writing, Writing Techniques Tagged With: Arts, Procrastination, Writers Resources

Preparing for the Vocabulary Section of the SATs

July 11, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

Any high school student preparing for college knows, and dreads, the Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT). These scores are an important part in getting into college, even if you’re getting an online college degree. The exam, which lasts about three hours, will measure your skills in writing, math and verbal.

The vocabulary is where many people get a little nervous. Here are some tips for preparing for the vocabulary section of the SATs.

Practice Makes Perfect

Most schools will offer students the chance to take a practice test for the SATs. If your school doesn’t offer them there are several free websites that will let you take a practice test. The test will let you see where your strengths and weaknesses are.

Take a Prep Course

The SAT prep class is going to help prepare you for the SATs and even help give you a great score. The teacher will give you a large list of the most popular vocabulary words that will more than likely end up on the test.

Learn the Components

By memorizing all the prefixes, suffixes and roots will help increase your vocabulary score. This will be more beneficial on the multiple choice questions since it’s giving you another way of answering questions known as the ever popular process of elimination.

Make Study Aids

This might sound elementary, but flash cards have always been the best way to study a ton of vocabulary words. Once you’ve made them and studied a little, ask a friend or family member to test you. It’s the only real way to see if you’ve learned the vocabulary words.

Filed Under: Education, Online Resources Tagged With: High school, SAT, Vocabulary

Having a Degree Makes You More Appealing to Employers

July 10, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

There are many aspects and considerations that go into applying for a job. From deciding whether the job is something you want to do for an extended period, to the compensation offered by the employer, there are many things to consider before deciding to apply. This fact is a reality on the other side of the spectrum as well; in that the employer has many things to consider before choosing to hire an applicant. Among some of the more common criteria are: experience, first impression and of course, education. While these elements are all important to an employer in determining whether an applicant is worth hiring, education is among one of the most important. Below are a couple of reasons why an educational background can make you more appealing to a potential employer.

Proves You Have Knowledge of a Subject

Aside from on the job experience, education proves that a potential employee has knowledge about the position that they are applying for. While not all degrees reinforce a particular job completely, they still prove that a person has an educational background. Unfortunately, many people neglect obtaining a degree and tend to wonder why they rarely get hired for positions with a lot of competition.

Shows You Are Reliable

A degree is a good sign to an employer that an applicant is reliable. They understand that going through online Bachelors programs, or on site programs is not an easy task, and by completing them it is proof that you are willing to follow a project through to completion.

Filed Under: College Entrance Exams, Education, Online Resources Tagged With: Bachelor's degree, Education, Employment

How to be an Educated Person

July 8, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

Being educated involves a lot more than just being knowledgeable. To be an educated person you need to go far beyond just having a head full of facts and figures. While having this information is a good start toward being educated, it’s far from the entire point of it all. As GI Joe would saying, knowing is only half the battle.

You need to develop and use your critical thinking skills in order to become a truly educated person. One way you can do this is through going to classes and interacting with your fellow students. However, sometimes the distractions of a real world college environment become too much of a distraction, which ultimately hurts your education. In a case like that, you should consider going to school online. When you get an online college degree, it shows that you have the necessary discipline to continue your education even when there is no one else around to encourage you.

A truly educated person is not out to impress others with it. With education you grow into no longer needing to impress anyone else. You grow into wanting to grow for your own purposes and expand your knowledge because it’s enjoyable to do so. One benefit to this growth is that you no longer have to worry about having “a job” because you can use the knowledge you so passionately expand upon to grow into a career you love. Knowledge is great, but genuine education requires you to really grow as a person.

Filed Under: Education Tagged With: Academic degree, Critical thinking, Education

Tips to Improve Your Writing Skills For the ACTs

July 5, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

Doing well on the ACTs is important and can help you get into a good college. Whether you’re planning on attending a community college, university, or getting an online college degree, taking the ACTs is a good idea. The writing portion of the ACTs is optional, but some colleges require that you take this part of the test. Here are some tips to help you do well on the ACT writing portion.

Research Examples

Before your text date, go online or use ACT prep guide books to research writing tips and examples. These will give you an idea of what types of subjects you will be writing about and show you sample pieces of other students’ writing exams. They also give you a score and reasoning as to why that student received that rating.

Don’t Rush

When you take the test, it is important that you don’t rush yourself to avoid sloppy and poorly thought out content. You have plenty of time to write. It is important that you take your time in order to do your best.

Prewrite

Begin by writing an outline. This will help you organize your paper well and establish a well-rounded and thought out piece. You should have a good idea of what you want to say before you start writing so that you aren’t constantly erasing and revising your final draft. The test center should supply a scratch piece of paper, so you can write out a rough-draft before you complete your piece.

Edit and Review

After you have completed the writing exam, make sure to reread through it. Failing to review your piece may cost you. If you have extra time, look over what you have written several times because you don’t always find mistakes the first time.

Filed Under: Education Tagged With: Academic degree, ACT (test), Writing

An Education Revelation

July 1, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

Image via Wikipedia

Earning a college degree is now easier than every. Improvements in both technology and teaching techniques have helped to create a new breed of college classes. Earning an online college degree is an excellent way to complete your education while working or when traditional college classes will not suffice. It is interesting to consider how the increased popularity of online classes has changed the way students write papers as they pursue their degrees.

The process of obtaining an online college degree has inherently changed the critical thinking skills of all students. As more and more people are turning to online classes, we see a growing reliance on technology growing reliance on technology. For example, students must increase their ability to self-manage. Consider a typical college paper. No longer must papers be researched in libraries and printed on paper. Instead, students are learning to use online research sources and books. Students send papers and other required writing assignments electronically. This has created a shift in the education trend across the globe.

Educators teach students to rely on technology in their pursuit of an online college degree. When we once again consider typical college papers, students use built-in language and grammar programs to aid them with the writing process. We will have to see whether this aspect of online learing is positive.

The changes caused by a move towards more electronic learning has made college degrees accessible to a greater number of people. Our education system will benefit from continued investments in this area of technology.

Filed Under: Education Tagged With: Distance education, E-learning, Education

Preparing for the Essay Portion of the SAT Exam

March 29, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

When preparing to take the SAT exam you will need to plan for the writing section. Looking up sample essays, essay writing techniques, and doing some practice essays ahead of time can help you be fully prepared to do well in this section of the exam. Practice essays and information can be found on the official websites for each exam type.

Following a format when writing your essays will ensure that you will have the confidence you need to complete your writing assignment in the time frame given, it will ensure that you will cover the topic completely, and it will give you a sense of structure to your essay.

In the SAT writing exam you may be asked to write a one-example essay or a two-example essay. When writing a one-example essay, choose a subject that you have personal experience with. This subject should be real and not invented. It is easier to write about something you have personal experience with. It is best to steer away from controversial subjects, religion, or politics.

In your one-example essay your first paragraph will introduce your “example” and should create interest in the subject. This paragraph can be general but must include a thesis statement and direct the reader to the general idea of your essay. In the second paragraph you will cover about half of your “example” by describing the situation. The third paragraph should include more specifics and complete information pertaining to your “example.” The fourth paragraph of your essay is where you will discuss the conclusions or moral lessons that your “example” shows and tie them into your thesis statement. In your final paragraph you will be concluding your essay. If possible you should relate your final conclusions to information in your introductory paragraph to round out your essay. Use some online colleges to look for effective tips on writing section of SAT Exam

Filed Under: Education, Reading and Writing Tagged With: Essay, SAT, test

Writing a Narrative Essay

March 19, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

A narrative essay tells a story. Successful narrative essays always have a point. When you are writing a narrative essay you should try to display the author’s values while expressing them in story format. The author may be remembering a significant event or time in his life or may even be observing events in the present. If you do not feel that you have adequate experience to build from, use an experience from someone you know or even write about your favorite sport or hobby. Once you have the general idea, you are ready to begin.

The story should begin with an introduction to the main idea of the story. At the conclusion of the story the author should make a point. Include anecdotes throughout the story. The author should describe the person, scene, or events that are happening in detail. You may add dialogue so long as it is punctuated correctly and not overdone.

The events and people in your story should be described in such a way that readers can identify with them. If your story includes a moral struggle, include the feelings of the internal struggle your character may be facing. What did your character learn from this struggle? Remember to have a point to the story and find a way to get this message across to your readers.

The point of view in a narrative essay is usually first person. You should use “I” which invites your readers to be included in an intimate discussion between the character and the reader.

Filed Under: College Entrance Exams, Writing Techniques Tagged With: Essay, Narrative

Stages of Classical Education

March 9, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

Classical education is dependent on a three part process of training the mind. In the early years of education you spend your time absorbing facts. In your middle years of education you were taught to think through arguments. In high school you were then taught to express yourself.
In your first several years of schooling the building blocks for all other future education was being laid. A young child’s mind is like a sponge, ready to absorb every bit of information that is given to them. It is fun to memorize facts and learn new things. This stage of learning is considered the “grammar” stage because it is where you have been given all of the basic information and facts to build from in later years.
By fifth grade you begin to have more analytical thoughts. At this stage in the learning process you are more interested in knowing why things are and why they happen than in learning factual information. Now you are paying more attention to cause and effect and way that facts actually fit together in a logical way. This stage of learning is referred to as the “logical stage.” During this stage is when children begin to learn and understand subjects such as algebra and begin to apply logic in all academic areas.
The final stage of classical education is the “rhetoric stage” which builds off the first two stages. By this point, high school students are learning to think and write original works. They are learning to take the information they have learned during the logical stage and apply it to the factual information they learned during the grammar stage of development and present clear, forceful, insightful conclusions to problems.

Filed Under: Education Tagged With: Education

Teaching Grammar and Mechanics

March 5, 2011 By admin Leave a Comment

Some teachers feel that they have to spend a considerable amount of time teaching their students proper grammar usage and mechanics. However, studies have shown that you can actually spend too much time and focus on grammar, which in turn can have a negative effect on a child’s understanding of proper grammar. Rather, short focused lessons may be more effective.

Students tend to see grammar, punctuation, and writing lessons as confusing, overwhelming, or just plain boring. It may be beneficial to find more interesting ways to incorporate grammar lessons into other subjects and/or use games and interactive lessons to help teach grammar and mechanics lessons. Allow students to correct their own work with a checklist. This allows the student to see where the mistakes are and find ways to improve their writing skills.

There are many student websites and teacher help sites that can provide you with great interactive lessons, worksheets, and games to make learning grammar and proper mechanics more interesting and easier to understand. For example, you could use a common game such as Scattegories to teach the proper use of nouns. Choose a letter and have each child in turn come up with a noun that starts with that letter for each category of nouns (people, places, visible things, qualities, ideas, actions, and conditions). Each word can only used once. This keeps children thinking and finding new words that fit into the categories they are given. Before they know it, your students will be learning what nouns are and how they fit into specific categories!

Filed Under: Education Tagged With: Grammar, Noun, Student