Recently, a select number of games have generated a great deal of good press with regards to helping children learn fundamental skills. Though conventional wisdom has implored limiting the time children spend interfacing with television or computer screens, and indeed there are some issues revolving around eye strain that should be heeded, it could behoove a child to engage in some amount of interactive, computer-based learning. The tools parents and teacher have at their disposal have multiplied exponentially.

There are a number of educational games that can help children develop important skills that are necessary to bloom. A key example includes programs that are geared towards developing reading skills. These games combine the use of phonics with word families, while using colors and music to enhance children's retention. Reading is one of the most important skills a child develops and more and more educational companies are starting to realize this. As a result, there are a slew of games available for young children who are preparing to read.

Another class of educational games parents and educators can explore involves developing fundamental math concepts. Children are given insights into basic addition and subtraction, as well as basic geometry, especially with regards to shapes and their names. As children age and their skills and understanding broaden, these educational games can provide an exciting means of learning about multiplication, division, time, and more.

While academics alone are an important factor of every child's educational experience, there are other concepts that are relevant to a child's emotional and mental development. Emotional intellect is important to understanding a child's emotional response to people and situations. The key concepts to be aware of are sharing, honesty, and compassion. Some exceptional software programs and games help reinforced these traits.

There are a number of benefits associated with educational software programs and games. Children can learn about basic academic concepts, and progress to more advanced concepts as they develop. Furthermore, children can learn the ramifications of sharing, team work, and responsibility. If you want to enhance the academic and emotional intellect of your child, educational software games can be very rewarding.

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With the issue of transportation, it is predicted that Americans will continue to put gasoline-burning cars on the road at alarming rates over the next twenty years. The number estimated is around 300 million new cars. With this expectation, it is clear that cars should be made with energy efficiency in mind. Otherwise, they will cause extensive global warming.

Hybrid engines are being touted by many celebrities as a way to prevent global warming. Many celebrities prefer the Prius hybrid car. These hybrid cars do, in fact, double gas mileage. At the same time, they reduce harmful emissions that lead to global warming.

Ethanol is being used in many countries, now including the US, to decrease pollution and dependence on foreign oil. Global warming is impacted, too. Brazil, which uses ethanol almost exclusively, makes the fuel from sugar cane. In the US, corn is the chief source of ethanol.

Sometimes, it is amazing what one person can do. What is even more amazing is how people from all over a large nation such as the US can come together for a single purpose. With cooperation like this, there will be great strides in preventing global warming.

The effects of extreme events

When a hurricane becomes more intense because of global warming and wipes out a city, the effects are obvious. Yet, there are some results of extreme events that are less apparent. These situations can change life in many ways.

Farmers and ranchers will see that their livestock is suffering from the effects of global warming as well. Their food and water supplies will be in jeopardy, and storms will put them in danger of injury. Wildlife will be affected as habitats are changed.

As global warming gets worse, precipitation will become more intense. This will lead to floods, mudslides, landslides, and avalanches. Soil erosion will be a fact of life. At the same time, there will be increased risk of drought. This will lead to more forest fires. It will also limit the quantity and quality of the water supply.

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Getting a college degree today is easier than ever before thanks to the number of institutions offering distance learning opportunities. You need to know the what, the why, the benefits and the how of the various forms of distance learning. Scores of additional schools also offer distance learning to their students including traditional "brick and mortar" universities. The quantum leaps in technology during the latter part of the 20th century have altered the profile of distance learning. Online education is a dramatic development in the advancement of distance learning. Advances in technology have presented more opportunities in distance education. Distance education makes it possible to complete degree requirements, while attending to other responsibilities.

An online school offering Continuing Education allows students to enhance their skills and resources while maintaining current employment. Students in America's educational system are growing at a rate that the schools are not able to keep up with. Traditional colleges and universities are taking part in an educational and technological revolution in joining with online-only institutions to offer bachelor's degrees, master's degrees, and PhD degrees to students from every corner of the planet. And there isn't even a need to ever meet the teachers or other students and you can do it at any time of the day so it won't interfere with your work schedule or your life in general.

The internet does not discriminate against religion, race, education, class, or background which helps build a sense of equality in bettering a student's education. The Internet has attracted many education providers that offer occupational and educational guidance. Modern technology and the Internet have made education accessible to everyone. You need a computer, a phone connection, and an Internet Service Provider before you register for an online course. A student can literally be anywhere in the world and still attend class, as long as he or she has access to an Internet connection. Now with the power of the internet you can learn online from the comfort of your own home.

Personal enrichment programs and courses on information technology are also offered online. Also, traditional courses are more time-consuming and expensive. Students joining online courses are expected to have a computer at home with an Internet connection. With online courses you will have interactive classes via the net, will receive course work online, have an advisor who will guide you 24/7, and you can at your own convenience complete assignments from home. The courses offered by online colleges are at par with majors offered in campus based programs.

Traditional nursing schools, all campus based schools for that matter, seem to increase tuition costs beyond the rate of inflation each year. And qualified nursing students are rejected or delayed from enrolling due to capacity shortages. There are a plethora of online nursing schools available. For the thousands of people who dream of wearing that white uniform, but can't enter a program due to time or budget constraints, consider yourself enrolling in an online nursing school. There are also online nursing master's courses that can be taken during the free time of practicing nurses.

It is no different if you choose an online program than if you were to go to a traditional college or University. Of course, you normally won't care where the college is located unless part of the online program involves off-line meetings. I am totally 100% behind the efforts to make this program work and to get behind problems of the past in education and move into the new era with these new tools. Accreditation is the process of issuing official approval to an educational program or institution after proper verification by the authorities.

And it's no wonder that online degree programs are so popular because they allow the student to work at their own pace, set their own flexible schedule for study and homework, and save money by eliminating all the costs associated with staying on campus. The University of Phoenix online offers their students a list of courses, a personal admissions counselor, and classes that are fit around your already hectic schedule and lifestyle. By doing so, you can avoid all the time constraints that go along with a traditional graduate program, plus you can work on your classes when you have the time and when your busy schedule permits.

With an online education - gaining knowledge has been freed from the confines of a school building and has now entered the domain of the individual in whatever place or time that is convenient to him. This liberation of education has truly revolutionized the way we as individuals and professionals can attain additional knowledge and skills. Teaching can be a rewarding career for many who enjoy sharing their knowledge with students who are eager to learn.

The eligibility requirements for federal Stafford loans are that the students should be pursuing full time or half time graduation or should be graduates along with U. Federal Stafford loans are granted to both graduate and undergraduate students. And the foremost and ideal step in this direction is education loans and giving scholarships.

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Now educators and others have a place to go to get valid, research-based information on educational issues.

Edvance Research, Inc. runs the Regional REL Reference Desk for the Regional Educational Laboratory (REL) - Southwest, for the U.S. Department of Education. The purpose of the Regional REL Reference Desk is to provide educators, policymakers and others with timely, evidence-based research to help guide their decisions about effective education policies, programs, and practices in the field. In response to queries, answers or referrals will be offered that rely on evidence, or indicate when a topic lacks scientifically based research.

"Finally educators and those interested in education have an efficient method to obtain assistance with reliable, research-based information on a variety of educational issues," stated Kristin Mitchell, Director of Technical Assistance at REL Southwest.

Educators and others in the southwest region may obtain technical assistance at no charge through the REL Reference Desk by calling Toll Free 1-877-EDVANCE (1-877-338-2623) or e-mailing technical_assistance@edvanceresearch.com.

REL Southwest, run by Edvance Research, is one of ten educational laboratories in the Regional Educational Laboratory Network (REL Network). REL Southwest serves the states of Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas and works for the benefit of over 6.5 million students, over 400,000 teachers in approximately 14,000 schools in grades pre-kindergarten through college in this five-state region. The REL Network encompasses ten geographical regions that span the nation with its primary mission being to serve the educational needs of designated regions. The REL Network uses applied research, development, dissemination, and training and technical assistance to bring the latest and best research and proven practices into school improvement efforts.

Education minister Nariaki Nakayama said Tuesday educational guidelines should be revised to refer to an island in the Sea of Japan disputed with South Korea and a group of islands in the East China Sea disputed with China.

''The current educational guidelines do not say (the disputed islands) are Japan's territories. We need to clearly refer to our claim in the next revision of the guidelines,'' Nakayama, minister of education, culture, sports, science and technology, said at a House of Councillors committee session.

He said the guidelines should describe the exact scope of Japan's territory.

His remarks could fuel anger in Japan's two neighboring countries, especially South Korea, following a Japanese prefectural government's recent establishment of a commemorative day for the island disputed with South Korea. The bilateral relationship between Japan and South Korea has turned sour due to the local assembly's move.

The South Korean-administered island is called Takeshima in Japanese and Tokto in Korean.

Nakayama was also referring to the some uninhabited islands in the East China Sea controlled by Japan but also claimed by China and Taiwan. They are known in Japan as the Senkaku Islands, in China as Diaoyu and in Taiwan as Tiaoyutai.

Educational guidelines serve as basis for educational content in classes and in textbooks.

Nakayama made the remarks as China and South Korea have been closely watching how the Japanese government screens a nationalistic history textbook for junior high schools, which critics describe as inaccurate and biased.

Many South Korean newspapers have criticized the textbook for trying to distort Japan's colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula from 1910 to 1945. The book has yet to be published.

The textbook, edited by the Japanese Society for History Textbook Reform, will be screened next month to decide whether it can be used in the academic year beginning in April 2006.

Nakayama told the Education, Culture and Science Committee session that educational guidelines should also fully describe the bilateral dispute over Russian-held islands off Hokkaido.

''The guidelines should be revised so that textbooks clearly mention that the territories have been unlawfully occupied (by Russia), they are integral part of Japan and that the two governments are currently negotiating over the issue,'' Nakayama said.

The current guidelines refer to the dispute without going into detail.

Japan and Russia have not signed a peace treaty after World War II because of the dispute over the islands of Etorofu, Kunashiri and Shikotan as well as the Habomai islet group. The Soviet Union took control of the islands at the end of the war.

Nakayama said he wants the Central Council for Education to promote discussion on education guidelines to enable the revisions.

The question of how to finance adequate public education for all students, regardless of the wealth of their communities, was the impetus for this book. Walker (educational leadership, management, & policy, Seton Hall U.) looks at education and the democratic ideal, at evidence of unequal educational outcomes, and at the court's role in insuring educational adequacy. She presents a comprehensive survey of landmark court decisions and their impact on public schools, and examines specific legal cases and their outcomes. Chapters include legislative formulations of remedies, the role of state education departments, impact on schools, organizations and governmental agencies, as well as lists of print and non-print resources, court cases, and a glossary.