Unit Overview:  BestWorks03-04

Unit Description

Materials

 

This unit is the academic component of a larger BESTWorks  (Older Youth) program in collaboration with The Franklin Hampshire Career Center (who provided a career counselor and a broad variety of resources, job exploration activities/experiences, and one-on-one coaching), Greenfield Community College (who provided a SERVSAFE training along with additional resources and support),The Young Entrepreneur Society (who provided a Financial Training Seminar that culminated with a Field Trip to New York City), and Franklin Technical High School (who provided high quality professional kitchen training culminating in participants preparing and serving a multi-course sit down meal).

 

The main goal was to become more intentional about incorporating "Job Readiness" activities into the GED classroom while focusing on GED learning activities relevant to food preparation and the hospitality industry.  Therefore, along with resume preparation, we chose to focus on concepts related to "Measurement" and "Bacteria and Viruses" as they related to food safety.  The latter was a topic that could be continued into a broader exploration of cell structures & functions and systems for classifying life on earth.

 

 

The Resume Guide (Massachusetts One-Stop Career Centers)

  Your Job Search Journal (Massachusetts Division of Employment and Training

Massachusetts Career Information System http://www.masscis.intocareers.org/

http://www.fhyouth.org/choosingacareer.htm

Steck-Vaughn Complete GED Preparation 2002

Glencoe Essential Mathematics for Life Series (Fourth Edition)

(Various teacher prepared resource materials and resources found on the World Wide Web

 

 

 

Frameworks Standards

Primary:   SELF MANAGEMENT - Accurately assess self, set personal goals, monitor progress & exhibit self control (Personal Qualities)

Secondary: Math: Measurement - make & use exact & estimated measurements to describe & compare phenomena (Geometry and Spatial Sense)

Additional: Science/Technology: Create connections between building blocks & complexity in our natural in designed world (Similarity and Diversity)

 

Assessment Methods

Students assessed the class activities on a daily basis.

They were provided with Monthly Progress Reports.

All learners are subjected to the Test of Adult Basic Education approximately every four months.

Bestworks participants were required to prepare and complete a Resume.  They were assessed on promptness and responsibility for accounting for their time and absences.  The entire BESTWorks program was constructed in stages: Job Readiness and Resume Preparation, Job Training at the Tech School Kitchen, Job Exploration through Structured Experiences and Internships.  Participants had to convince the Career Counselor (in interview situations) that their commitment (partially demonstrated by completed written work as well as attendance and promptness) that they were ready to move on to the next step.

 

Comments and Reflections on the Curriculum Frameworks

We actually incorporated the  SCANS standards into our classroom programming in the course of doing BESTWorks. Primary standards might also have  been: " SCANS: DECISION MAKING - Specify goals & constraints, generate alternatives, consider risks, evaluate & choose best alternative (Thinking  Skills)" or  "SCANS: PROBLEM SOLVING - Recognize problems, devise & implement plans of action (Thinking Skills)"

There was a priority placed on integrating the Job Readiness skills into an ongoing GED curriculum.  Other units were happening at the same time such  as "The History of Scientific Thought", reading and analyzing the US constitution, and ongoing math practice

 

Practitioner Professional Development Activities

5/26/2004 - Teaching Job Readiness in the ABE Classroom - Martha Oesch presented lots of activities and resources supporting her thesis that "Job Readiness" skill building is really inherent in the work of any GED/ABE classroom.  We looked at SCANS and EFF competencies and how they are  already integrated into our work along with how we could be more intentional about developing and assessing those skills.

3/10/2004 - Bringing the Culture of Work to the GED classroom - Offered at A Conference for Workforce Development Professionals: Building Skills~Sharing Connections at the Worcester Centrum.

3/10/2004 - Effective Outreach and Assessment - Offered at A Conference for Workforce Development Professionals: Building Skills~Sharing Connections at the Worcester Centrum.

10/23/2003 - The Massachusetts Workforce Development System - NETWORK 2003  ----   LWIBS, SWIBS, WIA's . . .  and what they mean to us.  I did find out that ABE is supposed to be represented on the local WIA board.

10/23/2003 - New England ABE to College Transition Project - NETWORK 2003  ----   Presented a very commonsense approach towards structuring  GED classes so that they maximize learning opportunities for learners with college ambitions. Wednesday, July 30, 2003 - WIA Bestworks Training - Jim Parcells, Hollyn, and Eva Roberts shared the newest information and got us started thinking in terms of curriculum development, program creation, collaborative protocols.

4/9/2003 - Strengthening Your Case Management System - Bi-Level Case Management is both "Client Centered" and "Systems Oriented".  The intention  is that front line workers clearly understand the services they are empowered to offer, that senior management develops protocols for interagency

 

Follow-up Activities

Studies of bacteria and viruses continued on into ongoing studies of the Cell and Life Classification systems.  Charboneau Learning Center is in the process of incorporating Job and College portfolios into regular classroom programming.  We also successfully applied for Community Block Grant funds to hire a Youth Transitions worker to continue building bridges between our GED program and college or work.  We have also applied for a Distance  Learning grant to further incorporate transitions preparation and planning into GED preparation.

 

Class and Lesson Review

Wednesday, September 10, 2003          1 ASE Morning            8 Learners present.                               3.25 hours

  --Factors affecting production, distribution and consumption (Production, Distribution, & Consumption)      Analyze and explain computation procedures and how operations are related (esp. reversibility of operations) (Number Relationships & Computation) 

Math and BestWorks (prep)

Sarah worked through a word problem (converting months to years) that had to be solved with long division.   Lots of discussion about WHY long division would solve that problem but multiplication would not. (How many years in 288 months?)

Eva did an overview of BestWorks and people shared their work values, aspirations, and strategies for succeeding in the world.  Good discussion about "JobReadiness" and what that implies

 

Monday, October 06, 2003                  1 ASE Morning            6 Learners present.                               3.25 hours

  --Means and varieties of civic participation (Power, Authority, & Participation)  Develop writing vocabulary (Writing) Develop reading Vocabulary (Reading)  Recognize there is not always a "right" answer (Critical Thinking)  

The Vision and Mission of The Literacy Project as an agency.

Before looking at Vision and Mission Statements prepared by the agency's long term planning committee, learners did cold writing and discussion on the following topics:

Why are you here at TLP?   What should TLP do for you?   Why is TLP in the community?  What should TLP BE for the community? (emphasis on the final question)

Some responses:

>[TLP] gives people without high school diploma a chance to get educated and go to college. TLP shouldn't try to do too much more than that

>localized - close to home with a convenient location

>a place to help people reach their goals

>A place where people are helped to overcome barriers (ex. scheduling, anxiety) to coming to school and getting an education

>A place where people can change their ideas and views to get better opportunities

>A place that helps learners communicated better with bosses, family, and friends

>A place to learn and to better lives so that new opportunities can come to them

>A place that has no discrimination

>A place where there are no cliques (like high school - TLP is easier than high school)

>THIS (the material and goals in the documents) has been going on over the years (at TLP:  it is not just "talk")

>A place that keeps people on tracks with all studies.

>Education and good jobs make individuals and families happy, proud, and more independent.

Some vocabulary words: collaboration, locale, equitable, stigma, remote, infuse, methodologies.

 

Tuesday, October 07, 2003                 2 Bestworks                2 Learners present.                                  2 hours

  --  Express thoughts in writing (Writing)   Recognize there is not always a "right" answer (Critical Thinking)  

Introduction to BestWorks

Eva gave an overview of the program

Joe went through a writing activity involving goals and strategies.

Kate was a participant observer.

 

 

 

Tuesday, October 14, 2003                 2 Bestworks                1 Learners present.                                  2 hours

  --   Develop reading Vocabulary (Reading)    how everything is made up of a small number of building blocks (Similarity and Diversity)

Values and Career Decisions:

Eva did an activity to help identify one's "Ideal Job".

Joe did an activity centered on identifying and classifying "Values" (Personal, Cultural, Social, and Work values)

 

Tuesday, October 21, 2003                 2 Bestworks                2 Learners present.                                  2 hours

  --        ORGANIZE AND MAINTAIN INFORMATION (Information (Acquiring and Using))

Recruiting help and Identifying Interests

Joe lead the pair through a writing and thinking exercise based on "Who WILL help them reach their goals" and "Whose help is NEEDED"  along with  strategies for recruiting the right kind of help.  (ASKING for help", "Working with the people who might help you", and "Being ready to accept help" were  what the pair identified.

Eva lead the group through an interest inventory associated with many types of working conditions that are found out there in the career world.

 

  Tuesday, October 28, 2003                2 Bestworks                2 Learners present.                                  2 hours

  --     Use appropriate tools for gathering information (Critical Thinking)   ACQUIRE AND EVALUATE INFORMATION (Information (Acquiring and Using))

Jim Parcells showed us the Franklin Hampshire Youth website with its links to the Countdown Career Resource Network that allowed learners to do an  interest inventory online and then use it to learn a lot about Career clusters, job outlooks, working conditions etc.

We also looked at other features on the FHYouth website that had links to similar information for Massachusetts along with information on Job Hunting,  resume and cover letter writing, and interviewing "Do's and  Don'ts".

 

Tuesday, November 04, 2003               2 Bestworks                4 Learners present.                                  2 hours

  --  Express thoughts in writing (Writing)      USE COMPUTERS TO PROCESS INFORMATION (Information (Acquiring and Using))

Brief writing activity.

Defined the word "Hospitality".

Spent more time in the Career Assessment Websites

 

Tuesday, November 11, 2003               2 Bestworks                2 Learners present.                                  2 hours

  --     Distinguish between fact & opinion (Critical Thinking)   PROBLEM SOLVING - Recognize problems, devise & implement plans of action (Thinking Skills)

Problem Solving:  We used a scenario to introduce a 5 step model of Decision Making/Problem Solving.  Then we applied that model to a job/supervision problem.

The 5 step model was . . .

1 See the Situation Clearly

2 Know what You Want

3 Expand the possibilities

4 Evaluate and Decide

5 Act (Make an action plan)

 

Tuesday, November 18, 2003               2 Bestworks                6 Learners present.                                  2 hours

  --    Follow complex oral directions (Oral Communication)    SELF MANAGEMENT - Accurately assess self, set personal goals, monitor progress & exhibit self control (Personal Qualities)

Clifford Hatch gave a demonstration of basic cold prep techniques with a special emphasis on decorative garniture.  The group made garnishes with tomatoes, lemons, mushrooms, onions and apples with the tomato roses, the onion water lilies, and the apple birds of paradise being the highlight.

He also talked about breaking into the restaurant business (he didn't need his college degree) along with a lot of inside information about how different kitchens are run.  He also specifically talked about the career ladder: many start as dishwashers and then move up into cold prep.  From then he got experience at a lot of different establishments doing different things like baking before becoming an sous chef, and then a head chef.

The restaurant business is for people that can deal with the long hours, working nights and holidays, working fast and under pressure, and going frequently from very hot areas to very cold areas.

There were actually 11 learners present to watch and participate, but only 6 were enrolled in BestWorks.

It was a very successful demonstration and activity.   We now have a lot of tomato roses, onion lilies, and apple birds for our Turkey Thanksgiving this Thursday

 

Monday, November 24, 2003               1 ASE Morning            7 Learners present.                               3.25 hours

  --        SELF-ESTEEM - Believe in own self-worth & maintain positive view of self (Personal Qualities)

Resumes:

The Organizing Questions were: "What experiences bring value to your life?"  & "What experiences have you had that will be useful to your future?"   We spent some time expanding the words "value" (useful, meaningful, leading to skills and learning) and "experience" (job, volunteer, educational, life, hobbies, etc)  People made lists and discussed how one experience could be broken down into many other types of experiences.  We also started talking about skills - and ways of presenting experiences most effectively and positively.

 

Tuesday, November 25, 2003               1 ASE Morning            9 Learners present.                                  4 hours

  --How cultures vary and change (Cultures & Identities)     Recognize how medium affects message (Critical Thinking)  

The Industrial Revolution in Holyoke MA

Field Trip to "Between the Canals: The Evolution of a Mill Town in Holyoke http://www.enchantedcircletheater.com/html/canals.html

15 learners from Charboneau (representing all classes) attended with Greenfield Even Start learners & Staff along with a large contingent from Ware.   

Portrayed were Theodore. Lyman's original proposal to Boston capitalists to purchase land in South Hadley Falls for a planned industrial community using dams and canal to harness the power of the Connecticut along the model of Lowell.  It also portrayed immigrants from Ireland and Quebec, working & health conditions (including cholera and smallpox outbreaks), child labor, the labor movement etc.

 

  Monday, December 01, 2003              1 ASE Morning            8 Learners present.                               3.25 hours

  --  Recognize and use appropriate formats and genres (Writing)      UNDERSTANDS SYSTEMS -  Social, organizational & technical systems - and operating effectively with them (Systems (Understanding Complex Relationships)

Resumes:

We looked at a model of a Functional Resume and pointed to things we liked and didn't like.  The most important thing to notice is that there are MANY kinds of resumes.  (This is only a model of ONE kind) .  Everyone has a lot of choices about what should go on their resume and how to present it.   The information on a resume should be arranged and formatted to make the best possible impression on an employer.

 

Tuesday, December 02, 2003               2 Bestworks                5 Learners present.                                  2 hours

  --  Awareness and control of tone & style (Writing)  Communicate complex ideas clearly (Oral Communication) Recognize formal & informal systems (Critical Thinking)   WRITING - Communicate thoughts, ideas & information in writing; Create documents (letters, directions, reports, graphs) (Basic Skills)

The Interview (and Thank You letters) and Marketing

As a warm-up Eva introduced her "Marketing 101" activity where learners chose a small toy and did their best to "market" it to the class.  People gave feedback and related the various approaches to a job search and an interview.

We also discussed the various reasons for sending "thank you' notes and looked at some models before starting to write our thank you's to Clifford Hatch. 

We decided that he would get individual letters and that we would also write a group letter to Patricia Crosby for helping to facilitate the Cold Prep demo.

 

Thursday, December 04, 2003             1 ASE Morning            9 Learners present.                               3.25 hours

  --How cultures vary and change (Cultures & Identities)  Develop writing vocabulary (Writing) Develop reading Vocabulary (Reading)    

The Industrial Revolution (and 19th Century Overview)

Nate started the class by having them write brief paragraphs about the Industrial Revolution. Most of them related to the early part of the Industrial Revolution and the need for mills and factories to be near waterways for water power.

We then looked at the 19th Century under our headings of "The Industrial Revolution", "The Development of Liberal Democracies",  "The Rise of Modern Ideologies" and "Colonial Imperialism" - and decided to focus more on the Industrial Revolution which got us into the topics of "Interchangeable Parts, Eli Whitney, and the Springfield Armory (we noted how many associated gun factories like Colt, Smith & Wesson, and Winchester were associated with the Armory development).

We also talked about population moving from farms to cities in the 19th century and then from cities to suburbs in the 20th century.

The topic of Capitalism came up along with a little about "Communism" and "Liberalism"

 

Monday, December 08, 2003               1 ASE Morning            8 Learners present.                               3.25 hours

  --  Develop writing vocabulary (Writing) Develop reading Vocabulary (Reading)  Develop a realistic sense of oneself with regards to our society   ORGANIZE AND MAINTAIN INFORMATION (Information (Acquiring and Using))

Resumes:

Looked at another template/model from the Franklin/Hampshire Youth Website designed especially for youth without a lot of job experience.  We also compared that approach with choice Nate made on his resume.  People are really becoming aware that there are a LOT of formats and choices when making a resume.

 

Tuesday, December 09, 2003               1 ASE Morning            10 Learners present.                             3.25 hours

  --Dynamics between various systems (Systems)  Develop writing vocabulary (Writing) Develop reading Vocabulary (Reading)    

Split Class:

Discussion/Brainstorm:  Why should Tax money pay for adult education?  We put into words how better educated people make better workers, taxpayers, and customers (because they have more money!).   Education leads to progress in two ways:  Individuals develop their own potential . . . AND society as a whole has better ideas to reduce bad things like poverty etc.

(We also talked a bit about Bestworks for older youth, and  the employment counseling needs of older learners.)

Some learners went on a BestWorks field trip to the Clarion Hotel and Conference Center in Northampton.

The rest combined with Louise's class and read News For You and did a crossword puzzle.

 

Tuesday, December 09, 2003               2 Bestworks                5 Learners present.                                  2 hours

  --  Learn strategies for organization (Writing)      WRITING - Communicate thoughts, ideas & information in writing; Create documents (letters, directions, reports, graphs) (Basic Skills)

Review, Consider,  and Write

Reviewed and analyzed our morning field trip to the Clarion Hotel and Conference Center to learn more about the hospitality career ladder and to write a better thank you note.

We wrote a group "thank you" note with every learner contributing one sentence.  Then one learner typed it up while another came up with a group letter head.  Everybody also finished their thank you notes to Cliff Hatch.

 

  Tuesday, December 16, 2003             2 Bestworks                2 Learners present.                                  2 hours

  --Complexity of managing and resolving conflict (Conflict & Resolution)        Managing TIME - Select goal-relevant activities & rank them, allocate time, prepare & follow schedules (Resource Skills (Organizing, Planning & Allocating)

Job Readiness Concepts: Review and Overview

Discussion on the advantages and pragmatics of "Thank You" notes.   (Some people really put a lot of pressure on themselves in a way that makes it hard for them to move forward, but experience, practice, good habits and maturity can make a big difference here over time).

Eva put a lot of stress on the importance of excellent attendance for the Culinary Arts workshops at the Tech schools.  We also looked over the calendar for scheduled classes and holidays & vacations.

Eva had a review sheet which brought up many topics such as decision making, goal setting, conflict resolution, scheduling etc. (There were several excellent cases from jobs we have had that offered insight into problem solving and conflict resolution).

 

 

Monday, January 05, 2004                  1 ASE Morning            7 Learners present.                               1.75 hours

  --  Learn strategies for organization (Writing)      SELF MANAGEMENT - Accurately assess self, set personal goals, monitor progress & exhibit self control (Personal Qualities)

A New Year!

Looked over some of the projects and initiative we have to deal with: Moving to a new site;  Job Readiness & BestWorks;  and Portfolios and Resumes. 

(We also identified finishing up the Scientific Thought Unit.)

Resumes:  Looked at a template and discussed the use of a resume as a "Marketing Tool".  People then worked individually on their own resume with lots of help from Eva.

(The Greenfield Schools had a delay so that is reflected in the hours for this class -so as not to penalize anyone.  Because enough people showed up, we did start the actual class activities pretty much on time).

 

Monday, January 12, 2004                  1 ASE Morning            11 Learners present.                             3.25 hours

  --  Awareness of rules for grammar and mechanics (Writing)   Recognize how medium affects message (Critical Thinking)   SELF-ESTEEM - Believe in own self-worth & maintain positive view of self (Personal Qualities)

Resumes: people worked independently with help from the instructors and volunteers

 

Tuesday, January 13, 2004                 2 Bestworks                3 Learners present.                                  2 hours

  --  Learn strategies for organization (Writing)   Recognize how medium affects message (Critical Thinking)   RESPONSIBILITY - Exert high level of effort & persevere toward goal attainment (Personal Qualities)

Job Readiness and Resumes.

Eva went the rationales and implications for CALLING when you are going to miss a session.  She also helped people orient themselves to the Culinary Arts and Job Readiness workshops.

People then worked on their resumes, typing them into a word processor and making changes, enhancements and corrections.

 

Wednesday, January 14, 2004             1 ASE Morning            14 Learners present.                             3.25 hours

  --      Compute with whole numbers, fractions, decimals & integers using appropriate algorithms and a variety of techniques (Number Relationships & Computation) Recognize & communicate specific examples of how order & organizations is used by scientists & in daily life (Order and Organization) Participate as a TEAM MEMBER - Contribute to group effort (Interpersonal Skills (Working with Others))

Reducing Recipes  (Dividing whole numbers and mixed numbers)

Dividing by 2 is the same as multiplying by 1/2

We practiced many strategies for dividing by 2 or multiplying by 1/2 and thereby reduced the recipes for Cream Sauce, Barbecue Sauce and Giblet Gravy.

We also spent some time on denominators, common denominators, and least common denominators.

You can NOT compare, add, or subtract fractions unless they have a common denominator.

 

  Thursday, January 15, 2004              1 ASE Morning            12 Learners present.                             3.25 hours

  --  Express thoughts in writing (Writing)      Participate as a TEAM MEMBER - Contribute to group effort (Interpersonal Skills (Working with Others))