Septoct by DECA Inc.

COMPETITIVE EVENTS

CHAPTER RESOURCES

CURRICULUM & INSTRUCTION

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Office Depot is pleased to offer entrepreneurship lesson plans.

INTRODUCING THE ALL-NEW INSIGHT

This issue of Insight marks the first of a revised format that puts our content in four important categories: GET MORE WITH DECA DIRECT ONLINE – There are so many great classroom resources that can’t fit in just eight pages. Therefore, each issue will highlight a few timely resources that are available on decadirect.org. CHAPTER RESOURCES – The chapter resources corner will feature an innovative best practice designed to encourage you to think outside the box. COMPETITIVE EVENTS – Our competitive events corner will give you one simple strategy for integrating DECA’s competitive events into your program. CURRICULUM & INSTRUCTION – This extended pullout will showcase how DECA connects to the classroom and supports curriculum and instruction. Between each issue, be sure you’re receiving our DECA Direct Weekly e-mails full of important updates, information and classroom resources. If you’re not receiving these e-mails, please contact communications@deca.org to be sure you’re on our list. ARE YOU RECEIVING DECA DIRECT WEEKLY?

If not, you are missing out on this important weekly e-mail. E-mail communications@deca.org for assistance.

Use social media to communicate with and promote your chapter.

Learn how DECA supports important educational initiatives.

GET MORE WITH DECA DIRECT ONLINE DECA CHAPTER CAMPAIGNS MAKE IT COUNT TO FIVE! Engage your members and earn recognition for your chapter. http://bit.ly/12AG6y5 5 WAYS TO MAKE YOUR SBE COUNT THIS YEAR Don’t let this year be just another year for your school-based enterprise. http://bit.ly/1etiD6I 2013-2014 CORPORATE PARTNER CHALLENGES ANNOUNCED DECA members can demonstrate knowledge and skills learned in the classroom. http://bit.ly/1aWGlbs COUNT THE WAYS TO ICDC There are many ways to get to Atlanta for the 2014 International Career Development Conference! http://bit.ly/1agqGV7 THE DECA DIRECT ONLINE ULTIMATE EXPERIENCE Get worksheets to use in your classroom with DECA Direct Online. http://bit.ly/18GttkX SEEING INTO THE FUTURE: DECA’S VISION 2017 Learn about DECA’s strategic plan for 2017 and objectives to accomplish this year. http://bit.ly/15bnzK9

■ WWW.DECADIRECT.ORG

COMPETITIVE EVENTS

CHAPTER RESOURCES

ENPI CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES

USE SOCIAL MEDIA TO COMMUNICATE WITH AND PROMOTE YOUR CHAPTER

BY JOHN FISTOLERA | DECA INC. STAFF

Are you looking for a way to introduce DECA’s Entrepreneurship Participating – Creating an Independent Business (ENPI) to your DECA members and guide them to completing the competitive event as a classroom learning activity? Download a series of lesson plans, courtesy of Office Depot, that includes seven modules that are key to completing in DECA’s Entrepreneurship Participating – Creating an Independent Business competitive event. The modules contain worksheets, videos, articles and suggested ways to use the professional expertise of Office Depot managers around these topics: 1: An Introduction to Entrepreneurship and ENPI 2: Research Your Idea 3: Launch Your Business 4: What am I Selling? 5: Creating a Promotion Plan 6: Creating a Financial Plan for Your Business 7: Pitch Your Idea DECA’s new partnership with Office Depot will help prepare the next generation of business leaders and entrepreneurs. Office Depot has long been committed to helping build prosperity in the communities they serve. Fundamental to that effort is their industryleading, multi-dimensional initiative targeted to help our small business partners flourish. Contact your local Office Depot Manager, or John Fistolera at DECA, for more information about this exciting new partnership. PUBLISHER

Edward L. Davis

EDITOR

Christopher Young

THIS EDITION

EDITORIAL COMMITTEE Janelle Scudder Shane Thomas Michelle Walker

CORRESPONDENCE

DECA Insight 1908 Association Drive Reston, VA 20191-1594 (703) 860-5000 www.deca.org communications@deca.org

BY KEEGAN OBRIEN | CHAPTER ADVISOR, APPLETON EAST (WI) DECA

If you’re an advisor who hasn’t yet taken advantage of social media outlets for your chapter, you’ve probably asked yourself if you should jump on the bandwagon. The answer is a resounding “YES!” Social media is not a fad—it’s here to stay. The various online platforms society develops and uses will undoubtedly change over the years, but social media has become ingrained in our culture, and we need to leverage it with the missions of our student organizations. My chapter uses both Facebook and Twitter, our primary audience for these platforms being DECA members and other students. Many of our members profess to spending quite a bit of time on popular social media sites, so it’s critical that we engage them on the platforms they prefer to use. Here are my top five tips for using social media for your DECA chapter: 1. Select a member of your chapter to manage your various social media sites. He or she should conduct himself or herself professionally and be sure to follow all school district policies in regards to using social media. This person may very well be you! 2. Determine the primary social media platform used by your target audience. It will most likely be Facebook, but there are many other popular sites, too. You can use Twitter, Tumblr, Pinterest, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn, Google+, etc. Once you get comfortable with the concept and role of social media, start to explore different platforms and grow your chapter’s online presence. 3. If you develop a Facebook page for your chapter, make sure to create a fan page and not a personal page. Think of your chapter’s Facebook page like another business’s page; you don’t see businesses like Finish Line or Sears creating personal Facebook pages for their companies. 4. Post frequently on your various social media sites. Deliver content that fans and followers will enjoy. Photos of members at competitions and community service events (make sure to tag them), competition tips, spotlights on your chapter’s business partners, chapter announcements and upcoming events are all great examples of fun, relevant and sharable content. Give your audience a reason to continue to “like” or “follow” you. 5. Tell your audience that you use social media! If you place posters around the school to promote an event, make sure to include logos of the various social media sites you use, along with any information they’ll need to look you up. If you don’t already use social media, put these five steps at the top of your to-do list. I know your chapter will enjoy the many benefits it reaps from building up its online presence.

SUPPORTING EDUCATIONAL INITIATIVES BY CHRISTOPHER YOUNG AND SHANE THOMAS | DECA INC. STAFF

DECA continues to be a leader in supporting key educational initiatives through its comprehensive learning program. A classroom companion, DECA integrates into classroom instruction, applies learning, connects to business and promotes competition. DECA’s extensive offering of programs, ranging from competitive events to educational conferences to corporate partner challenges and more, deliver a variety of activities to serve diverse learning styles while also providing multiple assessment methods. DECA’s Comprehensive Learning Program directly supports the Career Clusters® initiative, National Curriculum Standards, 21st century skills and Common Core State Standards.

DEMONSTRATING DECA’S SUPPORT OF EDUCATIONAL INITIATIVES 1. Align your program using Career Clusters®. 2. Use crosswalks to document in lesson plans how the activities support each initiative. 3. Use DECA’s performance indicators, directly from National Curriculum Standards, as part of the evaluation criteria when developing rubrics. 4. Use DECA’s transcripts generated for DECA competitors at the International Career Development Conference to demonstrate specific mastery of performance indicators and 21st century skills. 5. Participate in DECA’s Professional Learning Series.

CAREER CLUSTERS® AND NATIONAL CURRICULUM STANDARDS EN TR EP RE

BUSINESS MANAGEMENT + ADMINISTRATION

FINANCE

ENT RE PR EN

HIP RS EU N

ENT RE PR EN P HI RS EU

HIP As an organizing tool for curriculum design and RS EU N instruction, Career Clusters® provide the essential knowledge and skills for the 16 Career Clusters® MARKETING and their Career Pathways. Career Clusters® provide students with relevant contexts for studying and learning by linking schoolbased learning with the knowledge and skills HOSPITALITY + TOURISM required for success in the workplace. The knowledge and skills encompass both secondary and postsecondary education so the framework informs efforts to strengthen and improve student transition from secondary to postsecondary education. ■ www.careerclusters.org

HIP RS EU

Career Clusters®

EN TR EP RE

National Curriculum Standards The National Curriculum Standards for Business Administration provide insight into what business leaders view as important to the success of employees at various levels and in various specialties. These standards define the content for the respective Career Cluster®. They inform teachers, administrators, and curriculum developers as to what should be taught. Educators, then, take the standards and determine how to deliver the content (instructional strategies) and how to design the programs and courses. ■ www.mbaresearch.org

DECA Supports Career Clusters® and National Curriculum Standards DECA’s Comprehensive Learning Program supports the marketing, business management, finance, and hospitality and tourism career clusters. DECA’s

programming, including competitive events, educational conferences, corporate partner challenges, educational publications, schoolbased enterprises, educator professional learning and more, support the development of necessary knowledge and skills for careers in these four career clusters. Knowledge and skills defined in the National Curriculum Standards and Career Clusters® are infused in DECA programs. For example, the certification standards in DECA’s School-based Enterprise Certification Program are designed to directly support the teaching and learning of the National Curriculum Standards. DECA’s Competitive Events Program also directly aligns with Career Clusters® and National Curriculum Standards. Each role-play and case study are developed using performance indicators which directly link to the knowledge and skill statements that comprise the Career Clusters® and National Curriculum Standards frameworks. DECA’s competitive events transcripts express each member’s performance rated against National Curriculum Standards through their participation in DECA’s Competitive Events

21ST CENTURY SKILLS

21st century skills are a series of skills and abilities that employers seek in their employees. The framework presents a holistic view of 21st century teaching and learning that combines a discrete focus on 21st century student outcomes (a blending of specific skills, content knowledge, expertise and literacies) with innovative support systems to help students master the multidimensional abilities required of them in the 21st century. In order to succeed in today’s workplace, employees must excel in the 4Cs: 1. Critical thinking and problem solving 2. Communication 3. Collaboration 4. Creativity and innovation ■ www.p21.org

DECA Supports 21st Century Skills

Program at the International Career Development Conference. The transcripts provide rankings and performance measures for each instructional area on the career cluster exam and feedback for each performance indicator and/or criterion that the judge evaluates.

DECA understands that 21st century skills are important to college and career success. DECA members develop 21st century skills through their participation in DECA activities, such as competitive events, educational conferences, corporate partner challenges, educational publications, schoolbased enterprises and more. Because DECA activities are usually projectbased and problem-based, DECA members use high order thinking skills and develop key competencies in the areas of critical thinking and problem solving, communication, collaboration and creativity and innovation. All DECA competitive events support the development of 21st century skills. For example, role-playing events require students to be problem solvers and effective communicators. Written and prepared events require students to collaborate with local businesses and team members, identify and solve complex problems, and then clearly communicate the project to others. DECA’s Competitive Events Program is a model for assessing 21st century skills and abilities. DECA’s team decision making and individual series events evaluate items, as judged by business professionals, specific to 21st century skills.

DECA helps teachers plan for curriculum and instruction using performance indicators, teach content through programs like school-based enterprises, assess student knowledge using competitive events and improve instruction using assessments from the competitive event transcripts.

Crosswalks Performance indicator lists found at www.deca.org directly correlate to the Career Clusters® at www. careerclusters.org and the National Curriculum Standards at www. mbaresearch.org.

Team decision making events ask the business professionals to judge the team’s ability to reason effectively and use systems thinking, make judgments and decisions, solve problems, communicate clearly, show evidence of collaboration and show evidence of creativity. Likewise, individual series events ask judges to evaluate the participant’s ability to reason effectively, use systems thinking, make judgments and decisions, and solve problems. The students’ performance is then analyzed compared to the other students participating in the competitive event at the DECA International Career Development Conference and reported using the DECA competitive events transcript.

Crosswalk DECA has created a crosswalk to help teachers document which 21st century skills are developed through student participation in DECA’s Competitive Events Program. For example, one 21st century skill standard reads “Develop, implement and communicate new ideas to others effectively.” This standard can be developed through participation in all of DECA’s competitive events. ■ www.deca.org/competitions/highschool

COMMON CORE

The Common Core State Standards provide a consistent, clear understanding of what students are expected to learn, so teachers and parents know what they need to do to help them. The standards are designed to be robust and relevant to the real world, reflecting the knowledge and skills that our young people need for success in college and careers. ■ www.corestandards.org

DECA Supports Common Core DECA’s Comprehensive Learning Program provides robust opportunities to support student learning of Common Core standards in English Language Arts & Literacy and Mathematics. For example, DECA members participating in the Accounting Applications Series Event will be developing their mathematics skills, while members writing research reports for the Business Operations Research Events will be developing their English Language Arts & Literacy skills. DECA advisors are encouraged to collaborate with core teachers to develop classroom activities that infuse rigorous and relevant learning into classroom instruction in both classes.

Crosswalks DECA has created crosswalks to help teachers document which Common Core Standards are developed through student participation in DECA’s Competitive Events Program. For example, one Common Core standard in English Language Arts & Literacy is, “Read closely to determine what the text says explicitly and to make logical inferences from it; cite specific textual evidence when writing or speaking to support conclusions drawn from the text.” This standard can be developed through participation in DECA’s roleplaying and case study events. ■ www.deca.org/competitions/ highschool

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E-LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES Join DECA for a series of free webinars and Google+ Hangouts that brings classroom instruction to life. Teachers, DECA advisors and students can learn about college and career trends and gain tools to thrive. October 2 | 4:00 p.m. EST

October 24 | 3:00 p.m. EST

Learn how serving as a DECA advisor supports the work you are already doing in the classroom.

Discover how to utilize Otis Spunkmeyer products in your SBE and take advantage of scholarship opportunities from DECA SBE’s premier sponsor.

NEW ADVISOR 101: YOUR ROLE AS A DECA ADVISOR

WORKING WITH OTIS SPUNKMEYER PRODUCTS IN SBEs AND SCHOLARSHIP OPPORTUNITIES

October 7 | 3:00 p.m. EST

IDEA CHALLENGE 2013: UNLEASH YOUR INNER ENTREPRENEUR

Get all the details on how to participate in Idea Challenge 2013, a featured event of Global Entrepreneurship Week. October 9 | 4:00 p.m. EST

NEW ADVISOR 101: MANAGING YOUR CHAPTER

Learn how to develop a systematic approach to managing the tasks of operating a DECA chapter. October 10 | 3:00 p.m. EST

SBE CERTIFICATION UPDATES AND PRESENTATION TOPIC

Become familiar with updates to SBE certification and recertification guidelines, including this year’s “Standard 6” which changes each year for re-certification. Find out the presentation topic for the 2014 SBE Academy competition. October 17 | 8:00 p.m. EST

MAKE DECA MONTH COUNT!

It’s the most wonderful time of year! Hear from a panel of key individuals who will share their cool ideas for DECA Month! October 18 | 3:00 p.m. EST

October 29 | 3:00 p.m. EST

FINISH LINE CHALLENGE

Finish Line wants your help determining how to best utilize its Omni-channel retail strategy. Learn about this year’s Finish Line Challenge and how your ideas can earn you a trip to Indianapolis and Atlanta. October 30 | 3:00 p.m. EST

FIDM CHALLENGE

Interested in fashion trends? If so, tune in to this webinar to hear about this year’s FIDM Challenge and learn how your ideas can earn you a trip to Atlanta. October 30 | 8:00 p.m. EST

MAKE SOCIAL MEDIA COUNT

It’s time to put DECA on top! Learn about new social media goals from your National Officer Team and how you can help DECA lead the way in social media! November 6 | 4:00 p.m. EST

NEW ADVISOR 101: GAINING SUPPORT

Learn how to gain support for your program within your school and community.

STOCK MARKET GAME

November 12 | 3:00 p.m. EST

October 22 | 3:00 p.m. EST

Nutrition guidelines, competition, finances, etc. can be roadblocks to building a successful SBE. Learn creative ways to overcome these challenges and keep your SBE open for business.

Learn about the DECA Stock Market Game and tools available through SIFMA to build your portfolio.

USING PERFORMANCE INDICATORS WITH CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES

OVERCOMING CHALLENGES IN YOUR SCHOOL-BASED ENTERPRISE

Wouldn’t it be great to use performance indicators with all DECA activities? Learn how performance indicators can be used throughout DECA’s Comprehensive Learning Program to show connection to the classroom and support of curriculum and instruction.

November 19 | 3:00 p.m. EST

October 23 | 4:00 p.m. EST

November 19 | 8:00 p.m. EST

Learn about DECA’s Comprehensive Learning Program that helps you connect your instruction to college and careers.

During Global Entrepreneurship Week, we’ll “hang out” with current and former DECA members with entrepreneurial ventures and highlight how DECA helped them become innovators.

NEW ADVISOR 101: DECA PROGRAMS

BUSINESS OPERATIONS RESEARCH EVENT TOPIC FOR 2013–2014

Learn about the 2013-2014 Business Operations Research Event for the high school division. This year’s topic is rebranding.

DECA ENTREPRENEURS

VIEW THE FREE WEBINARS AND COMPLETE SCHEDULE AT WWW.DECA.ORG/PAGE/ADVISORWEBINARS.