Academic standards alignment with essential work skills : perceptions from Indiana guidance counselors and employers

The purpose of this exploratory study was to look at the importance of Indiana's Algebra I academic standards in relationship with essential, entry-level work skills as perceived by employers and guidance counselors in northern and northeastern Indiana. Counselors and employers were sent electronic (e-mail and web-based) or hard (paper) copies of a survey instrument. Section II of the survey asked for demographic data, (age, race, gender) as well as information related to the size of the business or school, type of business, and years in current position. Respondents were also asked to rate their knowledge of the Indiana academic standards, the Americans with disabilities Act and Section 504 of the Vocational Rehabilitation Act. In Section III, respondents were presented with the nine Indiana Algebra I standards, along with examples to illustrate and further explain each standard. Employers rated each standard, and the standards combined, on its importance to skills required from people seeking jobs immediately after leaving high school using a Likert scale. Guidance counselors rated the importance of the standards based on what they knew of the labor market within school district and surrounding areas using the same Likert scale. Comments were solicited at the end of the survey instruments. Employers disagreed with the importance of any of the Algebra I standards, or the standards as whole, as entry-level work skills. Their highest mean rating was 2.4. Counselors also disagreed, although on two standards their mean rating was above the Neutral rating. Sample size was deemed too low for generalization, but study does supply a framework for future research. ; Department of Special Education ; Thesis (D. Ed.)