Melody Cockrell, Curriculum Leader for Principles of Hospitality and Tourism Blog by melodycockrell

A place for voice to become words. This will remain a work in progress until further notice....

Posts: 4 | Created on August 27, 2008 | 2

Where is THE Model CTE Located and Can We Visit??

By melodycockrell in Melody Cockrell, Curriculum Leader for Principles of Hospitality and Tourism on Friday, February 20, 2009 2:21 PM 1
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Our Career and Technology Academy  is going for an 'over-haul'.  Not my idea, but I support it 100%.  What often starts out as a small idea grows and now we are in for the major re-design.  My question:  Have you heard of a Career Tech Academy that is worthy of being a model for others?  If so, let me know.  I do know about Golightly and the Academy of Finance in Waco.  Any others out there???

How Can I Fill Three Hours!

By melodycockrell in Melody Cockrell, Curriculum Leader for Principles of Hospitality and Tourism on Friday, January 16, 2009 1:58 PM  
Tags: academy structure curriculum | 4 Comments Post a Comment

Our CTE is moving toward two three hour sessions; 3 hours in the morning/3 hours in the afternoon.  Two half credit courses will be bundled in to one three hour session.  I can hear the kids now, "How boring!  Will this class ever end?"  Even if you are an amazing teacher, how do you keep students engaged for that length of class time?  Anyone have any ideas or suggestions?

 

Has Anyone Ever Been To Dubai?

By melodycockrell in Melody Cockrell, Curriculum Leader for Principles of Hospitality and Tourism on Friday, January 16, 2009 1:33 PM  
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The pictures look amazing!  They are marketing a wonderful experience of inexpensive luxury hotels.  Just wondering if anyone has been or knows anything first hand about this unique destination. 

My personal journey down the long road of bad curriculum...Have we arrived yet?

By melodycockrell in Melody Cockrell, Curriculum Leader for Principles of Hospitality and Tourism on Wednesday, September 24, 2008 10:44 PM  
Tags: new curriculum principles teaching writers | 4 Comments Post a Comment

Don’t know why Kitty didn’t reach across the cyber-lines and choke me. I know I was critical of her writing. It wasn’t personal. I had been given a chance to knit-pick the Principles of Hospitality and Tourism curriculum and after years of being embarrassed about the quality of our curriculum, I had my chance! I told her things like, “You’re boring me; I can’t image what the kids will say. And, you have thrown in a ‘medical vacation to Mexico’ when they don’t know the definition of ‘accommodations’!!... How can I teach these students about Plog’s Theory or ‘business vs. leisure’ when they have no clue what I am talking about? And, by the way, I don’t quiet understand some of this information myself. Could you give us a little more background?”

I honestly don’t know how the writers did it. I know I told them the little things, like don’t use the feminine pronoun and teacher resources and student resources are not clearly separated. But Kitty and all the writers did it! Andy must have offered them some gigantic reward! The difference between the rough draft and the new curriculum is like night and day. (Sorry, I couldn’t think of anything ‘more opposite’. ) Andy, the word man, is probably going to be upset with my word usage…but I hope you get my point.

Most of us have three to four preps we are struggling to keep up with. We don’t have time to ‘deep read’ the lesson plans daily. With the visual time line, the quick overview, and the updated power points, it is easy to absorb. It makes sense. I feel good about the flow and the end project goal in mind as I build a foundation for student success. I don’t know about you, but I am proud of the curriculum. I don’t have to say, “…NAF is a great organization, but the curriculum…..” How do you feel? Melody
 

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