The goal of the mini-sabbatical project is to help teachers make the kinds of curriculum and pedagogical changes implied by reforms to integrate vocational and academic education and to improve the school-to-work transition.
To make use of the occupation or industry as a context for learning, teachers need knowledge of work and work practice, a new model for classroom design and instruction, and a stress-free opportunity to learn and apply both.
Teachers participating in the mini-sabbatical will
The mini-sabbatical is designed for high school teachers in a variety of programs, whether they teach in academies, cooperative education, school-based enterprises, career focus schools, or other program types.
Teachers meet for six weeks (six hours a day, four days a week) beginning (date) and ending (date).
The mini-sabbatical will involve activities at three sites: (1) training site; (2) local worksite for observations; and (3) an area high school for two weeks teaching the newly developed curriculum.
Teacher participants will receive an honorarium of ($ amount). Student participants will receive a stipend of ($ amount) for two weeks of participation from (date) to (date).
To inquire further about this project, contact the Project Director at (telephone number).
| To: | Participating Agencies and Mentors |
| From: | (Name of Project Director) |
| Date: | (Date) |
| Re: | High School Teachers' Professional Development |
(Name of Training Firm) is conducting a training project for high school teachers who are involved in work and career programs. The goal of the project is to assist teachers in developing high-quality lessons for their students. Professional trainers will observe them teach the lessons they developed in an experimental summer school class.
During the week of (Date), teachers will spend several days at a worksite where they can gain exposure to authentic problems that workers deal with on actual jobs. Work observation provides a window into understanding authentic problems. Understanding the nature of an authentic problem and how it is solved provides the basis for designing the curriculum unit and student assessments.
Participating agencies will be able to influence teachers' training for developing curriculum tied to school-to-career programs. Though it is not the primary purpose of worksite observation, mentors will have an opportunity to learn more about bridging and connecting aspects of school-to-career programs.
Thank you very much for participating in the "High School Teachers' Professional Development Project." We think you will find the program challenging and rewarding, and we are very much looking forward to working with you for the next two weeks.
Remember, these are the days you will be needed at (Name of High School):
About your classes: You will be working on projects relating to transportation, health, or science. In some of the classes, you will have the chance to use computers and other types of technology. All of the classes will require teamwork and some kind of final presentation. Also, expect to do work outside of class!
About your pay: If you have completed the consent forms and survey, and if you attend all eight days, expect to get a check for $160 on or before August 15. If some kind of problem comes up--your forms are turned in late, or you can't complete all eight sessions--you will still be paid for all the days you do attend (at $20 per day), but there will be about a three- to four-week delay in processing your check.
Thanks very much for your help. Again, we are looking forward to getting to know you. If you or your parents have any questions, please do not hesitate to call (Staff Name) at (Telephone Number).
Sincerely,
(Name)
Project Director
(Name)
(Title)
(Firm)
(Address)
Dear (Name of Mentor):
We appreciate your willingness to share expertise and to provide assistance to (Name of Teacher). This project could not have accomplished its goals if people like yourself had not been willing to participate. Please extend our gratitude to your entire staff.
Observing work provides high school teachers with new perspectives and options for enriching curricula. (Name of Teacher) and seven other teachers are developing new curricula--influenced, in part, by work observations--and will teach it to a small class of students in a two-week experimental summer class which begins (Dates).
As part of this process, (Name of Teacher) will make several presentations to the other teachers and our project faculty before students arrive and then again at the close of the experimental summer school. The presentations will focus on the design of the new curriculum. We invite you to attend the presentations. Besides providing constructive feedback to (Name of Teacher), you might also have some general observations about teachers' curriculum development efforts and attempts to infuse real work aspects into curricula. We are videotaping the presentations and discussions that follow.
Date, time, and location information is as follows:
We hope that you are able to attend the presentations. If you are not, please accept our thanks for assisting (Name of Teacher).
Please call me if you have comments or questions about the project. I can be reached at (Name of Training Site and Telephone Number).
Sincerely,
Project Director