Overview
TaTT 2 continues the journey for students to learn about the concept of building personal value, why it is important and how to do it. They'll learn what it means to be “successful” in the middle school environment and the value of:
TaTT 1 helped students recognize that those who possess these qualities come to school:
The unit concluded with students creating a multi-media presentation that celebrates their success as a student.
TaTT 2 continues the journey by helping students learn more about workplaces and how they, as individuals, contribute to the ability of organizations to meet their mission. The relationship between one’s personal behavior and mission success is closely analyzed.
Since students are already part of an organization (their school), TaTT 2 uses this organization to highlight the concepts being taught. The objective is for students to gain a higher level of understanding and respect for the enormous effort put forth everyday by their school to deliver its product, which is their education.
TaTT 2 enables students to experience how organizations rely upon people to be workplace literate to achieve their mission. This places the overall concept of workplace literacy within the context of “Why this important to me.”
TaTT 2 Table of Contents
Unit One: Building Value in Yourself
Students learn why it is so important to build value in oneself, and learn that all organizations, schools or otherwise, have little tolerance for behavior that interferes with its mission. Students are introduced to the concept of an employee manual. In the unit Activity “My Employee Manual,” students create their own employee manual for their organization. In doing so, they identify rules, policies, and expectations that will govern and guide how employees will act if they want their organization to achieve its mission. The unit helps students put into perspective the reasons for and value of their student handbook from school and why inappropriate behavior is not tolerated.
Unit Two: Mission Possible
Students learn the concept of a mission and how it is used to guide organizations to success. They also learn that people have missions and they use them as a guide to create personal goals. Students create their own personal mission statement for improving their personal value and then identify goals that will help them succeed with the mission. The unit continues with students exploring their school’s mission and recognizing the different jobs that support the mission. In the unit activity, students understand how behavior standards are used to help organizations and people meet their mission.
Unit Three: Standards/Meeting Expectations
Standards guide how people behave. In this unit, students learn that all organizations have and value them and that they are used by people to behave appropriately. They learn that there are real consequences when people do not meet standards. As part of this unit, the concept of a job description is introduced as a tool used by organizations to ensure that people understand the standards for success in any job. In the first unit activity “Defining the Job of a Student,” students will create a job description for the job of “student” so that they understand what it means to be a successful student. The second unit activity “Writing Personal Objectives and a Job Review,” enables students to learn about job reviews and understand that they are utilized by all organizations to measure the performance of workers. This is compared to a report card as a way for students to build value in succeeding academically.
Unit Four: Our School as a Workplace
Students learn the attributes of a “workplace” and come to understand that their school is also a workplace. Like any workplace, students learn that their school is organized by departments, each with a mission and set of responsibilities. The unit activity “Management Consulting – Shadow a School Worker,” provides students with an opportunity to follow a school worker and understand how their job supports the mission of the school. Students gain an understanding and appreciation for the work done by all staff in their school to deliver the school product, which is their education.
Unit Five: Linking Personal Behavior to Mission Success
There exists a clear link between the behavior of people (students, workers) and the ability of an organization to meet its mission. In this unit, the relationship between the two is analyzed and students recognize the negative impact that inappropriate behavior has on mission success.
Unit Six: What Must Happen for an Organization to Succeed?
Beginning with an analysis of several organizations, students identify the common qualities shared by successful organizations. They then reflect upon their school and evaluate the degree to which their school possesses these qualities. Students then have an opportunity to write a letter to the principal providing constructive ideas that the school can use to become an even more successful organization. In this exercise, students learn how important their own role is in making their school the best place it can be. The unit concludes with students conducting “Mediator Training” and learning how this strategy can be used to help any organization succeed.
Unit Seven: My Journey through the School year Presentation
Students celebrate their success and create a multimedia presentation that can be used during a student-led conference. The focus of the presentation is: