For many, the allure of a college degree is the potential for higher earnings and a brighter future. However, the daunting specter of accumulating thousands of dollars in student debt often casts a shadow over these aspirations. With soaring tuition costs, many find themselves questioning if the financial burden is worth the eventual payout.

The people at Achieve Debt Solutions have identified a number of viable pathways to achieve that much-coveted degree without sinking into debt.

Here’s your guide on how to make this possible.

Debt Relief Programs: A Breather for Students

Debt relief programs are designed to help reduce or eliminate student debt for qualifying individuals. They typically offer loan forgiveness, repayment assistance, or interest reduction to help students manage and eventually eliminate their debt. Examples include the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) for those working in qualifying public service jobs and Teacher Loan Forgiveness for educators serving low-income schools.

By enrolling in these programs early, students can strategically navigate their financial journey and drastically reduce the burden of student loans.

Choosing Community College First

Starting at a Community College

Often more affordable than four-year institutions, community colleges offer students the opportunity to complete their general education requirements at a fraction of the cost. After earning an associate’s degree or completing these initial courses, students can then transfer to a four-year institution to complete their bachelor’s degree, having saved a significant amount in tuition.

Applying for Scholarships and Grants

Your Key to Free Money

Scholarships and grants are essentially “free money” for college. Unlike loans, they don’t need to be repaid. There are countless scholarships available based on merit, interests, demographics, and more. By starting the search early and applying to as many as possible, students can potentially cover a significant portion, if not all, of their tuition costs.

Part-Time Schooling and Working

Balancing Work and Study

Enrolling part-time and working alongside can be a strategic move. Not only does it provide an immediate income source, but it also allows students to gain work experience, which can be invaluable post-graduation. Moreover, many employers offer tuition reimbursement programs, providing a dual benefit for those juggling work and study.

Consider Online and In-State Institutions

The Modern and Affordable Route

With the rise of digital technology, online degrees have become more accepted and prevalent. These often come with lower tuition fees and the added benefit of flexibility. Additionally, attending an in-state public university can also lead to significant savings compared to out-of-state or private institutions.

Living Frugally and Budgeting

Every Penny Counts

While this might seem obvious, living within one’s means and having a clear budget can save students from unnecessary debts. This includes opting for cheaper housing, sharing living costs with roommates, using public transportation, and avoiding impulsive spending.

Avoiding Private Loans

Steer Clear of Higher Interests

Federal student loans often come with lower interest rates and more flexible repayment plans than private loans. Whenever possible, students should prioritize federal loans and only consider private options as a last resort.

Conclusion: A Debt-Free Degree is Within Reach

The pathway to a college degree doesn’t have to be paved with insurmountable debt. By leveraging debt relief programs, making strategic educational choices, and maintaining a frugal lifestyle, a debt-free degree is an achievable dream. Remember, the ultimate goal is not just the degree, but the freedom and peace of mind that comes without the weight of debt. With careful planning and determination, you can indeed emerge from your academic journey both educated and financially unburdened.

Resources for Parents:

Tips for teaching financial responsibility to teenagers.

English has dominated all the languages of the world after becoming an international language. Because of its significance on the international level, it has been included as a mandatory subject in every country or state. Teachers use multiple ways to teach English in different schools, colleges and universities, and other teaching institutions.

These methods include teaching English tenses, parts of speech, verbs, adverbs, adjectives, etc. Moreover, in most regions, English translation lessons are taught by the teachers to give their students a strong grip on the language. In today’s digital world where artificial intelligence has been introduced, these methods seem like the talks of the past.

Nowadays, AI has revolutionized the teaching field by providing a number of different ways as well as tools. Among them, AI grammar checkers are the most recent tools used for teaching the English language. But, most of the teachers are not familiar with this method. Here we’re going to explain different ways through which the AI-Grammar checker is used in teaching the English language.

Different ways Through which the AI- Grammar Checker Is Used In Teaching English Language

1. To Teach Grammar

Grammar is the set of rules or principles that are mandatory to govern the usage of words, sentences, correct structures and formation. In other words, it is the backbone of a particular language.

So, it is necessary for teachers to make their students acquainted with grammar rules. Moreover, the rules connote the correctness of the words they speak. Let’s discuss how you as a teacher can get help from the AI grammar checker for teaching grammar.

For this, you should paste some grammatically incorrect sentences into an AI-based tool and check grammar issues. The tool will automatically highlight all the grammar issues going against the rules. Moreover, a tool will give you suggestions to correct those errors. This method makes it easier for you to point out the grammar errors of students within a matter of seconds and give them suggestions.

For example:

We inputted a text of one of the newbie students in the well-known tool i.e. Grammarcheck.ai. The tool automatically underlines all the grammar errors in the text.

As can be seen in the below image;

2. To Teach Spelling Errors

Spelling refers to the order of letters in a particular word. As we know language is dependent on correct words and words depend on the correct use of spelling. In other words, it is necessary to teach spellings since they are the building elements of the words and ultimately English language.

On the contrary, spelling errors create Confusion, Unprofessionalism, Misunderstanding, etc. Let’s teach your students correct spelling by removing the errors with an AI-based grammar-checking tool.

For this, you just have to input the task/writing of each student in the checker and run it. The tool will automatically, sort out the words with incorrect spelling. Moreover, it’s not the end of the tool, but it provides suggestions with correctly spelt words.

For example:

We ran a text with some words of incorrect spelling, and the tool underlined them with red lines.

Here’s the demonstration;

In the same way, as teaching the students, teachers can point out their spelling errors and make them use correctly in the English language.

3. To Teach Punctuation

Punctuations are necessary to structure sentences that ultimately make readers know how to read the particular sentences. Moreover, punctuation helps readers know;

• Where the sentence started.
• Where paused.
• Where ended.
• Where it is questioning, describing and giving extra details.

So, punctuation is considered the building block of the English language. Additionally, their correct use clarifies the meaning of written language. Now come to the matter of how to use an AI Grammar Check that can help you teach punctuation.

A tool can help you point out the punctuation errors in the writing of students and let you know what are their weak points. In this way, you can improve their language more effectively and swiftly either by giving suggestions of your own or providing by the tool.

 For example:

We inputted some sentences with punctuation errors into a tool. The tool made all the errors underlined.

As can be seen in the below image;

In the digital world, teaching the English language is an easy task to do, thanks to artificial intelligence. AI made the teaching field easy by integrating with online grammar check tools. They are efficient in finding “Punctuation errors, Spelling mistakes, and Grammar issues”. So, teachers can find these basic issues in the students’ work and guide them accordingly.

How AI Depends on Large Language Models

No matter much it looks like AI is behaving like a real human, it is getting a lot of help from Large Language Models, also known as LLM’s.  This video explains what happens when you ask AI a question or use AI to perform a task related to language and writing.

September 27, 2023: Google celebrated their 25th birthday!  That means September 27, 1998 was the day they began providing internet search to the world. Their website design was simple, but there was much more behind technology that powered this newly developed search engine.  Let’s have a look at the first images of Google 25 years ago.

We’ll also explore how the Google logo has changed over the years. Google began as a research project by Larry Page and Sergey Brin in January 1996. The two were PhD students at Stanford University in California, USA.

This was how simple Google.com looked 25 years ago

It contained a welcome message and two web links.

The top link (Google Search Engine Prototype) directed users to the first version of Google’s search engine.  It was hosted on a subdomain on Stanford University’s website:  http://google.stanford.edu

The second link on the original Welcome to Google website mentioned a more up-to-date prototype was to a more up-to-date version of Google’s search capabilities.  It was hosted on the Google web domain on a sub-domain: http://alpha.google.com

Google’s Simple Beginnings

As you can see, Google had very simple beginnings to their website design.  However, the internet was new and websites were focused on providing access worldwide information.  This is why domains started with www, which stands for world wide web.

Google was not the first search engine.  There were others before it, but Google’s idea for search was a new idea.  They wanted to improve speed and relevancy for search terms entered.  This meant offering more relevant websites.

From Wikipedia:  “While conventional search engines ranked results by counting how many times the search terms appeared on the page, Larry Page and Sergey Brin theorized about a better system that analyzed the relationships among websites. They called this algorithm PageRank.  It determined a website’s relevance by the number of pages, and the importance of those pages that linked back to the original site.  Page told his ideas to Hassan, who began writing the code to implement Page’s ideas.

Throughout the years, there have been many Google logo changes and the creation of Google Doodles by many artists and Doodle games that have been incorporated into the log.

A few months later in February 1999, Google was now on their main url at google.com looked like this:

Then in April 1999….

Google in October of 1999…

Google one year later in 2000…

And the rest is history as many other changes were to come over the next 25 years. This included new designs to define their image, as well as updates to their algorithm to provide the most relevant search results for users.

So, on this 25th Birthday Celebration of Google, we wish you Happy (and safe) Searching! See the progression of Google logos and Doodles through the years at https://www.google.com/doodles/googles-25th-birthday.

Google images are from The Wayback Machine – Internet Archive.

Every child has something that makes them unique. For some, it’s a talent in art or sports; for others, it’s a quirky personality trait. And for a significant number of children, it’s a pair of glasses sitting snugly on their noses. While some kids embrace their new spectacles with pride, others might feel self-conscious.

It’s crucial to shift the narrative and empower kids to see their glasses not as an impediment but as a superpower. Let’s delve into ways we can boost a child’s confidence when they first start wearing glasses.

Celebrate the ‘Why’ Behind the Glasses

Children, like all of us, appreciate understanding the “why” behind things. Begin by explaining the incredible functionality their glasses offer. It’s like having a personal tool that sharpens the world, makes colors brighter, and brings distant objects into clear focus. Emphasize the positive change in vision they’ll experience.

Storytelling: Heroes with Glasses

Throughout literature and pop culture, numerous characters wear kids glasses and are known for their intelligence, wit, and bravery. Whether it’s the magic-wielding Harry Potter or the brainy Velma from Scooby-Doo, highlight these characters. Reading stories or watching movies with such protagonists can inspire children and make them feel part of a cool ‘glasses-wearing’ club.

Personalization and Choice

One of the best ways to instill confidence is by giving kids agency. Allow them to choose their frame style and color. When children have a say in picking out their glasses, they’re more likely to feel good about wearing them. Some kids might opt for vibrant colors, while others may go for more subdued tones. The key is letting their personality shine.

Role Modeling

Celebrities, athletes, and even local heroes who wear glasses can serve as excellent role models. When children see successful people they admire wearing glasses, it reinforces the idea that glasses are not only functional but also stylish and cool.

Create a ‘Glasses Day’ Celebration

Mark the day your child gets their glasses with a mini-celebration. It could be a day filled with their favorite activities, a special treat, or even a photoshoot showcasing their new look. Celebrating this change can make children more enthusiastic about their new accessory.

Offer Positive Reinforcements

Every time your child confidently wears their glasses, applaud them. Positive reinforcements can range from verbal praises like “You look great!” to small rewards. Over time, these affirmations will cement their confidence.

Educate Their Peers

Sometimes, children can be teased by their peers for looking “different.” A proactive approach is to educate classmates about the importance and coolness of glasses. Many schools allow short presentations or ‘show and tell’ sessions. Use this opportunity to talk about famous personalities with glasses or conduct fun vision-related experiments. Knowledge can foster understanding and reduce teasing.

Engage in Activities that Highlight the Importance of Clear Vision

Activities like stargazing, bird watching, or attending a theater can underscore the importance of clear vision. When kids can associate their glasses with enhanced experiences, they’ll see them in a positive light.

Looking Forward

While the initial transition to wearing glasses can be challenging for some children, with a mix of understanding, encouragement, and creativity, it can be a smooth and even enjoyable journey. By reframing glasses as a superpower, children can not only embrace their new accessory but also wear it with pride and confidence. After all, in a world where everyone is trying to fit in, it’s the unique traits that help us stand out and shine.

Additional Reading Resource:

Learn how to detect eye problems in children at an early age.