Hatboro-Horsham High School Seminar & Intern Program“Seminar” is a graduation requirement

1. Junior/Senior Seminar is a ½ credit course covering the following topics:

a. Who Am I?i. Self examination: personality and career interest surveysii. Character Awareness

1. Be a People Person (interpersonal skills)2. Appreciate Diversity3. Become a Team Player4. A Person of Character (dealing with adversity)5. Communicating Effectively6. Become a Leader7. Connecting to the World Around You

Character Education in Pennsylvania – New Legislation

On July 4th, 2004 Governor Rendell signed into law, as Act 70 amendments, to the Public School Code, legislation written by Congresswoman Allyson Y. Schwartz, that encourages the establishment of character education programs for all Pennsylvania schools.

In a letter to schools, Allyson Schwartz wrote that, “The experience of many school districts has shown that integration of character education into their curriculum can have a substantial positive impact on the learning environment at a school. Children who are not distracted by disruptive behavior, by fear of bullying or by disrespectful conduct achieve significantly better grades and are happier and more productive.”

The legislation does not mandate the institution of character education. But, it is a strong endorsement of the importance of character education, and it should serve as an encouragement for schools to develop or expand their character education programming.

Some of the recommendations for schools include;

1. Develop programs that include the following basic values and character traits of; Trustworthiness, Respect, Responsibility, Fairness, Caring and Citizenship.

2. Create a character education advisory board with representatives from a wide range of the community; parents, teachers, administrators, community members and students.

3. Character education programs may also include and teach the importance of a service ethic and community outreach.

Find the full report at;

http://www.legis.state.pa.us/WU01/LI/BI/BT/2003/0/SB0596P1986.HTM

We encourage all schools to read the legislation and then set a path to develop or enhance character education programming for ALL students in the district.

b. What Do I Want? (career study) PA Career & Work Standard 13.1.11: A, B, C, D

Hatboro-Horsham High School Seminar & Intern Program“Seminar” is a graduation requirement

i. Career Pathwaysii. Major Trends in the Workplace (including “life balance”)iii. Informational Interviewingiv. Career Shadowingv. Service Learningvi. Career Speakers

c. How Do I Get There? (developing a plan to reach career/educational goals) PA Career & Work Standard 13.1.11: E, F

i. Goal settingii. Planning to reach goalsiii. Experiences valued most by college and employment

recruitersiv. The College Admission Game

1. Prepare2. Compete3. Win

v. Job Acquisition Skills PA Career & Work Standard 13.2.11: A, B, C, D, E

1. Resume2. Cover letter3. Practice Interviewing4. Following up

vi. Financial Literacy PA Career & Work Standard 13.3.11: A, B, C, D, E, F, G

1. Making $ (including what taxes pay for what)2. Manage $ (spend control as well as saving)3. Multiply $ (AKA Make money while you sleep)4. Protect $ (insurances, autos, personal

independence)5. Easy money (scams)

d. Portfolio: student developed tool used to reflect, collect and market career and life experiences (Evidence of all standards reflected in portfolio)

2. Student InternshipAll PA Career & Work Standards are present in the Intern experienceAfter successfully completing the Seminar course, students can elect to participate in the student intern program through career exploration internship or service learning project.a. In the first month of the experience students:

Hatboro-Horsham High School Seminar & Intern Program“Seminar” is a graduation requirement

i. Identify important criteria they want in a career or service learning experience (this can and does change from the first time they examine this issue in the Seminar course)

ii. Read about and research career/service interestsiii. Talk to people about their options (informational interviews and

shadowing)iv. Look at options in our community using their networking skillsv. Identify closely related fields or positions vi. Students set learning goals for their experiencevii. Students use their job acquisition skills to locate and obtain an

intern position. viii. Each student, their perspective mentor and I meet to discuss

the experience.ix. Students begin their internship around the 4th week of the

semester.b. Student Interns keep a reflective journal (this is a double entry journal;

one side they record what they did/what they observed, the second entry is used to reflect. What did they think about it? What would they like to have seen happen? What could be different the next time?

c. Student Interns meet each Friday for a discussion. The discussion reflects on the week. Students learn about each others experiences. There is also a topic of the week to consider (What makes a good mentor? Crossing the “white space”, etc.)

d. During the week students keep a web log—a discussion concerning a topic that I post. This activity keeps the students focused on observation while interning and keeps them in discussion throughout the week even though we are not physically meeting.

e. The course finale includes hosting classmates at their place of internship to explain the business mission and the role that they saw themselves filling during the internship. The students also plan a mentor luncheon to celebrate the experience and thank their mentors.

f. A final reflection is completed where the student intern compares learning goals to actual learning. The student also describes how they feel about the experience. Were they able to use the skills and qualities they enjoy using? Was the work performed important or valuable? How did they like the atmosphere? Is this an environment in which they can see themselves working? Is this field still of interest? Why or why not? What’s next in their exploration? What do they still need to know?