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Archive for November, 2009

How much homework help from friends and family is appropriate?

Thursday, November 19th, 2009

This is a question that parents are faced with as long as their children are in school. There is no simple of answer. It depends on many factors, such as the number of children you have, the amount of time the parent can set aside for the child, the child’s IQ level, the child’s interest level in studies, the child’s ability to absorb educational inputs, etc. However, the bottom line would be that as the student graduates from elementary school to middle school and to high school, the number of hours of time spent helping him with homework should steadily come down. Parents should encourage children to be able to handle their work  on their own (to the extent possible), and look for help only when it is absolutely essential.

One positive method of helping children with homework is to position oneself as a dependable resource to answer specific questions. Parents should make an effort to answer the child’s questions. In addition, parents may wish to consider engaging a tutor to fill in knowledge gaps and plan the student’s work.

However, under no circumstances should parents do any part of the child’s homework, such as project work, even if it helps them receive high grades or accolades. When parents do some part of the child’s homework, the child will begin to increasingly depend on parental assistance. The child would begin to expend less and less physical and mental effort on homework. Also, when an elder sibling does a child’s homework, it would be unfair to the other children in the class who would be taking pains to do the work on their own, as they may not get the high grades or accolades that they rightfully deserve. The student would miss out in terms of learning about the importance of ‘fair play’ in life, and could also damage a student’s self confidence. That would be a setback in the growth and development of the student.

When does “homework help” cross the line and become “cheating”?

Thursday, November 19th, 2009

It is quite common for friends and relatives of a student to help him or her with homework. Getting homework help in order to do homework is generally not considered cheating. In fact, it is considered essential in many cases.  Some students use study guides to to help them with their homework. So, if all these sources of assistance are considered necessary, when does it cross the line to become cheating?

Let’s look at the case of family members (e.g.  parent or elder siblings) helping out with a student homework. When the teacher explicitly states that certain work has to be done by the student, without the help of anyone else, getting help would definitely be cheating. Even if there is no one to monitor whether the student has taken the help of others or not, a teacher who knows the student well can often tell whether he or she has received help.

There are other potential forms of cheating with respect to homework. These include getting answers from homework guides, getting answers from older students who have done the same homework in a previous year, etc. In all these cases, there is little in the ‘legal’ sense to say that one has cheated. Rather the difference is subtle. In most cases, the choice is left to the student, who has the option of using or not using a source of superior information. Using such superior sources of information, which are not available to others, might be considered cheating. Teachers should monitor the quantum of help that each of their students get, and take that into account when assigning grades.

When does “homework help” cross the line and become “cheating”?

Generally, parents/elder siblings help out children/younger siblings with their homework. Taking the help of these elders to do proper and error-free homework is not considered cheating. In fact, it is considered essential in most instances. Even teachers monitor the quantum of assistance given by the elders in the family to the children. Sometimes, children are required to use the Internet to do their homework. So, if all these sources of assistance are considered necessary, when does it cross the thin line to become cheating?

Let’s look at the case of parents/elder siblings helping out with the homework of their children/younger siblings, which slips into the realm of cheating. Where the teacher explicitly states that certain work has to be done by the student, without the help of anyone else, in such cases taking the help of others would definitely be cheating. This is so, since there is no one to monitor whether the student has taken the help of others or not.

In the case where the student has to take the help of the Internet to gather certain information and draw his or her own conclusions from the information, if the student takes the help of the Internet to find out the optimum conclusion, it would be termed as cheating.

There are various other forms of cheating in ‘homework’. These include getting answers from Guides, getting answers from older batches that have done the same work in the previous year, el al.

In all these cases, there is little in the ‘legal’ sense to say or charge that one has cheated. Rather the difference is subtle. In most cases, the choice is left to the student who has the option of using or not using a source of superior information, which is not be available to other students of his/her batch. Using such superior source of information, which is not available to others, would be considered cheating.

Is it better to stay up late studying for a test?

Monday, November 2nd, 2009

Is it better to stay up late studying for a test, or is it better to get 8 hours of sleep?

This is a tricky question. The answer depends on the individual student. While some students just cannot wake up in the morning and concentrate, others are more altert at dawn. However, as a rule parents discourage staying up at night and studying since they are typically, unable to monitor the progress of the student’s effort – after having spent a tiring day at work.

One very effective way is to study before going to bed; take a book to bed and dose off while reading it. Though doctors typically discourage reading in the lying down position, it has been observed that what one reads before going to sleep remains in the mind. Some students read out the answers into their mobile phone, plug on the earphones and go to sleep hearing their own voice reading out the answers to potential exam questions. This can be a good way to absorb a large amount of information in a short amount of time.

Some students stay up late just before a test.  To make this effort most effective, students should read concise answers to potential test questions, important points and formulae (for mathematics) during such late night study sessions. This is because during this time the student is not trying to learn anything from scratch but is only trying to reinforce areas where he or she feels are relatively weak. 

It is important to get sleep before the test. Therefore, never stay up the whole night before the exam. Even if you have only a few hours before having to wake up and take the test, you definitely need those few hours to rest.

5 ways to improve your SAT (Scholastic Aptitude Test) score

Monday, November 2nd, 2009

It is important for students to score as high as possible on the SAT (Scholastic Aptitude Test) to improve their chance of getting admission into the college of their choice. Competition for the best colleges is intense, given that a couple of million students take the test every year in the US alone.

There are many vital elements in preparing for the SAT test. These include understanding the nature of the test, practicing for the test and preparing oneself mentally and physically for the test. However, the most vital part is learning for the test itself.

One could begin by talking to students who have scored very high in past tests. This will give you some perspective.

This should be followed by undertaking some research on the test itself. A lot can be gleaned from the Internet. Visit various SAT coaching centers or their websites.

Then the student might want to take a baseline test. This will provide a basic scale of measurement about the student’s capabilities – and more importantly, weaknesses. The student should then concentrate on filling up gaps in his or her knowledge, i.e. shoring up areas of weakness.

Get information on all that is permitted and not permitted in the test. This will help avoid problems at the time of taking the test.

The student should physically prepare for the SAT test. How can that be done? The SAT test requires not only knowledge but also the skills to apply the knowledge, presence of mind and calm disposition while attempting to answer tricky questions. It is important not to get flustered. Try meditation, stay cool, stay away from memory enhancing drugs, get plenty of sleep and take a shower before going to the test – this will enhance the level of alertness. The rest will all follow.

All the best!