This study investigates how a teacher study group collectively examined problems in their current English curriculum and redesigned the curriculum into theme-based lessons for various grades. Comprised of seven elementary school teachers and a teacher educator, the teacher study group met bi-weekly for three hours for a total of eight meetings.…

As the world economy continues to evolve, businesses and industries must adopt new practices and processes in order to survive. Quality and cost control, work teams and participatory management, and an infusion of technology are transforming the way people work and do business. Employees are now expected to read, write, and communicate…

The gap between existing skills and desired or required skills is the impetus for the development of business/industry standards. Professional associations have taken the initiative in setting skill standards; state licensing exams are used to certify workers in some occupations. An impending work force crisis has triggered a demand for…

This booklet, which has been designed for a diverse audience, including work team members, supervisors/managers, trade union members, employers, trainers, teachers/lecturers, human resource managers, and students/trainees, presents basic information about the purpose, content, and quality of competency standards for vocational education within the…

This handbook is intended for use in preparing persons from education, business, industry, and government for the role of DACUM (Developing a Curriculum) facilitator. An introduction discusses the following: what DACUM is, why it is unique, why it should be used, what the DACUM facilitator does, who uses DACUM, when it should be used, and its…

This report contains 26 performance assessments for documenting student employability skills. Each performance assessment consists of the following: a competency; a terminal performance objective (outcome); competency builders and pupil performance objectives (criteria for documenting mastery of the objective); applied academic competencies;…

This teacher and student guide for aquaculture contains 15 units of instruction that cover the following topics: (1) introduction to aquaculture; (2) the aquatic environment; (3) fundamental fish biology; (4) marketing; (5) site selection; (6) facility design and layout; (7) water quality management; (8) fish health management; (9) commercial…

Standards-based systems generally require students to meet the performance level specified in order to proceed or be certified. This issue of the Oregon School Study Council (OSSC) Bulletin surveys the types of standards currently being proposed. After an introductory chapter, chapter 2 describes eight components of standards, illustrated with a…

This document contains a brief report describing the development of validated competency profiles for business, home economics, and industrial education at the University of Missouri-Columbia, as well as a set of the profiles. The profiles are used to evaluate students' levels of mastery of competencies in the content areas of each course. Two…

The Kentucky Education Reform Act (KERA) is the most comprehensive reform legislation nationally, bringing substantial change to all levels of the educational system. A group of researchers who have spent time in schools in Kentucky and policy analysts knowledgeable about Kentucky and other state education reform efforts convened in October 1992…

To facilitate an increase in student learning, the curriculum for the Principles of Management course at Collin County Community College was redesigned to reflect a business organization environment. This course differs from the traditional approach in the following ways: (1) the course is based on 47 competencies a team of corporate managers…

This guide describes the framework designed to help schools in Idaho to develop vocational-technical education curricula and programs that address the training needs of employers and students. The framework was developed by a team of industry and educational personnel, encompassing six goals that reflect the expectations of industry as outlined in…

A project was conducted in Texas to update office education curriculum based on previously developed workplace outcomes and integration of competencies identified by the Secretary's Commission on Achieving Necessary Skills (SCANS). One course, Business Computer Applications I, was chosen as the model for the project. During the project, activities…

Outcome-based education (OBE) means clearly focusing and organizing everything in an educational system around what is essential for all students to be able to do successfully at the end of their learning experiences. This book examines the issues critical to understanding and implementing OBE. Chapter 1 addresses a range of issues related to the…

In light of the increasing diversity of students and the sweeping changes involved in the inclusion movement, many special education administrators in small and rural districts are not prepared to face the emerging challenges and responsibilities of their role. The Institute for Small and Rural Districts was established in 1990 by the Florida…