Junior year is one of the most stressful years that high school has to offer, course-load alone. On top of that is sports, clubs, extracurriculars and the beginning of the oh-so important-search to find “the perfect college.”
Thankfully, Blackboard is here to help. Most students have seen the Family Connection tab on their Blackboard account (it’s been there all year), but chances are most probably haven’t taken a second glance at it.
However, if you actually take the time to click the link and look around the site, it will prove to be extremely helpful. On the home screen there are updates regarding college visits in our career center, and e-mails with links to great opportunities for summer internships.
The site’s three tabs allow students to build a profile that makes planning for the future easy. The “about me” tab guides students through creating a resume, prospective college list, as well as a list of potential careers.
The “careers” tab gives students the opportunity to find out their personality type and explore the different possibilities for the future.
Lastly, the “college” tab offers the greatest variety of tools for students, including a SuperMatch college search and college comparison tool. One of the most helpful research aids is the scattergram feature, a program that allows prospective college students to see scatter plots of acceptance rates for individual colleges. By typing in the name of any school, students can access a graph that includes the GPA and test scores of Langley students who applied to that particular school last year, and whether or not they were accepted.
At times it can be a little disheartening if your statistics fall beneath the range of the students accepted last year. But on the plus side, it provides the chance to see where you stand among real Langley students. You can find out what you need to improve upon, so you have a better chance of gaining acceptance to the college of your dreams.
Family Connection is convenient; it’s already linked to your Blackboard account, and you don’t even have to sign up. Next time you’re online, go to Blackboard, click the link, and get connected.