What's the future of education? Teachers respond (article)

Here's a brief of the article.
What’s the future of education? How will students learn differently? What will the schools of the future look like? These were questions asked to the TED-Ed Innovative educators. They shared their ideas about it: Education will be more creative, kids will be more innovative (They will be evaluated on critical thinking and problem-solving skills). Kids will be more exposed to the world. Learning will be not limited to a physical school. Students will learn that anything is possible. Social justice will be a primary focus in schools. Schools will be different from the traditional one. They will incorporated virtual reality and multiple views. Students should be helped to identify their strengths, interests,and values so they can start young to build their path to what they will be in the future. Because of  things like climate change and shootings, schools will be security oriented. in spite all these changes, schools design will be stay pretty much the same.

http://blog.ed.ted.com/2016/02/12/whats-the-future-of-education-teachers-respond/

Test Anxiety

Our students/children experience a lot of different challenges during their schools years. Some have to be with the academic part, other with their social part and other with their career part or what they are going to be in the future. All of these are connected and one can Influence another. 
One of the things that can affect them is test anxiety. Test anxiety is a kind of anxiety the student feel before or during taking a test. This can make them feel insecure, might give them physical symptoms (sweating, palpitations, stomach issues), and definitely can affect their test performance.

What our students can do to ease this anxiety?

Well, there are a couple of things that can help them.
Study in advance is for sure the number one thing they should do. Knowing the material will give them confidence and security. 
Take practice tests is another thing that can help them. This is a great technique to use especially when they are taking Math tests. This will help them familiarize with the kind of test they will be taking. 
Another thing they can do is learn to manage their test time, This can be do by trying to answer all the questions they are sure they know. Answer this questions first then go to those that they are not that sure of knowing. These ones will take more time. Also, they can do all the questions that for them are more easy and then go to the ones that they consider more difficult. Why? The won't be stuck in a difficult question or in a question they don't know really well. They will answer the ones they know fast, leaving them enough time for the ones that are not that easy or they are not sure to know well.
To carefully read all the instructions is another thing they can do. Sometimes the student read the instructions to fast and they think they know what they have to do. This could make them do some mistakes giving them more anxiety. Some of them don't even read the instructions at all and this will definitely can affect their performance.
To finalize, staying positive, resting well the night before, eating right, and taking some deep breaths will definitely help them to ease their anxiety and do well on their test.

Take care, 
Tere

Let's help our students reach their full potential!!

Our children deal with a lot of different situations during their schools years. Sometimes is difficult for them to deal with these situations alone. Let's help them!

Tomorrow I'll be hosting a chat on my Facebook page, Math Anxiety https://www.facebook.com/MathAnxiety/

Let's talk/chat about how our students can reach their full potential and how they can deal with their school life: students skills, academic skills, anxiety, test anxiety, bulling, math anxiety, etc.

Go to my page, Math Anxiety, and join me in this chat. Just post your questions or comments on the page. I'm sure that together we can learn a lot and will find different ways to help our students.

The chat will be from 5:30-6:30 (Orlando,FL time)

See you tomorrow!!!

Take care,
Tere

NY Times article: Is the drive for success making our children sick?

Good article about how stress associated to school is making our kids sick. This is happening in college students, high and middle school students and as little as students around 5-6 years old.

"Expectations surrounding education have spun out of control. On top of a seven-hour school day, our kids march through hours of nightly homework, daily sports practices and band rehearsals, and weekend-consuming assignments and tournaments."

"Nearly one in three teenagers told the American Psychological Association that stress drove them to sadness or depression — and their single biggest source of stress was school." 

"At the other end of the age spectrum, doctors increasingly see children in early elementary school suffering from migraine headaches and ulcers. Many physicians see a clear connection to performance pressure."



http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/03/opinion/sunday/is-the-drive-for-success-making-our-children-sick.html?_r=0

What anxiety looks like in children vs what's happening

Anxiety in children can manifest in different ways. This is how anxiety might looks like in your child.

·         What it looks like - You are 5 minutes late to pick up your kid at a birthday party.  She is in a corner, sobbing. She is convinced you were in a car accident.

What’s happening - Anxious children may focus on worries that something bad happen to their parents.            

·         What it looks like - Family friends are over to watch the game. Your 12 year old is in his room with  his door closed. He doesn’t want to go outside.

What’s happening - Such behavior seems to be rude or unfriendly. But it could be a sign that your child is afraid of socializing.

·         What it looks like - Your son’s teacher says he’s constantly moving his legs and seems looded up in  class. She thinks he might have ADHD.

What’s happening - It could be ADHD. But your son’s impatient or restless behavior could also be a symptom of anxiety about reading and writing. Other physical symptoms of anxiety include dry mouth, rapid breathing, stomach ache, sweating, and dizziness.

·         What it look like - You daughter is constantly counting tiles or windowpanes.

What’s happening - Repeating tiny and meaningless rituals may be a way for your child to manage her fears. For example, “If I count 100 windowpanes, then I won’t fail the math test.”  If this behavior continues, talk to her doctor about what you’re seeing. It could be a sign of of  obsessive- compulsive disorder.  

·         What it looks like - Your son’s teacher complains that your son does not copy what is written on the board. Instead he closed his notebook and low his head.

What’s happening – Your son might be feeling anxious about how much work he sees written on the  board and feels he can’t fulfill it. He prefers instead to close his notebook and don’t look at the board. This might help him ease his anxiety.   

School Counselor and Math Anxiety: Math Autobiography Intervention for Math Anxiety

School Counselor and Math Anxiety: Math Autobiography Intervention for Math Anxiety:                                                             There are some interventions that a school counselor can use to help a stud...

Overcoming Math Anxiety

There are some things a student can do to help himself/herself overcome Math Anxiety 

1. A positive attitude will help. However, positive attitudes come with quality teaching for understanding which often isn't the case with many traditional approaches to teaching mathematics.

2. Ask questions, be determined to 'understand the math'. Don't settle for anything less during instruction. Ask for clear illustrations and or demonstrations or simulations.

3. Practice regularly, especially when you're having difficulty.

4. When total understanding escapes you, hire a tutor or work with peers that understand the math. You can do the math, sometimes it just take a different approach for you to understand some of the concepts.

5. Don't just read over your notes - do the math. Practice the math and make sure you can honestly state that you understand what you are doing.

6. Be persistent and don't over emphasize the fact that we all make mistakes. Remember, some of the most powerful learning stems from making a mistake.