Comparing Vocational-Technical Curricula to Other Disciplines ACED 7030 Curriculum Issues in Adult and Career Education

What are the characteristics of vocational/technical education... Students?? Faculty?? Curriculum? What do you think? Go to the discussion board and describe the typical characteristics of each of these entities at your institution. Go to the discussion board and describe the typical characteristics of each of these entities at your institution.

Let’s look at some curriculum characteristics... n Orientation –Generally product or graduate-oriented. –Primary outcome goes beyond the classroom n Justification –Must be justified for curricular relevancy and funding –This is an on-going process n Focus –Knowledge, Skills, and Attitudes n In-school success standards –True assessment is through “hands-on”, not abstract testing –Must be aligned with “on-the-job-performance” n Out-of-school success standards –Determination of success depends on performance in work setting –Often depend on industry expectations or licensing requirements For a full description of these items, see Chapter One in your text.

Let’s look at a few more characteristics... n School-workplace-community relationships –Partnerships are often a critical component –There are numerous “customers” of the organization n Federal involvement –Began officially in 1917 –Often tied to funds n Responsiveness –Must be responsive to change, especially technological change –Retraining has become a major component n Logistics –Often complex and time consuming –Sometimes may be a barrier that prevents successful implementation n Expense –Often involves much $$$! –Maintenance and upgrades are a constant expense –The reason that many private schools can’t offer a varied course offering For a full description of these items, see Chapter One in your text.

How do these characteristics affect instruction, certification, and stability of the programs?? Just think about the impact on these things.

What are the implications for curriculum developers? Vocational-Technical curricula must be… n Data-based n Dynamic n Explicit in its outcomes n Fully articulated n Realistic n Student-oriented n Evaluation-conscious n Future-oriented n World class-focused Crunkilton & Finch-1999 Be sure to check out the “Concept Paper” assignment on these implications.

And that’s it! Let me know if you have any questions on this lesson or any of the assignments. Be sure to visit the website for assignments related to this lesson.