I stumbled upon this site Actprogram.info; it is similar to VESI as they offer courses for teachers in the following subjects, psychology sociology , history , political science etc.. Apparently letter grades and graduate semester credits are awarded, this program if offered through California State University, Monterey Bay . Terms & Conditions | ACT The cost is only $110 per credit it almost seems too good to be true… They currently have a special at $99.00 per credit. Has anyone used them in the past? If yes were you able to transfer the credits?
Editure Acquires Enhancement Courses and Advancement Courses for Teachers Read on: Editure Acquires Enhancement Courses and Advancement Courses for Teachers | Editure Professional Development Same Prrice/Same program/different classes... Enhancement Courses® are offered in cooperation with Loyola Marymount University Extension. Loyola Marymount University (LMU) is a comprehensive Jesuit university located in Los Angeles, California and is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges.
Pilot, that is a great find! However, I would not want some of those course titles to be on any transcript that I would send out... e.g., "why is s@x fun?" "Why dogs never lie" and "The inner life of dogs."
However with so many courses to choose from in so many areas, one would have no problem finding a course that fits the bill. Between the two institutions they "offer more than 550 accredited courses for teachers in a wide variety of topics." If these courses are indeed transferable that would be a total game changer: Here is a small sample: ART Art of the Seattle Area Art through the Ages Chicago: Art in the Windy City Emily Carr: Artist and Writer Hispanic Artists Integrating the Internet into the Art Classroom New York Live! New York Skyline The Victoria Roots of Emily Carr Washington D.C.: Viewing National Art BUSINESS Accounting or Number Crunching Advertising Magic Building Asian Business Bridges Business Plan Ad-Ventures Entrepreneurs: Builders of America On the Edge of Marketing Mix What’s A Business Ethic COMMUNICATIONS Mouth to Minds The Words We Speak COMPUTER SCIENCE Computers: From Birth to Beyond Introduction to WEB 2.0 MS Office Computer Confidence for Teachers ECONOMICS Economics Today’s Economy: A Return to Depression Economics? FOREIGN LANGUAGE Foreign Language Lingo GENERAL EDUCATION 21st Century Teaching and Learning The Beatitudes of Pedagogy Differentiated Instruction The Dilemma of Teachers: Kids and Drugs Educating for Life ESL Writing Grant Writing Made Simple Help for Stressed Teachers Helping Students Study Hollywood as an Education Tool Improving Classroom Instruction Instructional Discipline K-5 Reading and Writing the Workshop Way Middle School Writing Success SSR is Always OK Student Personality Types in the Classroom Successfully Teaching ESL Teaching the Latino Student Technology Curriculum Integration Turning Learning Theory Into Practice Virtual Fieldtrips: Cancel that Bus! Warm Milk for the New Teacher HEALTH Childhood Obesity Eating Can Be Dangerous to Your Health! Nutrition Decision HISTORY America’s Treasures: National Parks Baltimore’s Inner Harbor The Bloody Crusades Changing History Cheyenne: A Look at the Old West Chicago: Its History in Architecture Discovering the Louisiana Purchase Ellis Island: The Gateway The French-Indian War Italy’s Amalfi Coast Looking at the Middle Ages Maui: Beauty Born of Fire The Mysterious Maya Oahu: History at the Gathering Place Pony Express: 19 Months of Glory Santa Fe: Historic Capital of New Mexico Truman: A Man of His Time The Turbulent ‘60’s Two Assassinations: Lincoln and Kennedy The U.S. Manned Space Program: A History Washington D.C.: A Glimpse of Our History LITERATURE/ENGLISH A Way into Hamlet: For Gifted and AP Kids Apocalyptic Visions of Cormac McCarthy Beauty of Precise Writing Enigma Variations: Exploring Some Novel Mysteries Gifted Children I: Literature and Writing Gifted Children II: Composition Gifted Children III: Short Story Engagements Gifted Children IV: Telling the Truth in Slant Gifted Children V: War and Peace Grammar: Eliminating Noise Great American Authors Hemingway: A Brief Introduction The Holocaust and the Poetics of Indirection Learning From the Lyric Poem Learning From the Lyric Poem-Part II Literature and Social Criticism Moments of Truth and Beauty Oh! The Qualities of Beautiful Writing Poetry: CSI Still Places In a Loud and Turning World Teaching Poetry Walden Pondering Whitman and Springsteen: Self, Brotherhood and Ideal America MATH Middle School Math Success NCTM Standards-Based The Web World of Math MUSIC Getting Kids Hooked on Jazz The History of Rock ‘N’ Roll Musical Instruments PHILOSOPHY Aristotle Lives in Philosophy POLITICAL SCIENCE The American Political System Evolving American Socialism The Iraq War: An Insider’s Look PSYCHOLOGY The Anatomy of Gangs Autism: The Hidden Problem Bullying in Schools Contemporary Classroom Discipline The Elemental Teacher: What Makes Them Extraordinary Gang Recognition and Behavior The Growing Menace of Girl Bullies Managing Difficult Parents School Violence and Gang Prevention Teachers Are People, Too! The Utilization of Multiple Intelligences in the Classroom What a Character: Theories of Personalities Why Dogs Never Lie Why Is Sex Fun? SCIENCE An Intro to Oceanography Asteroids, Comets and Meteors: Bringers of Life? Astrobiology: Extraterrestrial Life The Awesome Power of Volcanoes Biodiesel Power: Will It Work? Bioterrorism: End of Civilization? The Blue Whale: Bigger Than Dinosaurs Climate Change: Is Global Warming Real? Dinosaurs: A Prehistoric Educational Tool Earth: Two Million Years From Now Eternity and Beyond Global Cooling: A Heated Debate The Great Barrier Reefs Hyperspace, Strings and Wormholes K-8 Standards-Based Science March of the Penguins Meet KoKo and Talk With Her Meteorology: Weather Forecasting Mummies, Eggs & Dinosaurs Nature and the Environment The Neanderthal: His Fate and Facts New Age of Discovery: Planetary Explorers Oahu: The Land Above and Below Our Vanishing Wildlife Rainforests: Are They Doomed? Resources for Secondary Science Robots and You: Where It’s Headed The Scientific Method The Search for Extraterrestrial Life Severe Weather: Nature’s Killers Teaching About Animals, A to Zoo That Big Rock: Earth Geology This Amazing Planet Earth The Vast Universe of the Ocean The Web on U.S. Geography World Geography According to the WEB The World of Insects Your Rocky Road: Geology of the U.S SOCIAL STUDIES A Blind Path Forward Afghanistan: An Enigma Wrapped in a Riddle Dogs and Man: The Enduring Friendship Educating Deeply: Essential Acts of the Humanities Teacher Is It Easy Being Green? Living Green, That Is Making K-8 Social Studies Come Alive Remarkable New Hampshire Saving our National Parks Southwest Sidetrips The Vatican from the Inside What Happens When the Oil Runs Out?
I was looking at the requirements for most of these courses. It appears that you are creating lesson plans for each subject? Does that sound accurate? I am not a teacher so I guess I would have to improvise. I can call them up next week to find out what work is required and the expected (or minimum) amount of time it will take to complete.
Great! Thank you.. Please let me know how it goes.. While you are at it can you please check, if these courses can be transferred to a masters degree at other institutions? I look forward to your update..
I took the time to call the company (act.info) and asked them how are the credits transcripted and they called me back. They told me that they were NOT CEU's they were actual graduate credit in the SEMESTER system. (Many California colleges are in the quarter-system for that reason I wanted to double check). The courses receive a letter grade, not just a pass fail. The nice lady also told me that the courses say something like Extension School and she told me that if I had taken a class in the Engineering school, it would say Engineering school next to the course. She also told me that somewhere in the transcript it was said that those classes were not accepted for a graduate program at CSU-MB. She failed to tell me if there was previous experience transferring the credit somewhere else. She also didn't know if there was a GPA calculation on the transcript. I think from my personal experience with TESC via my disciple Ace King, that they will take the classes, unless CSU-MB writes something weird of stupid on the transcript that would have the receiving school raise a red flag. TESC initially didn't want to take St Catherines classes via VESI because they were part of their continuing education program, which made the advisor confuse them with Continuing Education Credits.. so I told Mr Ace King to appeal and his request was granted. Tesc called St Catherines to verify that the classes were for semester credit and had a letter grade and God Bless America... the advisor reversed her decision and approved the classes. He needed Social Science credit and if I am not wrong one of his classes was transcripted as SOS the other as SOC and the last one as PSY. Now, I am not a TESC student and I can't request approval for any of these classes. I am an EC student but my liberal arts component is already full so they won't approve any of these classes as part of my general educations and free electives.. I am only short of upper level business classes. So.. if some people that are currently studying with the Big 3 could request approval for these classes it would be really interesting. There might be some appeal to do as with Vesi/St Catherines and TESC but the benefit for the community will be immense. Anybody up for the challenge?
I spoke to ACT today and was told that these courses are like CEUs and although graduate level were not eligible for master's degree programs, either at CSUMB or likely anywhere else. I really don't know what to think about this...
“Many PBS TeacherLine courses offer learners the opportunity to earn graduate credits.” Graduate credit awarded via these credit-granting institutions: • Adams State University • Indiana University • Northwest Nazarene University • Madonna University • Central Michigan University • University of Missouri - Kansas City • University of Central Missouri • Washburn University • University of Sioux Falls • James Madison University • Boise State University • Sierra Nevada College • Morningside College Earn Graduate Credit : PBS TeacherLine
I'd like to unravel this ACT problem too. I know Irish and I are talking about it elsewhere, but I think this board is the best resource for getting to the truth in the shortest amount of time. I can't figure out how to answer the question of transfer without attempting to transfer. I'm still sitting in the camp that these RA Grad Credits will transfer into the big 3 undergrad as upper level or grad program as grad credit. The fact that they are issued through the continuing ed college doesn't matter - the entire purpose of these credits is for a teacher's pay raise- so I don't believe that they are indicated as CEUs, I believe they are genuine credit courses. I wish I had $300 to figure this out. Oh, and wasn't starting my own 12 credit grad semester tomorrow.
I suppose my question would be involving the ability to use those credits to go towards the 18 hours needed to teach something at the community college level. I wonder if they'd count. When I looked up the History courses, they were labeled EHIS, not just HIS or HIST, so that stood out to me. I wonder if that's because they're Extension, as was previously mentioned. -Matt
Matt, my Harvard courses all start with "E" (extension) too, and they are fully RA regular grad credits. There ARE instances when I've read restrictions on using E courses inside a grad transfer, but I wouldn't get too excited about that since there are always more restrictions on traditional grad programs anyway. I still think schools like APUS, Amberton, big 3, etc would take these with open arms.
I was just curious on if they'd count for teaching purposes. If they do, I'd totally be interested. While I've already got more than the required 18 credits, I only need 15 more to qualify for promotion. -Matt
Sorry I can't copy/paste but when i tried -twice- i'm getting funky-gibberish?!? So, go into their homepage and click on the "request a catalog" which will allow you to open pdf. It's on the 3rd page "About" section. Seems as if their entire purpose is to help teachers advance their pay scale.
From: jra " I took the time to call the company (act.info) and asked them how are the credits transcripted and they called me back. They told me that they were NOT CEU's they were actual graduate credit in the SEMESTER system." From: IrishJohn " I spoke to ACT today and was told that these courses are like CEUs and although graduate level were not eligible for master's degree programs, either at CSUMB or likely anywhere else. I really don't know what to think about this..." We are getting mixed answers... It seems like we might be missing on a huge opportunity, $99 per Graduate Credit... Anyone has any Idea on how to figure this one out; beside having to take a course.. Thanks
Is that truly an issue? Serious question! I took some classes similarly named when I was 17 and new to university. Will that jeopardize my chances of getting into grad school?
ACT Advancement Courses for Teachers I found this thread on degreeforum regarding the courses, but no definite answer yet! Does anyone have any idea as to how to figure out if these courses are approved for graduate credits? Except taking a course and submitting it for review to a college. Any input would be greatly appreciated Thanks