Web-based Career & Technical Education

You know that colleague who sends the unprofessional, typo-ridden emails to the entire department? So does everyone else. Communicating effectively in the workplace isn’t impossible, but it sure doesn’t come naturally for lots of people. While human beings are constantly communicating with one another both verbally and non-verbally (through facial expressions and body language), it’s written communication that is often...

I challenge you to make a list of the top 10 word processing skills you think all students should master by the time they finish high school. Did creating a table make the cut? For many of us, whipping up a table in a word document is something we do so frequently that it has become second nature. Students, though,...

As a business education teacher, it's not rare to find me complaining about how social media and texting culture have degraded proper writing. From emoji-studded emails to slang-ridden essays, the offenses are numerous and often atrocious. Nonetheless, social media platforms are crucial forms of communication for students to master. And given the prevalence of social media in business, it's more...

Nearly everyone can remember the story of The Turtle and the Hare with it’s ever applicable moral. Slow and steady wins the race.  This moral is an important one that can be applied to plenty of contexts. Nonetheless, it’s much easier to remember this lesson through the story of a perseverant turtle overconfident hare. All on its own this moral...

Database management might not sound too flashy, but it is projected to be one of the top careers this decade. Thanks to its crucial role in programming and software. That said, it's hard to get students excited about it as a future career prospect if they don't even know what it is. So if you could use some help in introducing the...

If you’ve ever surveyed students about what they want to be when they grow up, you may have found that their answers are pretty unoriginal. Soccer player. Fashion model. Businessman. Not that there’s anything wrong with these professions, but they represent a very narrow and inadequate representation of all of the careers that exist in the world. Often students struggle...

When journalists asked HR executives from a variety of sectors what skill they most look for in new recruits, the most common answer given was communication skills. Exemplary communication skills are essential to be successful in today’s professional world. Both written and verbal, in person and over the phone. Being an effective communicator matters in order to have a successful...

This past week I've been at the New York State Business Teachers' Association meeting, where I viewed a LOT of presentations. While some presentations were absolutely incredible, there were some that were a bit off-beat. The worst featured over twenty-five slides of tiny font. Even in the front row, I had to strain my eyes to try to read them....

Imagine you'd never seen snow before or even heard about it, and one day you go outside and it's snowing! Well, naturally, in this day and age the first thing you do when you come across something unfamiliar is to Google it. But looking up "what is this white stuff falling from the sky" surprisingly comes up with all kinds...

When’s the last time you ever had to complete a worksheet for your job? Or take a multiple choice quiz? Chances are, probably never. If we want to prepare students for the professional world beyond high school, we should give them work that mimics the types of tasks they’ll encounter in the workplace. From this concept, the idea of Project...