Pretty Woman

Sunday, February 25, 2007

Alberta's Education System

The human body art - beautiful woman artist pastes the chart
[人体艺术-美女艺术家贴图]
[人體藝術-美女藝術家貼圖]
[Искусствоо человеческого тела - красивейший художник женщинынаклеивает диаграмму]
[L'art de corps humain - la belle artiste de femme colle le diagramme]
[El arte del cuerpo humano - el artista hermoso de la mujer pega lacarta]

In Canada, each Province and Territory has jurisdiction over its own education system. Public education is free to all Canadian citizens and permanent residents aged less than 20 years.

Parents are responsible for providing school supplies, school uniforms are not worn but Band and Sports uniforms are also the parent's responsibility. In Alberta, students are legally required to attend school between the ages of 6 and 16 years.

It is extremely important that you find out when the registration period is to ensure that your kids get the places at the schools you want. The registration normally takes place several months before the year starts (I.E. register in Feb. for September). Contact the particular school to find out the precise details. There may well be an administration fee charged to register your child!

There are a number of different types of schooling options available for your child? education in Alberta. The choices are: Public, French immersion, Catholic, Francophone, Charter and Private Schools. Parents also have the option of home schooling their children.

Each school has its own attendance area; school boards are required to provide transportation for students that live more than 2.4 kilometers away. There may be a charge for this which you can expect to have to pay before the start of each school year. Your child does not have to enroll in the school in your attendance area as you may choose to enroll them elsewhere. However, the parents would then be responsible for transportation to and from school. Also, a percentage of the local taxes that every resident has to pay are paid to the school system of your choice (catholic, public etc.) in your catchment area.

The school year usually runs from the beginning of September through to June 30th. However, there may be variations to this from system to system. Most schools close down for the months of July and August as well as breaks at Christmas and Easter.

Preschool and Kindergarten

Schooling can start as early as 3 years old, at preschool. These tend to be privately run; therefore, you have to pay for them. Most children will attend pre-school until they are five years old.

Children's Services set standards for day care, nursery schools, drop in centers and family day homes. This ensures the health and safety and well-being of the children that attend these facilities.

Kindergarten generally starts at the age of 5 years, although some school boards have different age cut off dates. The student will attend 5 days of either morning or afternoon classes. Kindergarten has 400 instructional hours per year. It is normally part of the school that your child will attend in Grade 1 and is good preparation for full time school.

If your kid(s) are around this age be sure to find out about vaccinations. There will be standard Vaccinations offered that schools MAY insist on being up to date before they start school. Check with your chosen school for more details.

This age or younger is a very good time to think about saving for your child's post secondary education. Fees for post secondary education in Alberta are very expensive. There is a savings plan available in which the Federal Government will input a percentage of your contributions. These are called Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP).

Elementary and High School

Children start Elementary school at the age of 6 years (Grade 1) and stay there until they are 12 years old(Grade 6). There are certain subjects that are required in these grades; these include Language Arts, Math, Science, Social Studies, Art and Music, Health and Physical Education. There are also optional courses available; these vary from school to school.

Some school boards have a middle school for grades 5 to 8. If there is no middle school structure the children move on to junior high for Grades 7 to 9. (12 to 15 years)

Finally, there is Senior high school; this is for grades 10 - 12(15 - 18 years old). To graduate from high school, students need to achieve 100 credits. Credits are given for different subjects and courses that the student can take.

High schools also offer many different choices for students to help them to prepare for further education in Alberta.

Schools do not have to teach a second language, however many schools offer various language courses. Students are encouraged to learn French, Canada's other official language. Depending on the school there are many other second language courses available.

There are three types of language courses offered:

Immersion - this is where French is mainly used during the school day to teach the pupils. At elementary level it is used for 50 - 100 % of the day and 40 - 80% at the secondary level. You do not have to have French speaking parents to enroll in French immersion.

Bi-lingual - in which the language is used 25-50% of the time.

Second language programs - in which a particular language is taught as a course.

Transfer from abroad

Students who are new to education in Alberta and are from a foreign (non Canadian curriculum) school system should submit an official statement of previous standing, such as a report card to the school they want to enroll in. You should also have the previous school records and transcripts, copies of course outlines and content.

After considering a number of factors including the students age, records and test results they will be placed in the appropriate grade.

Post Secondary Education

Post Secondary education in Alberta has a wide variety of institutes to choose from:

There are publicly funded colleges which are located at many different places. The courses that these colleges offer include academic upgrading, job readiness, apprenticeship certificate and diplomas.

The two main technical institutions of Alberta are North Alberta Institute of Technology (NAIT) which is located in Edmonton and South Alberta Institute of Alberta (SAIT) located in Calgary offer certificate, diploma's, apprenticeship and continuing education in Alberta that are tailored to workplace requirements.

Three campus based universities, University of Alberta (Edmonton), University of Calgary and the University of Lethbridge and one distance learning university, the University of Athabasca. There are also seven private colleges that are accredited to grant degrees at University level.
Another type of course available is the Alberta Apprenticeship and Industry Training System which is an industry and government partnership that ensures a highly skilled workforce in 54 designated trades. There are also scholarships available in this system.

Student loans, numbers and permits

As with all of Canada, the Post Secondary education in Alberta is NOT free. Several years ago, the Canadian Government launched Registered Education Savings Plans (RESP's) to help parents save for their children? future education in Alberta. These are great if you start them early, but if your kids are about to start when you land it is too late.

In that case, there are interest free student loans available if you attend a designated post secondary institute full time. These are only available to Canadian citizens or permanent residents. There are two sources of student loans for education in Alberta - the Government of Canada and the Government of Alberta.

To be able to enroll in any school or post secondary institute in Alberta or to apply for a student loan you must firstly apply for an Alberta Student Number.

9 Tips To Make Back-to-School Shopping a Snap

It barely seems as if the final school bell rang, and already it? time to get the kids ready to head back! With everything else you have on your plate, the idea of back-to-school shopping can be, well, less than thrilling, and just a little overwhelming.

Relax! These nine tips will help you get organized and make back-to-school shopping a breeze.

1. Make A List. Consider what each child needs most and place those items at the top of your shopping list. Prioritizing needs will help you shop early for the necessities, and you can leave the unessential items until later, when you have more time?nd money.

2. Create A Budget. Knowing how much you can afford to spend on clothes and electronic items, for example, can cut a great deal of time out of your back-to-school shopping. You?l know exactly which brands and products are within your spending limits ?which means you won? waste time listening to that sales pitch for a high-priced computer that you know you can? afford. Be sure your kids know the limits before you head out to prevent future hassles with them over what you will and won? spend for certain items.

3. Use Cash. After you?e made your budget, use cash to make your purchases. When you only have a limited amount of money in your pocket, you?e not as likely to give in to the desire to splurge on things your children may not really need ?or that you can? really afford. This will save you huge headaches down the road when the credit card bills would be rolling in. Instead, you?l be patting yourself on the back for being such a savvy shopper.

4. Plan Your Attack. Knowing when to shop is half the battle. Choose times when your children will be feeling their best. Time your shopping to beat the crowds. With gas prices the way they are, you?l want to map out your strategy ahead of time. Plan your route and hit all the stores you need to in an orderly manner ?and save money at the gas pump as well.

5. Shop Alone When Possible. Sticking to a budget and dashing in and out of stores is so much easier when you?e by yourself. Plus, you won? have the extra guilt that comes from kids begging for impulse items that you have to say no to. Shopping alone may not always be practical, but do it for as many items as possible. You?l save a lot of wear and tear not just on your wallet but on your nerves too!

6. Click It. Online shopping has to be any busy mom? best friend ever! You can find anything you need online and have it delivered right to your door. That means no filling up the car with kids and gas, driving all over town, and ending up back at home with your nerves frazzled and your credit card smoking. You can shop online while at the office or at home when the kids are napping or have gone to bed for the night?r any other time that? convenient to you, for that matter. Also, shopping online may save you lots of money, as you can easily shop around for the best deals and all from the comfort of your favorite PC.

7. Buy Quality. When it comes to buying things such as backpacks and other school supplies that will be used on a daily basis, you?l want to buy the highest quality you can afford. Remember a bargain isn? a bargain if an item falls apart in a few weeks and has to be replaced. So for items that are going to need to withstand a lot of wear and tear, buy quality. Believe me, you won? regret it.

8. Shop During Tax-Free Weekends. If your state has a tax-free weekend, be sure to take advantage of it. This is especially true when you need to purchase large-ticket items like computers. You?l be amazed at the amount of money you can save by shopping during this time.

9. Delegate. If you?e time-starved, send Dad to do the back-to-school shopping. After all, who said shopping has to be just Mom? job? This is a great way to divide and conquer. You take half of the shopping list and let him take the other half. Neither of you will feel overwhelmed by the list of items to be bought, and sharing the shopping responsibility lessens the burdened too. (Actually, this would be a great time for you two to make a date to meet for coffee after the shopping? done and work in a little of that oh-so-important couple time!

Friday, February 23, 2007

Education Online - Your Gateway To Success

Education Online - Your Gateway To Success

It is common knowledge that in order to get a job in this day and age, you need post secondary education. With class size limits in force and prices of education on the rise the chances of you being able to attend a traditional institution are slim. Technology has helped to bridge the gap for those that are seeking a lower cost, online alternative to the programs they cover.

1. Online Education

As the most flexible type of learning, you are able to study according to your own schedule. You have the freedom to study notwithstanding working at the same time. You can do this by just having access to the internet and the specific site that provides education online. Courses are categorized depending on the needs of the student base.

2. Keeping Up With Technology

Jobs are becoming harder and harder to find. Technology and the refinement of industrialization has made many jobs obsolete, yet at the same time opened up many new jobs for those ready for the challenge.

3. Learn At Your Own Pace

You can chat with students from your own classroom as well as get help from real professors via email, voice chat or even a full video conference. Aside from learning, it will also be an avenue for you to have an access to well-known universities in the different parts of the world. The accessibility can't be beat also, if you have an active internet connection you have the ability to study.

4. Assignments

Assignments are a fairly safe region (in that they are hard to cheat on) as they involve actual work that must be completed and cannot usually be copied. Many institutions use websites like http://www.Turnitin.com to test for replicated material. They automatically match any similarly structured sentences to massive databases of websites, other assignments and scholarly material and look for replication or plagiarism.

Student Loans And The Price Of An Education

The average student entering higher education will now leave university with debts of around ?0,000. This is made up from a combination of student loans, credit cards and overdrafts. This figure however is set to sky rocket as Barclays predicts students graduating in 2010 will be facing ?0,000 of debt.

Although some figures show that graduates can expect higher than average earnings, students may not actually be in well-paid jobs for a number of years after graduating leaving. Unfortunately for some, this premium in earnings may never even be enough to clear their accumulated personal debt.

The best way to avoid the struggle is to learn about and prepare yourself for each cost involved over the period of our course including the time it may take you to find a job afterwards.

Firstly, tuition fees - these pay for the actual course you want to take. Before 1999 the Government covered the entire cost. However now, a growing appetite for higher education forced the Government to change the system. This was also justified by claims that during the course of their working lives, a graduate could earn ?00,000 more than a non-graduate.

However, not everyone has to pay tuition fees. If your parents' combined earnings are under a certain threshold they will not have to pay. From the threshold upward, the contributions operate on a sliding scale.

Although, regardless of their earnings, the maximum any family has to pay amounts to around a quarter of the entire cost of the course each year. This is estimated to be around ?,000 and the Government will still pick up the bill for the remaining amount.

As soon as you are accepted into a course you should apply to your Local Education Authority (LEA) to find out what sort of financial help you can obtain.

Thinking of taking out a loan to fund your course? Most students will need to take out one or more student loans to cover their day-to-day living. These are unsecured loans with an especially low interest rate that reflects the rate of inflation meaning you only pay back the exact amount you borrowed.

If you are going to take out a loan you should contact your LEA at the same time you apply for support towards tuition fees. Your LEA will assess the amount of loan you are entitled to and invite you to request how much you want to apply for. You must then tell the Student Loans Company (SLC) of the amount agreed and it will pay the money into your account on the first day of term. Note also that you are eligible for more funds if you are studying in London.

You can apply for one loan for each year of your course and you do not have to start making repayments until the April (end of tax year) after you graduate. From then on, you will only start paying back the loan if you are earning above a certain threshold.

Then the amount you pay back each month will depend on how much you are earning. In the unlikely event that you never earn over the threshold, the loan will be cleared when you turn 65.

Alternatively, most of the big banks will offer an interest-free overdraft facility on their student accounts in the hope that you will stay loyal to them when you start earning in the future.

The amount you get on an overdraft will depend on the bank and will apply to all its student applicants but the usual amount is around ?,000 and it is interest-free.

Although the overdraft will not cost you anything if you stay within your limit, if you should go beyond it, you?l be charged a hefty interest rate on the difference. You may also be hit with a one-off unauthorised overdraft fee as well.

There is no specific time limit for repaying the overdraft. But after leaving university, the interest-free perk will no longer be available and you will be charged at the same high rates that apply to overdrafts on standard current accounts. It is worth noting that some banks provide a grace period after graduation before the higher rate will kick in.

Another option is of course the old fashioned credit card. However, these rarely carry privileged terms for students. If you take a credit card from a bank you will have to pay exactly the same high interest rates as everyone else. The only difference will be as a student, your credit limit will be lower. Most will find, with credit cards, they will sit on their maxed out balance and pay interest for three years forgetting what the spent the money on in the first place.

Although there are many money lending options for student, seventy per cent of university students?still finds money a problem and half will have part-time jobs as well as loans. Most students admit they are worried about debt but believe it is unavoidable. Know and research your options carefully and avoid getting into any unnecessary debt, such as credit cards until you have some sort of income.

Driving School

A driving school may be the answer you have been looking for if you are one who is looking to learn how to drive, lower premiums on your automobile insurance, or reduce the number of fines and tickets you have gotten. The court of law, may assign a particularly unruly driver (one who has gotten several tickets within a span of a year) to driving school. This could erase their driving record, prevent suspension or revocation of their drivers license. Furthermore, an accredited driving school can raise teenage drivers awareness on the etiquette and techniques of driving, which enables them to become better drivers.

If an agency has not designated a driving school for you, you can find the proper one by contacting your insurance agent or your state? public safety office. There are several different categories of driving schools, it is important that you locate the type you are specifically looking for. For example, truck driving school, which is specific for learning to drive semi-trailers. Courses for truck driving school can run as short as three weeks all the way up to three months.

Another type of driving school is racing school; of course, this is completely different from the slow and safe manner of regularly driving schools. However, even new teen drivers could benefit from this training, as most will teach how to control pedal input and steering smoothly. Additionally, they teach on controlling the vehicle during changing lanes, emergency braking, and skid corrections. Racing school can cost anywhere from $1,095 to $3,250. Teen programs are slightly cheaper from $525 to $1,095.

When thinking in terms of teen drivers, parents may want to consider defensive driving school. Prices vary, but could cost somewhere around $375 for a one day class. In this glass, they will learn about skidding and correcting. As well as the property way to react in different occurrences such as wrecks or road conditions.

No matter, which type of driving school you choose to enroll in the best thing to remember that driving is not a privilege it is a right. It is important that when you attend driving school, they you do so with the utmost discipline and do not take it lightly. Everything you will learn in these classes will help you in the future on the road and could even work to save not only your life, but the life of other people as well.

Thursday, February 22, 2007

Looking For Computer Education

Looking For Computer Education

Its really amazing to see how the computer industry has established its dominance over the world. Had you ever have a thought in the 80? that computers would be so much important just like our right hand? Today, computers are used for every small task. Be it online banking, ordering clothes, sending messages we use computers.

This is the reason why computer education is a must today to work in society or own a business. We all need and use computers for some purpose or the other in our lives. You can find other useful computer information at http://www.commcloset.com. If you are not utilizing them at work, then you surf the World Wide Web from home. These great innovations certainly are here to stay and it? better to ensure to receive proper computer education.

Were you a recipient of a descent computer education in high school? I have to say that Internet was just introduced when I was graduating. It was during these days that I plunged into computer education and modern technology of the Internet and others. I soon discovered that computers are needed for any career path I selected. This pushed me to opt for additional computer courses thereby widening my computer education.

I learned all about Microsoft Office, hardware, software , viruses, creating presentations, graphs and many more aspects. This has become a necessity for survival in today? job market. Every job that interested me required some minimum level of computer education and skill, some even demanding advanced skills. I was relieved to know that I had the knowledge of the minimum tools required in the business.

You will be surprised to know the actual amount of time you or any individual interacts with computers daily. We come across computers irrespective of our current job. Online services have become choice of many since they save a lot of time. So, computers and internet are now are friends.

If you wish to be successful in the future but lack the necessary computer education now is the right time to act. You can acquire the knowledge of the working of the independent systems. If you are not Internet savvy, you can always seek a friend? help in getting you online or take a course in computer education. It will secure you future.

Human Rights Take Front And Center For The New York City Sch

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child put forth that one primary purpose of schools is to develop respect for human rights and the fundamental freedoms that all children should enjoy. They noted that to truly understand and promote human rights, one has to live them out in relation to others.

The New York City schools has taken this directive seriously and to heart by creating its School for Human Rights, a combined middle and high school academy that is built around the concept of human rights. It is one of nearly 150 small public schools opened through special initiatives in the last three years by the New York City schools, having opened its doors in September 2004. During the New York City schools?school year 2005-2006, the School of Human Rights had over 180 students.

Located in Brooklyn, the School for Human Rights is rare, even for the New York City schools. Its core values are dignity, respect and responsibility, which is the driving force behind its curriculum, how the students learn and the teachers teach, how they treat one another, and the types of adults the New York City schools hope the students become. Human rights are demonstrated to students by how the school meets the educational needs of each and every student; in its practices, such as discipline with dignity; examples given in class, questions raised by teachers, the active discussions, critical thinking and reflection that are part of the project-based coursework; and even in the human rights enriching field trips.

The School of Human Rights is the only New York City schools that integrates an academic and social skills-based curriculum. It even immerses human rights into its extracurricular activities, such as film festivals and workshops with human rights defenders.

The School of Human Rights challenges the New York City schools students to become compassionate and socially engaged young adults, who are committed to equality, dignity and social consciousness. Amnesty International USA, Human Rights Education Association, and New Visions for Public Schools, who have partnered with the New York City schools and made this school possible, hope to see many of these New York City schools?students carry over what they learn into their adult lives, as well as to enter social justice careers.

The New York City schools based the School for Human Rights on UNICEF? framework to:

?Recognize the rights of every child;
?See the whole child in a broad context, in the home environment as well as at school;
?Be child centered, ensuring the psychological and social well being of each child;
?Be gender sensitive and girl friendly by eliminating stereotypes and constraints to education, while promoting achievement;
?Promote quality learning outcomes;
?Base education on each child? unique identity, previous school experience, community, and family;
?Promote New York City schools?student rights and responsibilities within the school environment, including ensuring inclusion, respect and equality of opportunity for each child;
?Enhance New York City schools?teacher capacity, morale, commitment and status, and
?Be family focused.

To ensure the School of Human Rights teachers have the resources and professional development they need, the Human Rights Education Association provides this support to the New York City schools. Teachers have found that the most difficult task is presenting human rights in a meaningful and empowering manner, making human rights more than an abstract concept.

The School of Human Rights is unique and will empower its students beyond what is found in other public schools.