Some of the most important

decisions parents make as their children are growing up are those made

about their education. Some of the sagest advice in this area can come

from parents who have already been there. Parents can save time, money,

and future anguish by helping their children to successfully navigate

their educational courses, and there are a few key junctures where the

right decisions can make a big difference in the overall experience.

Since this is the time of year

that parents are preregistering their kindergarten students for next year,

this is the perfect time to share the following pearl of wisdom. It may

surprise you to know that developmental age does not necessarily correlate

with chronological age.

There are significant variations

in social adjustment skills, academic abilities, and cognitive functioning

in children who are 5 years old. Though we tend to follow the two years

of preschool, then on to kindergarten trend, we are not necessarily bound

at the age of 5 to begin school, particularly those with late in the academic

year birthdays.

What later may look like learning

difficulties may simply be a case of developmental age not following chronological

age.

Several area preschools offer

5-year-old programs for children who are not quite ready to begin school.

The general rule here is to follow your instincts. If your child is still

a very emotionally needy person, if independent skills like dressing one's

self, following simple instructions, and adapting to established rules

are not on par with other children the same age, your child may benefit

from an extra year of preschool before moving on to kindergarten.

It could make all the difference

in the world later on down the road in terms of your child's academic

success. Once your child has started school, it is very difficult to rethink

this decision.

If you are unsure, talk to

a kindergarten teacher, especially one who has children of school age,

and arrange a visit with your child. You may think that few people choose

to delay start their children in school, but you would be surprised at

the number of parents who do.

The second area where good

advice may mean the difference in your child's acceptance or scholarship

potential at the post-secondary learning institution of their choice is

in the area of SATs.

The Scholastic Aptitude Test

is a standardized test which is used by colleges to predict how your child

will do in college. Though it is often used to judge how well high schools

are performing, this was not its intended purpose.

It may surprise you to know

that students often take the SAT before their eleventh or twelfth grade

year, they often take it more than once, and that scores can be significantly

improved by following a few simple suggestions.

First, your child will likely

achieve their highest SAT math score on the test they take right after

the completion of Algebra II. Depending on your child's established math

track, this may be immediately following the ninth, tenth, or eleventh

grade year.

Don't worry that your child's

verbal score may not be at its peak potential, because best scores from

each category can be later combined to form one "best case scenario"

composite score for the purpose of college applications.

The second bit of advice is

that SAT prep programs DO help students to raise their levels of achievement

on the test. Often simple test-taking strategies, like answer elimination

or whether or not to guess at answers, can improve a students overall

score by as much as 100 points.

The final area in which sound

parental advice and encouragement can save significant amounts of time

and money is in the area of career planning and the selection of a post-secondary

major, degree program, or technical training program.

The first rule here is that

this is not the same world or economy that you and I navigated 20-some-odd

years ago. A basic four-year liberal arts or engineering degree is not

the hot ticket to the job market that it used to be. Companies now want

specialized employees who are highly trained and experienced to fill specific

jobs.

Because of the HOPE scholarship,

the lottery-funded program that provides tuition for all Georgia residents

with qualifying grade point averages, the admissions bar at state colleges

has risen significantly. Though schools may report an admissions requirement

of 1100 on the SAT, the actual accepted score may be much higher, at times

even as high as 1350.

Some students will go to a

junior college then transfer to a four-year research institute in their

junior year. Others will choose the computer technical field or allied

health services and may spend far less, have far greater success at finding

a job, and be ready for employment at an earlier age by choosing a technical

college or specialized training program.

The one thing that has most

amazed me this past year as I have returned to graduate school is the

number of young college students who are passing through degree programs

and taking courses without a clue as to what they want to do after they

graduate.

Many will return to school

later with a solid career plan (as I did), and it will be far more difficult

to juggle school, work, and family responsibilities.

Encourage your child to choose

a job then plan backwards as to what course of study at the post-secondary

level will best prepare them for that job.

Supporting the education of

our children is the most important job as parents that we will do. Arming

ourselves with the best information and acting as sound career advisors

will pay off in a big way later on down the road.

[Amy Riley lives in Peachtree

City and writes occasional columns for The Citizen. E-mail her at [email protected].]