Assessment to Support and Reinforce Academics

            Chapter four is about assessment to support and reinforce academics.  Business educators have to validate the importance of business education in the school’s curriculum.  Business educators must collaborate with other teachers in other content areas to incorporate the other curriculum into business education.  This chapter focuses on ways teachers can successfully incorporate many curriculums with business education.

            Business educators have to work with other teachers to show that business classes include and strengthen core academic content.  Business educators have to prove that business classes are just as important as the core classes.  There are strategies for collaboration that teacher can use.  These strategies benefit all teachers and students in that there can be higher test scores, higher student retention rates, increased communication among teachers, fewer discipline problems in classrooms, and more engage students due to real world activities.  Teachers need to start off by mapping the business education and academic standards, identifying where learning objectives are being taught or reinforced.  Teachers can then determine the learning opportunities that should be included in an individual class or program.  Teachers then can align business courses with core content courses which is essential for continued business and technical education growth and vitality.

            Business teachers must work collaboratively with core content teachers to promote the reality that basic entry-level skills are the same in all industries.  Business education classes enhance English, mathematics, social studies, and science.  Students have many assignments and activities that really focus on English and mathematics.  In many of the classes students are creating memos, business letters, PowerPoint presentations, etc.  Students are also able to take finance and accounting classes which will help their math skills.

            Teachers must also create a comprehensive, valid, and reliable assessment program that clearly defines desired student-learning outcomes and designs assessment tools to determine whether students achieve established outcomes.  Teachers can define dimensions of learning, create a learning outcomes matrix, use checklists, and build skills through assignments.  Teachers also must be accountable to the business community, which depends on educators to prepare highly trained employees.  Business teachers have to prepare students with workplace skills, which mean assessment is important to know how the student is progressing.

            This chapter mainly proves how important it is to collaborate with other core academic teachers.  Business teachers have to be willing to work with other teachers if they want their program to be successful.  Business education offers so many opportunities to students and it is vital that the business education teachers do everything to keep it still active.

Carnes, L. & Vice, J. P. (2007). Assessment to Support and Reinforce Academics. In M.L. Bush (Ed.), Assessment for an Evolving Business Education Curriculum (pp. 41-56). Reston, VA: National Business Education Association