Happy Thanksgiving all you non-trad students out there, all of you who are dedicated to lifelong learning, all the teachers of the world. I wish you all a happy day with friends, family, good noshing, and meaningful conversation.

Need a few extra bucks? CNNMoney lists teaching continuing education classes as #3 in its article, "5 ways to pump up your income" by Alexis Jeffries and Donna Rosato of Money Magazine.

#1 Consult in your field
#2 Seek out yield
#3 Head a class
They say pay varies widely, and I can believe it. They also list the hassle factor as high, which also is believable. It takes a lot of prep to teach just one hour of a class worth a student's time. One of the upsides is that online teaching is an option.

Well, I guess that's an upside for some of us.

Do you teach continuing ed. classes? Share your experience with us.

My blog find of the week is from Technology News and Reviews, and I regret that I can't find the author's name.

He or she writes about the necessity of continuing education, about how education from prestigious colleges and universities is a foundation only. Bill Gates is the example used.

"Take Bill Gates, for example. In spite of his phenomenal success behind Microsoft, still admits that the partial education he got from Harvard is invaluable. And even kid that he's the most successful among Harvard's drop-outs. However, what we have failed to see is that Gates has an unquenchable thirst for learning new things, trailblazing on new technologies, and outwitting his business competitors by getting ahead in acquiring or even inventing new knowledge. This is continuing education."

An unquenchable thirst for learning new things. I love that. Do you have it?

Are you a jazz cat?  Swing University at the Lincoln Center offers adult education in jazz, baby.

Classes are taught by some of the best musicians and scholars jazz has to offer, and cover song form, the uses of ensemble and soloists in performance, and significant events in jazz history.

What are you doing in January to edify yourself?

Women's shelters across the country are havens for women who find themselves in need of a helping hand, a safe place, someone who cares. Designed to help women get a handle on life again, at least one, Renaissance House in Sierra Vista, Nevada, also requires women to earn their GED before leaving.

Shar Porier wrote about the house for The Herald.

"Sixty-five percent of these women have no high school diploma or GED. So, that is part of the program, as well. They have to get their GED's to graduate," said Lou Anne Sterbick-Nelson.

To help them in that endeavor, a back room at the gallery houses a number of computers so the women can study and polish their computer skills to be competitive when they re-enter the job market.

Earning a GED is one of the most important things a person can do to get back on track in life. Do you have a story to share about earning your GED with the help of a shelter? Talk to us.

In New York, the State Board of Regents is considering alternative options for teachers seeking certification. Jennifer Medina wrote about the possibilities Sunday for The New York Times:

While New York has had some alternative certification programs in place for years, like Teach for America and New York City Teaching Fellows, students are still required to take classes at education schools during the summer, nights and weekends to earn a teaching certificate.

Education Secretary Arne Duncan wants schools to focus "more on hands-on classroom work, similar to medical residencies that aspiring doctors must complete."

Personally, I'm in favor of experiential learning. What about you? Are you seeking a teaching certificate? Do you prefer traditional or alternative class?

Two-year colleges in New York have seen such a huge increase in students this fall, that they're starting to get choosier about who they admit. Lisa Foderaro wrote about the issue for The New York Times Wednesday in her article, "Two-Year Colleges, Swamped, No Longer Welcome All."

Across the country, many community colleges have felt similar pressures. The battered economy drove many workers back to school to retool their skills, while others have eschewed a four-year degree in favor of a more affordable two-year program.

What has your experience been? Did you have trouble this fall being accepted to the school at the top of your list?

According to the U.S. Department of Education, after six years, more than 40 percent of those who started at a four-year institution have not finished. So writes Phyllis Korkki in her article, "Degree Required, but You Don't Have One," for The New York Times.

In Korkki's look at the issue, she finds the most common excuse is that life intervenes. So what do you do when job searching with "some college" and no degree?

Don't lie.

"Don't lie on your résumé about having a bachelor's degree, but if you spent some time at college, write down "bachelor's studies," with the name of the institution you attended, said Katy Piotrowski, a career counselor based in Fort Collins, Colo., and an author of career books. That could get you past the initial screening.

"If you have only a few credits to go, why let them dog you for the rest of your life? For some people, Ms. Piotrowski said, the hours spent worrying about not having a degree could be spent actually getting one."

Excellent points. Don't lie about your degree, go get it.

Tim and I had a conversation this morning about what teachers would call learning styles. That's not what Tim calls them. He's tired of having to communicate with everyone in the special way they require when none of these people, who are functioning adults, ever try to understand things from his way of communicating.

His point was that when we teach children only in the way they learn best, they grow to think the whole world will accommodate them in that way the rest of their lives. He has a point. Most employers aren't going to coddle you.

So here's the question: are you an adult student who expects to learn only in the way you learn best, in your own learning style? Or are you open to trying to think and learn in new ways, in all possible ways?

For many of us, one graduate degree is a major accomplishment. Rightly so. But there are non-traditional students out there earning dual international business degrees. Joseph Rosenbloom wrote this week about Nabeel Siddiqui, a 29-year-old from India, for The New York Times.

Siddiqui is a student at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Sloan School of Management and the École des Hautes Études Commerciales in Paris at the same time. Master's degrees in hand, he'll be prepared to work for any international company in any country.

"I don't have any inhibitions to go to any country and start working for a business. I don't have to think twice about it," he said.

Dual-degree international programs is a growing trend. Could it be the right move for you? Are you in such a program, or considering one? Tell us about it.