C.A.R.A

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

C.A.R.A.

Joseph Percevecz

EDCI 517: Reading & Learning in K-12 Content Areas

Dr. Mario Campanaro

December 7, 2014

Content Area Resource Anthology

  1. Introduction
  2. Poems
  3. Books
  4. Informational Articles
  5. Websites
  6. Inquiry-Based Learning Assessment
  7. Why
  8. References

I

Introduction

Content Area Resource Anthology; sounds like an odd collection of words.

Content; that which is inside of something.

Area; originally a Latin reference to an open space of level ground, but here referring to a field of study.

Resource; something one can access or tap into when the need arises, a well or fount of knowledge, information or supply.

Anthology; the literal meaning, a gathering of flowers, but most often referring to a collection of poems, or other works of art that share something in common. Were it not for the study of education this odd collection of words would be quite confusing together, but as an educator one must have an area of expertise, a content area, a subject of one’s choosing to study and teach. Teachers never have enough resources and any good teacher has a file full of additional resources to help with every class and this brings us to my very first anthology of teacher tools, resources and ideas about the art and science of teaching.

My chosen content area is marketing. Marketing and advertising require a certain level of expertise in the use of language. Let’s face it the correct use (and misuse) of language is what makes or breaks a great ad campaign. (Got milk?) So to teach marketing, I must also be able to teach English language arts. Marketing is the engine that drives business, so as a marketing teacher, I must be able to teach business. Business is driven by profit, without a profit any business loses its’ reason for existence. So to teach business one must be able to teach accounting because the accounting process defines the cost of doing business from what could be called profit. Part of the cost of doing business is the cost of government regulations and taxes. Government regulation and taxes happen to be placed on businesses by city, county, state and national government agencies and add to the cost of doing business. As a marketing, English language arts, business teacher I must also address social studies, history, civics and the role of government as it relates to business overhead. Math is at the heart of the accountant, so as a marketing teacher I must teach English language arts, business, history, civics, government, accounting and I must also be fluent in math.

Since I have been asked to choose a topic to research, investigate and teach, I would like to start with the most basic of all marketing tasks, the resume. Marketing oneself is the beginning of a college career or the first step into the working world. Before anyone can create a resume they must first come to grips with who they are and have some semblance of where they are going. Let’s get started!

 

II

Poems

Robert Frost, The road not taken

This poem will be used as an introduction to resume writing. The class discussion will cover Robert Frost’s use of metaphor and a conversation about choices, the consequences of those choices and how we make decisions when faced with a fork in the road of life.

Class activity; Facilitate a class discussion about choices, past choices they may have already faced and future choices they may be facing sooner or later. Once we have a list of choices on the board, make a column for consequences and have a class discussion about the consequences of each choice listed. A resume is a compilation of the choices made in the past and explanation of a desired choice of direction in the future. The resume is designed to get you the interview for a job or the college of your choice. The most fundamental marketing task is to learn how to market yourself and your unique skillset and experience.

Introspection and an understanding of yourself, your strengths and weaknesses are paramount to being able to articulate clearly and concisely in a resume. A resume and cover letter are ideally no more than two or three pages and the only time it is appropriate to “toot your own horn” or brag about your skills and accomplishments. Reggie Jackson is quoted as saying “It ain’t braggin’ if you can do it.” So make sure all you have to say on your resume is factual and a correct representation of you, not just bragging about what you think you can do.

Be yourself, by Ellen Bailey is a poem to help each student step back and have an honest look at the unique skillset and life experience they each bring to this writing assignment. This is simply a reading and contemplation assignment.

Since this is a writing assignment about cover letters and resumes and it is critical that they be free of typos and grammatical errors I feel it would be appropriate to spend a few moments visiting with a professional writer, poet, slam poet champion and former teacher, Taylor Mali and discuss the importance of proofreading.

III

Books

Amazon.com is full of book titles that provide tips and strategies to write effective resumes and cover letters for every specific demographic or job title, but for a high school or college student preparing to write their very first resume and cover letter there are a few book titles I think will be a good foundation of information and advice. First let’s introduce the wise words of Dale Carnegie and his classic best seller, How to win friends and influence people. Next another classic that every high school student should read, Og Mandino’s, The greatest salesman in the world, and finally Zig Ziglar’s, How to be a winner. All three of these are available in audio format on YouTube and the last two are short enough to be presented in two or three class periods, or all three could be part of a flipped classroom assignment to listen for homework and prepare for classroom discussion afterwards.

IV

Informational Articles

LinkedIn is supposed to be the online resume and business networking site for working professionals and a place to start and finish your career search. Business experts and recruiting professionals offer both free and paid for advice and services related to job search, resume and cover letter writing. Liz Ryan is the CEO and Founder of Human Workplace and is a LinkedIn Influencer. She recently posted an article titled, The five deadliest resumes mistakes (& how to fix them). Liz Ryan both writes and illustrates her articles and this one would make for a great read aloud in class or even a patterned partner reading.

Self-help books are famous for three steps to success, or the seven habits of, kind of titles and the articles can be quite similar, so Gail Forbes a Senior IT Recruiter for VIDALITY decided to compile a list of all the great resume advice in one place. 60 Resume writing tips hopes to get all the answers in one place and would easily be a read aloud article for class.

Gianna Rico isn’t a seasoned human resources professional or even a career professional of any kind, but she is a very inspiring new deputy communications director for a company called Opia Talk, a job she just landed and wrote, The unconventional cover letter that got me a job. Another very easy read aloud article from a recent college graduate that will be sure to inspire.

 

V

Websites

The Internet is chock full of interesting web sites, but finding web sites that are actually full of useful information is another subject altogether! Teacherspayteachers.com is a web site that has more useful information than any one teacher will ever use! Experienced working classroom professionals make their hard work and time tested lesson plans available on this site from free to whatever fee they feel is appropriate to charge based on what they provide. Lesson plans, work sheets, projects, grading rubrics anything and everything any teacher would like for any grade level or subject. I found and purchased a great lesson plan called resume and cover letter writing for college and career readiness written by Tracee Orman complete with worksheets, sample cover letters, resumes and grading rubrics.

Purdue University has a wonderful online writing lab called Purdue OWL that has a great workshop on how to write resumes. The OWL is not limited to resume writing but has tips, tools and information on every kind of writing with all kinds of supporting links, PDF’s and supporting documents.

The gold mine of teaching tools websites is readwritethink.org. The eight class instructional plan for resumes and cover letters is the bomb! Not only does this website have the lesson plan mapped out for you with worksheets, links, graphic organizers and an online resume generator. The assessments and rubrics are state standard or Common Core specific for your location and grade level.

 

VI

Inquiry-based Learning and Performance Assessment

There is an old proverb that goes something like this, tell me, I’ll forget, show me, I’ll remember, involve me, and I’ll understand. There is something very special about information and understanding gained from the process of investigation and creation. Students will have a much firmer grasp on knowledge and how to use that knowledge when it is earned by they own actions, research and choices. This little journey into writing a resume and cover letter could take from one to two weeks of class time based on how much of the tools, websites, books, and articles you choose to involve.

The finished creation of every student in the class will be their very first resume and some sample cover letters. A few nice additions to an online or hard copy portfolio of created projects and a head start on the college and career application process. Every step along the creation process there are opportunities for assessment and evaluation. Class participation, peer evaluation and the final assessment. I think I would like to close this lesson with a guest speaker, possibly a Human Resources professional, career counselor or a college admissions professional, maybe all of the above and have each student present they resume in a mock interview scenario for part of the final grade in this unit.

VII

Why

Why teach? What drives a person to choose teaching as a profession? It can be a thankless job with endless hours of preparation, study and delivery, parent teacher conferences, administrators, school boards and a world of unrealistic expectations, then that one student looks into your eyes and you can see they finally got it! It’s what makes the long hours and low pay worthwhile, the miracle of understanding. Why we do what we do.

 

References

Bailey, E. (n.d.). Be Yourself. Retrieved from http://www.ellenbailey.com/poems/ellen_077.htm

Burgess, D. (2013, February 10). Miracle Worker by Taylor Mali. Retrieved from http://youtu.be/o53i0kL6-Jw

Carnegie, D. (1981). How to win friends and influence people. New York: Simon and Schuster.

  1. (n.d.). Resume Writing. Retrieved from http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Resume-Writing-27065

Frost, R. (n.d.). The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost. Retrieved from http://youtu.be/ebfcZTl-uys

Mandino, O. (1968). The greatest salesman in the world. New York: F. Fell.

Orman, T. (n.d.). Tracee Orman. Retrieved from http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Tracee-Orman/Search:Resume

Rico, G. (2014, November 19). The Unconventional Cover Letter That Got Me a Job. Retrieved from https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/article/20141119192933-230584162-the-unconventional-cover-letter-that-got-me-a-job

Ryan14, L. (2014, June). The Five Deadliest Resume Mistakes (& How to Fix Them). Retrieved from https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/article/20140614075946-52594-the-five-deadliest-resume-mistakes-how-to-fix-them?trk=pulse-det-nav_art

Seible, M. K. (n.d.). Resumes and Cover Letters for High School Students – ReadWriteThink. Retrieved from http://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/lesson-plans/resumes-cover-letters-high-30847.html?tab=1#tabs

Warner, H. (n.d.). Taylor Mali, “The the impotence of proofreading” (with text). Retrieved from http://youtu.be/-c03YCBo3z8

Ziglar, Z. (n.d.). How To Be A Winner. 1 audio cassette.