Finding curriculum, part II

The Past Week: 09.11.07 � 09.15.07

� Confirm where I can get curricula in retail and personality development from

The reasons for me not being able to deliver on this goal are a combination of external factors as well as my own thought process.

In terms of external sources, organizations as well as retail companies have been unwilling to share their curricula. On the plus side, I am in touch with a restaurant chain’s field trainer who is willing to share his curriculum with me. At present, it’s taking longer in getting it to me than expected but the process of modifying the curriculum to make it more general (to avoid legal issues and so that it’s more retail than restaurant-focused).

With respect to internal factors, it has been my own thought process that has led me to

believe that I should create my own curriculum for the personality development component of the course rather that get it from an outside source. Considering that I want this school to represent a brand of job training unlike any other (one that aims not just for job placement but also for personal and professional growth), this decision makes good sense to me.

The personality development component of the course is one that I intend to be the enabling factor for students. What that means is, it will impart to students that an open-minded mindset must be adopted in order to successfully operate in a new environment (upon employment). I also hope that a takeaway of the personality development section be that while migrating away from one’s home base to a big city for a seemingly mediocre salary, this is a move that will promote personal and professional growth if hard work and commitment to the company are shown.

Additonally, the school, RVS as I have termed it for now, will stand apart from other training institutes in that it will provide graduates with emotional support and assistance with resources and accommodations. Given that I’ve been through an education and social system in the U.S. that employed me with the tangible skills I want to impart to the students and that I’ve been involved with Indicorps (www.indicorps.org), an organization that promotes personal growth through leadership, I feel that I’m well positioned to create the lessons for this aspect of the course.

So while the sources I had lined up for curricula haven’t come through for me as planned, I’m convinced that I would do a good job of creating them myself. In effect, the decision to develop my own curriculum and lesson plans � tasks that are entirely new to me – actually makes me enthused about being able to expand my own skill set as a means to assist others.