What Science Tells Us about Playing the Guitar.

What Science Tells Us about Playing the Guitar. Scientific Reasons for Playing Your Guitar. ChaptersThe Guitar Creates Real PleasurePlaying the Guitar Helps StressGuitars Removes PainThe Guitar Boosts Your Brain's ActivityPracticing Guitar Trains your HeartThe Guitar Boosts Self-ConfidencePlaying Guitar Improves Your Creativity and ConcentrationGuitars Improve Your Appeal.You wonder why guitarists seem so relaxed and calm on stage?  Why they seem so cool when playing guitar chords on their acoustic guitar or playing guitar solos on their electric?Do they have a better GP? Better health and fitness? (We doubt it.) Do they all do crazy amounts of yoga between practicing their music theory, fingerstyle, or barre chords? Do they all practice mindfulness whilst working on their fretboard, power chords, or guitar tricks? Sort of.Discover how a Fender can stimulate gray matter, annihilate stress and even boost your sex appeal! It's not all about tablature and chord progressions!Throughout time guitars has been a musical instrument that attracted, even fascinated.  For a child or t eenager it's the ideal partner to seduce and express oneself freely through personal compositions, picking up the great hits of our favorite guitar players.There's no age to play guitar: whether you are 8, 18, 38 or 68 years old makes no difference. From that moment you want to play the guitar, as soon you're motivated, is the right time to get started.You can also play all styles of music on the guitar that you enjoy such as blues, rock, pop, reggae, funk, punk or classical music.  You'll just have to choose the corresponding guitar.  However, to be sure to make the proper sounds and not get your family or neighbors screaming, it's recommended to learn the basics of this instrument by taking guitar lessons - with a qualified and reliable guitar teacher.Whether you take online courses, classes with an independent teacher or guitar lessons in a music school doesn't matter, so long as it's right for you. Once you acquire the early guitar basics, you'll discover that you can start play ing many pieces - and you'll even be able to teach others how to play guitar.But beyond that pleasure of playing or reproducing songs, playing guitar has many other implications for you, including your well-being and your health.It's perhaps the essence of any musical practice, and the guitar is not exempted from providing a genuine pleasure.According to a neuro-scientific study from McGill University in Montreal, Canada, listening to and playing the guitar will release wellness hormones including the famous dopamine, commonly called the happiness hormone.Playing the guitar can help your mood!Strangely, and according to the same study, playing the guitar and listening to music would trigger the same chemical process in our brain as sexual intercourse.Some will readily say that playing the guitar is a sort of musical masturbation. The word is maybe a bit strong but the facts are there: the more you listen to music, the more you go at it with your guitar, the more you take pleasure in doing it. That's why your brain will secrete this Hormone that is dopamine.Maybe this explains why guitarists look so damn cool when they play songs on stage!Playing the Guitar Helps StressWe all have busy days. And, whether it's in our private sphere or in the workplace, there are always moments when we get more tense. We're sure you know what we're talking about.Between upsetting bosses, bills that fall at the wrong time, traffic jams, bad weather, an appointment you don't want to face, there are a thousand reasons get stressed during the day.Luckily, once you take possession of your Gibson Les Paul guitar or your Telecaster, plug in your guitar to the Marshall guitar amp, tune your guitar, play the first guitar strings, strum a few chords â€" all these stresses seem to all fade away in no time.Whether you're taking guitar lessons with a teacher or playing in your room by yourself, the result is the same: you're going to relax by playing your 6-strings (this is also true for clas sic bass or acoustic bass!).According to a double study by the University of Loma Linda in California (USA) and the School of Medicine and Applied Biosystems, it has been proven that stress is significantly reduced as soon as one plays an instrument â€" guitars are amongst these.The guitar is good for your health and your mood.  Believe it or not, the guitar's virtues have been known since it's origins, at least instinctively. Blues guitar emerged historically from a time of immense pain for the black community in the United States - and it was felt as both a lament and a community support.And many of your favorite songs will have been written by musicians in moments of difficulty. In this sense, music - and even those small motions of fingerpicking, or concentrating on moving from one guitar chord to the next - is profoundly therapeutic.Also, it seems a lot of this is played out directly on the genetic level, the musical vibrations act on our immune system in response to blood pres sure, which allows us to fight against viruses. Remember this when you are next ill: get playing your pentatonic or major scale, or those songs by Clapton or Hendrix, and maybe you'll feel a little better.Some essential small accessories related to guitar like the pick, the capo, a metronome, just in case and you're ready!Guitars Removes PainIf you have chronic pain, suffering, whether physical or psychological, learning to play guitar and listening to music can disconnect your mind and thereby greatly reduce pain.Destress by playing the guitar!Concentrating on the intonations, the musical vibrations, on the atmosphere rather than on pain, while listening to music helps your body to relax and your mind to escape.This is a study by the University of Utah (United States) in connection with the Center for Research on Pain which was able to demonstrate these effects of music on our body.Think about this when you are feeling lazy and don't want to go to your guitar lesson. Think about th is when you are struggling with a difficult chord progression. Consider this when you are practicing your guitar tabs or your ear training. All of this will help you in the long run - and not just in your ability in how to play the guitar.A recent Scottish study has shown that if you play the guitar - but it works just as well with any musical instrument - you are more able to sharpen your brain functions and activity.This would particularly favor the fight against mental degeneration in the medium and long term. Meaning, simply, by getting yourself on to a guitar course, by whacking through those basic chords and fret positions, by practicing rock guitar, jazz guitar, or rhythm guitar, you are actually staving off conditions like dementia and Alzheimer's.So don't take pills to increase your brain activity: take guitar lessons, compile your tabs, work your scales, study them and play - and your brain will thank you.Learn how to play these distinct styles of guitar!Practicing Guitar Trains your HeartDid you know that rockers have a fascinating cardiovascular system?Indeed, researchers in the Netherlands have revealed that musicians and people who practice a musical activity such as playing guitar for at least 100 minutes a day have a significant drop in blood pressure but also heart rate compared to a person who would not play music.This was reinforced by another study from the Berklee School of Music in Boston, USA, led by the Chair of the Department of Music Therapy, Mrs. Suzanne Hanser.Playing music has a real impact on our health, especially for the elderly. As the heart slows down, stress is decreased as well as anxiety and depression.While you're totally absorbed by your guitar playing, as you forget yourself to the music, blood pressure at the heart drops to completely normal levels, you feel more relaxed. This is why, after a solid time of guitar practice, you might feel less worried about life.And if, by chance, you take guitar lessons where you learn to sing at the same time, it will also have a positive effect on your lungs, making them work their oxygen capacity.Maybe that is why these top guitarists enjoy such longevity...The Guitar Boosts Self-ConfidenceThe guitar is an excellent outlet.Even if singing brings an immediate benefit, playing and creating your own music allows you to express yourself fully, to show others who you are, the emotions you feel, to convey a message, ideas.By expressing yourself totally and without any censorship with the guitar, you will release a strong emotional charge, which will increase your confidence.Singing a song, playing a song, can be easy for some, but creating, composing, inventing a piece is a personal challenge, and once you have achieved it, you will have gained self-confidence.You will know that you are capable of inventing something unique.Developing any old skill can help your confidence. But when you are learning such things as improvisation, complex lead guitar passages, and perf ormance, you'll be showing the world - and yourself - that you can do something really excellent.Find out all of the different ways a good guitar player can earn a living...Playing Guitar Improves Your Creativity and ConcentrationThe more you play the guitar, the more your brain stores information. Once you have acquired all the basics of the guitar - like the main chords, alternate picking, placing your fingers to perform chords or make your first solo - you'll realize that you'll want to learn again and again. The open chords won't be enough: you'll want to develop the range of advanced guitar techniques!It's as if you had put your finger in a gear and could no longer undo it.Are you a beginner guitar player? You need this 'everything guitar'guide...With the guitar, it's a bit like this: after freeing yourself of the techniques you acquired through lessons, you'll access the creative part of the guitar.According to a very serious study of the very serious University of Cambridge, musicians and guitarists continue to be creative even when they stop playing their instrument.They have invested so much in their music that their whole environment becomes a pretext for composing or making changes to their music.It's often during a walk, on a tour, in the evening with friends that you'll hear a sound, a rhythm or that you will feel a certain emotion and want to put it into music.Guitars Improve Your Appeal.It is cliché but nevertheless proven scientifically. The guitar enhances your attractiveness. Ah, the guitar and guitarists!Psychology researchers have done music-related studies that show that women more easily associate musical ability with intelligence, but also with commitment, the notion of hard work and physical prowess.Learn to play these sexy guitar-based songs to seduce your crush!Playing the guitar boosts your confidenceWhy do people like guitarists?Here are two or three reasons that will make you want to take guitar lessons to pull.The guitarist is su pposed to be more creative and more imaginative than other men.The music and the guitar are addressed directly to people's brains: the American neuroscientist Daniel Levitin explains that music played on the guitar solicits almost all areas of the brain and the emotions it generates imply structures around the primitive brain, namely the seat of all our emotions. In short, guitar music comes into contact with our oldest emotions and it's impossible to control them.The guitarist has a transgressive side: myth of the bad boy or not, the guitarist is synonymous with freedom, the man who frees himself from society's rules to make his own way.What if the guitar was the remedy for old age?In conclusion, it can be said that the guitar is the best medicine against boredom and depression.It relieves guitarists and brings many physical and mental benefits.So enjoy your neurons by strumming your Gibson strings like the best guitarists!Quickly take your dose of serotonin, endorphin or oxytocin. Now go with your Superprof as we debunk popular misconceptions about the guitar...

Ask a Private School Admissions Expert Emily Glickman

Ask a Private School Admissions Expert Emily Glickman Varsity Tutors brings you insider tips and advice straight from nationally recognized admissions experts. Emily Glickman is the founder and president of Abacus Guide Educational Consulting, a leading private school consulting service in New York. She currently serves as an alumni admissions interviewer for Columbia Universityand is a vastly well-known expert on private school admissions. Emily has also been featured in several prestigious publications such as The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. VT: What is the typical timeline for private school admissions? Emily: Families should start to think about private school admissions about a year and a half before a child starts a new school.While the private school admissions process officially starts right after Labor Day, advanced planning means you have more time to research and sometimes visit schools, study for required exams, and improve your familys and students admissions profile. If your child applies to private school, plan for a busy fall!Usually, private schools upload applications to their websites in late August or early September.Then its a sprint:essays, interviews, testing, references, and transcripts.Before you know it, its the New Year and its almost time for February or March decisions. VT: What is the typical process that admissions officers go through to evaluate applications? Emily: Private school admissions directors review a students whole profile: parent and (for middle school and high school) student essays, interviews, school reports, and teacher recommendations. VT: What are the most important things children need to have represented on their applications? Emily: Kids need to seem like they will be successful in a new school.Every admissions officer likes an articulate, friendly, easy-going student with a solid academic record. VT: What are common mistakes parents make when applying to these programs? Emily: Sometimes parents think they need to snow admissions directors with extensive talk about their vast real estate holdings, multiple doctorates from the worlds best universities, and thirty board memberships.While private schools like generous, community-minded people, nobody likes a showoff. VT: How should parents go about determining the culture of a private school, and whether it would be a good fit for their children? Emily: When parents evaluate private schools, they should start with an open mind and a willingness to look at a number of schools. In New York City, its a sellers market, so buyers need to give themselves many possible options.Families should go to school-sponsored events and talk to current parents. Some of my clients have found YouTube videos of school events and the school newspaper to be good ways to ferret out real information that you dont get from marketing materials. VT: How important are standardized test scores when admissions decisions are being made? Emily: For NYC kindergarten admission, ERB scores are critical.I find that for middle school and high school, students grades carry more weight and sometimes will mean more than a disappointing ISEE or SSAT score. VT: What tips do you have in regards to ISEE prep, SSAT prep, and preparation for other standardized assessments that private schools might require? Emily: If students want to have the best possible choice of schools, they should prep.In my experience, prepping can dramatically improve students scores.That said, some parents want to prep years in advance!That is too much.Children are only children for a short period.Test prep should be practiced in moderation, and only when it is productive. VT: What are the most important things parents need to have well represented about themselves when meeting with admissions officers? Emily: Parents need to seem like pleasant, community-minded, thoughtful people who will reflect well on the school. VT: How does networking and having in-school connections affect one's chances of admission? Emily: At almost all schools, some more than others, networking matters.Connections help, especially when a student is qualified. In many ways, NYC private schools are like country clubs.If you know someone there, youve proven yourself to be their kind of person. VT: How can a student best prepare for admissions interviews? Emily: I work directly with students and coach them on how best to answer questions.For kids who want to prepare on their own, my best advice is to show your best self.Its not the admissions officers business if your favorite activity is playing Xbox while scarfing nachos. Instead, discuss your favorite school subject or your interest in American biography. Check out Abacus Guide Educational Consulting for more information or get in touch with Emily at info@abacusguide.com The views expressed in this article do not necessarily represent the views of Varsity Tutors.

ACT Science Extracting Signals Through Noise to Improve Your Score

ACT Science Extracting Signals Through Noise to Improve Your Score ACT SAT Prep and College Admissions Blog “Ever thought about taking the ACT?” “Yeah, I've thought about it...the questions are supposed to be more straightforward than the ones on the SAT.” “Then why not give it a shot?” “It has that Science Section! There's no way I can get through that!” The ACT Science Section is perhaps the most misunderstood section on any of the main college entrance exams, and it's intimidating enough to scare many students away from taking an otherwise very manageable test. But it doesn't need to be. Perhaps the most insidious aspect of the ACT Science Section is actually something very simple: its name. In fact, the Science Section is barely about science at all, but about data: charts, tables, graphs, and your ability to read them. In much the same way as a reading comprehension question or a long word problem in math, the Science Section tests your ability to extract signals through noise. Can you quickly find your way through a mess of informationâ€"information that you may or may not needâ€"to find the pieces of data that give you the right answer? From CollegeVine: The Science section of the ACT consists of 40 multiple-choice questions that you’ll answer over the course of 35 minutes.Just like the other sections of the ACT, the score that you receive on the Science section of the ACT will be a scaled score ranging from 1-36. This number is scaled from your raw score, which is the number of questions that you got correct on the Science section and each section of the exam is weighted equally. Let's look at a sample ACT passage: See how “noisy” that passage is? Charts, graphs, tablesâ€"all thrown at you at once, and it's almost a guarantee that you've never encountered this science before. To make matters worse, there are unfamiliar terms, acronyms, all sorts of chaos that you need to filter out in order to make sense of the passage. So how do you do that? First, you don't really need to “read” the passage straight through at all! (For more info on how to manage your time on test day, see this post on Albert). The trick is to do a quick survey, to identify what may be important. Look for terms that may be important, so that you can find them later. For example, RCRF seems important. So does cosmic ray flux. Look at differences in the tables and figuresâ€"low clouds, middle clouds, high clouds. Timelines occur on the X-axes of the 3 figures. Also see if you can spot trends or patterns. For example, in Table 1, both flux in the first column and Low Cloud Cover in the second column show a simple upward trend. None of the trends on the Science section will be complicated, but it's important to be able to spot them. Now that we've found some important signals buried in all the noise of the passage, let's try a questionor two. Look at Question 15 first (this is a mid-level questionâ€"questions in each passage tend to get a bit more difficult as you move on, but not too much!) Here we have a couple of “signals”: low and high clouds and relative cosmic ray flux (RCRF). So we need to zoom into figures and tables that address this information. We also need to find a graph that pretty clearly shows direct correlation. With just a glance, we can see that Figure 3 shows a strong correlation between cloud cover and RCRFâ€"the graphs are almost exactly the same! And what kind of clouds are shown on that graph? Low ones. The graph for high clouds in Figure 1 doesn't show a clear correlation at all. So we know that the statement is consistent with Figure 1 and 3. Answers A and B both assert that the statement is correctâ€"but only A correctly states why: because the graphs for low clouds and RCRF are almost exactly the same. Let's try a slightly harder question. Question 17 is the last question for the passage, and the ACT Science Section sometimes asks you to use a tiny bit of basic scientific intuition for these questions. Again, you want to use High and Low clouds as signals. But now it's introducing some new informationâ€"some clouds are made up of ice crystals, and some of water droplets. But there's nothing about water and ice in the passage! No worriesâ€"all you need to know is the simple scientific concept that water freezes and turns to ice as the temperature gets colderâ€"basic stuff! So if high clouds are made up of ice, and low clouds are made up of water, clearly the higher clouds are colder. So that rules out A and B. To choose between C and D, look at the altitudesâ€"C asks us about the 3.2-6.0 km range (middle clouds), while D asks about the 6.0-16.0 km range (high clouds). Since only D pertains to high clouds, D is the correct answer. See how easy it is? Signals through noise. Once you practice a few of these, it becomes much easier to see how to navigate your way through the ACT Science Section. And ultimately, although this isn't really a science test at all, the skills you acquire from mastering this test will be extremely helpful in college and beyondâ€"whether you're taking science classes, or doing anything else that involves sifting through large amounts of data to find the information that really matters. About the Author Steve Markofsky is one of our most experienced and qualified test prep tutors. For more information on ACT/SAT tutoring and to see profiles of tutors like Steve, click here.

Happiness, Fears, Loves Talking About Existential Questions With Help From Gillian Anderson

Happiness, Fears, Loves Talking About Existential Questions With Help From Gillian Anderson When were you happiest? What is your greatest fear?In English we call these existential questions or questions about the meaning of life. They are  issues we all  ponder (think about)  at some point.Let’s see some interesting responses to  some existential questions with Gillian Anderson, better known as Scully from the X-Files, in an interview published in the UK’s Guardian newspaper in March, 2011. Afterwards lets answer some questions together.When were you happiest? In the womb.What is your greatest fear? Insanity.What is your earliest memory? One year old in Puerto Rico, my feet in the sand, wearing only a nappy, and cradling eggs in the crook of my  arm.Which living person do you most admire, and why? Obama, because against all odds, hes getting the job done with grace and integrity.What is the trait you most deplore in yourself? Sabotage.What is the trait you most deplore in others? Bullying.What was your most embarrassing moment? Thinking I was doing Victoria Beckham a fa vor by putting her shirt collar down. It never occurred to me she might want it that way. Needless to say my charitable act did not go down too well.What is your most treasured possession? My children â€" Piper, Oscar and Felix. Obviously I do not possess them, but saying anything else would seem plain wrong.What makes you unhappy? Me.What do you most dislike about your appearance? Its length.If you could bring something extinct back to life, what would you  choose? The Amazon.Who would play you in the film of  your life? Johnny Depp.What is your guiltiest pleasure? Not exercising.To whom would you most like to say sorry, and why? My high school geography teacher, for putting gum on her chair and ruining her favourite skirt.Have you ever said I love you and not meant it? Yes.What is the worst job youve done? Pilot of The X-Files.How do you relax? Beating myself into submission.What is the closest youve come to  death? A bull elephant in Kenya moving towards our car as we tried to do a  three-point turn in a dead end.What keeps you awake at night? My two-year-old.What is the most important lesson life has taught you? That Im not in charge.QuestionsWhat impression do you have of Gillian from her answers?Can you tell what kind of a child she was from her answers?Are you surprised by any of her responses?What is her self-image like? Do you think it is mostly positive or negative?At what point in your life were you happiest?Do you ponder  life’s existential questions regularly or do you try not to think about them?What do you do when you feel a little down or sad? Do you watch movies or read a book to feel better?Did you find this blog helpful? Please share it on Facebook and Twitter.

Hurtwood House China

Hurtwood House China Hurtwood House China With its first school opened in Ningbo in 2014, Hurtwood House China has established a network of sister schools under the banner HD schools. All of our schools offer students a fully bilingual education that blends the best of the West and the Chinese curricula. As the school motto Education Creates Character indicates, Hurtwood House China provides students with a broad and balanced learning experience - one in which tradition meets creativity and East meets West. HD Schools (HD Shanghai, Ningbo, and soon Beijing and Qingdao) benefit from a strong relationship with Hurtwood House, our partner school in the UK. It draws on Hurtwoods experience and expertise at providing an all-round education where children, not only achieve excellent academic results, but also develop interests and skills to prepare them for the challenges of life beyond school. With this in mind, HD Schools curriculum offers a broad range of opportunities designed to develop intellectual growth, physical and emotional health, artistic endeavors, creativity and service to others. The Schools are committed to fostering truly bilingual and bicultural students, enabling them to gain competency in both Mandarin and English, as well as preparing them culturally for life in an increasingly interconnected world. Our curriculum is taught using a dual-language immersion approach; students benefit from lessons delivered by native speakers of English and Chinese, with some subjects taught with both teachers in the same classroom. As well as supporting students to become bilingual, the low student-teacher ratio enables HD Schools to deliver a highly personalized approach to learning. In keeping with our partner school, Hurtwood House, HD Schools ethos, values and curriculum will help to foster a strong and supportive school community. We are looking to build a team who are strongly motivated and enjoy participating in all aspects of school life. Teachers who have not experienced a bilingual program before will enjoy the challenge and learn new and transferable skills in the process. Check out our established HD schools in China: HD Ningbo School:http://nb.hdschools.org/ Shanghai HD Bilingual School:http://sh.hdschools.org/ HD Beijing School:Coming Soon! View our Brochure

How to Optimize Slow Work Days

How to Optimize Slow Work Days Image via pixabay.com Always have study materials on you While you may dread having a shift before a big test when you need the time for studying, you can still put in some studying time if you bring along materials to study with. Always go digital if you can so you have fewer papers to remember to bring and a lighter load. Look at pictures of your study guides or notes on Google Docs. Study concepts on Quizlet, which has a convenient mobile app for on-the-go studying. If you are planning on using your phone, tablet, or laptop, remember to comply with your jobs rules when it comes to using technology during your shift, regardless of how slow it is. If your job prohibits the use of technology during your shift, you can always bring along hard copies of things you need to study class readings, course notes, flashcards, etc. One of the biggest mistakes students can make is mistaking possible studying time as waste of time moments, such as slow days at work, breaks between classes, and commutes to and from school or work. Plan ahead   Having a part-time job as a full-time college student encouraged me to effectively plan out my time there werent enough hours in the day and I always felt like I was falling behind in class or socially. Instead of continuing to struggle with balancing work, school, and my social life, I started to plan out my days, weeks, and months. I always carry my planner on me, allowing me to write any new plans that come up or things I need to buy from the store as I remember them. I often dont have a set time where I sit down and plan out my week, but I often do it when I have downtime at work. If you dont like the idea of carrying around a physical planner, you can always use the calendar app on your phone or the mobile app for Google Calendar to have your schedule on all of your devices, as long as you can access your account. Planning ahead does not have to be limited to figuring out what to do the next day make shopping lists or plan out an essay/assignment you need to do. Planning out things like essays saves you the time you would need to do it at home, helping you start it right away when you actually need to. Get ahead in work, but only when needed   If its slow at work and you have already finished the tasks you need to do for the hour or shift, you may think that there is nothing to do at all. However, you can always get ahead to make it easier for you and/or your coworkers later on. If there are tasks for people later on in the day that you could complete when its slow, get them done early to save yourself the trouble later when there is the possibility that it could be busier than it is at the moment. Restock anything that needs it. Make copies for later. Draft and proofread any emails you need to send out later. When you are getting ahead in work, make sure it will be beneficial if its done earlier. If something needs to be done at a set time (changing something out every other hour, closing a machine down, sending out a reminder email), there is no use in getting ahead when it will have to be done again at a later time or if it will mess with another task later on. Take a breather It may sound weird to try to relax at work, but I often look forward to work when I feel overwhelmed with school. Its a chance to have a reason to step away from anything academic and still be somewhat productive as Im earning money while doing so. Work helps take your mind off of school and gives you some room to breathe, especially on a slow day. If you cant hang out with your friends because you are all busy with school or your own jobs, you can at least find comfort in talking to your coworkers who you hopefully have a friendly relationship with. If it really is a slow day at work, take advantage of the slow pace and relax while you can, knowing that once you get home you need to get back to studying.

How to use your degree to pivot into a teaching career

How to use your degree to pivot into a teaching career Ask yourself these questions: Is teaching my true calling? Would I love to work with kids? Am I looking to switch up my career and learn some new skills? There are so many great reasons to make a career switch into teaching and so many potential teachers who are put off at the thought of going back to school to do an expensive four-year education program. Well, here’s the good newsâ€"â€"you don’t have to! If you already have a four-year bachelor degree (in any field) then there is a path into state school teaching in the US that’s open to you: alternative certification. Teach Away’s nationally-accredited Teacher Certification Program (TCP) is a flexible and affordable way to become a teacher, and it could be the right choice for you! Keep reading. Fast-track your career change TCP is a short, intense program that normally lasts for less than a year. Although there is an element of academic study involved, our program emphasizes practical classroom experience. Learn new skills TCP will equip you with valuable skills that are key for success inside and outside the classroom such as organization, time management, and people skills! Help communities in need Alternative certification programs were originally designed to bring talented professionals into underserved schools, as quickly as possible. Tackling educational inequality in the US is still a priority in many alternative certification programs. In particular, Hawaii suffers from a serious teacher shortage, especially in the subjects of math, science, and English. That is why we initially aligned the standards of TCP to meet the local Hawaii needs. Teach to travel Once you complete TCP, candidates are eligible to earn a Hawaii teaching license that is easily transferable to other parts of the US. As for teaching abroad, candidates who hold US teaching certification are in high demand at international schools that follow an American curriculum. As a result, you’ll likely qualify for some of the most competitive teaching positions at the world’s top international schools. How does alternative certification compare to the normal route into teaching in the US? The most common route into state school teaching in the US is doing a traditional education preparation program. That makes you eligible to apply for state licensure or take a state teaching license exam or test to obtain your license (more info on this below) and then apply for teaching jobs. This route works great for those who know they want to teach at the start of their careers. But for those who are switching careers, the thought of your life and earnings taking a four-year pause (or longer!) while you go back to school can seem impossible to manage. This is where alternative certification comes in. Alternative certification programs last for one intense year after which you’ll be ready to apply for your full teaching license as education grads would. Then you can officially apply for teaching jobs. So, both routes ultimately lead to the same destination; with you getting on a path to get a teaching license and work in state schools! The only difference between a traditional program and an alternative one are: Time Alternative certification takes less than a year whereas a traditional education preparation program takes four. Cost Although programs for alternative certification vary, they are significantly more affordable than university studies and you can earn a full-time salary while you study. (Please note: For anyone who doesn’t have a degree from traditional education preparation program, unfortunately, alternative certification is not an option for you. Your best route into teaching is to earn a degree in education.) What makes TCP different? With TCP, you’ll have a full-service community to support your certification. From course work to your job search, we’re here for you. TCP also ensures the value of real-life preparedness with the flexibility and convenience of a digital platform. From quality instructors, weekly lesson requirements, to mentor office hours and a collaborative community of learnersâ€"â€"we set you up for success. Traditional Teacher Certification Programs Teach Away’s Teacher Certification Program Time to Classroom 2-4 years As few as 9 months Cost to Classroom $30,000+ USD $5,000 USD Employment Support Your in-classroom peers, teacher career suggestions, recruitment support Access to a global network of peers, as well as your online classmates, an on-ground, in-person placement mentor and an ecosystem of recruitment professionals to support your next steps Program Flexibility Strict physical classroom setting and set hours Flexible online, on-your-time schedule Financial Opportunities While Studying Teaching placements are typically unpaid Option to secure a paid teaching placement What are the requirements for TCP? To be eligible for TCP, you should: Hold a four-year Bachelor’s degree from an accredited university Pass a background check Have a minimum 3.0 GPA in your final year of an undergraduate degree Be eligible to work in the US Have sufficient knowledge to pass the Praxis II exam in your chosen subject stream Ability to relocate to Hawaii for 450 clinical placement hours Desire to teach one of the core subjects offered: English, math, science, or TESOL What are the next steps once I have my alternative certification? Once you’ve completed TCP take a moment to congratulate yourself! ? Now, you are eligible to apply for a Hawaii state teaching license and be eligible for jobs throughout the state and beyond. Career change complete. ?