THE PROBLEM:
Relating curriculum to skill standards often presents major challenges to educators who desire either to analyze existing curriculum in light of skill standards, or to developed new curriculum or instructional elements using skill standards as a foundation. A quick examination of skill standards language shows why this is true. Most skill standards, including the NWCET Information Technology skill standards, are written at a fairly general level of detail. Stating, for example, that learners have facility and fluency with desktop computer operating systems, says little about the particular manufacturer's operating system or the level of fluency required by industry. Similar to the technical knowledge example just cited, employability skill standards may also present challenges for educators in determining exactly how to have students "present complex information and pose critical questions." As curriculum developers, instructional designers, and instructors work with skill standards, there is often some discomfort felt on leaving the secure world of specific technical competencies for the activity-based instruction and holistic evaluation and assessment of skill standards based curriculum.
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