KeyTrain™ High School Youth

KeyTrain™ ConferenceFebruary 8, 2008

Oklahoma City, OK

Overview• KeyTrain™

• Eligible Workforce Investment Act• High School Students

• High School Implementation of KeyTrain™• Career Development Class Pilot Semester

1• Career Development Class Pilot Semester

2

• Observations• Summary

KeyTrain™ -- Eligible WIA

•Workforce Investment Act (WIA)• In School Youth/Out of School•How WIA is using KeyTrain

•Benchmark and then upgrade basic skills in youth

•Electronically extended KeyTrain

KeyTrain™ -- High School Students

• KeyTrain™ is a foundation of the Career Development Classes

• South Central Oklahoma Workforce Investment Board (SCOWIB) purchased the Career Skills component of KeyTrain™ for the workforce system

• SCOWIB and participating high schools determined that KeyTrain™ could contribute to increased Career Readiness Certificates™

KeyTrain™ & High Schools

• SCOWIB, Lawton Public Schools, & ASCOG developed a curriculum for the class prior to implementation

• The class is accredited by LPS• The course was designed to help

students identify career interests and develop work readiness skills

• The class is a one semester elective targeted toward second semester sophomores or juniors

Class Objectives• Obtain an Oklahoma Career

Readiness Certificate• Be able to fill out an employment

application • Produce a resume and cover letter• Develop awareness and

understanding of “soft skills” needed by business

• Develop a career goal and career plan to reach their chosen goal

• Align core skills with career interests

Methodology Complete interest assessments Identify three career choices Write a synopsis of occupational/

educational requirements, projected growth, required skills, potential salary, and other information

Complete at least 20 hours of computer tutorial work in Reading for Information, Locating Information, and Applied Mathematics

Methodology Continued• Participate in a videotaped job interview

and feedback session

• Complete at least 60 different lessons in KeyTrain™ Career Skills

• Job shadow in one of the career choices

• Create a resume and cover letter

• WorkKeys® assessment in Reading for Information, Locating Information, and Applied Mathematics

Class Goals• Students demonstrate a 25%

increase in work readiness and career exploration knowledge (measured through locally developed pre/post test)

• 90% of the students earn an Oklahoma Career Readiness Certificate

• CDC students score 15% higher on the WorkKeys® assessment than other students

Career Development Class Pilot – Semester 1

•4 classes participated•66 students •280 WorkKeys® ** assessments in the participating schools

Generation Y(1977 – 1994)

• Raised with technology and tech savvy

• Instant gratification and promotion

• Quickly adjust to new environments and situations

• Multi-taskers • Sense of entitlement

Time On Task Results

0:00 4:48 9:36 14:24 19:12 0:00

0 ElementsGained

1 ElementGained

2 ElementsGained

Average Time on Task (in hours)

Represents 9% of the students

Represents 46% of the students

Represents 54% of the students

Time on Task Findings**• Students who spent more than 19

hours on task gained in at least two elements

• Students who spent more than 18 hours on task gained in at least one element

• Students who spent less than 18 hours on task experienced 0 gain in elements

• Students in the pilot were able to gain in elements while spending less time on task than previous Time On Task averages indicated

Notes about Findings

• Pilot class• 6 week delay in securing

computers for KeyTrain ™ and other computer related tasks at both schools

• Instructors’ first opportunity to work with KeyTrain ™ in the classroom

Class Evaluation Form Feedback

Agree

Disagree

Neither Agree ordisagree

“KeyTrain™ is boring but it’s necessary to this class”

Class Evaluation Conclusions

• Find ways to motivate Generation Y• Both teachers tied Time On Task to

grade outcome and job shadowing (favorite class experience)

• Even though students reported KeyTrain™ “boring” , 46 % of students spent sufficient time to gain in at least 1 element

• 20 hours of classroom time allotted for KeyTrain™– 75% of the students utilized 70% of allotted time

• There is no indication students chose to use KeyTrain™ outside of the classroom

Career Development Class Pilot – Semester 2

•5 Classes participating•110 students participating•110 students projected to

take the WorkKeys® assessment in April

•Several changes have been made to the curriculum

Semester 2 Action Plan• Instructor and student focus for

the first 12 weeks – Reading, Mathematics, and Locating Information

• After the WorkKeys® assessment, students will no longer be required to work on these 3 core areas, shifting their focus completely over to Career Skills

• Students will apply skills developed with KeyTrain™ to real life experiences in mock interviews and job shadowing

• Instructors may assign lessons in the 3 core areas if a student has not spent enough Time on Task or if they haven’t shown appropriate gains during the first 12 weeks

Semester 2 Action Plan continued

Observations

• Classroom Management is key• Instructor orientation on KeyTrain is

essential• Students should be held accountable

for their achievements• It’s important to remind students that

this is an opportunity to make progress towards their career goal even though it might be another 4-6 years away

Summary

• The curriculum, objectives, and goals should be clearly outlined prior to implementing a high school program

• Students need a realistic orientation• Instructors who set high

expectations and help students achieve them improve self worth and avoid frustration

• Time on Task = Results!

• Provide a professional KeyTrain™ orientation

• Check student KeyTrain ™ progress weekly to make sure they are on schedule and take appropriate action

• Tailor KeyTrain ™ assignments to student goals and needs

• Remind students that KeyTrain™ is vehicle to a higher Career Readiness Certificate ™ …and KeyTrain™ can prepare them to gain much more

Suggestions and Tips

Additional Information

• Please contact Laura Goldring at gold_la@ascog.org