If you work in education there are a lot of reasons that you should consider getting a Master of Education degree online. Getting a Master of Education degree can really help your career and you might even be required to get one at some point in your career. Right now in the US there are twenty states that require full time teachers at any grade level to have a Master of Education degree so if you want to teach any grade in those states you need to have a Master of Education degree and getting a Master of Education degree online can make getting your Masters degree a lot easier. Even in the states where a teacher isn’t required to have a Master of Education degree in order to teach there is a very big difference in the salary that a teacher who has a Master of Education is paid. In most states a teacher without an advanced degree makes about $31,000 per year. In most states a teacher that has a Master of Education degree makes $45,000 per year. That is a very large difference in salary. So if you are a teacher that doesn’t have a Master of Education degree and you want to make more money then taking the time and spending the money to get a Master of Education degree is a good investment because you can immediately start earning more money once you get your Master of Education degree.

Getting a Master of Education degree online can also be a more convenient way to get a degree if you are teaching and can’t take time off from your full time job to focus on getting a Master of Education degree. Online masters programs are built around the needs of a working student. Courses are usually available at any hour of the day online and meetings are schedule on the phone or through instant message and chat. Professors are almost always accessible by email and each course usually has a message board where students can post questions, respond to other student’s questions, and share ideas. Work is graded and ideas are discussed mostly through email. So if you are comfortable working on a computer then getting a Master of Education degree online can be a much easier and less stressful way to get a Masters degree than trying to get to a local campus for classes three or four nights a week. Online degree programs are often less expensive than traditional Masters programs as well because you don’t have to pay all the school fees that you would have to pay if you were attending classes at a local campus. There is also less competition for admission to an online Master of Education program than you might find at a local college so have a better chance of getting into the Master of Education program online. Graduate schools can be very competitive so if you don’t want to wait a year or two until there is room for you in the Masters program at a local college get an online Master of Education degree and get your career moving forward faster.

There are a lot of adults who want to take an adult education program. There are all kinds of reasons that they may want to do this. No matter what your reasons are, you must make sure that you chose the right adult education program for yourself. This is a very important point to consider.

There are hundreds of these adult education programs that you can take. You will need to figure out what motivates you to want to do it. When you know what your motivation is you will have a much better chance of completing the program.

You also need to figure out what it is that you want to do. This is something that you have to know before you sign up for any adult education program. Otherwise you will end up wasting your time and money trying to figure it out later. You can do some research to see what the programs have to offer. This will help you narrow down your choices.

Once you know what it is that you want to do you will need to figure out where you are going to take the adult education program. These days you can take a lot of the programs that are offered online. After you have decided the program that you want to take you will need to find out if it is offered as an online adult education program or not.

Most of the junior colleges and Universities now offer their programs online. They understand that it is harder and harder for people these days to pursue an adult education program unless it is in the comfort of their own home and at their own pace.

With everyone having a full time job, kids and other responsibilities, you will probably not have very much free time to go and spend it at a school. Some people can and this is great for them. However, there are not a lot of adults who cannot manage this. This is why the online adult education program is becoming more and more popular.

So deciding where you need to take the adult education program is very important. You want to look at the online adult education programs that are offered and the ones that are not done online. Then decide for yourself which one would work better for you. All of these decisions need to be made before you sign up for any program.

Copyright (c) 2008 SharpBrains

To learn important lessons for all parents and educators, we interview today Eric Jensen, a former middle school teacher and former adjunct professor for several universities including the University of California, San Diego. Mr. Jensen co-founded the Learning Brain Expo, a conference for educators, and has written 21 books on the brain and learning. His most recent book, Enriching the Brain: How to Maximize Every Learner’s Potential (Jossey-Bass, 2006), is highly recommended for educators and parents alike.

Alvaro Fernandez (AF): Eric, thank you for your time. Can you explain the role that you and your organization play?

Eric Jensen (EJ): We act as translators between the neuroscience and education fields, helping to build a Brain-Based Education movement. We launched the first conference that attempted to bridge these two worlds in 1998. The goal of the conference, called Learning Expo, was for teachers to speak to scientists, and, equally important, for scientists to speak to educators.

Critics say that neuroscience research can add little to educational practices. What we say is that, whereas it is true that much needs to be clarified, there are already clear implications from brain research that educators should be aware of. For example, four important elements that are often neglected by educators, given the obsessive focus on academic scores, are nutrition, physical exercise, stress management, and overall mental enrichment.

AF: Since 1998? How would you characterize the progress so far?

EJ: The good news is that today many educators, more than ever, are learning about how the brain works. There is a growing number of academic programs such as Harvard’s masters program in Mind, Brain, and Education, and peer-reviewed journals such as the Mind, Brain and Education Journal.

Still, there are clear areas for improvement. Too many staff developers are weak on the science. I see too many books saying “brain” in the title that are not grounded in any brain research. Something I always recommend when shopping for books is to check the References section, making sure the book references specific studies in credible journals from 2000 on.

AF: Now, those are mostly awareness-related initiatives. What, if any, are the implications in daily teaching and learning in schools?

EJ: You are right, this is still an emerging field. A number of private, independent, forward-thinking public schools and charter schools are implementing specific initiatives, mostly around brain-based teaching strategies, nutrition and exercise. But these are tougher for some public schools, which have limited resources and flexibility. to implement. We also see an growing number of enlightened parents learning about the principles we discuss and applying them at home.

AF: Have you seen any impact at the policy level? specifically, what do you think about the current debate about the merits or demerits of No Child Left Behind?

EJ: I agree with the move towards accountability. Now, the question is, accountability for what? for creating narrow, specific test scores? or for helping nourish better human beings. I have seen very little policy activity in the US; some in Asian countries such as Singapore and China, that are evaluating how to refine the curriculum for 5-10 year olds. In the US, there was a major push for music enrichment programs, that was somehow misguided, in the late 90s. The problem is that, whereas it is clear that enrichment has an impact, it is tough to measure specifically what type of enrichment, since much of the benefit develops over time. The short term “stock-market” mentality that measures student growth over a few weeks or months has to be tempered by long-term measures, too.

For example, it seems clear that there are important skills that can be trained, that make for a better and more successful human being – such as the ability to defer gratification, sequencing, emotional intelligence, improved working memory, vocabulary, and processing skills. However, the type of assessments used today to measure schools’ performance don’t focus on these. We would need broader assessments to allow educators to focus on those important long-term skills, beyond the immediate pressures.

A specific area going from bad to worse is the level of stress in the system, and the lack of resources and knowledge to regulate it.

AF: You mention processing skills, as well as other cognitive skills. In your recent column you highlight Scientific Learning’s computer program that can train auditory processing. What’s your view on the role of computer-based programs?

EJ: It is encouraging to see programs based on extensive research, such as Scientific Learning’s. I appreciate the value of such programs to tailor individualized interventions to the needs of specific kids. So I believe these programs present a huge potential.

Now, we must not confuse what is just one narrow tool with a whole enrichment program. Brain-based education also must take into account other important factors such as nutrition, physical exercise, the arts, stress management, social interactions…