WHAT WE LEARNED:
Offering consulting and implementation workshops early has helped many potential adopters of IT skill standards based curriculum get off to a productive start. Some districts and states have skill standards implementation models from other curriculum implementations -- say in manufacturing or automotive technology. While these successful experiences are of great value in terms of gauging overall institutional capacity to impalement skill standards based curriculum, Information Technology often presents unique problems. Few colleges have established "IT Departments" -- IT is often taught out of two or three different divisions. Using the IT skill standards to get faculty from the different divisions oriented toward the same set of goals early in the process is one of the most significant milestones to be achieved, and is an indicator of future success. At NWCET, we conference with our consultants and the internal champions in the school, college, district, or state before we design consulting activities and workshops for faculty. We also encourage institutions not to skimp on implementation assistance. A multi-campus community college district or large high school district can often require a minimum of two to three days onsite, with a day or two of preparation and follow up, at two thousand or more dollars per day. The investment in properly training these leaders, however, may be returned many times, as it builds local capacity. Providing implementation tools, workshops, and consultation will help ensure on orderly review of the institution's current situation and provide a framework for development and implementation of skill standards based curriculum.
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