VOCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY DEPARTMENT

Long Range Objectives:

To provide students with a comprehensive, educational foundation that promotes the development of lifelong learners and productive citizens. To help students develop and improve the skills they will need in school, personal life, and on the job through simulation and many computer-based instructions. To provide an educational environment that supports individual learning differences and values the diverse cultural experiences of all students. To recognize the lowest 250, ESOL, and ESE students by providing more individualized teacher assistance.

Action Activities:

Business Technology - Worksheets, projects, computer use; computing balances; filling out deposit slips; writing checks; maintaining a check register; reconciling bank statements; figuring discounts, sales tax, interest rates; payroll deductions, net pay, gross pay, totaling payroll register, overtime and regular earnings; utilizing word processing software for career research, letter writing, etc.; integrating word processing with database, spreadsheet, and presentation applications; building business vocabulary/terminology; reading comprehension through text & handout activities; exploration of business and computer careers.

Home and Family Consumer Science - Worksheets, projects, hands-on; reading a ruler/yard stick for patterns in sewing projects; conversion of measurements for recipes and cooking; comparison shopping and budgets; understanding metric lengths; consumer science careers and vocabulary, actual cooking and sewing; preparing logs for weekly menus; preparing a budget and/or savings; solving realistic situations through simulation and discussion; making family trees, collages demonstrating knowledge of health concerns, lab safety, importance of family
 

Graphic Communications - Worksheets, projects, computer use; understanding metric designs; metric length, weight and volume; reading measurements, reading a ruler for building and drawing projects; design layouts for silk screens, advertisements, signs, paper airplanes, race cars, hot air balloons, kites, bridges; CADS application; graphics & drafting career exploration; lab safety; building graphic communications vocabulary and reading comprehension

Exploring the Internet/Intro to Computers - Worksheets, projects, computer and Internet use; computer history and terminology; computer literacy; computer-based learning; software, hardware, flowcharts, programming; word processing, database, spreadsheet, presentation software; using and exploring the Internet; reading and writing using computers; reading comprehension and persuasive and expository writing.
 

All of the above action activities will have a time frame of August through June. The Vocational Technology Dept. will include all of the following action activities to help improve reading and writing across the curriculum:

• Prompts that relate to our particular curriculums (expository or persuasive essays)
• Video summary (see example attached form) whenever video is shown
• Research paper on topics of individual teacher choices which relate to their course (examples: research a career of your choice; history of the computer or typewriter or Internet; entrepreneurship; fashion design, interior design, chefs, dieticians)

After any reading activity, questions will be generated for students to discuss or answer. All questions will be designed to get students to use critical thinking, understanding of terminology as used in the content of the reading assignment, following directions, and reading for complete comprehension. Students will write expository essays on the contributions made by Hispanic Americans for this country (Oct.- Nov.) "Black Excellence: The Entrepreneurs" write persuasive essays on why should or should not Black history be celebrated in February (February) Sample prompts to be used by Vocational Technology Department:

• Convince congress on why or why not place a woman on one of the denomination of U.S. currency
• Using many forms of money write and explain how you paid for a vacation
• Explain why you prefer cooking versus sewing
• What is the importance of following safety rules in Vocational Technology Labs. Explain
• Explain your view on the good or bad of the Internet

• Convince your parents on using or not using filtering software that restrict certain Internet sites

Explain or convince teachers that having hands-on types of activities are better for retaining information than lecturing, reading or writing Explain why math, reading, science and critical thinking are a part of all subjects.

LINKS

                            Developing Math Skills                Vocational Technology Department Video Summary