No Average Mom

Five years ago, I earned a Doctorate in Audiology via a distance learning program. At the time distance learning or online degree programs were fairly new to many people. I remember clearly having my decision to pursue distance learning questions by many people. Today, online learning opportunities extend have expanded dramatically to include everything from elementary school and beyond. I absolutely loved learning in this type of format as compared to traditional classroom learning environment. In fact I found this learning format so much more dynamic than traditional learning we have enrolled our son in a virtual charter school. Having completed an advanced degree through this learning format I can attest to not only the quality but the convenience of these programs. I truly believe that once you participate in these types of learning programs you gain a entirely new appreciation for the role of technology in creating a truly stimulating and challenging learning platform.

Given what a fan of online learning I am it often comes as a surprise to people there is one thing I would do differently in my career path. Tens years of working in health care afforded me a clear perspective on what various health professions offer in terms of career opportunities. Had I known in advance exactly how narrow the field of audiology could be in terms of professional opportunities I would have chosen another health care field such as nursing. Nursing is a field for which there will always be diverse and challenging career opportunities.

Today, it is possible to complete online MS nursing studies from St. Xavier’s. St. Xavier’s online Master’s in Nursing program affords students who already possess a Bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited college the opportunity to pursue a graduate clinical degree studies without uprooting their lives to do so. Distance learning at St. Xavier’s enables nursing students to participate in a dynamic learning environment. These learning opportunities are led by a team of professional faculty driven by a common goal of preparing nurses who are empowered to succeed in ever changing health care arena. I encourage anyone who has wanted to pursue advance nursing studies to investigate learning opportunities at St. Xavier’s.

After a miserable couple years of school we made the tough decision to move our oldest son to a different school. He is a bright child but a child who needs a very, very, very structured classroom. In his first two years of school he had more substitute teachers than he had regular teachers and I believe he suffered for it. There were other issues but we simply could not allow him to have yet another year of being held back by a disorganized system that is more focused on the under achieving students than anything else. It is only one week into the school year but I already feel better about this school that I ever did at the other one. He says his teacher is “really fussy” and there are “strict rules”. Yeah for fussy and strict

For the most part I am a parent who really likes having my children at home. For some reason this summer has flown by and I find myself REALLY ready for school to start. I think my son has a touch of cabin fever and has been constantly dinging me for the last two weeks to entertain him. Throw in that the house next door seems to have turned into a drop in center for any child whose parent have dropped off the face of the earth and I am going just a tad crazy. Between the perpetual screaming next door and my son bugging me to build obstacle coursed for our cats and I find my head is throbbing before the day is half over. Seriously, I am giving consideration to trying Botox for migraines because my head has been killing me for three days straight. Considering that my child just fed the cats an entire bottle of cat treats trying to lure them through his obstacle course the rest of my day is either going to be spent cleaning up cat vomit or giving myself time-outs.

Last night I picked up the last item on my son’s school supply list. As I made my purchase I thought about my own school years. Never do I recall having received a list of supplies like those given out today. Granted I went to a two room school in the middle of nowhere. My parents might have picked up some crayons, pencils, or pens for us to use at home but that was it. Given how little money my parent’s had it probably is a very good thing we weren’t given lists like those sent out today. Simply putting together a decent lunch was often a challenge let alone buying paper cups, glue sticks, crayons, paper towels, kleenex, and the other 10 items on our list. I know our list is a drop in the bucket compared to what some children are asked for but you have to wonder how families with many children and little funds swing buying it all.

When my son first started kindergarten I had no idea what I was in for. I was trying to give my friend tips that my spare her a bit of the aggravation we endured those first few hectic weeks of school. Having a child in school is an adjustment for the entire family. These are a few of my favorite tips for parents of first time students:

they need to be on your back to school list?

1. Start the school schedule early. Break the summer sleep-in/stay-up late mode. Begin the morning and evening school routine at least two weeks before school actually starts. Don’t expect that you child will be able to make the adjustment to getting up for school quickly or easily without a break in period.

2. Create a positive attitude about going back to school. Talk to your children about being able to see their friends, meet their new teacher and all the opportunities that being at school provides.

3. Visit the school. Go to the school and play on the play ground, meet the new principal or office personnel, talk to the janitor.

4. Set goals for the upcoming school year. Help your children create realistic expectations for themselves about school. Talk about what they want to accomplish this school year, not what you want them to accomplish.

5. Model learning. Model learning year round, even through the summer months. This will set the stage for homework. A study time can be a logical extension of the learning time you have in your home.

Today was my son’s last day of school for the 2006-2007 school year. Silly as it is they have to go in tomorrow for a half an hour to pick up their report cards. That is just long enough for me to drop him off and drive to Tim Horton’s for a large double double and back be back to pick him up. Just a few hours into his vacation he has already started to plan the entire summer out. What he forgets is all of the activities he is already enrolled in like Audubon and basketball camp. Then there is our week long camping trip, vacation bible school, a trip to his great grandma’s, Sunday afternoons at the zoo, playing with the neighborhood children, and swimming at his uncle’s pool. Despite having a list and a calender mapping out of these activities today he came up to me and asked if he could go to a game design school. Where this idea came from I really don’t know. Considering all the games he like to make up this really wouldn’t be a bad idea if something existed like this for children.

Among the many things I love about my son is that he sees his summer free time as a chance to learn. I feel lucky to have a child who instead of dinging to go to the playground wants one of our first unscheduled activities to be a visit to the library to get books on saving our environment. In fact he his sitting here right now asking me to buy him a website of his own and wants to call it something along the lines of “One kid against pollution”. Mighty ambitious for a would be 2nd grader don’t you think?

When we bought our home sending our children to school wasn’t really a concern because they didn’t exist. Had I known then what I know now I never ever would have bought our home. When I went to school there was one school to attend so it was pretty straight forward. In my town I could go 2 miles in any direction and hit an elementary or middle school and they are not created equal. Our son has had a disappointing first two years of school for an extremely bright and gifted child. Our requests for him to be challenged more academically have repeatedly fallen on deaf ears and he is already becoming disinterested in a school that “doesn’t teach science”. Today after much soul searching we filed papers to transfer him to a school across town. I have now discovered online that our current schools test scores are among the lowest in the district evidencing their desire for him “not to move too far ahead”. Save yourself a hassle and kids or no kids research the schools in your area before buying a home.

Today, as I was chatting with my friend topic of school came up. Her son will be entering kindergarten this coming fall and I was filling her in on a few things she should prepare for. As the conversation evolved we began reminiscing about our own educational experiences. Computers were just beginning to be introduced to students about the time I graduated high school. It was not until well into my graduate studies that the internet was a staple part of my scholarly arsenal. Who would have guessed by the time I decided to pursue a doctorate a few short years later that I would do so from the comfort of my home? Even at that point the idea of completing a doctoral or even business degrees online was a bit high tech for most people I encountered. Just four short years later everyone I know is aware of distance learning in some form or fashion.

Considering that my first grader has two school sessions a week dedicated to learning to use the computer it really is amazing how far things have evolved. In fact there is currently a push in our school district to purchase a laptop computer for each child in the district. For some reason I find the idea of designating a computer to each kindergarten child funny considering it wasn’t that long ago my own young son was trying to put Silly Putty into ours. While I am sure this computers will benefit a great many students I do question just how much a kindergarten student “needs” a laptop.