Date of Award
2002
Document Type
Practicum
Degree Name
Doctor of Education
Department
Programs for Higher Education
Advisor
Susan A. Torbenson
Keywords
administrators, at-risk students, Career Academies model, counselors, criteria, curriculum model, delivery methods, effectiveness, evaluation, evaluation methodology, evaluation questionnaire, faculty members, feedback, four-year vocational program, literature review, needs assessment, participation, problem-solving methodology, recommendations, research questions, school curriculum, stakeholders, student participation, student success, teachers, vocational curriculum, Westinghouse Career Academy
Abstract
The problem under investigation was whether or not the curriculum model and/or delivery methods used at Westinghouse Career Academy has an effect on at-risk students completing a four year vocational program. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the vocational curriculum at Westinghouse Career Academy. There were two research questions addressed in the study. First, "What were the specific factors that contributed to at-risk students being unable to successfully complete a four-year program." Second, "What were the changes that could be made to improve upon the effectiveness of the vocational curriculum for at-risk students at Westinghouse Career Academy."
An evaluation problem-solving methodology was utilized in this study. A number of procedures were used in this study. A literature review was conducted and criteria for the evaluation was established. An evaluation questionnaire was used to evaluate the vocational curriculum at Westinghouse Career Academy. The evaluation questionnaire results indicated that the Career Academies model used, can be improved upon to enable at-risk students to succeed. The conclusions were that the participation of teachers, counselors, administrators, and stakeholders was vital in establishing and improving effective curriculum models.
The importance of students participating in the evaluation of a school curriculum model must not be ignored. Student needs assessment must be an on-going process. Specific recommendations for action were made. The recommendations were based upon feedback from students who completed the evaluation questionnaire as well as faculty members at Westinghouse Career Academy.