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AAI Work Habits

All Aspects of the Industry Aspect Concerned with Non-Tech Skills

May 27, 2008

Personal Work Habits is the aspect from All Aspects of the Industry that provides educators guidelines to teach students the non-technical skills industry expects.

The Personal Work Habits aspect of the All Aspects of the Industry guidelines is designed to introduce students entering industry based careers to the non-technical skills and characteristics expected in the workplace. The Personal Work Habits aspect does not promote training for a specific career; instead it gives a framework for students to learn how an industry operates. This aspect was not originally identified by the Perkins and School to Work Acts, but was stressed by employers as being critical for success in the workplace.

Potential Topics

Personal Work Habits can be explained as personal skills necessary for successful employment. This includes attributes such as a positive attitude, proper appearance and how to be ready for work each day. Some potential topics for this aspect include:

The importance of a good attitude towards self, work and colleagues
The importance of being awake, on time and ready to work
The importance of good personal hygiene and appearance
How personal recreational fun can interfere with work and the importance in separating the two
Responsible finance skills

Implementing

Problem solving and communication skills are ideal for including the Personal Work Habits aspect in the curriculum. These projects can be individualized or used as group projects. Students should be exposed to a variety of scenarios; consider using a case study or a specific scenario and having students create a final product to demonstrate understanding. Examples for activities include:

Create a report that provides three or four reasonable reasons why it is important to arrive to work or school on time.
Create a list of strategies and any legal backing for talking with a colleague or manager about offensive behaviors.
Explain the quality control techniques for a project and why they are important.
Investigate membership rules for professional organizations within an industry.
Explain what, if any, behaviors should be avoided when visiting a client in a foreign country.
Write a policy for a business that explains the personal conduct expected from each employee.
Describe how a MySpace profile can negatively affect relationships at work.

Internships

Classroom activities can be enhanced by internship or job shadow opportunities. A field trip could also provide students with the opportunity to tour a business and speak with professionals about how that business expects its employees to behave. Students should prepare questions or a list of specific interactions to observe in advance. Some questions might include what behaviors managers expect to see from their employees, business dress codes, what rules or regulations are in place for filing complaints, what are the consequences for being late to work or failing to follow a procedure, or how thorough a background check the business performs on potential new employees.

The copyright of the article AAI Work Habits in High School Curriculum is owned by Tammy Andrew. Permission to republish AAI Work Habits in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.