In the next few weeks, thousands of Georgia teens will walk into a college classroom for the first time. To help them succeed, a professor offers candid advice, including not peppering professors with questions on how long their first essay has to be. In a guest column, a Fulton County high school teacher questions why further education is not valued in the field of education, taking aim at the governor’s proposal to uncouple teacher raises from advanced degrees. And readers share their views on the state Department of Education’s announcement that students in some grades and classes may take fewer tests next year.