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Archive for September, 2011

Online University Reviews Guide For Higher Education

Online degree programs offered by American Universities and colleges are being pursued by students from within United States and abroad. These degree programs are high in content value and recognized worldwide. Most of these online courses are as valuable as any classroom studies and involves considerable homework and assignments. Online group discussions help is developing teamwork and leadership qualities. Before getting involved in this serious affair, one needs to be very sure of the shortlisted online university. Online University Reviews are a sure way of knowing about the institute inside out as these are provided by students who have experienced life there.

Before starting on with the research of online reviews, one must know the parameters to evaluate the online university on. These are:

1. Accreditation of the online university is a must.

With proper accreditation of the school, you can be sure of getting quality education and hence nice employment offers after successful completion of the course.
2. The placement assistance provided by the university is another very important aspect as this determines a bright and safe future. With a placement offer in hand from campus after the course completion, makes life relatively easy for people.
3. The facilities provided by the school are equally important as this makes learning a comfortable experience.
4. Costing is another major parameter. There are some universities that provide equally good education at a comparatively less cost. This must be researched thoroughly.

Now read on the reviews on some prestigious online universities.

Columbia Southern University (CSU) offers online Bachelor, Maters and Doctoral degrees in Fire Science, Criminal Justice Administration, Business, Environmental Management and Occupational, Safety and Health.

On a scale 1 to 10, the overall rating of Columbia Southern University is 9.14, its teachers have been rated 8.75, the institution 9, materials 8.84, support 9.07 and value 9.29. CSU online degree courses are laid out in a convenient format for timely completion. These online courses of CSU are comparatively cheaper than other distant learning courses. Columbia Southern University however lacks in prompt correspondences and replies.

Seton Hall University (SUH) offers online degree courses in Healthcare Administration, Nursing, Health Systems Administration, School Counseling, and Strategic Communication and leadership. SUH on a scale of 1 to10 is rated 9.23 on overall performance. Their teachers are marked 9, their materials 8.8, and support 9.13. SHU’s institution is marked 9.2 and its value rated 9.1. The online degree courses of Seton Hall University are value based and thorough. Their online programs are as valuable and rigorous as their classroom programs. Self-discipline, leadership and team work are the basic human values nurtured at SUH.

Norwich University provides online Masters Degree courses in Information Assurance, Business Administration, Military History, Civil Engineering, and Justice Administration. On a scale of 1 to 10, the overall rating of Norwich University is 9.07. The institution is rated 9.28, its teachers 8.48, materials provided 8.52, support 9.35 and value 8.98. The study programs are thorough and require considerable involvement. Assignments set are tough and time consuming. Online discussions and team projects are fun and educative at the same time.

American Military University (AMU) established in 1993 offers online Bachelors degree programs in Environmental Studies, Information Technology Management, Transportation and Logistics Management, American Military History, Legal Studies, Intelligence Studies, and Homeland Security. Online Masters are offered in Security Management, and History. AMU in a rating scale of 1 to 10 is rated 8.6 in overall. The institution rating is 8.31 while teachers are rated 8.49. Support services of AMU is rated 8.29, materials supplied 8.46, and value rating is 8.71.

For University of Phoenix Reviews and Devry University Reviews, I invite you to visit my website on Accredited Online Schools.

Grading The Teacher’s Teacher In Ohio

Grading The Teacher’s Teacher In Ohio
Education programs in Ohio’s university system will be undergoing some new measures to gauge how well they are training their teachers of tomorrow. This will make Ohio the “first state in the nation to grade colleges on how well they train teachers to help students succeed.” There are 15 measures to be implemented, announced Chancellor Eric D. Fingerhut, which will test teachers in both public and private universities. Ohio was one of only 12 states to receive federal funding from President Obama’s “Race to the Top” plan, which boasted a .3 billion budget. About 0 million was given to Ohio, which was then split accordingly amongst all schools.

These testing measures are strikingly similar to “the state report cards of Ohio’s K-12 schools”, since they examine how much a student has learned in one year compared to the previous year. The determining factor is “teaching quality,” said Fingerhut. He continued by saying, “And so we have a moral, professional and institutional obligation to make sure the quality of teachers is as high as possible.”

The state teacher licensure exam will now have a “value-added” component, which will be reflected by the schools submitting annual data detailing how well students perform. The State Board of Education is developing this component as a function of Ohio’s “Race to the Top” plan. This data will allow administrators to track the academic growth of students individually through the years, no matter what school they attend. Another new evaluation method will “create a teacher-performance assessment that measures how well new teachers communicate with parents, structure lesson plans and manage classrooms.”

Money that was received from Obama’s education reform will be divided amongst various sectors: mentoring programs to close the gap between minority and white groups, teacher planning, and the redesign of teacher evaluations. New coalitions betweeneducation colleges and “academically struggling schools” will evolve, giving both institutions added advantages, such as extra recognition and more individual student attention and interaction.

While the first report won’t be available until the end of 2012, schools are already planning their courses for the next few years. Rob Evans, press secretary for the Ohio Board of Regents further emphasizes this fact, “We’re essentially starting from scratch, and a lot of this information isn’t even available yet.” Once benchmarks are created and distributed for each category, results can be compared and then compiled. The oft-heard complaint from many teachers is that they were not prepared well enough in college for what awaited them in the real classroom. With this, and the new evaluations, in place, it seems as if the road to reconciliation for these two disparate worlds might be just around the corner.

Emily writes about Online Education for University-bound.com – a resource site for those interested in earning a degree online.