Unit 9 - School Based Enterprises

I believe that the business model presented at Centennial High School’s Marketing and Business Academy would be very successful at all levels of education.  There may need to be a few changes in the type of products sold based on the venue these services are offered. Regardless of the product sold, the concepts behind the operation are still the same.  All levels need to see the connection between what they are learning in theory and how it is applied in practice.  I believe that this model encapsulates the necessary skills that students need to understand in the career world.

It is my opinion that the more valid and practical we can make education to the students, the more likely that students will be successful.  The business model discussed above brings the theory to life.  Students can get behind it and get excited.  When they apply the principals that they have been learning about and actually see the benefits of the application, academic concepts begin to make sense.

The link below shows elementary students learning about the world of work in a practical and fun way.

Work Based Learning Video:

Marketing Madness Highlight Reel - http://vimeo.com/3351152

Unit 9 - Job Shadowing Work Based Learning Sites

http://www.work-basedlearning.org/toolkit.cfm - Tools for analysis and evaluation, writing and learning objectives, and Learning plans.

http://www.wcpss.net/school_to_career/work_based_learning/  - Examples of Work Based learning in Wake County Public Schools in North Carolina.  Contains resources for Career Fair preparation and presentations.

http://vocserve.berkeley.edu/CenterPoint/CP1/CP1.html - Good overview of Work-Based Learning and how it operates.

If I were to offer job shadowing, I would want the following components in the program to ensure that my students have a successful experience.

1.       Relevant experiences on the job site.  I would expect that my students would see computer techs working on real problems.  They would need to see the way customers’ problems are dealt with. 

2.       How to work with a team on large projects and as an individual on smaller ones.

3.       Soft skills such as oral communications.  How to deal with irate customers.  How to handle a troubleshooting call over the phone. How to explain to a customer the problems and techniques used to fix their computer.

4.       Soft skills such as written communications.  Documenting work performed on a project so that another tech can tell what steps to take to finish the job if needed.