Occupational Course of Study
Course Descriptions
The Future-Ready Occupational Course of Study (FR- OCS) is intended to meet the needs of a small group of students with disabilities who need a modified curriculum that focuses on post-school employment and independent living. The OCS is a modified standard course of study consisting of fifteen courses in English, mathematics, science, occupational preparation and social studies. Students are also required to complete career/technical education credits, healthful living and electives needed to complete graduation requirements.
Each student must complete 300 hours of school-based vocational training, 240 hours of community-based training and 360 of hours paid employment. Each student will also produce a career portfolio documenting completion of course of study requirements.
As always the IEP team, which includes parents and the student, makes recommendations about the appropriateness of the OCS for a particular student based on his/her post school transition needs and goals. Final selection of the OCS is by student and parent choice. This course of study is only available to students who have an IEP.
Preparation I F/S
Course Number: 9240BX01
This course is designed to introduce students to the fundamental attitudes, behaviors, and habits needed to obtain and maintainemployment in their career choice and make career advancements. Students will participate in school-based learning activities including work ethic development, job-seeking skills, decision-making skills, and self-management. Students will be involved in on campus vocational training activities such as school factories, work-based enterprises, hand-on vocational training inWorkforce Development Education courses and the operation of small business. Formal career planning and development ofknowledge regarding transition planning begins in this course and continues throughout the strand of Occupational Preparationcourses.
Length of course: 1 credit
Preparation II F/S
Course Number: 9241BX01
This course emphasizes the development of skills generic to all career majors’ resource management, communication, motor skills, teamwork, sensory skills, problem solving, cultural diversity, information acquisition/management, and self-management. This course content is focused on providing students with a repertoire of basic skills that will serve as a foundation for future career application. Students will expand their School-based learning activities to include on-campus jobs and begin some work-based learning activities. Job seeking skills will also continue to be refined.
This course counts as 2 credits toward a high school diploma in the Occupational Course of Study and is available only tostudents in this course of study.
Length of course: 2 credits
Preparation III F/S
Course Number: 9242BX01
This course is designed to allow students to continue the development and begin the application of skills learned in Occupational Preparation I and II. Work-based learning activities are provided including community-based training, job shadowing, job sampling, internships, situational assessment, cooperative education, and apprenticeships. These work-basedactivities allow students to apply employability skills to competitive employment settings and demonstrate the effectiveness of their work personality. Multiple opportunities for leadership development and self-determination are provided. This course counts as 2 credits toward a high school diploma in the Occupational Course of Study and is available only to students in this course of study.
Length of course: 2 credits
Preparation IV F/S
Course Number: 9243BX01
This course gives the students the opportunity to synthesize all the skills acquired in previous Occupational Preparation courses and apply them to their personal career choice. This course allows students to solve work-related problems experienced in competitive employment, practice self-advocacy skills and master the theoretical and practical aspects of their career choice. Students finish completing the 360 hours of integrated competitive employment in a community setting required for successful completion of the Occupational Course of Study. Students also will develop a job placement portfolio that provides an educational and vocational record of their high school experience.
Length of course: 1 credit
English I F/S
Course Number: 9210BX01
This course is intended for Occupational Course of Study (OCS) students who will be working with both their face- to-face classroom teacher and an NCPVS online teacher.
Students will gain mastery of curricular concepts through a survey of world literature. Through the examination of vocabulary, literary genres including short stories, novel excerpts, and mythology, textual analysis through poetry, drama, fiction and nonfiction, persuasion and argumentation, presentation techniques, argumentative writing, research and media skills, the student will explore, examine, and participate in multimodal expression. Technology skills will be honed through the course. Pre- Assessments will be used as diagnostic tools, while lessons present the content, and Post-Assessments measure mastery. This course is designed to be implemented in a blended learning environment with collaborative instruction delivered by an online highly-qualified English teacher, as well as, a face-to-face OCS teacher.
English II F/S
Course Number: 9211BX01
This course is intended for Occupational Course of Study (OCS) students who will be working with both their face- to-face classroom teacher and a NCVPS online teacher.
Students will gain mastery of curricular concepts through a survey of world literature. Through the examination of vocabulary including prefixes and suffixes, literary genres including fables and short stories, textual analysis through poetry, drama, fiction and nonfiction, persuasion and argumentation, presentation techniques, cause and effect writing, and research focusing on global awareness, the student will explore, examine, and evaluate a wide variety of modes of expression. Technology skills will behoned through the course. Pre-Assessments will be used as diagnostic tools, while lessons present the content, and Post-Assessments measure mastery. This course is designed to be implemented in a blended learning environment withcollaborative instruction delivered by an online highly-qualified English teacher as well as a face- to-face OCS teacher
English III F/S
Course Number: 9212BX01
Students in Occupational English III, read, write, and orally express information required in a variety of daily living andemployment settings. They identify main concepts and supporting information from printed material.
They examine the speaking skills expected in a variety of settings and demonstrate effective oral communication in each. In addition, students will:
• Expand proficiency in basic sentence and paragraph writing as applied to a variety of functional, independent living and employment tasks.
• Visually gain information from a variety of graphic material.
• Expand reading and writing of functional vocabulary terms.
• Expand comprehension of a variety of printed material.
• Demonstrate oral communication skills needed for a work environment.
• Write formal and informal letters
English IV F/S
Course Number: 9213BX01
Students in Occupational English IV integrate oral, written and visual skills to communicate effectively in a variety of daily living and employment situations. They employ visual communication skills to locate and research information. Occupational English IV students will:
• Expand verbal communication skills.
• Write logical and sequential reports.
• Expand comprehension of functional vocabulary to include legal, medical, tax and insurance terms
• Read and comprehend directions and other printed material for daily living and employment tasks
• Complete personal forms and applications
• Use computer technology to enter and edit information on a spreadsheet to communicate online.
• Produce complete personal portfolios.
Intro to Mathematics I F/S
Course Number: 9220BX01
Occupational Intro to Mathematics I continue the study of: a) Computation: reading, writing, counting, and the mathematical skills using whole numbers, decimals, fractions, and percents; b) Financial Management: recognizing and identifying basic financial information; c) Time and Measurement; d) Independent Living; and e) Technology. Students will acquire these skills through hands-on approaches and cooperative learning within the classroom and community. Application of these skills is necessary for independent living and successful employment.
Locally Developed Math Elective F/S
Course Number: 28002X08
This course is intended for Occupational Course of Study (OCS) students who will be working with both their face-to-face classroom teacher and an NCVPS online teacher. The Locally Developed Math Elective course teaches Common Core Standards for math and prepares students for the subsequent course, Math 1. Successful completion of both the Locally Developed Math Elective Course and Math 1 will fulfill the Math 1 requirement. Students will receive two credits: Locally Developed Math Elective as an elective credit and Math 1 as the Math 1 credit.
This course blends the best of online and classroom activities. Six engaging units cover topics such as simplifying expressions with exponents, solving equations and inequalities, relations and functions, slope and linear functions, and solving systems of equations and inequalities.
Math I F/S
Course Number: 9221BX01
This course is intended for Occupational Course of Study (OCS) Students to gain understanding of course concepts including operations with polynomials and matrices, creation and application of linear functions and relations, algebraic representations of geometric relationships, and an introduction to nonlinear functions. Students will describe and translate among graphic, algebraic, numeric, tabular, and verbal representations of relations and use those representations to solve problems. Technology, from videos and manipulatives to calculators and application software, will be used regularly for instruction. This course is designed to be implemented in a blended learning environment with collaborative instruction delivered by an online highly-qualified Mathematics teacher as well as a face-to face OCS teacher.
Financial Management F/S
Course Number: 9222BX01
This course is the study of computation and the application of these skills for independent living and successful employment.More emphasis is placed on application and problem solving in the areas of financial management, reading and interpreting schedules, time and measurement and independent living using technology, hands-on approaches and cooperative learning.
Applied Science F/S
Course Number: 9231BX01
This course is designed to provide students with the knowledge necessary to practice safety in all areas of life and maintain a healthy lifestyle. Students will also receive instruction in the provision of first aid assessing medical care. Students will haveopportunities to apply skills in the area of healthy living and safety to various situations within the home, community and workplace.
Biology F/S
Course Number: 9232BX01
This course is intended for Occupational Course of Study (OCS) Students to gain understanding of course concepts and to develop an appreciation for biological processes and discover how life science is an integral part of other sciences and society. They will gain an understanding of the cell, molecular basis of heredity, and biological evolution. They will investigate the interdependence of organisms. They will acquire an understanding of the matter, energy and organization in living systems. Technology skills will b e honed through the course. Pre- Assessments will be used as diagnostic tools, while lessons delve into the content, and Post-Assessments measure mastery. This course is designed to be implemented in a blended learning environment with collaborative instruction delivered by an online highly-qualified Biology teacher, as well as, a face-to-face OCS teacher.
American History I F/S
Course Number: 9247BX01
The OCS American History I course is intended for Occupational Course of Study (OCS) students who will be working with both their face-to-face classroom teacher and an NCVPS online teacher. The course is intended to be taught prior to the OCS American History II course. The OCS American History I course is strategically aligned with the North Carolina Essential Standards for American History I. The course follows the Founding Principles Act and begins with the European Exploration and Colonization of the New World and follows chronologically through Post-Civil War Reconstruction. Students will learn about the important political, social, and economic factors that contributed to the development of colonial America, the onset of the American Revolution, and the results of the Revolution including the founding of the United States government and the drafting of founding documents including the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. Students will also learn about early domestic and foreign policy, westward expansion, reform, immigration, and the cultural variances that have both united and divided America. Students will develop skills essential to competency on state-standard MSLs (Measures of Student Learning). Pre-Assessments will be used as diagnostic tools. Meanwhile, students will work through Bloom’s Taxonomy Hierarchy through completing lesson notes, formative assessments, completion assignments, and they will show mastery of learning through culminating projects and summative assessments. The course is designed to be implemented in a blended learning environment with collaborative instruction delivered by an online highly-qualified Social Studies teacher as well as a face-to-face OCS teacher.
American History II F/S
Course Number: 9248BX01
The OCS American History II course is intended for Occupational Course of Study (OCS) students who will be working with both their face-to-face classroom teacher and an NCVPS online teacher.
It is a sequel course to OCS American History I. The course is strategically aligned with the North Carolina Essential Standards for American History II. The course follows the Founding Principles Act and begins with late 19th century American History to the 21st century. Students will learn about the important political, social, and economic factors that transformed the ethnic composition of America and America’s dependence on evolving technologies. Students will also learn about 19th – 21st century domestic and foreign policy, westward expansion, reform movements, immigration, and the cultural variances that have both united and divided America. Students will develop skills essential to competency on state-standard MSLs (Measures of Student Learning). Pre-Assessments will be used as diagnostic tools. Meanwhile, students will work through Bloom’s Taxonomy Hierarchy through completing lesson notes, formative assessments, completion assignments, and they will show mastery of learning through culminating projects and summative assessments. The course is designed to be implemented in a blended learning environment with collaborative instruction delivered by an online highly-qualified Social Studies teacher as well as a face-to-face OCS teacher.