Career, Vocational and Community Education for Youth with Exceptional Needs
University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point
Spring 2006 EDUC 368/568
Wednesday 2 – 4:30 Room: 209

Instructor: Dayle A. Upham, Ph.D. Phone: 715-346-4802
Office: Room 460 College of Professional Studies
E-Mail: dupham@uwsp.edu
Office Hrs: 1 – 1:45 M & W and by appointment

COURSE DESCRIPTION:
Procedures and methods in assessing needs, adapting curriculum, and
providing instruction in career and vocational education, community skills, personal and interpersonal skills, and transition to adult environments.

REQUIRED TEXT:
Brolin, D. E. (1995). Career Education: A Functional Life Skills Approach. (3rd Edition). Ohio: Merrill Prentice Hall.
 

COURSE GOALS:

1. To provide future teachers with the knowledge of Designated Vocational Instruction (DVI).
2. To provide future teachers with the necessary tools to evaluate the career needs of Youth with Exceptional Needs.
3. To assist future teachers in developing functional strategies for communicating and working with parents, counselors, and other service providers.
4. To assist future teachers understanding of their educational and legal responsibilities of Youth with Exceptional Needs.
5. To provide strategies to facilitate community skills, personal and interpersonal skills, and transition to adult environments.

Important Considerations

Attention Students with Disabilities: If you have an identified disability that may affect your performance in this class, schedule an appointment (no later that the second class) so that provisions can be made to insure that you have an equal opportunity to meet all the requirements of this course.

Accommodation for Religious Observances: Students will be allowed to complete requirements that are missed because of a religious observance.

Course Requirements:
1. Life Skills Curriculum Unit: Each student/group of students (no more than five students) will devise a LSC unit spanning four weeks of time. Emphasizing content that transcends more than four (two of which need to be science and social studies) disciplines and emphasize functional life skills. Address the needs of all students maximizing learning, accommodations and modifications for students with disabilities.  Please provide this information on your SOE web site under adaptive instruction, when you are done send me an e-mail with your web address and course #368.

2. Investigate two different Community Agency: Each student will visit two different community agencies to find out how this agency works with the school system, parents, and children. You are to find out how this agency is funded, what services they provide, how people access their services, and how the service evaluated. Please provide this information on your SOE web site under adaptive instruction, when you are done send me an e-mail with your web address and course #368.

3. Individual Project on a unit in your text: Each student will do a project (power point, presentation with handouts, paper, etc.)  on a unit in your text.  You are to discuss the issue in the unit of your choice. Please provide a summary of your results and other resources you used to support your ideas and/or the text.  Please provide this information on your SOE web site under adaptive instruction, when you are done send me an e-mail with your web address and course #368

4. Attendance & Participation: Active class participation, coming prepared for class, professionalism, and attendance is required. (Please Note: Only those who participate – verbally or through writing will receive participation points.)

Note to non-traditional students and/or students with extensive experience in the course content may see me for alternative assignments.

 

Important members of the class are: