This day in history, 1:00
Back to School Night
Dr. G. Mick Smith
gmsmith@shanahan.org
The best way to reach me is through email.
Shanahan: 610.518.1300 x4281
Twitter: gmicksmith@twitter.com
Honors World History II, Honors Business Economics, Government & Law
http://moodle.shanahan.org
http://www.librarything.com/catalog/gmicksmith
GradeConnect
Description of Course(s)
Each assessment is assigned to a category (ex Tests, Labs, Presentations, etc.) and the category is assigned a weight (ex. Tests - 40%, Presentations - 20%, etc.). Individual assessment weights are then automatically calculated by GradeConnect.com based on these category weights.
Tests 65%
HW & Daily Class Work 20%
Quizzes 15%
N.B.: Extra Credit can be done Government & Law only (not in Honors classes)
Tests are always scheduled, announced well in advance, and worth more points.
Homework & Daily in-class work is required. There is HW and Daily in-class work due every day. HW is due daily barring absence, and with your absence, HW is due the day you return.
If you are absent for a longer period simply inform me and we can make separate arrangements. HW is posted and available online even when you are absent.
Emailed HW and daily in-class assignments might be best, but it is not required if you do not have access to a computer.
Class participation includes In-class assignments, group work, individual effort, debate, discussion, reactions, games, simulations and videos of various sorts, the work is guided by the Archdiocesan Understanding By Design recommendations: teacherweb.com/.../Common-Core-State-Standards.ppt
All written work follows the Honor Code stating:
This is my work and I have not cheated in any way.
Access to a bathroom during class time is a privilege, not a right, and of course it is necessary in case of an emergency. The admonition here is that you are to remain on task throughout the period. You should not have access to materials for other classes or other distractions in this class. I consider this behavior to be defiance and you will receive demerits.
Next, we will consider what endeavors you should strive for as a student. In short, your task as a student should be the following listed in descending order:
Create
Evaluate
Analyze
Apply
Understand
Remember
You will realize that you have arrived as a student when you can apply yourself to real world, unpredictable situations. I am fond of saying that the old chaos is the new normal. In short, this is the unpredictable world that we are living in currently. Events are taking place rapidly, change is constant, and the challenges are enormous. Yet, this is an exciting time to be studying disciplines such as history, government and law, or economics for their practical application.
1950s (2:42)
The 1950s was about more than just poodle skirts and rock and roll.
Moodle What you need to know – Part 1
Moodle is located on the net at moodle.shanahan.org ‘www’ or ‘http://’ not required!)
Courses
All courses have been entered and organized by Department/Teacher.
All courses are set up with an enrollment key. The key is made up of the department, followed by the course number.
Example: Sophomore Track 2 English classes have an enrollment key of ENG222
Course abbreviations:
Business Technology BUS
History HIS
Honors World History II
GSHIS331
Government and Law Track 2
GSHIS342
Honors Business Economics
GSBUS781
A list of courses and enrollment keys will be distributed to Department Chairs.
Student Accounts
All rostered students as of August 15th have been uploaded to the Moodle platform.
Account information:
Moodle requires that login names begin with a lower case letter, and passwords begin with an uppercase letter.
For the upload, I used the following convention:
Student login consists of ‘sh’ plus the student ID.
Student password consists of ‘Shan’ + the last 4 digits of the student ID.
Example: Butch Cassidy ID: 20140874
Login: sh20140874
Password: Shan0874
Once students successfully log in, they should update their profile to include a new password (highly recommended), and an e-mail address at which they can be contacted. The e-mail address that is on their uploaded profile may not be valid.
Connecting the Student with your Course
Unlike GradeConnect, a student must become a participant in your course in order to utilize all resources and activities created for the course.
Steps to participate in the course:
Once students log in successfully, they should access your course, and select ‘Participate in Course’.
They will be prompted for the enrollment key.
6th to Science:
College Application Coaching Service
The coaching may be best thought of:
How to Get Your Kid into Haahvahd (Or At Least Their First-Choice School)
This coaching is a college application service not affiliated with the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.
My niche in this market is to get you as parents to prepare as early as possible for the most competitive programs available: 6th Grade to Science college applications.
95% of my clients are accepted by their first-choice school.
How much is your child's competition willing to pay for college application preparation?
As much as $40,000 a student.
How many kids get help?
According to the Independent Educational Consultants Assn., 22% of first-year students at private colleges—perhaps as many as 58,000 kids—had worked with some kind of consultant.
The leading coach has run application boot camps in Manhattan and Santa Monica, Calif., which this summer cost $9,500.
How are kids evaluated when applying to college?
Privately, the schools referred to evaluation as the Academic Index, a formula based on test scores and academic standing used to rank applicants.
What are the services offered?
The selection of classes for students, homework review, and prods for students to make an impression on teachers. There are checks on the students' grades, scores, and rankings. There are recommendations on when to hire tutors and then ensures that kids do the extra work. There is vetting of vacation schedules.
Are colleges contacted by the coach?
There is never a call to a college on a student's behalf. The work and application has to be performed totally by the student. There are no fingerprints on the application essays, however, there are revisions and editing seven, eight, sometimes 10 drafts.
What does the basic package include?
First, there is a 12-to-18 page report for each new student, based on transcripts, test scores, and other accomplishments, that gives the likelihood of their gaining admission to the schools they are interested in. I may write 'You have 0% chance of getting into Harvard early decision. Don't apply,' I know exactly what it takes to get into Harvard.
How is contact maintained with clients?
For most clients, we can work by e-mail and over the phone, occasionally in person.
Curriculum advice includes signing up for classes that U.S. colleges would recognize as difficult.
Crafting that singular, convincing portrait of the student is central to the 6th to Science approach.
Sentimental pursuits are a distraction and those done out of obligation are misguided.
Almost all of the clients apply early admission somewhere because the acceptance rate is higher than during the regular admission process.
The competition applying to college is severe. One coaching service has a summer program.
The summer program for students was for 15 spaces. In 2006 and 2007, this service raised the price, first to $8,200 and then to $9,500, and still filled one session in Manhattan and another at the Shutters
Hotel in Santa Monica, CA. Next year they may hire others to help edit the essays so they can open the program to more students. They will charge $12,500.
Dr. G. Mick Smith
gmicksmith@gmail.com
6th to Science:
College Application Coaching
Why Chinese Mothers Are Superior
Amy Chua, write of the things that her daughters were never allowed to do:
• attend a sleepover
• have a playdate
• be in a school play
• complain about not being in a school play
• watch TV or play computer games
• choose their own extracurricular activities
• get any grade less than an A
• not be the No. 1 student in every subject except gym and drama
—Amy Chua is a professor at Yale Law School and author of "Day of Empire" and "World on Fire: How Exporting Free Market Democracy Breeds Ethnic Hatred and Global Instability." This essay is excerpted from "Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother" by Amy Chua, published by the Penguin Press, a member of Penguin Group (USA) Inc. Copyright © 2011 by Amy Chua.
