Back to the Basics: Basic Skills

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Back to the Basics Basic Skills
LeadershipCCCAOE 2007 Fall ConferenceOctober
10 12, 2007

• English at Work
• Responding to Hospitality and Healthcare Training
  Needs
• Presenters
• Cuyamaca College
• Jennifer Lewis, Alicia Muñoz, Tonette Salter

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• If we are together nothing is impossible.
• Winston Churchill

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English at Work Project

• Regional Collaborative
• Partnering with Employers

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Healthcare

• Community Clinics
• Long Term Care
• Acute Care
• Healthcare Associations

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Hospitality

• Casinos
• Restaurant Associations
• Restaurant Chains
• Hotels

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• Why is the need for ESL important in the
  workplace?

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Employers Responses

• To reduce communication problems with colleagues
  and supervisors
• To improve an understanding of safety issues
• To advance on the job
• To understand workplace culture

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What is VESL?

• An acronym for Vocational English as a Second
  Language.
• Offers English learners the opportunity to
  simultaneously acquire language and workplace
  skills.
• Focuses on the specific language skills that
  English learners will encounter within a specific
  career field.

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Industry Needs

• Communication Skills employees who can
  communicate effectively with all the players in a
  workplace setting.
• Workplace Culture employees who understand
  policies and procedures, from calling in sick,
  requesting schedule changes, to reporting
  workplace injuries.
• Career Laddering companies wish to develop the
  employees they already have.
• Health and Safety employees who practice safety
  procedures that promote a safe working
  environment.
• Liability issues communication difficulties are
  potential liabilities for an employer

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Healthcare
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Hospitality
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Employee Needs

• Employees want to move up the career ladder but
  their lack of language skills prevents them from
  advancing within the company structure.
• Employees encounter difficulties communicating
  with their supervisors, co-workers, and/or guests.

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Curriculum

• Curriculum means different things to different
  people.
• Some feel that a course outline, instructional
  support materials, or a textbook is curriculum.
• We took a different spin.
• Our goal was to create a foundation that could be
  used by any program or any ESL instructor in the
  state of California.

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Team of Experts

• Formed a team of subject matter experts who
  represented each of the colleges in Region 10.
• We had the unique opportunity to go out to the
  industry and experience the workplace.
• This experience was instrumental in developing a
  curriculum that was contextual to the workplace.
• This team is now developing curriculum and
  additional expertise that they will bring back to
  their colleges.

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Lessons Learned

• Importance of industry site visits
• When developing curriculum that is destined for
  the workplace, its critical to conduct a site
  visit to understand the environment, refine
  vocabulary, and provide context for the
  curriculum.
• Curriculum needs to fit workplace needs
• Curriculum needs to fit the needs of the
  workplace (e.g. time constraints vs. time on task
  for language learning.)
• Establish links with HR

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Flexible Courses

• Modularized curriculum in response to industry
  needs.
• Short lessons that are part of larger modules,
  but can stand alone.
• Employers or institutions can pick and choose
  units from various modules that fit their
  training needs.

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Curriculum Foundations

• Evaluation

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Curriculum Foundations

• Student Workbook

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Curriculum Foundations

• Leaders Guide

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Supporting Colleges Unique Needs

• Noncredit
• Credit (non-degree applicable)
• Contract Education

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Regional Marketing Challenges

• Local efforts vs. regional efforts
• Types of regional marketing that work
• Website
• Brochure
• Ads
• Presentations to trade organizations/Industry
  groups

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Benefits

• Primary Recruitment
• Secondary (1) Retention
• (2) Industry Partnership Development
• How can programs like English-At-Work help
  support Tech Prep program at YOUR Community
  College?

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• What Tech Prep programs
• on your campus could utilize the
• English at Work model?

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Contact Information

• Jennifer Lewis
• Cuyamaca College
• 619-660-4570
• jennfier.lewis_at_gcccd.edu

• Alicia Muñoz
• Cuyamaca College
• 619-660-4230
• alicia.munoz_at_gcccd.edu

• Tonette Salter
• Cuyamaca College
• 619-660-4558
• tonette.salter_at_gcccd.edu