“What did you expect?”
That’s the question psychologist Carl Pickhardt asked his patient after he came in angry that he didn’t get a good paying job a year after graduating from college. In their session, Pickhardt tried to make the young man understand that he put himself in his current position. Even though he had thought about his future after college, were the expectations he set for himself realistic?
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If you’ve been around kids recently, you’ve seen Twilight and Harry Potter fandom splattered on T-shirts, lockers, and notebooks. Reading teacher Cindi Rigsbee’s wrote about the delight it gave her to see kids so interested in literary characters in her blog, “Picture This: Helping Readers Flex Their Imaginations.” That was until she realized the kids weren’t advertising their connection to a character, but to the actors who play the characters.
The results from two Kaiser Family Foundation surveys found minority children spend approximately 4.5 more hours a day using mobile devices, computers, TVs, and other media than white kids. Experts theorize the percentage difference may stem from the fact minority children are more likely to live in dangerous neighborhoods that require them to stay inside. Minority children are also more likely to have working parents. Children may use media due to lack of personal engagement.  If we can encourage children in these families—as well as their parent or caregiver—to encourage educational and mind-challenging games and activities, we could turn this into an advantage as opposed to a disadvantage in low in-come neighborhoods.
Over the last few years, we’ve been disappointed about the behavior of many men in positions of power. Arianna Huffington joked that if Lehman Brothers had been Lehman Brothers and Sisters, they never would have gone under. Seriously though, the S&L crisis, the financial crisis which sent markets around the world plummeting and the scandals of the last few weeks of some of our most influential political leaders, makes us wonder who is a good role model for today’s young men? Indeed, percentage of boys who go to college right now is 44% compared to 63% of girls who attend college. Many of these boys drop out, serve time in prison and the very lucky ones become like Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg. Below are some ways that teachers, parents and students can begin to understand what is at the heart of responsible adult behavior. After the good fortune of being raised by four older brothers who are exemplary people, husbands and fathers, I want to share with you what they shared with me growing up.  I was fortunate to develop a strong sense of self, the ability to say “no,â€Â maintain strong boundaries and the fortitude to follow my dreams.
Rebecca Alber, in her blog “How to Inspire Your Students to Read this Summer,” says she wasn’t one of those teachers who was concerned with getting her books back or even back in one piece at the end of summer vacation. In her experience, many underprivileged students would say they had 15 or 20 books in their home: mostly ones they’ve read or that are for younger children.
Alber developed seven tips for teachers to inspire children to read, even in the poorest communities where literacy has the ability to one day set them free from constraints put on by poverty. LifeBound’s books are the nation’s leading resource in supplemental instruction—books on Leadership, People Smarts, Critical and Creative Thinking and our new book, Dollars and Sense: How to be Smart About Money are great summer reads for kids from fifth through twelfth grade. The following is an adaptation of Alber’s insights:
A college education is sought after by more people than ever before. According to the New Yorker article “Live and Learn: Why We Have College” by Louis Menand, 68 percent of graduating high school students attend college and six percent of the American population is enrolled in college — which is a large percentage compared to a three percent enrollment rate in Great Britain and France. Ask most politicians, educators, parents, and students if there is value in a college education and expect them to know college grads get paid more than high school grads, get more job opportunities than those with less education, and gain more workforce skills than those who move directly to the workforce.
In the 160 years The New York Times has been in circulation, they had yet to have a female executive editor until this year. On June 2, 2011, the Times executive editor Bill Keller stepped down from his position, allowing former investigative journalist and managing editor Jill Abramson to take his position.
Abramson might be most well known for holding her own when former executive editor Howell Raines attempted to demote her from bureau chief to the Book Review, which would have taken her out of the running for the historic spot she recently earned in Times history. In the end, Raines was forced to resign due to the Jayson Blair plagiarism scandal, and Abramson kept her position and continued climbing the Times ladder at top speed.
Guest Blogger: Nicoll Laikola, College Senior
School’s out and summer is here, but is it possible to have fun without a lot of money? Fortunately, summer is all about enjoying the sunshine, and most outdoor activities are free! Whether you’re into music, exercise, or relaxing, there is a cost-effective activity for you.
Many cities host free events during summer months. Local newspapers will have information on free concerts or county fairs and festivals. Depending on where you live, hiking or a day-trip to the beach can also be fun.
Sometimes as locals, we forget about all the things our state has to offer. Free museums, state parks, or places for sight-seeing are too easily overlooked. Going to a tourist booth or doing a Google search of activities in your area can yield great results for activities that you may not have done in years.
The pool is often a fun place to spend summer days. Communities sometimes have a pool that they offer free or cheap admission to for residents. For those who enjoy swimming, giving swim lessons or working as a lifeguard are great ways to pass the time and earn some extra money.
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In the article listed below, “It’s Not About You,â€Â David Brooks points out that many of the graduation speeches call grads forth to pursue their passions, follow their dreams and express their true individualism. While pursuing personal goals, it is just as important, if not more important,  to become a person who can look outside of their own narcissistic needs and interests to be able to help others and, as Brooks points out, to become someone who can see a problem and work diligently, often without thanks or fanfare, to solve it.
As summer begins in full, many students are starting their summer internships. Internships are as important, if not more important, than a student’s class work because they show not only what a student knows, but also what he knows how to do. On the internship, students will figure out if they like the field they think they want to pursue and if they have what it takes to succeed in that field or industry. Even  in a non-paid internship, a student can learn priceless information about herself and what she really wants to do with her life. Students who don’t take the time to ask these questions and get these kinds of experiences can often waste years and thousands of dollars pursuing fields for which they are uninterested or a poor fit.
In 1992, only 17%of graduates had an internship. Today, that number is 50% and many employers would say that it should be higher than that.  54% of employers check an internship candidate’s social web presence for things like what they follow, discuss and overall matters of judgment.