Students relax just a bit when they are advised that mercy is shown for cell phones going off in class for the first violation, although I reserve the right to answer any and all incoming calls–and that includes those from their mothers.

via How Zero Tolerance for Texting Promotes better learning |Suite101.com.

This generation is spoiled with the ability and the connections of texting and making or accepting phone calls during class or in a situation that requires complete silence. Even though it seems important to respond immediately to a text or call during class, it is very rude. If the student shuts off the phone and puts it out of sight, it presents a wonderful opportunity to pay attention and actually learn more. I like how this article points out how to have zero tolerance for texting while the student is supposed to be paying attention.

Living expenses soon take a toll on your wallet and your life. Many college students have heard about grants, but do not take the time to research them.

via College Tips.

Students can easily rack up forty to fifty thousand dollars in debt through the course of four years of college. Many students think the only way to save money during college is to apply for scholarships. Grants offer another option for students who are trying to save money on college. Grants are wonderful because you don’t have to pay any money back. Students can receive grants for a variety of reasons that are listed in this article.

The first year of teaching can be a roller coaster. Here are some tips to help you become a master teacher–not just a surviving teacher.

via Survivor to Master: The First Year of Teaching | Suite101.com.

The first year of teaching is by far the most difficult year you will experience. Having a successful first year significantly decreases with a chance of suffering burnout. It will be very stressful until you adapt completely, but the tips in this article are very helpful and will definitely increase your chances of coming out ‘alive’ if you follow them.

Learning how to use PE classes to connect physical activity with homeroom curriculum is a growing trend in education. Learn how to teach math through PE.

via Learn How To Teach Math in PE | Suite101.com.

What a great idea! I like this idea because you can make learning math fun for children by doing physical activities. Most kids hate being stuck in a chair when they’d rather be playing. They can fall asleep while the teacher is droning on and on about something they don’t think they’ll ever care about. This article shares different ideas and how the ideas can work.

Before showing residential properties to potential buyers, agents meet with them to get an idea of the type of home the buyers would like, and how much the buyers can afford to spend. An agent or broker then generates lists of properties for sale, their location and description, and available sources of financing.

via Real Estate Brokers and Sales Agents.

Taking the time and classes to learn how to handle being a real estate agent can be very exciting and rewarding, yet very tiring all in one. When you become a real estate agent, there will be many different people to deal with and talk to. Each person will be looking for a different type of house or certain amount of land and they’ll be looking to you for advice and help in the process. In fact, it’ll be up to you to find the answers to their questions and concerns. Thankfully, there are many classes that you can take and many books to read to help you become more educated in the career of becoming a real estate agent. I hope this article is helpful in explaining what you’ll need.

Ice breakers are the best way to help your students get to know each other, to break the ice on the awkward first day of school. If your students are adults, it’s even more important to choose an ice breaker that won’t backfire on you. Most adults don’t want to play silly games. Choose one of the top ten and you’ll be a hit on the first day of school. Be creative!

via Top 10 Ice Breakers for Adults.

If someone doesn’t like you right off the bat and they think you’re a stick in the mud, you’ve lost them as an audience. Don’t get right down to plain Jane teaching as soon as they walk in and sit down. They are obviously there to learn something and you’ll get to that, but first, try to make them feel comfortable. Most adults would feel a little weird needing to go back to school and they generally won’t be thrilled to need to sit in a classroom and be the student again. It can seem extremely weird to try to teach someone who is older than you or the same age. It’s typical for pride to interfere, so here are some tips for breaking the ice. I hope you find them helpful.

With the current trend of everything around us from laundry detergent to automobiles “going green”, may be its time that we “go green” with our careers too.
Here is a list of top 8 green careers that might be of interest to you:

Farmer
There are only 2 million farmers in America and since sustainable agriculture is possible only with local small-scale organic methods and not with non-renewable fuel based machinery and fertilizers, the demand for farmers is huge and growing. Many reputable colleges and universities offer degree programs in sustainable agriculture to pursue many promising green jobs in agriculture.

Energy Efficiency Builder
With the growing concerns of energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions, there is a great demand to convert existing buildings and build new buildings to be energy efficient. To make this possible, not only highly skilled architects and engineers but a huge workforce of retrofitters is also required to convert energy guzzling buildings into energy efficient ones.

Urban Planner
Urban as well as regional planning is probably the most needed skill in America’s quest to lower its carbon footprint. Career opportunities in this sector have been projected to increase by about 15% in the next six years. Courses for urban studies and planning are offered in several top rated universities.

Environmental Engineer
This is one of the top green jobs with rising opportunities for obvious reasons. The fundamental object of this job is to prevent our planet from deteriorating any further. The scope of this job is wide ranging and includes limiting the effects of soil erosion, acid rain, greenhouse gases, car emissions, ozone depletion and global warming. It is estimated that environmental engineering careers will rise by 25% in the next 7 years.

Conservation Biologist
A promising green career that is not just limited to lab coats and test tubes. With the responsibility of preserving the integrity of our ecosystems, conservation biologists can look forward to growing opportunities in research, teaching, field work and several government and non-profit organizations.

Sustainability Systems Developer
For the green economy to prosper, specialized system developers and engineers are a must to design, build and maintain the stochastic framework to support the renewable energy resources like smart energy grids and wind farms. Software developers skilled in web 2.0 applications and open source have ever increasing opportunities to make their careers “green”.

Wind Turbine Fabricator
Manufacturers of wind turbine are in great demand as wind is the fastest growing source of renewable energy. This green job has promising and growing opportunities that you might want to look into.

Solar Power Installer
This is a fast growing career that is suited for those looking to start fresh and for those with construction background looking to make a transition to green careers. You don’t have to worry about opportunities as this career is in great demand wherever the sun shines.

The advantage of having an educational degree in this field is that most chefs have built their careers on experience; with a degree in hand you can take on your first job with a measure of confidence having undergone some measure of practical training and apprenticeship during your studying days. Couple this with the fact that you continue to get real world experience in the culinary arts while pursuing your online degree and you have a real win-win situation. Another valuable advantage is that the hospitality industry is global and a degree can be your passport to jobs in foreign countries.

An online degree in the culinary arts offers both width and depth when it comes to scope for employment. You can work in restaurants big and small; hotels; malls; airlines; caterers; work abroad; start your own business; etc.

When pursuing a degree in restaurant management and culinary arts keep in mind that everything cannot be learnt online; stuff like food science and cost control can be learnt theoretically but there is no substitute for getting in the kitchen and sweating it out stirring beans in a wok and chopping cabbage to make it look attractive for the salad. Practical demonstrations and hands-on learning are vital to understand the nitty gritty of cooking. Therefore search for an online degree program that has enough of practical class work to go with the online theories.

An online degree in restaurant management is in demand because it creates managers so that hotel chains do not have to spend time and money on grooming them; this makes a big difference in the hospitality industry where image means a lot. An under prepared manager can be a liability and a manager that is just right is a great asset. The areas in which you can aim for expertise should you go for such a degree include food and beverage management; nutrition and sanitation; human resources; marketing; business administration, and more.

People are not going to stop eating nor are they going to stop eating out; this is one job that’s never going to go out of fashion.