136. MVCAP fyi

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1. Four Sure-Fire Ways to Derail Your College Search, by Sue Biemeret http://thechoice.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/11/22/biemeret-3/#more-24669

‎"My mantra is simple: “The school that fits you best is the best school for you.” When a student finds a college that fits him academically, socially, emotionally and financially — and the college feels the exact same way about that student — fit happens and the college admission “game” is a win/win. But it’s so easy to stray off course, to make things other than fit matter. And when that happens, the college search can get messy, uncomfortable and just plain wrong. In that spirit, here are four easy ways to derail the college search:"

2. Consensus or Groupthink? - Inside Higher Ed: http://bit.ly/9p5Pet

"The convergence around the "college completion agenda" -- put simply, the now widely held view that the country must in the next 10-15 years significantly increase the number of Americans with a quality postsecondary credential -- has been driven by many factors, most notably the imprimatur of President Obama within the first weeks of his term. But arguably even more important has been the fact that the country's highest-profile foundation, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and the most visible foundation focused primarily on higher education, the Lumina Foundation for Education, have both thrust college completion to the top of their agendas."

3. Colleges Ask Prospective Students Creative Essay Questions http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/11/19/most-creative-college-ess_n_785443.html

"The University of Chicago is also famous for its unorthodox questions. According to the school's admissions homepage, the admissions essay is "an opportunity for students to tell us about themselves, their tastes, and their ambitions. They can be approached with utter seriousness, complete fancy, or something in between."

4. Top 10 Ways to Improve Students' Achievement and Create Learners - http://www.huffingtonpost.com/pam-lowe/top-10-ways-to-improve-st_b_786205.html

"One of the major negatives is that change is rarely welcome. People tend to like the status quo and do not want the apple cart overturned. Our first year was fraught with change; change in vision, strategies, instructional methods and materials. Through it all, our staff preserved as we worked on our improvement. Over the course of my educational experience I've collected a list of criteria that I believe create an atmosphere ripe for improving student achievement. Here I will call it: Top 10 Ways to Improve Student Achievement and Create LearnersDisclaimer: This is by no means all that schools should be doing. Note that these are broad actions; there are many more detailed actions that need to be taken."

5. Early Decision Applications Are Soaring: Here's Why, by Lynn O'Shaughnessy - http://t.co/d7Dtu6J

"Many elite schools that accept early decision and/or early action applications are experiencing more students applying to college through the early bird options. Vanderbilt University, for instance, received 1,666 early decision applications this year, which represents a 30% jump. Northwestern University’s early decision applications (2,127) soared 26% and the University of Chicago’s early action applications increased 18.5%.Students are applying earlier because at many schools they enjoy a greater chance of acceptance. Some schools are filling half of their classes with students who apply to college early."

6. Rise in College Applications Raises Concerns About Access, by Caralee Adams - http://t.co/2C5IHhX via @educationweek

"With the rise in applications for admission, more colleges are rejecting more students and becoming more selective. The report suggests this could close doors of opportunity for more low-income, first-generation students in all sectors, as these students typically are less certain of their academic goals, received less rigorous college preparation, and have more difficulty negotiating the college bureaucracies. Applying to more schools only to be rejected by more institutions also makes the application process more costly for students and schools, the report notes. While applying to more schools may give students more options for the best fit or the best financial aid package, the report shows growing evidence that financial aid investments are outstripping investments in teaching and learning in the classroom, ultimately canceling out the students' advantage."

7. Teaching for America, by Thomas L. Friedman - http://nyti.ms/dp5tJa

"Here are a few data points that the secretary of education, Arne Duncan, offered in a Nov. 4 speech: “One-quarter of U.S. high school students drop out or fail to graduate on time. Almost one million students leave our schools for the streets each year.... One of the more unusual and sobering press conferences I participated in last year was the release of a report by a group of top retired generals and admirals. Here was the stunning conclusion of their report: 75 percent of young Americans, between the ages of 17 to 24, are unable to enlist in the military today because they have failed to graduate from high school, have a criminal record, or are physically unfit.” America’s youth are now tied for ninth in the world in college attainment."

8. Growing Up Digital, Wired for Distraction -http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/21/technology/21brain.html?pagewanted=1&ref=general&src=me

"Researchers say the lure of these technologies, while it affects adults too, is particularly powerful for young people. The risk, they say, is that developing brains can become more easily habituated than adult brains to constantly switching tasks — and less able to sustain attention. “Their brains are rewarded not for staying on task but for jumping to the next thing,” said Michael Rich, an associate professor at Harvard Medical School and executive director of the Center on Media and Child Health in Boston. And the effects could linger: “The worry is we’re raising a generation of kids in front of screens whose brains are going to be wired differently.”

9. Download or print the free MVCAP Powerpoint presentation "Paying for College" at our site: http://issuu.com/mvcap/docs/paying_for_college

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