Upgraded: Extra Credits

This is a fantastic story of a school counselor who helps her students find their inner rising star and then becomes one herself.

Passionate educators inspire passion in their students. It's a fire that starts in school and burns forever bright.

What's up with Rutgers University offering a course on Beyonce? Turns out, much can be learned when academics and pop culture collide.

Are you doing what you thought you'd be doing as a kid? Didn't think so. Did your job even exist 20 years ago? It's not hard to empathize with students over the daunting task of choosing a career path. But one thing that might make it easier? A road trip!

Many people share stories of teachers who've made lasting impressions. But this teacher-student relationship blossomed into friendship.

Here's a story about high school students readying for college. Their principals, teachers and superintendents all feel they're more than ready, but the formal measurement of college readiness tells another story. So who's right? And what do you do when there's conflicting assessments at such a critical time?

Have you heard of the beer goggles effect? The idea that the more you drink, the more attractive people get. But hold on. Maybe we've got this all wrong. Listen to this academic research on how the beer goggles effect may in fact be, the beer-holder effect.

How we define success for children can actually be harmful. Dr. Madeline Levine is a clinical psychologist and the co-founder of “Challenge Success” a project of the Stanford Graduate School of Education. She recently presented on this idea of redefining success for kids. We caught up with her after her speech.

Taking experiential learning to new heights, this innovative college course goes to prison.

There is more to a student than her grades. This is the philosophy that drives holistic admissions. But just how far does that go? And does everyone have the same idea about what holistic admissions even means?

The impact a teacher can have, should never be underestimated. This is why.

Inspired by the serious gap between female minorities & tech industries, “Latina Girls Code” has one goal. Show Latina girls (and others) the allure of computer programming, science & engineering. And then, let them rule the world.

Chalkboards, ballpoint pens, overhead projectors... it wasn't long ago these things revolutionized the way we learn. Now, digital learning tools supported by the Internet are introducing radical changes in and outside the classroom.

The relationship between what you study in college vs. what you stand to make when you graduate, may not be as obvious as you think. Listen to this excerpt from Tony Carnevale of Georgetown University's Center on Education and the Workforce. He also addresses the growing divide at some of America's most prestigious colleges. This is an edited version pulled from episode 7 of Upgraded by Hobsons.

Dr. Freeman Hrabowski has been recognized by TIME magazine as 1 of the 100 most influential people in the world, as well as 1 of 10 of the best college presidents in America. So, needless to say, he has some pretty clear & inspiring ideas on how to best move education forward. In this excerpt, he talks about how graduation rates have changed over time, what we need to do now to help more minorities get into college, and the power of our thoughts. This is an edited version pulled from episode 7 of Upgraded by Hobsons.

This is a story of a boy who had to bus over a mountain to get to a better school. Now the man that boy became, talks of his struggles with racism, ostracization back home and his relentless pursuit for a better life.

Statistically speaking, there are now more first generation students than any other kind. So why do so many struggle? What makes the experience altogether overwhelming? It goes beyond the academics.

This is a story about a guy who turned one of the worst schools in his state into a prosperous and happy place of learning. And he did it by “flipping” the classroom.

Kindergarten is a transformational year for its wee little students. Near-toddlers turning into big-kids. There are many transitions during kindergarten to ready these little people for what's ahead...but how we're getting them ready is what's in question in this next story.

Business courses may be a dime a dozen, but this one is definitely off the beaten track. This college course challenges future business tycoons to negotiate moral and ethical dilemmas.

The college application process is known for being a complicated and daunting endeavour but that is changing. Listen to what this college is now accepting in the place of traditional applications.

College Tours aren't what they used to be. Colleges have always been competitive in an academic sense, but that drive to outdo one another is creeping into other areas. The result is an impressive and growing list of campus “extras”.

Apple for the teacher? What about those who teach our kids in ways we don't always see?

Never underestimate the power of a teacher. Listen to this man's story of a teacher that inspired a powerful change in his life path.

A powerful story, featuring Arel Moodie, that will remind all the educators out there why they do what they do. Moodie has been quoted in The New York Times, Forbes, Businessweek and USA Today. He has given presentations to over 250,000 students in 48 states and 5 countries. President Obama personally acknowledged Moodie for his youth engagement work.

Remember that one teacher who changed everything for you? So does Anna. Listen to the full episode at www.hobsons.com/upgraded

American teenagers do more community service than any other age group in the country - a collective 1.3 billion hours a year. And more of them are doing it. Almost twice as many 12th graders volunteered in 2014 than in the year 2000. You might think these kids want to get a leg up on the college admissions race, but there are academic benefits to volunteering.

At this school in New York - the day starts on a boat and then moves to the beach. Its city-dwelling students are learning through nature.

There's an off-the-beaten-path course being taught at a Canadian university. It involves love, sex and economics.

We live in an increasingly diverse and global society. We need to be able to learn and work and live alongside people from a multitude of backgrounds. Increased diversity on our country's college campuses is a goal for most institutions, but what still lies ahead?

There are many reasons freshly graduated high school students experience summer melt. That is, failure to follow through on their college-bound intentions. But research has shown that well-timed texts with specific, actionable messages can counteract this trend.

When students of this English course come to class - sometimes they need life jackets.