Success is getting up one more time than you fall down. 

*******************************************************************************

Career Management Success

Syllabus

Course Description

Career Management Success is a core course for career clusters. The course provides students with the tools for achieving success in their academic, work, and personal lives. Career Management Success at MCHS is a classroom and lab course.  The first nine weeks is spent in the Fast ForWord lab and the second nine weeks is spent in the classroom.

Fast ForWord is a computer based language processing and reading program.  In the lab the students play phonics-based video games for 50 minutes each day.  These games increase auditory language processing, listening comprehension, reading comprehension, short-term memory, focus and attention span.  MCHS has documented reading gains of as much as 4 grade levels in 9 weeks.  The average gain is 1 grade level in 9 weeks.

The classroom portion of the course emphasizes the basic skills and knowledge needed for personal and employment success, as identified by industry and supported by relevant national standards.  All course content is presented in a real-world context, providing concrete opportunities for developing personal and career goals, effective communication skills, teamwork abilities, and successful work attitudes.

Goals

    1. The students will be introduced to and provided opportunities to demonstrate the
        attitudes, skills and strategies necessary for acheiving personal, academic and
        workplace success.

    2. The students will explore their own skills, values, interests and strengths and weaknesses
        so as to make better life choices.

    3. The students will be introduced to and explore the citizenship, teamwork, leadership and
        general employability skills required for success at school, in the community and in the
        workplace.

    4. The students will be introduced to the concepts of general safety for both the school and
        the workplace.

    5. The students will work to increase their listening and reding comprehension skills, so as to
        improve their chances of personal, academic and professional success.

    6. The students will explore problem solving techniques and strategies.

Grading System

    1. Fast ForWord Portion of the Course: 
        The student will receive two grades during the nine weeks in the FFW lab.  These grades
        will be assessed at 4.5 weeks and at 9 weeks.  These 2 grades will then be averaged
        together for the nine weeks grade.  These grades will be based solely on performance        
        and will reflect the amount of time actually spent working and will not be dependant on    
        how far the student gets in the software.  If the student comes to class and completes
        all six exercises each day, the minimum grade will be a "B".

    2. Classroom Portion of Course:
        The student's grade in the classroom comes from the various personal assessments and
        assignments that are required.  Grades are developed using a Total Points system.  On
        almost all assignments, students answers will vary so grades are assigned based on
        apparent effort, whether or not all parts of the question are answered and whether or
        not the answer actually fits the question.  The only students who do poorly in this
        portion of the course are those who refuse to do their work.

Rules

    1. All of the Shelby County Schools rules and policies and MCHS rules will be enforced in
        both the lab and the classroom.

    2. In addition to these common rules there are some General Safety rules that are part
        of the course and they will be enforced at all times.

    3. There are also some specific rules that apply to the FFW Lab.  These rules are
        designed to protect the lab and to help provide the optimal benefit for every student
        that participates in the lab.

Course Content

    1st Nine Weeks
            1. Fast ForWord Program

    2nd Nine Weeks

            1. General Safety

          2. Who Are You?
              - Learning Styles Assessment
              - Skills Assessment
              - Interest Assessment
              - Values Assessment
              - Strengths and Weaknesses

          3. What do you Want Out of Life?
              - Defining Success
              - Hopes and Dreams
              - Choosing a Career That Fits

          4. How Do You Get There?
              - Choices
              - Decision Making Style
              - Setting Goals
              - Problem Solving
              - Financial Planning
              - Time Management
              - Balancing Your Life
              - Workplace Ethics
              - Teamwork
              - Networking
              - Job Applications
              - Resumes
              - The Interview
              - Keeping the Job

        5. What Holds You Back?    
              - Encountering Obstacles
              - People Who Overcame
              - What is Your Excuse?