[ Printable version ]

Workplace Essential Skills Training Module

Model #2: WES as a Regular Supplement to an Established Curriculum

BACKGROUND

The following background information describes Model #2 in general terms.

In Practice

In this model, teachers use a combination of WES resources regularly (once or twice a week) to:

• clarify and build on concepts addressed in the established curriculum,
• create a thread of instruction that parallels (but is not directly tied to) other coursework, and/or
• help students to pursue self-directed studies.

This model is appropriate for teachers who want more creative support in the classroom and for teachers whose students have difficulty engaging "traditional" learning materials.

Teachers who try this implementation model generally hope to add a new dimension to an existing curriculum, without significantly altering the original educational objectives. In this model, teachers use more of the available resources, more regularly. Rather than using one resource (like a video clip) in a single, one-day lesson, teachers use several clips, workbook activities, and/or online activities during the class session and the school term.

Common Issues

• As with Model #1, teachers must be familiar with the WES video, online, and print resources in order to select appropriate clips and activities. Determining how these resources best work together (in a particular learning environment) may require some experimentation.
• Teachers must know the WES website well enough, themselves, to be able to show students how to use it. Some students may not possess the requisite technology skills to navigate WES' online resources. In this case, instructors must start by teaching fundamental technology skills before introducing the WES website.

Tips

If you are interested in trying this implementation model, the following tips might help you get started.

• Review Workplace Essential Skills Resources in this training module. This list will give you a sense of the scope of WES products.
• Engage your program's technology specialist to help you learn about the WES website as well as support your online work with students.
• Review the Sample WES Lesson Plans in this training module. These lesson plans will help you think about different ways to regularly integrate WES into your classroom activities.

EXAMPLE

We provide this example to help you visualize how to incorporate a collection of WES lessons into your own curriculum.

This thematic unit builds on the lesson plan in Model #1. The following lessons explore some of the same themes and issues present in "Pitching Your Skills on Paper."

Lesson Title

Uncovering Jobs in New Places

Goal

Students will learn how to locate job leads by tapping into their communities.

Procedure

1. Write the following terms (excerpted from the Workplace Essential Skills website, Internet Activity #5: Job Networking - Key Ideas) on the board and use them as a starting point for conversation:

• networking
• hidden job market
• contacts

2. Ask students to describe their experience with networking to date. Have any of them tried to "network"? Why or why not? What are the challenges associated with networking? What are the advantages?

3. Ask students to write down a few jobs that interest them (hairstylist, teacher, cook, sales clerk - for example). Ask them to list at least three people who could provide additional information about each profession.

Write the following categories (excerpted from Internet Activity #5: Job Networking - Activity) on the board to remind students of their community connections.

• friends
• family members
• neighbors
• members of any organization you belong to
• classmates
• people you've only met once or twice
• people who know someone you know

4. Ask students to pick the job that they are most interested in and begin to draft questions for each of the contacts they've listed. After 15-20 minutes (or as they finish), invite students to write their chosen job title, potential contacts, and related questions on the board and/or on newsprint sheets (posted around the room).

5. As a group, explore each student's job, contact list, and questions. Examine the contacts - why do these people "fit" the professions in question and how might these contacts help? Brainstorm additional contacts for each student and offer suggestions on how to hone or expand students' questions.

6. As a wrap-up activity, ask students the following questions: how comfortable do you feel approaching contacts in general and/or specific people on your list? What, if anything, feels hard about getting in touch with contacts? Discuss strategies to negotiate these roadblocks.

Lesson Title

Writing a Cover Letter

Goal

Students will learn how to create a basic cover letter to accompany their resume.

Procedure

1. Open with a general discussion of cover letters. Ask the class the following questions: what are cover letters? What purpose do they serve? Have you ever read one? Have you ever written one?

2. Give learners some background information about the video clip. Show Workplace Essential Skills video - Program 4: Resumes, Tests, and Choices (job seeker discussing and reading from her cover letter).

3. Discuss the clip. Ask students: what did you notice about this woman's cover letter? Was it effective - why/why not?

4. Ask students to brainstorm possible cover letter "ingredients." What information and/or features should a cover letter include/possess? Record students' thoughts on the board.

5. Discuss the importance of customizing cover letters to reflect a particular situation, company, and position. Also, explain the relationship between the cover letter and the resume - the ways in which these two components should complement one another.

6. Invite students to explore the following website: Monster.com Career Advice - http://content.monster.com/resume/samples/coverletters/. Explain that this site contains a variety of situation-specific cover letters. Ask students to read the "General Inquiry Letter." Once everyone has had a chance to peruse the letter, dissect it - piece by piece. Ask students to consider each section and determine what each accomplishes.

• identifies key elements in every cover letter
  • candidate's name and contact information
  • employer's name and contact information
  • salutation
  • introduction
  • statement of interest
  • summary of qualifications
  • closure
• explains (in small type) what these elements consist of, and
• provides space for students to write.

8. Ask students to draft a general cover letter to accompany their resume. Have the students refer to and/or write directly on the worksheet.

9. Discuss strategies students might employ to tailor these general letters to meet the needs of particular positions/applications.

Lesson Title

"Pitching" Your Skills in Person

Goal

Students will learn how to effectively describe their skills and qualifications in a job interview.

Procedure

1. Introduce the interviewing process. Ask students to share their experiences in job interviews to date (with the class). Ask them to describe:

• the job(s) they interviewed for,
• who interviewed them,
• the kinds of questions they were asked in the interview, and
• their overall impressions of the experience.

2. Explain that you are going to focus on one aspect of interviewing in this lesson - how to specifically and accurately answer questions and explain your skills in a job interview.

3. Give learners some background information about the video clip. Show Workplace Essential Skills video - Program 5: Interviewing (clip of mock interview with Blanca, followed by comments from her teacher and an Olsen representative).

4. Ask students to discuss the following question: what was good about the way Blanca answered the questions in her mock interview?

5. Ask students to discuss the benefits of being specific in job interviews - why is it important to provide details of past experience?

6. Ask students to imagine that they are applying for a job as a sales clerk at a department store. Give them a copy of the following text (excerpted from a real department store job description).

Skills Summary:

A candidate for a Level 1 Sales Associate position should exhibit a "Can Do" attitude - they should be outgoing, possess energy, and exhibit the ability to handle multiple tasks, while maintaining a positive attitude. In addition, the candidate must exhibit the ability to learn new procedures, process register transactions, and be comfortable with new technology.

7. Discuss the excerpt. Answer any questions students have about it.

8. Ask students to identify (in writing) which of the characteristics mentioned in the job description they possess. Then, ask them to list specific examples of each characteristic. For instance, "I am outgoing. Here is a scenario that illustrates my outgoing nature."

9. Invite students to share their specific examples with the rest of the class. Ask the class to offer suggestions on each person's work. Could the student in question provide more detail - what kind of detail would be useful?