WHAT WORKREQUIRES

OF SCHOOLS

A SCANS REPORT FORAMERICA 2000

THE SECRETARY’S COMMISSION ON ACHIEVING NECESSARY SKILLSU.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

JUNE 1991

TABLE OF CONTENTS

LETTER TO PARENTS, EMPLOYERS, AND EDUCATORS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . i

LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vii

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .viii

REPORT I. HIGH-PERFORMANCE WORK AND SCHOOLS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

II. WHAT IS WORK LIKE TODAY? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

III. IMPLICATIONS FOR LEARNING . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

APPENDICES A. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

B. DEFINITIONS: THE COMPETENCIES. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

C. DEFINITIONS: THE FOUNDATION. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

D. JOB ANALYSIS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

FIGURES A. CHARACTERISTICS OF TODAY'S AND TOMORROW'S WORKPLACE. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

B. FIVE COMPETENCIES. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

C. A THREE-PART FOUNDATION. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

D. WORKPLACE KNOW-HOW: WHAT WORK REQUIRES OF SCHOOLS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

E. CHARACTERISTICS OF TODAY'S AND TOMORROW'S SCHOOLS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

F. SERVICE KNOW-HOW: LEVEL OF COMPETENCE EXPECTED FOR ENTRY ON A CAREER LADDER. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

G. MANUFACTURING KNOW-HOW: LEVEL OF COMPETENCE EXPECTED FOR ENTRY ON A CAREER LADDER. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

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A LETTER TOPARENTS, EMPLOYERS, AND EDUCATORS

FROM THE SECRETARY OF LABOR AND THESECRETARY’S COMMISSION ON ACHIEVING NECESSARY SKILLS

We, your Secretary of Labor andmembers of the secretary’s Commission onAchieving Necessary Skills (SCANS), write asconcerned representatives of the nation’sschools, businesses, unions, and government.We have completed our initial examination ofchanges in the world of work and theimplications of those changes for learning.

We understand that schools do more thansimply prepare people to make a living. Theyprepare people to live full lives & to participatein their communities, to raise families, and toenjoy the leisure that is the fruit of their labor.A solid education is its own reward.

This report concerns only one part of thateducation, the part that involves how schoolsprepare young people for work. It does not dealwith other, equally important, concerns that arealso the proper responsibility of our educators.We do not want to be misinterpreted. We arenot calling for a narrow work-focused education.Our future demands more.

For most of this century, as this nationtook its goods and know-how to the world,America did not have to worry aboutcompetition from abroad. At home, thetechnology of mass production emphasizeddiscipline to the assembly line. Today, thedemands on business and workers are different.Firms must meet world class standards and somust workers. Employers seek adaptability andthe ability to learn and work in teams.

This change has many implications. Wefocus on one: more than half of our youngpeople leave school without the knowledge orfoundation required to find and hold a good job.Unless all of us work to turn this situation

around, these young people, and those whoemploy them, will pay a very high price. Lowskills lead to low wages and low profits. Manyof these youth will never be able to earn a decentliving. And, in the long run, this will damageseverely the quality of life everyone hopes toenjoy. None of us, and none of you, wants tostand by while this happens.

The Commission spent 12 months talkingto business owners, to public employers, to thepeople who manage employees daily, to unionofficials, and to workers on the line and at theirdesks. We have talked to them in their stores,shops, government offices, and manufacturingfacilities. Their message to us was the sameacross the country and in every kind of job: goodjobs depend on people who can put knowledgeto work. New workers must be creative andresponsible problem solvers and have the skillsand attitudes on which employers can build.Traditional jobs are changing and new jobs arecreated everyday. High paying but unskilledjobs are disappearing. Employers andemployees share the belief that all workplacesmust "work smarter."

From these conversations, we have drawnthree major conclusions:

All American high school studentsmust develop a new set of competencies andfoundation skills if they are to enjoy aproductive, full, and satisfying life. Whetherthey go next to work, apprenticeship, the armedservices, or college, all young Americans shouldleave high school with the know-how they needto make their way in the world. In thisdocument, know-how has two parts: competenceand a foundation of skills and personal qualities.Less than one-half of our young people possess

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it. This know-how will be important to thosewho will be developing the World ClassStandards for educational performance called forby President Bush in April 1991 when heannounced a new education strategy,"AMERICA 2000."

The qualities of high performance thattoday characterize our most competitivecompanies must become the standard for thevast majority of our companies, large andsmall, local and global. By "highperformance" we mean work settingsrelentlessly committed to excellence, productquality, and customer satisfaction. These goalsare pursued by combining technology andpeople in new ways. Decisions must be madecloser to the front line and draw upon theabilities of workers to think creatively and solveproblems. Above all, these goals depend onpeople & on managers committed to highperformance and to the competence of theirworkforce and on responsible employeescomfortable with technology and complexsystems, skilled as members of teams, and witha passion for continuous learning.

The nation’s schools must be trans-formed into high-performance organizationsin their own right. Despite a decade of reformefforts, we can demonstrate little improvementin student achievement. We are failing todevelop the full academic abilities of moststudents and utterly failing the majority of poor,disadvantaged, and minority youngsters. Bytransforming the nation’s schools into high-performance organizations, we mean schoolsrelentlessly committed to producing skilledgraduates as the norm, not the exception. That,in fact, is the goal of President Bush’s educationstrategy.

But, these convictions remain abstractissues unless you can understand them in theworld of your child’s education, your businessneeds, and the standards of your school. Thisdocument lays out what these convictions meanin practice, on the job and in the school. Most

important, it defines what you must do to protectthe future of your child, your business, and thehealth of American education.

This report identifies five competencieswhich, in conjunction with a three-partfoundation of skills and personal qualities, lie atthe heart of job performance today. (See pagevii.) These eight areas represent essentialpreparation for all students, both those goingdirectly to work and those planning furthereducation. All eight must be an integral part ofevery young person’s school life.

Seldom does one of these eightcomponents stand alone in job performance.They are highly integrated, and most tasksrequire workers to draw on several of themsimultaneously. Take an example far removedfrom the everyday world of work most of usexperience: the men and women whose workinvolved planning and executing OperationDesert Storm had to apply all of thecompetencies to the problems before them.They did not categorize the problemsencountered into five domains of competenceand a three-part foundation. Instead, the officerssolved problems by bringing their know-how tobear on the situation in the Middle East. Thesoldiers who executed the orders of the officershad to bring the same kinds of know-how to bearat their level.

On a different front, Americanmanufacturing exports have surged since 1984,driven in part by radical improvements inquality, lower costs, and improved efficiency. Both of these situations demonstrate whathundreds of thousands of Americans can dowith solid training. There is every reason tobelieve that similar success can be duplicatedschool-by-school, worker-by-worker, andmanager-by-manager in the competitiveenvironment that tests the United States today.

The SCANS skills defined in this documentcarry serious implications for parents,employers, and educators.

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WORKPLACE KNOW-HOW

The know-how identified by SCANS is made up of five competencies and a three-part foundation of skills andpersonal qualities that are needed for solid job performance. These include:

COMPETENCIES&&effective workers can productively use:

�� Resources&&allocating time, money, materials, space, and staff;

� Interpersonal Skills&&working on teams, teaching others, serving customers, leading, negotiating, and working well with people from culturally diverse backgrounds;

�� Information&&acquiring and evaluating data, organizing and maintaining files, interpreting and communicating, and using computers to process information;

�� Systems&&understanding social, organizational, and technological systems, monitoring and correcting performance, and designing or improving systems;

�� Technology&&selecting equipment and tools, applying technology to specific tasks, and maintaining and troubleshooting technologies.

THE FOUNDATION &competence requires:

�� Basic Skills&&reading, writing, arithmetic and mathematics, speaking, and listening;

�� Thinking Skills&&thinking creatively, making decisions, solving problems, seeing things in the mind's eye, knowing how to learn, and reasoning;

�� Personal Qualities&&individual responsibility, self-esteem, sociability, self-management, and integrity.

Parents must insist that their sons anddaughters master this know-how and that theirlocal schools teach it. Unless you do, yourchildren are unlikely to earn a decent living.

If your children cannot learn these skills by thetime they leave high school, they face bleakprospects & dead-end work, interrupted only byperiods of unemployment, with little chance toclimb a career ladder.

Polls indicate that most Americansbelieve that schools, in general, needimprovement. But they also believe the schooltheir child attends is fine. Both conditionscannot be true at the same time. The largernational problem begins in each of ourneighborhood schools.

You can do several things to improveAmerican education. First, display the SCANSskills prominently in your home and discussthem, often, with your children. Make surethey understand what you expect. Second, take

the list with you to your child’s school and findout where and how the school is equipping yourchild with these skills. Organize a parents’meeting to discuss the SCANS findings andwhat your school is doing about them. Finally,make sure your school superintendent and yourschool board know of your interest in thesecompetencies and this foundation.

Employers must orient their businesspractices to hiring and developing this know-how in employees. If you do not develop aworld class workforce, your business inevitably

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will be at risk. If, for example, only 60 percentof your employees have these skills, and 90percent of Japanese and German workerspossess them, you are wasting must more onrework, poor quality, and late deliveries thanare your competitors.

Here is what you can do. First,reorganize your workplace into the high-performance environment of the future. Nineout of ten employers are operating onyesterday’s workplace assumptions. Do not beone of them. Second, invest in your employeesso that they can obtain the skills needed tosucceed in this new environment. Third, telleducators clearly what you need and work withthem to accomplish it. You know that studentshave to believe that you care about what theylearn. Employers who value performance inhigh school when they make their hiringdecisions provide students with the right signal:learning and earning are related activities.

Finally, use the materials theDepartment of Labor can provide to confirmthat the SCANS skills accurately reflect yourlocal workforce requirements. Havingconfirmed these skills, make sure your localschool board never loses sight of them in itsinstructional planning. By doing so, you willsupport the President of the United States inhis efforts to put World Class Standards &

incorporating the SCANS vision & intoAmerican schools and workplaces.

Educators have to instill in students theperspective on results that the SCANS skillsdemand. If you do not, you will be failing yourstudents and your community as they try toadjust to the next century. You, more thananyone, are responsible for helping our childrendevelop the skills they need.

Here is how you can help. First, tellyour students what the standards are & what isexpected of them. Second, give them thebenefit of a fair and firm assessment of wherethey stand and what they need to do. If they

pass from grade to grade and receive diplomaswithout mastering these skills, they cannotmake their way in the world of work. Third,inject the competencies and the foundation wehave defined into every nook and cranny of theschool curriculum. Your most gifted studentsneed this know-how, and so do thoseexperiencing the greatest difficulties in theclassroom. We are convinced that if studentsare taught the know-how in the context ofrelevant problems. You will find them moreattentive, more interested & indeed, moreteachable & because they will find thecoursework challenging and relevant. Finally,ask for the materials the Department of Laborcan make available to you. Use them with yourcolleagues and the local business community tohave your students confirm that the SCANSskills represent real work in your home town.

We know that some schools are alreadytransforming themselves. They serve as theinspiration for President Bush’s recentproposals to build "a New Generation ofAmerican Schools." We know, too, that manyteachers are accomplishing wonders againstformidable odds, and that most would do thesame if given the opportunity. We hope toencourage these developments so that allschools, for every student, can be transformed.

Above all, we know that many studentswork very hard. But many more do not becausethey do not believe the lessons they are learningare connected to the real world or that thediplomas they are earning will bring them abrighter future.

This report addresses one obstacle thatstands in the way of that future. Employershave never clearly told educators what studentsneed to know and be able to do in order tosucceed. Those requirements, as thisCommission sees them, are described in thefollowing pages.

This document is our opening statementabout the future of your children, your business,

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and your school. It provides a generaldescription of what is required. We havecreated this first statement with the advice ofexperts, educators, employees, supervisors, andbusiness and labor leaders from around thenation. Do not take our word for it. Ourconclusions must be tested in your homes,schools, and places of business. Join us in thisconversation and share your thoughts with us.Write, call, and visit the Department of Laborfor more information and for the tools andmaterials that can help you test these ideas andpropositions for yourself.

June 28, 1991

Lynn MartinSecretary of Labor

Edward AguirreAguirre International

William E. BrockThe Brock Group, SCANS Chairman

J. Veronica BigginsCitizens and Southern Corporation

James P. BlackBoard of Education Lauderdale County, Alabama

Patricia L. BrockettIowa Department of Commerce

Walton E. BurdickInternational Business Machines

James D. BurgeMotorola, Inc.

Bruce CarswellGTE Corporation

Thomas W. ChapmanGreater Southeast Community Hospital

Paul F. ColeNew York State AFL/CIO

Gloria J. ConnWayne County Regional Educational Service Agency

Gabriel CortinaLos Angeles Unified School District

Frank P. DoyleGeneral Electric Company

Jay H. ForemanUnited Food and Commercial Workers

Badi G. FosterAetna Life and Casualty

William H. GregoryGregory Forest Products

Yvette HerreraCommunication Workers of America

Madelyn P. JenningsGannett Company, Inc.

Steffen PalkoCross Timber Oil Company

Joan PattersonUAW/Chrysler National Training Center

Dale ParnellAmerican Association of Community and Junior Colleges

Lauren B. ResnickUniversity of Pittsburgh

Richard E. RiveraTGI Fridays, Inc.

Roger D. SemeradRJR Nabisco Foundation

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Thomas G. StichtApplied Behavioral and Cognitive Sciences, Inc.

Gary D. WattsNational Education Association

Sharon Marr WetjenHigh School Redirection

Gerald WhitburnWisconsin Department of Health and Social Services

John H. ZimmermanMCI Communications

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U.S. Department of LaborSecretary’s Commission on Achieving Necessary Skills

SCANSWashington, D.C. 20210

May 31, 1991

The Honorable Lynn MartinSecretary of LaborWashington, D.C.

Dear Madam Secretary:

The Secretary’s Commission on Achieving Necessary Skills (SCANS) was asked to examinethe demands of the workplace and whether our young people are capable of meeting those demands.Specifically, the Commission was directed to advise the Secretary on the level of skills required to enteremployment.

It is my privilege to chair this effort. We began in May 1990 to engage businesses, schools,unions, and parents in a dialogue about the future they hold in common. On behalf of my colleagueson the Commission, I am pleased to transmit to you the results of our first year’s work.

This document deals with two of our tasks & defining the skills needed and proposing acceptablelevels of proficiency for them. A technical report expanding on the themes of this document will beprovided later this year and a final report on our work will be available in February 1992.

Sincerely,

William E. Brock

Chairman

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The Secretary’s Commission onAchieving Necessary Skills (SCANS) wasasked to examine the demands of the workplaceand whether our young people are capable ofmeeting those demands.

Specifically, the Commission wasdirected to advise the Secretary on the level ofskills required to enter employment. Incarrying out this charge, the Commission wasasked to:

& Define the skills needed foremployment;

& Propose acceptable levels ofproficiency;

& Suggest effective ways to assessproficiency; and

& Develop a dissemination strategy for thenation’s schools, businesses, and homes.

This report results from our discussionsand meetings with business owners, publicemployers, unions, and workers and supervisorsin shops, plants, and stores. It builds on thework of six special panels we established toexamine all manner of jobs from manufacturingto government employment. We alsocommissioned researchers to conduct lengthyinterviews with workers in a wide range of jobs.

The message to us was universal: goodjobs will increasingly depend on people whocan put knowledge to work. What we foundwas disturbing: more than half our youngpeople leave school without the knowledge orfoundation required to find and hold a good job.These people will pay a very high price. Theyface the bleak prospects of dead-end workinterrupted only by periods of unemployment.

Two conditions that arose in the lastquarter of the 20th Century have changed theterms of our young people’s entry into theworld of work: the globalization of commerceand industry and the explosive growth of

technology on the job. These developmentshave barely been reflected in how we prepareyoung people for work or in how many of ourworkplaces are organized. Schools need to doa better job and so do employers. Students andworkers must work smarter. Unless they do,neither our schools, our students, nor ourbusinesses can prosper.

SCANS research verifies that what wecall workplace know-how defines effective jobperformance today. This know-how has twoelements: competencies and a foundation. Thisreport identifies five competencies and a three-part foundation of skills and personal qualitiesthat lie at the heart of job-performance. (Seepages x and xi.) These eight requirements areessential preparation for all students, both thosegoing directly to work and those planningfurther education. Thus, the competencies andthe foundation should be taught and understoodin an integrated fashion that reflects theworkplace contexts in which they are applied.

We believe, after examining the findingsof cognitive science, that the most effective wayof learning skills is "in context," placinglearning objectives within a real environmentrather than insisting that students first learn inthe abstract what they will be expected to apply.

The five SCANS competencies span thechasm between school and the workplace.Because they are needed in workplacesdedicated to excellence, they are hallmarks oftoday’s expert worker. And they lie behind thequality of every product and service offered ontoday’s market.

The competencies differ from a person’stechnical knowledge. For example, bothaccountants and engineers manage resources,information, systems, and technology. Theyrequire competence in these areas even thoughbuilding a bridge has little to do with balancinga set of books. But in each profession, the

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competencies are at least as important as thetechnical expertise. The members of theCommission believe these competencies areapplicable from the shop floor to the executivesuite. In the broadest sense, the competenciesrepresent the attributes that today’s high-performance employer seeks in tomorrow’semployee.

To describe how this know-how is usedon the job, our report provides a series of fivescenarios that portray work requirements in thecontext of the real world. The scenarios showthat work involves a complex interplay amongthe five competencies we have identified andthe three elements of the foundation & the basicskills, higher order thinking skills , and diligentapplication of personal qualities.

The scenarios make clear thattomorrow’s career ladders require even thebasic skills & the old 3 Rs & to take on a newmeaning. First, all employees will have to readwell enough to understand and interpretdiagrams, directories, correspondence, manuals,records, charts, graphs, tables, andspecifications. Without the ability to read adiverse set of materials, workers cannot locatethe descriptive and quantitative informationneeded to make decisions or to recommendcourses of action. What do these readingrequirements mean on the job? They mightinvolve:

& interpreting blueprints and materialscatalogues;

& dealing with letters and written policyon complaints;

& reading patients’ medical records andmedication instructions; and

& reading the text of technical manualsfrom equipment vendors.

At the same time, most jobs will call forwriting skills to prepare correspondence,instructions, charts, graphs, and proposals, in

order to make requests, explain, illustrate, andconvince. On the job this might require:

& writing memoranda to justify resourcesor explain plans;

& preparing instructions for operatingsimple machines;

& developing a narrative to explain graphsor tables; and

& drafting suggested modifications incompany procedures.

Mathematics and computational skillswill also be essential. Virtually all employeeswill be required to maintain records, estimateresults, use spreadsheets, or apply statisticalprocess controls as they negotiate, identifytrends, or suggest new courses of action. Mostof us will not leave our mathematics behind usin school. Instead, we will find ourselves usingit on the job, for example, to:

& reconcile differences between inventoryand financial records;

& estimate discounts on the spot whilenegotiating sales;

& use spreadsheet programs to monitorexpenditures;

& employ statistical process controlprocedures to check quality; and

& project resource needs over the nextplanning period.

Finally, very few of us will work totallyby ourselves. More and more, work involveslistening carefully to clients and co-workers andclearly articulating one's own point of view.Today’s worker has to listen and speak wellenough to explain schedules and procedures,communicate with customers, work in teams,understand customer concerns, describecomplex systems and procedures, probe forhidden meanings, teach others, and solveproblems.

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FIVE COMPETENCIES

Resources: Identifies, organizes, plans, and allocates resources

A. Time & Selects goal-relevant activities, ranks them, allocates time, and prepares and follows schedules B. Money & Uses or prepares budgets, makes forecasts, keeps records, and makes adjustments to meet

objectives C. Material and Facilities & Acquires, stores, allocates, and uses materials or space efficiently D. Human Resources & Assesses skills and distributes work accordingly, evaluates performance and provides

feedback

Interpersonal: Works with others

A. Participates as a Member of a Team & contributes to group effort B. Teaches Others New Skills C. Serves Clients/Customers & works to satisfy customers’ expectations D. Exercises Leadership & communicates ideas to justify position, persuades and convinces others,

responsibly challenges existing procedures and policies E. Negotiates & works toward agreements involving exchange of resources, resolves divergent interests F. Works with Diversity & works well with men and women from diverse backgrounds

Information: Acquires and uses information

A. Acquires and Evaluates Information B. Organizes and Maintains Information C. Interprets and Communicates Information D. Uses Computers to Process Information

Systems: Understands complex inter-relationships

A. Understands Systems & knows how social, organizational, and technological systems work and operateseffectively with them

B. Monitors and Corrects Performance & distinguishes trends, predicts impacts on system operations,diagnoses deviations in systems’ performance and corrects malfunctions

C. Improves or Designs Systems & suggests modifications to existing systems and develops new or alternativesystems to improve performance

Technology: Works with a variety of technologies

A. Selects Technology & chooses procedures, tools or equipment including computers and related technologies B. Applies Technology to Task & Understands overall intent and proper procedures for setup and operation of

equipment C. Maintains and Troubleshoots Equipment & Prevents, identifies, or solves problems with equipment,

including computers and other technologies.

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A THREE-PART FOUNDATION

Basic Skills: Reads, writes, performs arithmetic and mathematical operations, listens and speaks

A. Reading — locates, understands, and interprets written information in prose and indocuments such as manuals, graphs, and schedules

B. Writing — communicates thoughts, ideas, information, and messages in writing; andcreates documents such as letters, directions, manuals, reports, graphs, and flow charts

C. Arithmetic/Mathematics — performs basic computations and approaches practicalproblems by choosing appropriately from a variety of mathematical techniques

D. Listening — receives, attends to, interprets, and responds to verbal messages and othercues

E. Speaking — organizes ideas and communicates orally

Thinking Skills: Thinks creatively, makes decisions, solves problems, visualizes, knows how to learn, andreasons

A. Creative Thinking — generates new ideasB. Decision Making — specifies goals and constraints, generates alternatives, considers

risks, and evaluates and chooses best alternativeC. Problem Solving — recognizes problems and devises and implements plan of actionD. Seeing Things in the Mind’s Eye — organizes, and processes symbols, pictures, graphs,

objects, and other informationE. Knowing How to Learn — uses efficient learning techniques to acquire and apply new

knowledge and skillsF. Reasoning — discovers a rule or principle underlying the relationship between two or

more objects and applies it when solving a problem

Personal Qualities: Displays responsibility, self-esteem, sociability, self-management, and integrity andhonesty

A. Responsibility — exerts a high level of effort and perseveres towards goal attainmentB. Self-Esteem — believes in own self-worth and maintains a positive view of selfC. Sociability — demonstrates understanding, friendliness, adaptability, empathy, and

politeness in group settingsD. Self-Management — assesses self accurately, sets personal goals, monitors progress, and

exhibits self-controlE. Integrity/Honesty — chooses ethical courses of action

On the job, these skills may translate readilyinto:

& training new workers or explaining newschedules to a work team;

& describing plans to supervisors orclients;

& questioning customers to diagnosemalfunctions; and

& answering questions from customersabout post-sales service.

SCANS estimates that less than half ofall young adults have achieved these readingand writing minimums; even fewer can handlethe mathematics; and, schools today onlyindirectly address listening and speaking skills.

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Defining the minimum levels ofproficiency in the SCANS competencies is alsoa crucial part of the Commission’s task. Itrequires judgments about the learning possiblein yet-to-be designed schools. It also requiresimagining what the workplaces of the year 2000could and should look like.

Our work on these required levels ofproficiency is not complete. We have examinedless than a third of the jobs we intend toresearch. We also wish to hear what othersthink of our initial efforts. The insert at the topof page xx is illustrative of our initial estimatesof work-ready levels of proficiency in the fivecompetencies. Proficiency in each competencyrequires proficiency in the foundation. Thecontexts displayed come from more extensivescenarios contained in our report. The point wewish to make is that young people leavingschool should have both a sufficient foundationand level of understanding of the competenciesto exhibit performances like those illustrated.

The minimums we propose will definewhat makes a young person ready for work atentry levels on career ladders. They representneither the first nor last step in a process of life-long learning. Instead, the minimums will be asecond step in a progression of skillsacquisition. For example, consider schedulingtime, part of the SCANS resourcescompetency. A young student (at thepreparatory stage) might be expected to make aschedule for him or herself. Being work-readywould require making a schedule for others. Atthe extreme, a specialist might developschedules for an airline. (See insert at bottomof page xiii.)

In September 1989 President Bush andthe nation’s governors agreed to six nationalgoals in education to be achieved by the year2000. By April 1991 a four-part strategy toattain these six goals was announced byPresident Bush and Secretary of EducationLamar Alexander. This report of the Secretary

of Labor’s Commission on AchievingNecessary Skills speaks directly to those goalsand to that strategy. It defines what our youngpeople must know and be able to do in order tohold a decent job and earn a decent living.

Our work pertains directly to NationalGoals #3 and #5 which state:

Goal #3 American students will leavegrades four, eight, and twelveh a v i n g d e m o n s t r a t e dcompetency in challengingsubject matter including English,mathematics, science, history,and geography; and every schoolin America will ensure that allstudents learn to use their mindswell, so they may be preparedfor responsible citizenship,further learning, and productiveemployment in our moderneconomy. (emphasis added)

Goal #5 Every adult American will beliterate and will possess theknowledge and skills necessaryto compete in a global economyand exercise the rights andresponsibilities of citizenship.(emphasis added)

Our report is intended to contribute to allfour parts of the strategy put forth by PresidentBush in AMERICA 2000 as shown below.

Workforce know-how will be part of thenew World Class Standards. However, definingcompetencies and a foundation is not enough.Schools must teach them. Students must learnthem. And, they should be assessed as part ofthe America 2000 agenda. Our work on theseissues will continue over the coming months.Among the concrete steps SCANS will take inthe future are efforts to:

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KNOW-HOW:WORK-READY LEVEL OF PROFICIENCY

COMPETENCE EXAMPLE OF LEVEL

RESOURCES Develop cost estimates and write proposals to justify the expense of replacingkitchen equipment. Develop schedule for equipment delivery to avoid closingrestaurant. Read construction blueprints and manufacturers’ installationrequirements to place and install equipment in the kitchen.*

INTERPERSONAL Participate in team training and problem-solving session with multi-cultural staff of waiters and waitresses. Focus on upcoming Saturday night when local club has reserved restaurant after midnight for party. Three peoplecannot work and team has to address the staffing problem and prepare forhandling possible complaints about prices, food quality, or service.*

INFORMATION Analyze statistical control charts to monitor error rate. Develop, with otherteam members, a way to bring performance in production line up to that ofbest practice in competing plants.**

SYSTEMS As part of information analysis above, analyze painting system and suggesthow improvements can be made to minimize system downtime and improvepaint finish.**

TECHNOLOGY Evaluate three new paint spray guns from the point of view of costs, healthand safety, and speed. Vendors describe performance with charts and writtenspecifications. Call vendors’ representatives to clarify claims and seek thenames of others using their equipment. Call and interview references beforepreparing a report on the spray guns and making a presentation tomanagement.**

PROGRESS IN ACQUIRING SKILLS

PROFICIENCY LEVEL PERFORMANCE BENCHMARK

PREPARATORY Scheduling oneself

WORK-READY Scheduling small work team

INTERMEDIATE Scheduling a production line or substantial construction project

ADVANCED Developing roll-out schedule for new product or production plant

SPECIALIST Develop algorithm for scheduling airline

*Competence as demonstrated in a service sector application.**Competence as demonstrated in a manufacturing sector application.

& examine how to create an assessmentsystem that helps students understand whatthey have to learn and certifies that theyhave mastered the competencies so thatemployers and colleges will honor theirrecord of high school performance;

& consider the implications of the SCANSfindings for curriculum development,school organization, teacher training, andinstructional materials and technology; and

1The White House, April 18, 1991.

1

& help the Administration establish thepublic-private partnership called for in theeducation strategy, "AMERICA 2000."

The President of the United States hasencouraged all of us to become revolutionaries inthe cause of education. For over 200 yearsAmericans have worked to make education part oftheir national vision, indispensable to democracyand to individual freedom. For at least the last 40years, we have worked to further the ideal ofequity &

for minority Americans, for the disabled, and forimmigrants. With that work still incomplete, weare called to still another revolution & to create anentire people trained to think and equipped withthe know-how to make their knowledgeproductive.

This new revolution is no less exciting orchallenging than those we have already completed. Nor is its outcome more certain. All that is certainis that we must begin.

EXCERPTS FROM AMERICA 2000'sFOUR-PART STRATEGY 13

Part 1."For Today’s Students: Better and More AccountableSchools & World Class Standards:....These standardswill incorporate both knowledge and skills, to ensurethat, when they leave school, young Americans areprepared for further study and the work force."

Part 3."For the Rest of Us (Yesterday’s Students/Today’s WorkForce): A Nation of Students & Private-Sector Skills andStandards: business and labor will be asked...to establishjob-related skill standards, built around coreproficiencies...

Part 2."For Tomorrow’s Students: A New Generation ofAmerican Schools. New American Schools: helpcommunities create schools that will reach the nationaleducation goals, including World Class Standards."

Part 4."Communities Where Learning Can Happen." AMERICA 2000 Communities. The president ischallenging every city, town, and neighborhood...to adoptthe six national education goals...[and] develop a reportcard for measuring progress."

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I.HIGH-PERFORMANCE WORK

AND SCHOOLS

On April 18, 1991, when the President of theUnited States announced a new education strategy,"AMERICA 2000," he said, "think about everyproblem, every challenge, we face. The solutionto each starts with education. For the sake of hefuture of our children and the nation, we musttransform America’s schools. The days of thestatus quo are over.

We understand that schools do more thansimply prepare people to make a living. Theyprepare people to live full lives & to participate intheir communities, to raise families, to enjoy theleisure that is the fruit of their labor. A solideducation is its own reward and has value beyondspecific skills.

This report concerns one part of thetransformation the President has described, thepart that involves how our schools prepare ouryoung people for work. It does not deal withother, equally important, concerns that are also theproper responsibility of our educators, such asproviding comprehensive instruction in history,literature, geography, and theoretical science andmathematics so our young people can live the fulllives we wish for them. Competency in these fivecore subjects remains relevant to the "real world." This report should not be misconstrued assuggesting that schools abandon these subjects infavor of workplace skills training.

This document describes fundamentalchanges in the nature of work, and theimplications those changes hold for the kinds ofworkers and workplaces the nation must create. Itdefines "workplace know-how" &a quality thatworkers must possess if they are to grow, produce,and succeed. It is about changes in how we shouldthink about the connections between educationand earning a living. This report is about helpingour youth enter the workforce prepared with the

know-how they need to master whateverchallenges work and life will place before them.

THE WORLD HAS CHANGED

A strong back, the willingness to work, anda high school diploma were once all that wasneeded to make a start in America. They are nolonger. A well-developed mind, a passion tolearn, and the ability to put knowledge to work arethe new keys to the future of our young people, thesuccess of businesses, and the economic well-being of the nation.

Two events of the last generation serve asmetaphors for how radically and irreversibly theeconomic environment for all work has changed,both for Americans and for the rest of the world. In 1973, the OPEC oil embargo made itunmistakably clear that our nation’s economicfuture was no longer ours alone to decide. Sincethen, the lessons of globalization andinterdependence have been reinforced at everyturn. In many ways, 1973 was a boundary linedefining new territory.

Two years later, the first plans for anunheard of new product & a personal computer &

appeared in a popular scientific magazine. Thatdevice has altered both the speed with which workis done and its very nature. It has configured theworld of work as have perhaps no other inventionsince electricity or the assembly line. It hascreated not only a new industry; it has redefinedthe way thousands of different kinds of work arenow carried out.

Globalization and technology contain boththreat and promise. The threat is easilysummarized in the economic implications ofenergy dependence, disappointing productivitygrowth, and stagnant wages. For example:

2

& Productivity . Productivity growth (outputper hour) in the United States slowedsignificantly after 1973. Labor productivityactually declined in 1989 and 1990. Someestimate that if current internationalproductivity trends continue, nine countriesmay exceed the U.S. in output per worker-hour by the year 2020.

& Earnings and Income. Stagnantproductivity has seriously affectedworkers’ earnings. Median family incomeincreased nearly three percent a yearbetween 1947 and 1973. Since 1973, it hasscarcely increased at all. Families withheads of households under the age of 34have watched their real income declinesince 1979.

& Jobs. Job opportunities in the United Statesare changing. Twenty years ago,manufacturing accounted for 27 percent ofall nonagricultural employment in the U.S.:services and retail trade for 32 percent. By1990, manufacturing accounted for only 17percent of these jobs, while services andretail trade made up 44 percent. In 1990,manufacturing jobs paid an average of$10.84 per hour; while service jobs paid$9.86 and jobs in retail trade paid only$6.78.

But the promise of an internationalized economicenvironment and a workplace grounded in newtechnologies is equally dramatic. The promise is ahealthy economy that improves the standard ofliving for all by growing & by increasingproductivity, creating new jobs, and meeting thechallenges placed before it.

WORK IS CHANGING

To paraphrase futurist Alvin Toffler, weare now caught up in a "third wave" ofindustrialization. Just as the United Statespowered its early industrial growth with steam andbuilt a manufacturing empire on the assembly line,it can now catch the crest of computer technologyto create a high-wage, high-skill future.

That future depends on high-performancework organizations and a highly competentworkforce. It will be as different from our presentas today’s most advanced work and workplace aredifferent from Henry Ford’s assembly line. As acorporate member of the commission observed, inreviewing preliminary descriptions of theworkplace developed during this project, "Whatstartles me is the realization that they are accurate,but ten years ago I could not possibly haveimagined them. What will our workplace look liketen years from today?"

Figure A on the following page, adaptedfrom a chart developed by the CongressionalOffice of Technology Assessment, summarizes themajor differences between the traditionalworkplace and the leading-edge, high-performanceworkplaces that are beginning to develop. Thesedifferences were also found by the MITCommission on Industrial Productivity thatreported in 1989. The members of SCANS believethese new workplaces should become the norm,not the exception.

In most workplaces of today, work isroutinized, repetitive, and organized alonghierarchical lines. Perhaps its most prominentfeature is that it emphasizes mass production byworkers who are asked to think about what theyare doing. It leaves quality to be inspected into theproduct after-the-fact, i.e., by weeding out defectsthrough a separate quality control process.

High performance workplaces, by contrast,stand as a model for a successful future. In thisnew environment, work is problem-oriented,flexible, and organized in teams; labor is not a cost

2Source:"Competing in the New International Economy." Washington: Office of Technology Assessment, 1990.

3

but an investment. Most important, the high-performance organization recognizes that

producing a defective product costs more thanproducing a high-quality one.

FIGURE A

CHARACTERISTICS OF TODAY'S AND TOMORROW'S WORKPLACE 23

TRADITIONAL MODEL HIGH PERFORMANCE MODEL

STRATEGY �� mass production �� flexible production �� long production runs �� customized production �� centralized control �� decentralized control

PRODUCTION �� fixed automation �� flexible automation �� end-of-line quality control �� on-line quality control �� fragmentation of tasks �� work teams, multi-skilled workers �� authority vested in supervisor �� authority delegated to worker

HIRING AND HUMAN RESOURCES �� labor-management confrontation �� labor-management cooperation �� minimal qualifications accepted �� screening for basic skills abilities �� workers as a cost �� workforce as an investment

JOB LADDERS �� internal labor market �� limited internal labor market �� advancement by seniority �� advancement by certified skills

TRAINING �� minimal for production workers �� training sessions for everyone �� specialized for craft workers �� broader skills sought

The solution: design quality into the productdevelopment process itself, particularly byenabling workers to make on-the-spot decisions.

Workplaces organized along the lines ofthe traditional mass production model can nolonger prosper. Like the dinosaur with its limitedintelligence, doomed to extinction at the hands ofsmaller but craftier animals, the traditional modelcannot survive the competition from highperformance organizations that depend on theintelligence and ingenuity of their managers andemployees. High-performance organizations are

relentlessly committed to excellence, to productquality, and to customer service. These are theorganizations that have revived Americanmanufacturing competitiveness and compete forthe nation’s mark of business distinction & the Department of Commerce’s Baldrige Award. Oneof the defining characteristics of these firms is aworkforce with skills outlined in this document.

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THE EDUCATIONAL SIDE OF THE EQUATION

The world has changed. Work is changing.But despite their best efforts, most schools havenot changed fast enough or moved far enough. Fornearly a decade, education reform and itsrelationship to America’s place in the world havebeen high on the public’s agenda. Reports havebeen developed, meetings convened, andannouncements and calls to arms issued. Literallyhundreds of specific recommendations have beenput forward by researchers, public leaders, opinionmodern, and school officials.

Many educators have responded. Mostcommunities in the United States have felt theimpact: new curricula, adult literacy efforts,compensatory programs, in-school child care, newteacher training efforts & all of these and morehave been tried. Yet, despite some promisingexceptions, we are unable to demonstrate thatthings are, on the whole, much better. In terms ofachieving results, not much has changed despitegreat effort and significant increases in funding.

It is time to ask: Why is that so? How is itthat all this time, energy, and effort have beenexpended to so little avail? The problem iscomplex and so are the answers. Part of thedifficulty is that employers and school personnelare passing each other like ships in the night: onespeaks in Morse code, the other signals with flags.As a consequence of the miscommunication,secondary school students often see littleconnection between what they do in school andhow they expect to make a living. They, therefore,invest very little effort in their education. Theaverage American high school junior puts in halfof the 60 hours a week that a Japanese peerdevotes to schoolwork.

Miscommunication

One reason for the lack of educationalimprovement lies in the confusing signalsexchanged between the education and the business

communities. The educator asks, "What do youwant in our graduates? We are confident we canproduce it." The response is, too frequently, a setof contradictory cues.

� The local tour bus operator responds, "Iwant graduates who can diagnose andrepair diesel engine and who knowsomething about air brakes. That’s my firstpriority. I don’t have time to train thesekids."

� The local bank vice president says, "I wantclean and attractively dressed youngpeople, with a solid grasp of the basics-reading, writing, and computation-and wewill teach them the banking business."

� The owner of a small manufacturing firmasks for dependable, reliable graduateswho will show up on time with enoughtechnological skill to immediately step intothe CAD-CAM (Computer-AssistedDesign and Computer-Assistedmanufacturing) operations.

Researchers’ efforts have proven equallyunhelpful. Most attempts to characterize workskills focus either on general human characteristics(e.g., intelligence, reasoning ability, reaction time)or on the characters of specific jobs (e.g., ability toassemble items or route packages). The level ofdetail communicated varies from the general(ability to solve problems) to the very specific(perform a tack weld on sheet metal). As a result,the operational implications and meaning of theselists are frequently difficult to determine. They donot provide direct links to the "stuff" of schools ora sense of the work enabled by the skillsidentified.

Frustrated, the school finds that thebusiness world has not defined what schoolsshould be doing. To the extent that individualbusiness leaders are clear, they often convey anunrealistic expectation that schools serve as their

5

firm’s training institution with their specifictraining requirements at the front of the line.

The results are predictable. Despitesincere, well-intentioned efforts to respond, theschools & lacking clear and consistent guidance &

continue with the system and methodologies theyinherited from a system designed nearly 100 yearsago for the needs of business organizations that arenow quite different.

The StudentThe disjointed conversation between the

schools and employers creates a situation in whichstudents understand intuitively, often correctly,that what they are doing in the school today bearslittle resemblance to what they will be expected todo in the workplace tomorrow. Many students,both those expecting to go to work immediatelyafter 12th grade and those going to colleges,simply do not consider high school work as worthserious effort.

The sense that students clearly distinguishbetween what goes on in their classrooms andwhat goes on in the "real world" was palpable infocus groups convened as part of the SCANSresearch. Not one of the students in these groupsbelieve that a high school diploma by itselfguarantees a job in today’s economy. All of them,in fact & whether bound for college or work &

believe that job skills, by and large, are learned onthe job, by hands-on experience, through extra-curricular activities, or by osmosis. In other words,they believe that the skills needed in the real worldare, in the words of one student, just "picked up".

But the massive training budgets of today'scorporations are powerful evidence that workforceknow-how cannot be simply "picked up." Whenstudents fail to associate "school" work with "real" work, they draw the wrong conclusion & that"school" work is not "real." In fact, however, thetask of learning is the real work of today, whetherat school, in the university, on the job, or in theWhite House. It is this task young people mustmaster in every environment.

THE CHALLENGE

The challenge this situation places beforethe nation’s business and educational communitiesis three-fold. The first task is to develop a bettermeans of communicating, a common vocabularyto guide the conversation between the businessand school communities. The following chaptersuggests such a vocabulary. The second task is to set clear-cutstandards and then convince students that effortinvested in meeting these standards today will berewarded in the world of work tomorrow. A majorpart of this task involves persuading students,teachers, parents, and business leaders thatworkplace know-how is not something "you justpick up." It can be defined. The third task isassess and certify students’ workplace readiness sothat students, their parents, and employers willknow where they stand.

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IIWHAT IS WORK LIKE TODAY?

In arguing that today’s employers have beeninconsistent and contradictory in their messages tothe schools, we have pointed out that differentemployers have different needs & that themanufacturing plant differs from the machine shopand that neither bears much relationship to thetypical office environment. All of that is true. Butthe diversity is largely a fog obscuring what is, infact, a set of common competencies and skillsshared by all workers. SCANS understands thesecompetencies and skills as "workplace know-how."

FIVE SCENARIOS

This chapter explores that know-how. It doesso, first, by examining the world of work throughfive short "scenarios" describing what high schoolgraduates are actually expected to do when theyenter high-performance work environments. We goon to draw from these scenarios the competenciesand skills that will define effective workperformance for the year 2000.

The five scenarios come from the followingsectors of the economy:

& Manufacturing;& Health Services; & Retail Trade;& Accommodations and Food Services; and& Office Services.

We recognize that not all workplaces in thesesectors are currently organized to draw upon theskills displayed by the workers in the scenarios. Butwe believe that the increasingly competitiveenvironment businesses face is forcing more of themto reorganize to make better use of more highly-skilled workers. This means that those students wholeave school prepared to enter such workplaces willget the best jobs with the most stable and rewardingfutures. The student who leaves school with theworkplace know-how described in these scenarios

will be the prepared worker America requires in thenext century.

ManufacturingKareem is an electronics specialist working

as an electrician in a newly designed "Big Three"automobile assembly plant (AAP) in the Midwest.He had previously spent two years in the Army as anelectronics specialist. The plant is a state-of-the-artproduction faculty employing 2,900 hourly workers.About two years ago, assembly line automation wascompleted with the selection and installation of anew robotics painting system. Kareem was involvedin the selection of this equipment, which Alice, theprocurement specialist in the engineeringdepartment chose with advice from line workers.But a pressing issue developed on the operating line:how to train people to properly use, maintain, andtroubleshoot the system.

The vendor for the painting system hadprovided initial training in the system’sprogrammable logic. But, after the vendor left,Kareem found himself frequently on-call totroubleshoot the problems of the new systembecause the other shop electricians were not able tomaintain it. The other electricians, who had beenhired from an older AAP plant on the basis ofseniority, were what are called "pipe, wire, andrelay" electricians who had a difficult time makingthe transition to electronics concepts. It appearedthat while the vender had provided solid training ingeneralized troubleshooting, they had not providedsufficient training in how to troubleshoot the systemas integrated into an automotive plant.

Kareem worked with the head of high-technology training at AAP and the vendor to revisethe training to emphasize a broad array ofmaintenance skills needed on the line. The goal, inpart, was to reduce the costs associated withrepeated calls for assistance form the vendor.

7

The course work, which was taught byKareem, included a review of basic electrical theoryand training in basic electronics concepts. It alsoincluded work in pneumatics and hydraulics. Itheavily emphasized the use of computer consoleswith on-the-floor simulations of equipmentoperation.

One result of this ongoing training is a moreconfident team of electricians who can provideimmediate assistance to the line. Another is equallyimpressive: system downtime (which can costautomakers more that $1 million daily) has beenreduced by 22 percent at AAP.

Health ServicesLuretta is the registrar in the emergency

room of City Hospital, a large public facility on theWest Coast serving a diverse, urban population. Sheis the first person patients meet when they enter thehospital. Stress in the emergency room is almosttangible, particularly on weekends. Residents ofnearby low-income neighborhoods use the facilityfor routine health care; accident victims from allover the area are frequently brought to City; andgang violence produces many severely woundedpatients. This combination threatens to overwhelmthe emergency room on weekends.

On Friday evening, the emergency roomstaff is just recovering from a very difficultafternoon. Seven children, injured when theirschool bus was hit by a delivery van, were broughtto the emergency room between 3:30 and 4:00 p.m.As Luretta takes a breather, an ambulance crewbrings in a local college student suffering from adrug overdose. Luretta processes his papers frominformation provided by the ambulance crew andturns him over to a Licensed practical Nurse (LPN).As the LPN leaves, a gunshot victim staggers in onthe arm of a friend. Luretta grabs the friend to getinformation on the victim and has an orderly wheelthe victim back to an examining room. At that verymoment, a distraught mother arrives with herteenage daughter who is wheezing, clearly in severerespiratory distress.

Confident that the first two patients are ingood hands, Luretta turns her attention to the motherand daughter only to find that neither speaksEnglish. The girl is choking; the mother unable tomake herself understood, becomes hysterical.Frank, a Registered Nurse (RN) who hears thecommotion, arrives and takes the girl to anexamining room. As the RN leaves he instructsLuretta to get an attending physician and aninterpreter.

Luretta locates Dr. Paula Jones in the nextroom and asks her to come to the examining room.Next, she calls the Community Affairs office andgets an interpreter on the phone with the mother andherself. The interpreter informs Luretta that the girlis asthmatic and that she has been treated at thehospital before. Luretta smiles at the mother toreassure her that everything is under control andgoes to her computer terminal to locate thedaughter’s hospital records. Luretta hands a copy ofthe records to Dr. Jones who completes theexamination of the girl and prescribes medication torelieve her distress.

Retail TradeMickey is a salesperson at a computer store

on Main Street in a small northeastern city. Thestore carries a basic line of computers and printersform five different manufacturers, about 15 pieces ofequipment in all, varying in size, price, andcapabilities. The store also carries a wide range ofsoftware, from word processing to databasemanagement programs, as well as paper, diskettes,add-on peripherals such as modems, andmiscellaneous supplies.

This week the company has a sale on laptopcomputers. Moreover, each member of the salesforce who sells 10 or more laptops will receive onefree for his or her own use. Mickey goes to thedatabase he maintains on his computer to search hiscustomer records for promising purchasers. He firstlists owners of laptops form the same manufacturer,then owners of other laptops and begins placingcalls.

8

At this point, a customer walks into the store.The customer owns a seven-person real estatecompany. She complains that her sales-people travelso much throughout the region that they cannot stayon top of mortgage rates from different banks ornew listings throughout the state. As a result theyare losing sales, Mickey responds, "You’ve come tothe right place. Portable computers&laptops&cansolve this problem for you. And, we have a terrificsale on them right now."

"This model has a built-in modem. If youequip your cars with phones, your employees coulddownload all the information they need just bydialing your office from the car. You also need adesktop computer at your office to answer thephone, but your salespeople could connect with itdirectly; or, we have a software package called RealEstate Monitor which hooks you up directly to anon-line information service that has up-to-the-minute real estate listings and mortgage rates."

The customer is intrigued, but worried aboutthe costs. Mickey nods, "Even with the sale we areoffering, seven or eight computers is a substantialinvestment for a small firm. But let me ask you this.You tell me you are losing two or more sales a weekbecause your sales force can’t stay on top of listingsand mortgage rates. If this system helps you recoupjust one of those sales a week, isn’t it true that it willpay for itself in a month or two?"

"That may be about right," responds thecustomer. "My name is Joan Lewis. Let’s sit downand talk about precisely how much this is going tocost me."

Accommodations and Food ServicesGreg, Anthony, and Kathleen are on the

verge of realizing an entrepreneurial dream&

opening their own restaurant (The Three Chefs) in agrowing southern town. Independently they haveworked hard to reach this point, spending 10 or moreyears learning the restaurant business, pooling theirsavings, and borrowing from friends and family toraise the start-up capital they needed. Greg took out

a second mortgage on his home to satisfy the localbank’s demand for security on a line of credit.

Greg serves as manager and "front-of-the-house" shift supervisor during the day. Kathleen isthe lunchtime chef and evening manager. Anthonytrains the staff, does the bookkeeping, and preparesthe evening meals. Renovation has been completedon the restaurant, and most of the new kitchenequipment has been installed. Waiters andwaitresses have completed their training and haveworked two practice shifts to iron out problems.

Kathleen and Anthony analyzed the "back-of-the-house" work flow during the practice shiftsand developed a plan for improving the kitchen’soutput. They can improve efficiency in the kitchenby almost 20 percent by starting food preparation anhour early and moving one of the work stations tothe front of the house. After some discussion, thethree of them realized that although therepositioning makes sense, it will probably costthem between $7,000 and $10,000, which they donot have. If their projections are correct, they mightbe able to afford it after they have made about$250,000 in sales, i.e., in three to four months, if allgoes well. They opt to make minor adjustments tothe system and refrain from expensive changes untilthey have seen how the first month’s sales andexpenses look.

"Here’s another way we can control ourcosts," says Kathleen. "I’ve come across a newmanagement information system that can generateinventory reports, sales reports, and pricing charts.We can integrate the inventory reports and pricingdata to project cost and make menu changes. I’vealso been looking at several different accountingsoftware packages. I think the software ouraccountant recommended is the most suitable for ourneeds. There is a large pool of programmers whoknow that software, making it easier for us to obtaina consultant on short notice to tailor it to ouroperation."

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Office ServicesVerbatim Transcription Service (VTS)

provides written records of meetings, legalproceedings, and conferences. The firm employs 24people, including six transcribers, but today onlyfour of the transcribers are available. Thetranscriber’s job is to decipher tapes received fromstenographers and recorders and create a writtenrecord. Accuracy and timeliness are critical elementsof the transcriber’s work which undergirds thefirm’s success.

Gabriela is a top-notch transcriber at VTS.This has been a particularly busy week, and todayshe has six tapes in various stages of conversation.Three of the clients have asked for theirdocumentation by the following morning. One lawfirm has a court case approaching. The minutes of acontroversial school board budget hearing are to bedelivered to the local newspaper tomorrow forpublication the following day and the president of alocal university (one of VTS’s largest clients) wantsimmediate service on the tapes of a book she isdictating, regardless of how many other clients areinconvenienced.

Gabriela doesn’t think she can finish all thetapes on time and goes to Nan, her supervisor, todiscuss the problem and possible solutions. She andNan decide to call in a freelance transcriber theyhave hired previously to work with legal clients.Gabriela then calls the school board president andthe local newspaper. She arranges to have theminutes reviewed that evening by school board staffso that she can make corrections and deliver them tothe newspaper by the editor’s "drop-dead" deadline.She is able to reach the university president withwhom she discusses her time constraints andnegotiates a reprieve. Gabriela woks out a schedulewhereby she will have the president’s transcriptready two days later by 4:00 p.m.

After finishing her scheduled daily work,Gabriela looks over the first draft of a newtranscriber hired to work exclusively with a localteaching hospital to determine if his knowledge ofmedical terms is adequate. Otherwise, he will be

sent to a specialized training course. Gabriela tellsNan that, in her opinion, they have hired the rightperson and no further training is needed.

COMMON ELEMENTS:FIVE COMPETENCIES

The benefit of these scenarios is that theybegin to do justice to the rich complexity&theproblems, demands, rewards and satisfactions&ofhigh-performance work. They capture what somemen and women face and actually do in today’sworkplace. They confirm that when employers saythey want people comfortable with technology andcapable of solving problems, they are realistic. Theyconfirm, too, that reading, writing, and basicarithmetic are not enough. These skills must beintegrated with other kinds of competency to makethem fully operational. But these scenarios rangefrom the effort to make a sale to the work of savinglives in hospital emergency rooms. What do theyhave in common? Are there competencies that aregeneric to the entire economy?

The Common elements in each of thescenarios are exceptional performance in fivecompetencies. (See Figure B.) These fivecompetencies rest on a three-part foundation ofskills and personal qualities that we will addresslater. The competencies span the chasm between theworlds of the school and the workplace. They are thebasis of the modern workplace dedicated toexcellence. They are the hallmark of today’s expertworker. And they lie behind every product andservice offered on today’s market&putting food ontables, travelers in rooms, airplane passengers attheir destination, patients in the operating room, andautomobiles on the street.

The expert worker of tomorrow will notsimply "pick-up" these competencies. Theiracquisition must begin in the schools and be refinedthrough on-the-job experience and further training.Teaching and learning

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FIVE COMPETENCIES

Resources: Identifies, organizes, plans, and allocates resources

A. Time & Selects goal-relevant activities, ranks them, allocates time, and prepares and follows schedules B. Money & Uses or prepares budgets, makes forecasts, keeps records, and makes adjustments to meet

objectives C. Material and Facilities & Acquires, stores, allocates, and uses materials or space efficiently D. Human Resources & Assesses skills and distributes work accordingly, evaluates performance and provides

feedback

Interpersonal: Works with others

A. Participates as a Member of a Team & contributes to group effort B. Teaches Others New Skills C. Serves Clients/Customers & works to satisfy customers’ expectations D. Exercises Leadership & communicates ideas to justify position, persuades and convinces others,

responsibly challenges existing procedures and policies E. Negotiates & works toward agreements involving exchange of resources, resolves divergent interests F. Works with Diversity & works well with men and women from diverse backgrounds

Information: Acquires and uses information

A. Acquires and Evaluates Information B. Organizes and Maintains Information C. Interprets and Communicates Information D. Uses Computers to Process Information

Systems: Understands complex inter-relationships

A. Understands Systems & knows how social, organizational, and technological systems work and operateseffectively with them

B. Monitors and Corrects Performance & distinguishes trends, predicts impacts on system operations,diagnoses deviations in systems’ performance and corrects malfunctions

C. Improves or Designs Systems & suggests modifications to existing systems and develops new or alternativesystems to improve performance

Technology: Works with a variety of technologies

A. Selects Technology & chooses procedures, tools or equipment including computers and related technologies B. Applies Technology to Task & Understands overall intent and proper procedures for setup and operation of

equipment C. Maintains and Troubleshoots Equipment & Prevents, identifies, or solves problems with equipment,

including computers and other technologies.

FIGURE B*more complete definitions can be found in Appendix B

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the competencies must become the tasks of ourschools and students.

In each scenario, competent workersdemonstrate their skill in managing or using:

1. Resources. Workers schedule time, budgetfunds, arrange space, or assign staff.

2. Interpersonal Skills. Competent employeesare skilled team members and teachers ofnew workers; they serve clients directly andpersuade co-workers either individually or ingroups; they negotiate with others to solveproblems or reach decisions; they workcomfortably with colleagues from diversebackgrounds; and they responsibly challengeexisting procedures and policies.

3. Information . Workers are expected toidentify, assimilate, and integrateinformation from diverse sources; theyprepare, maintain, and interpret quantitativeand qualitative records; they convertinformation from one form to another andare comfortable conveying information,orally and in writing, as the need arises.

4. Systems. Workers should understand theirown work in the context of the work of thosearound them; they understand how parts ofsystems are connected, anticipateconsequences, and monitor and correct theirown performance; they can identify trendsand anomalies in system performance,integrate multiple displays of data, and linksymbols (e.g., displays on a computerscreen) with real phenomena (e.g., machineperformance).

5. Technology. Technology today iseverywhere, demanding high levels ofcompetence in selecting and usingappropriate technology, visualizingoperations, using technology to monitortasks, and maintaining and troubleshootingcomplex equipment.

The competencies differ from a person’stechnical knowledge. For example, both accountantsand engineers manage resources, information,systems, and technology. They require competencein these areas even though building a bridge haslittle to do with balancing a set of books. But in eachprofession, the competencies are at least asimportant as technical expertise.

The members of SCANS believe thesecompetencies are applicable from the shop floor tothe executive suite. They are generic; all are neededacross industries and at many steps on a careerladder. (See page 12.) In the broadest sense, thecompetencies represent the attributes employersseek in today’s and tomorrow’s employee.

Returning to the scenarios, we can seeclearly how essential these five competencies are foreffective performance across the job spectrum.

ResourcesWhether it was Kareem in the automobile

factory, Kathleen and her partners in the restaurant,or Gabriela at VTS, all demonstrated their ability tomanage resources. Kareem understood that time is aresource and that downtime costs money. Theentrepreneurial chefs had put their life savings onthe line and their analyses of costs, procedures, andthe best use of their own time were designed toprotect that investment. Gabriela made exceptionaluse of the human resources and time available to herin meeting a time crunch with serious implicationsfor VTS’s reputation.

InterpersonalInterpersonal competence is the lubricant of

the workplace, minimizing friction and the dailywear and tear of work. It also undergirdsrestructured work organizations in factories andprovides the "service" in service firms. It is requiredif teams are to solve problems that they jointly face.All of these competent workers function effectivelyin quite complicated interpersonal environments. Afalse step in most of these situations invitesresistance from colleagues or clients and could, insome situations, threaten lives.

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COMPETENCE NEEDED ACROSS THE BOARD

Who needs the SCANS competencies? Everyone from the entry-level clerk to managers, executives, orpartners in professional corporations. Take the high-pressure world of a major law firm as an example ofhow competence is required across the board:

Receptionists are expected to demonstrate personable "front-desk" skills (meeting clients and identifyingtheir needs) and to manage complex telecommunications systems without difficulty.

Secretaries are routinely called on to work with associates and partners with different, often difficult,working styles and to manipulate computer-based data, graphics, and information systems on differentkinds of equipment.

Legal Administrators help select and oversee the installation of state-of-the art telecommunications andinformation systems to meet lawyers' needs and they also ensure that all support personnel are trained inthese systems.

Associates (junior attorneys) having spent three years learning the rudiments of the legal system and itsprecedents stretching back to common law, are now expected to put that knowledge to work onspecialized problems situated in complex modern systems, e.g., corporations, hospitals, contracts, or civilrights law, and to search for precedents supporting the client's legal position.

The Managing Partner is responsible for ensuring that the cogs and gears of the entire firm operate as aharmonious system&that the support system meets the demands the firm places on it; that the accountingand finance systems follow and recover costs; that the background of the lawyers meshes with the legalspecialty of the firm; and that potentially profitable new areas of client interest can be accommodated.

Far from looking down his nose at thetraditional "pipe, wire, and relay" electricians,Kareem understood that manufacturing qualityproducts is a team effort. He needed hisexperience as an electrician with AAP todevelop effective training programs to make themost of the plant's state-of-the-art equipment.Gabriela’s skills helped her negotiate apotentially troubling work conflict. Mickeytook his customer’s concern about costsseriously, but turned the issue to his advantage.Luretta, in perhaps the most pressure driven ofthese situations, went out of her way to reassure the distraught mother, while seekinghelp in two directions simultaneously, from adoctor and an interpreter.

InformationLuretta, staring at a potentially life-

threatening situation, could do nothing to helpuntil she obtained the information needed bythe doctors. Calmly, in the face of this stress,she called in an interpreter and, armed with the

knowledge of the patient’s history and thelocation of her records, expertly manipulated acomputerized information system to locate therecords that City Hospital doctors had to have.Gabriela’s job at VTS is essentiallytransforming information from one form (audiotapes or stenographic notes) to another, awritten record.

The heart of Mickey’s job is not somuch selling as showing his customers how theequipment he has to offer can solve theirinformation problems. If he can do that, thetechnology sells itself. In the scenario Mickeysolicited information from the customer aboutthe customer’s information needs. Using thatknowledge, he was able to describe how laptops, modems, telephones, and specializedsoftware could make information an asset in theworld of real estate, instead of a problem.

SystemsAs the world of work has become more

complex, all workers have been required to

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understand their own work in the context of thatof others. They must think of discrete tasks aspart of a coherent whole. Greg., Kathleen, andAnthony understood that the "front-of-the-house" could not begin to function without aneffective operation in the "back-of-the-house".Moreover, they correctly viewed portions,menus, and inventory control not as discreteproblems, but as integral parts of therestaurant’s cost structure, susceptible to asingle cost-control system.

On one level, Kareem’s troubleshootingof the computerized painting equipment issimply part of his job. Kareem’s specialcontribution was to understand that his jobaffected the entire operation and theprofitability of the plant. He then drew on theengineering department, his co-workers withoutdated skills, the training department, and thestrengths of the vendor.

Luretta’s job as registrar placed her in apivotal position for the systems revolvingaround her&ambulance crews, nursing staff,physicians, orderlies, the police, andcommunity affairs specialists. Luretta mighteasily have satisfied herself with jotting downthe information the interpreter gave her, leavingDr. Jones to worry about obtaining the patient'srecords. She did not. Dr. Jones did not have to.And the patient received immediate attention.

TechnologyNobody today can avoid technology; it

has penetrated every aspect of life from thehome to the job. Those unable to use it face alifetime of menial work. Mickey obviouslyspends his working life fitting technologies tohis client’s needs. But he also uses thetechnology himself to stay in contact with hiscustomers. Kareem worked with theengineering department to select and install thenew robot painting system. His knowledge ofthe electronics of this new technology propelledhim from the ranks of the electricians, first to

troubleshooter, and then to a leadership positionin the new training effort. At the heart of theinventory and cost control efforts of the threechefs, we find a technology-based informationsystem which will make or break theirrestaurant.

THE FOUNDATION

What of the employer’s other significantrequests of the schools, that they providestudents with the basic skills of reading,writing, and computation or that they teachpunctuality and responsibility? Are thesetraditional functions of American Schools nowoutdated, over-whelmed by the new demands ofthe workplace? On the contrary, SCANSresearch has identified a three-part foundationof intellectual skills and personal qualities thatare part of each of the five competencies. (SeeFigure C.)

The foundation includes three parts:

& Basic Skills. Reading, writing,mathematics (arithmetical computationand mathematical reasoning), listening,and speaking;

& Thinking Skills. Creative thinking,making decisions, solving problems,seeing things in the mind’s eye,knowing how to learn, and reasoning;and

& Personal Qualities. Individualresponsibility as well as self-esteem,sociability, self-management, andintegrity.

The scenarios are a useful device forexploring how the foundation both contributesto excellent performance and serves as a floorunder the five competencies. The competentperformance described in the scenarios wouldhave been impossible without sufficientproficiency in both the basic and thinking skills,as well as responsible personal behavior.

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A THREE-PART FOUNDATION

Basic Skills: Reads, writes, performs arithmetic and mathematical operations, listens and speaks

A. Reading — locates, understands, and interprets written information in prose and indocuments such as manuals, graphs, and schedules

B. Writing — communicates thoughts, ideas, information, and messages in writing; andcreates documents such as letters, directions, manuals, reports, graphs, and flow charts

C. Arithmetic/Mathematics — performs basic computations and approaches practicalproblems by choosing appropriately from a variety of mathematical techniques

D. Listening — receives, attends to, interprets, and responds to verbal messages and othercues

E. Speaking — organizes ideas and communicates orally

Thinking Skills: Thinks creatively, makes decisions, solves problems, visualizes, knows how to learn andreasons

A. Creative Thinking — generates new ideasB. Decision Making — specifies goals and constraints, generates alternatives, considers

risks, and evaluates and chooses best alternativeC. Problem Solving — recognizes problems and devises and implements plan of actionD. Seeing Things in the Mind’s Eye — organizes, and processes symbols, pictures, graphs,

objects and other informationE. Knowing How to Learn — uses efficient learning techniques to acquire and apply new

knowledge and skillsF. Reasoning — discovers a rule or principle underlying the relationship between two or

more objects and applies it when solving a problem

Personal Qualities: Displays responsibility, self-esteem, sociability, self-management, and integrity andhonesty

A. Responsibility — exerts a high level of effort and perseveres towards goal attainmentB. Self-Esteem — believes in own self-worth and maintains a positive view of selfC. Sociability — demonstrates understanding, friendliness, adaptability, empathy, and

politeness in group settingsD. Self-Management — assesses self accurately, sets personal goals, monitors progress, and

exhibits self-controlE. Integrity/Honesty — chooses ethical courses of action

FIGURE C*More complete definitions can be found in Appendix C

The basic skills are the irreducibleminimum for anyone who wants to get even alow-skill job. They will not guarantee a careeror access to college education, but their absencewill ensure that the door of opportunity remainsclosed. The thinking skills, by contrast, permitworkers to analyze, synthesize, and evaluatecomplexity. They are the true raw materialsfrom which the five competencies are built

because they make workers the masters of theirwork instead of its servants.

The personal qualities are attributes thatemployers would like to be able to take forgranted, but cannot. They are so important thattheir absence can quickly disqualify any jobseeker at any level of accomplishment. Schoolsnormally do not "teach" these qualities in theclassroom itself but weave them into the life

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and structure of the school environment&in theexpectations that the school holds for studentbehavior and in the consequences it exacts ifthose expectations are not met.

Effective performance in today’sworkplace absolutely requires high levels ofperformance in all three parts of the foundation.There is no point in belaboring the obvious.People who cannot read, write, andcommunicate cannot be trusted in atranscription service. The rude salesman whoalienates customers will not make sales. Thecashier with a hand in the till cheats thebusiness and ultimately the customers. Theelectrician who cannot solve technical problemsthreatens the production line. And restaurantowners who cannot creatively approachproblems will probably not be in business forlong.

The foundation is far too often viewedas the most we can hope for from publiceducation. In fact, it is the point from whichreal competence is built. If the foundation is allwe can hope for, that is all we will get, and wewill have settled for far too little. The term"foundation" means just that. It supports thepossibilities and potentials that most of ouryoung people sense in themselves, and thatschools must bring out. By learning thecompetencies as they learn the foundations,each intertwined with the other, our youngpeople will be ready to enter and thrive in theworkplace of tomorrow.

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IIIIMPLICATIONS FOR LEARNING

The SCANS goal is increasededucational achievement for all segments of thepopulation. We intend to transform perceptionsabout the preparation essential for work. If allof tomorrow’s students are to master the fullrepertoire of SCANS competencies and theirfoundation, schools must change. The know-how we have defined is also important forfurther learning beyond high school. Ifyesterday’s students, that is, today’sw o r k e r& a r e t o a c q u i r e t h e s ecompetencies&then workplaces must also berestructured and so must the adult educationproviders that serve them.

Students will not acquire what they needto progress in life by osmosis, either in schoolor in the workplace. Learning throughexperience is okay only if all students andworkers are exposed to the right experiences.The SCANS skills can be taught. Schools andworkplaces must provide structured opportunityfor their acquisition.

TODAY’S SCHOOLSToday’s schools must determine new

standards, curricula, teaching methods, andmaterials. Although SCANS believes that atotal reorientation is required, with foresightand planning the know-how we have definedcan be incorporated in the five core subjects(history, geography, science, English, andmathematics) as well as in other subjects andthe extracurricular activity of schools.

SCANS believes that teachers andschools must begin early to help students seethe relationships between what they study andits applications in real-world contexts. It is nottrue that everything we need to know in life welearned in kindergarten; it is true, however, thatwe can begin that early to learn what liferequires.

We believe, after examining the findingsof cognitive science, that the most effective wayof teaching skills is "in context." Placinglearning objectives within real environments isbetter than insisting that students first learn inthe abstract what they will then be expected toapply. SCANS suggests three principles fromcognitive science to guide real contextuallearning in all our schools:

& Students do not need to learn basicskills before they learn problem-solvingskills. The two go together. They arenot sequential but mutually reinforcing.

& Learning should be reoriented awayfrom mere mastery of information andtoward encouraging students torecognize and solve problems; and

& Real know-how&foundation andcompetencies&cannot be taught inisolation; students need practice in theapplication of these skills.

The foundation is best learned in thecontext of the competencies that it supports.Reading and mathematics become less abstractand more concrete when they are embedded inone or more of the competencies; that is, whenthe learning is "situated" in a systems or atechnological problem. When skills are taughtin the context of the competencies, students willlearn the skill more rapidly and will be morelikely to apply it in real situations. Personalcharacteristics such as self-esteem andresponsibility, to use another example, are bestdeveloped in teamwork efforts. Choosingbetween teaching the foundation and thecompetencies is false; students usually becomemore proficient faster if they learn bothsimultaneously. In sum, learning in order "toknow" must never be separated from learning in

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order "to do". Knowledge and its uses belongtogether. (See Figure D.)

Finally, in the Commissions’s view, thefoundation skills should be assessed along withcompetencies. Deficiencies in basic or thinkingskills will be found in the performance of thecompetencies. These deficiencies need to bepointed out to the student and immediatelyremedied. But if students can demonstrate thecompetency properly, they can be assumed tohave the foundation they need.

AMERICA 2000 calls for radicallyimproving all 110,000 of today’s schools,making them better and more accountable. TheSCANS competencies are our contribution tothat effort.

THE SCHOOL OF TOMORROWJust as our workplaces are being

reshaped, so too are our schools. As others havesaid, the school of tomorrow can be as differentfrom today as overnight delivery is form thepony express. On May 22, 1991, President Bushsent Congress the AMERICA 2000 Excellencein Education Act. The bill included the NewAmerican Schools program for starting "break-the-mold schools." The first wave will create535 such entities and more are anticipated bythe year 2000. Students in these new schoolswill be learning the SCANS skills in new ways.

Imagine the challenge to education atthe turn of the century in AMERICA 2000.School and work have been restructured andboth are far more productive than they are today(See Figure E.) Students of all ages learn moreper hour in schools of all sorts and workers earnmore per hour on the job.

The emphasis on quality means fewerdrop-outs from schools and fewer rejects on theproduction line. Our children are internationallycompetitive in math and science and, partly asa result, so are American goods and services.

In junior and senior high schools, allstudents are studying the five core subjectsdefined by President Bush: English,mathematics, science, history, and geography.They are regularly assessed in these subjects bymeans of formal, nationally-comparableassessments made in the 4th, 8th, and 12thgrades. Proficiency in the SCANScompetencies is determined from theassessment for grades 8 and 12.

The 8th grade SCANS assessment is abenchmark for each student. It tells where moreeffort is needed if the student is to aspire to adecent job or to higher education. Daily, lessformal assessments are guiding teacher andstudents alike. Learning a musical instrument isa sound analogy & the formal assessment is arecital, but the daily assessment comes inpractice. Response is instantaneous andcontinual at each rehearsal. The SCANScompetencies are tested in the same way & formal assessments at grades 8 and 12, but dailyreinforcement occurs in curriculum activitiescentered on team efforts, school projects, anddairies, notebooks, and records of experimentsmaintained in each student’s portfolio.

Assessments of student competency inthe 12th grade are taken into consideration bycollege admissions officials. But there is a newdevelopment: employers are also payingattention to assessments of the SCANS skills intheir hiring and placement decisions.

Moreover, all students are able toacquire the assessed skills with study. Indeed,the portions of assessments related to the know-how defined by SCANS are publicly available,

so teachers can teach the SCANS skills,and students can understand what they mustlearn. This is not curriculum driven by multiplechoice tests; it is assessment to guide learning.High-performance firms build in quality; theydo not test it in at the end of the production line.The schools of the future will, in a similar way,integrate assessment and instruction.

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The SCANS competencies and skills are notintended for special tracks labeled "general" or"career" or "vocational" education. All teachers,in all disciplines, are expected to incorporatethem into their classwork. The challenge here isto teach the know-how that young people needas an essential element of learning across thecurriculum, including the five core subjects.Students will find the content more relevant andchallenging. Teachers will find their classesmore attentive and interested. Employers andcollege officials will be delighted with theresults because the curriculum will be tied toreal things in the real world.

The know-how defined by SCANSshould be the responsibility of teachers in everycurricular and extra-curricular area. These skillscan and should be developed in the five corecourses, in art and music, in foreign languages,in vocational education, on the school

newspaper, or on athletic teams. Take the fivecore subject areas as examples (and these areonly examples, as SCANS will not beprescribing curricula):

& Allocating resources can be taught inalmost any of the five core subjects.Space and material resources are anatural object of inquiry in both historyand geography. In both, students canstudy how the environment and naturalresources shaped tribes and nations.Budget&from simple addition, topercentages, to algebra imbedded insophisticated spreadsheets&can becovered in mathematics.

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Learning how to compute percentagesin the context of realistic budgetproblems will be much more profitable

than if taught in the abstract or withartificial word problems.

FIGURE E

CHARACTERISTICS OF TODAY'S AND TOMORROW'S SCHOOLS

SCHOOLS OF TODAY SCHOOLS OF TOMORROW

STRATEGY

�� Focus on development of basic skills �� Focus on development of thinking skills �� Testing separate from teaching �� Assessment integral to teaching

LEARNING ENVIRONMENT

�� Recitation and recall from short-term �� Students actively construct knowledge for memory themselves �� Students work as individuals �� Cooperative problem solving �� Hierarchically sequenced&basics before �� Skills learned in context of real problems higher order

MANAGEMENT

�� Supervision by administration �� Learner-centered, teacher directed

OUTCOME

�� Only some students learn to think �� All students learn to think

& Systems and technology have a naturalhome in science courses. Students mightlearn about computer networks&orelectrical or hydraulic or ecologicalsystems&and be asked to evaluatealternative equipment possibilities inlaboratory experiments. At higherlevels of mathematics, students mightlearn statistical process controltechniques as part of competence withsystems.

& Social systems and information canagain be taken up in history andgeography. Students could be asked tocompare the colonial "system" to therepresentational system that emergedfrom the Constitutional Convention.

& Basic skills find a natural home inEnglish classes&reading, writing,listening, and speaking. What may notbe as obvious are the possibilities forcovering competence in information aswell. Communications skills and the useof the computer for word processing,graphics, multi-media (video andaudio), and manipulating databases canall be taught in the context of solvingrelevant problems.

& Interpersonal competence can becovered in all five core subjects, usingcooperative learning opportunities toencourage team-work and evaluation ofthe team’s solutions. Teachers might, atthe beginning of the term, tell studentsthat they will have the opportunity toteach. Students would understand that

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their grade, in part, depends on howwell their classmates learn the materialthey teach.

Future SCANS reports will discussfurther the relationship between the SCANScompetencies and achievements in the five coresubjects. Clearly, the idea is that as studentsadvance they will become more proficient ineach of the SCANS five competencies.Performance in the 12th grade should be farsuperior to performance in the 8th. Performanceafter postsecondary school, training in thearmed services, an apprenticeship program, orworkplace-based training should be at a higherlevel still. SCANS believes that all studentsshould be able to demonstrate their mastery ofthese skills by the time they can legally leavehigh school, age 16 in most states.

YESTERDAY’S STUDENT/TODAY’SWORKER

Most of those graduating high schoolthis June, or in previous years, have not had anopportunity to learn the SCANS competencies.Four of every five of those who will be earningtheir living in the year 2000 are already beyondhigh school age. Yet, all these workers need tounderstand systems, allocate resources, and soon.

Fortunately, learning opportunities donot end with high school graduation. And theseopportunities will have to be increased if Goal#5 of the six national Goals, agreed to byPresident Bush and the governors, is to beachieved. That goal states in part:

"Every adult American will be literateand will possess the knowledge andskills necessary to compete in a globaleconomy..."

Meeting the goal means that programsthat serve workers must teach the SCANSknow-how. They need to be part of thecurriculum goals for programs offered bycompanies at the workplace. They should alsobe present where unions and companies jointlyparticipate&as the United Auto Workers doeswith the auto firms, and the Communication

Workers of America and the InternationalBrotherhood of Electrical Workers do withAT&T.

The SCANS proficiencies should also besought by workers whose firms do not providethem with training or who are looking for workand are served by adult education and trainingprograms including those administered by theDepartment of Labor under the Job TrainingPartnership Act or the Department of Healthand Human Services under the FamilyAssistance Act.

AMERICA 2000 seeks to transform theUnited States from a "Nation at Risk" to a"Nation of Students." The strategy wouldchange life-long learning from a slogan to areality for all. Responsibility for thetransformation must be assumed by all sectorsof society, including employers. Neitherpresidents nor parents will be needed for long ifemployers do not value and reward additionalskills. Figure A in Chapter I listed thecharacteristics of high-performance employers.These include investment in workers andpromotion for skills attained. It makes no sensefor schools to teach self-management ifemployers want to vest all authority insupervisors. Speaking skills will atrophy ifworkers are only expected to listen. Traditionalmass production factories often viewedcreativity as a liability rather than as an asset ina worker; and they certainly did not needworkers who could "challenge existingprocedures." Understanding systems yields noadvantage if tasks are fragmented. Knowinghow to schedule is an unnecessary skill ifworkers are subject to the routine of thetraditional production lines.

In short, most employers have to requireand be able to use productively the SCANScompetencies. Otherwise, schools, students, andworkers will not put forth the effort needed. Inthe words of an earlier Commission, Americawill have to choose a high-skilled, high-wagefuture. Workplaces must reorganize to useSCANS skills and become a learningenvironment for them. This choice will have tobe made by service firms, as well as bymanufacturers who produce for international

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markets. Hospitals, restaurants, and governmentoffices have to become high-performanceworkplaces.

AMERICA 2000 speaks of a public-privatepartnership to "establish job-related...skillstandards, built around core proficiencies." Thisdocument provides a first definition of the coreproficiencies. As such, it defines the end pointfor high school work and the beginning pointfor further learning on the job or in apostsecondary institution. This Commission isdefining a level of proficiency within aspectrum that extends back into middle andelementary school and forward to highereducation. It is the seam in life-long learningbetween high school and further study.

LEVELS OF PROFICIENCY

In addition to defining the skills neededfor employment, the Commission was asked topropose acceptable levels of proficiency; that is,to answer the question: What is the thresholdlevel for each competency and foundation skillfor entry-level work? How much know-how isenough for a typical job ladder? If thesequestions cannot be answered with precision,the SCANS task will not be accomplished.

Proposing levels of proficiency is adifficult assignment. It requires judgement anda leap of imagination into a future world whereschools and work are restructured. What couldstudents and workers learn if the educationalsystem fully responded to the strategy containedin AMERICA 2000? What would be requiredto access a career ladder if the high-performancemodel shown in Figure A became the norm?The proficiency levels are what makes thedefinitions meaningful. The verb "reading" isalmost meaningless until an object such as "acomputer manual" is attached. Is the minimumlevel for entering a high-performance workplacereading an instructional manual or a learnedpaper on advanced physics? Must an entry-level worker be able to listen to a customer witha complaint or to a lecture on advancedstatistics?

SCANS proposes a proficiency scalethat ranges from "preparatory" (suitable only for

unskilled work) to "specialist" (suitable for jobsrequiring special expertise). With properpreparation, all students could achieve at leastthe work-ready level on this scale. This levelmarks readiness to enter a job on a careerladder, one with real possibilities for decent payand advancement in the workplace. In terms ofjust one area of competence&managing time asa resource&the proficiency scale might looklike the following:

Proficiency Performance Level Benchmark

Preparatory Scheduling oneselfWork-ready Scheduling small work teamIntermediate Scheduling a production line

or substantial constructionproject

Advanced Developing roll-out schedulefor new product or productionplant

Specialist Develop algorithm for scheduling airline

The following Figures F and G illustrateSCANS initial estimates of work-ready levels ofproficiency required for entry into a career-ladder job today. These estimates may bemodified as our research continues and asmembers of the public respond to this report;they are set forth to elicit reaction. Manypeople may believe these estimates are too high.They are certainly higher than most of us wouldexpect today from all students. It would besurprising if most adults had these skills unlessand until the competencies defined in this reportare routinely taught in the schools. SCANSbelieves, however, that the competenciesunderlying the performances illustrated in thesefigures can be taught to, and learned by, everyteenager.

Figures F and G describe the kinds oftasks performed by all employees in the high-performance workplace of today. These tasksdefine how the SCANS skills and competenciesare used. Students who expect a promisingcareer ladder must leave school with enough ofthis know-how to give employers someconfidence that they can progress in the worldof work.

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FIGURE F

SERVICE KNOW-HOW:LEVEL OF COMPETENCE EXPECTED FOR ENTRY ON A

CAREER LADDER(See Accommodations and Personal Services Scenario, Chapter II)

COMPETENCE EXAMPLE OF WORK-READY LEVEL

RESOURCES Develop cost estimates and write proposals to justify the expense ofreplacing kitchen equipment. Develop a schedule for equipmentdelivery to avoid closing restaurant. Read construction blueprints andmanufacturers’ installation requirements to place and install equipmentin the kitchen.

INTERPERSONAL Participate in team training and problem-solving session with multi-cultural staff of waiters and waitresses. Focus on upcoming Saturdaynight when a local club has reserved the restaurant after midnight for aparty. Three people cannot work and the team has to address thestaffing problem and prepare for handling possible complaints aboutprices, food quality, or service.

INFORMATION Learn how to use a spreadsheet program to estimate the food costs ofalternative menus and daily specials. Make up weekly menu and print itwith desk-top publishing software.

SYSTEMS Analyze "system" that determines the average and maximum wait fromthe time customers sit down until they receive the appetizer and then theentree. Modify system to reduce both the average and maximumwaiting time by 20 percent. Determine expected increase in the numberof customers served.

TECHNOLOGY Read the specifications and listen to salespeople describe threecompeting ovens for the kitchen. Write a report evaluating the ovensand making a recommendation. Set the automatic controls on thechosen oven to prepare a sample dish.

Tomorrow’s career ladders require eventhe basic skills to take on new meaning. As shownin the figure, future jobs will require employeeswho can read well enough to understand andinterpret diagrams, directories, correspondence,manuals, records, charts, graphs, tables, andspecifications. Without the ability to read adiverse set of materials, employees will not beable to locate the descriptive and quantitativeinformation needed to make decisions or torecommend courses of action. On the job, forexample, this may mean reading well enough to:

& interpret blueprints and catalogues toestimate material costs;

& deal with complaint letters and companypolicy manuals describing complaintpolicy;

& understand patients’ medical records andinstructions for administering medication;and

& read the text of technical manuals fromequipment vendors.

At the same time, most jobs will call forwriting skills to prepare correspondence,instructions, charts, graphs, and proposals, inorder to make requests, explain, illustrate, orconvince. This may mean, for example:

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& writing a memo to justify additionalresources;

& preparing instructions for operating simplemachines;

& developing a narrative to explain graphsand tables; and

& drafting suggested modifications incompany procedures.

Mathematics and computational skillsare also essential. Virtually all employees shouldbe prepared to maintain records, estimate results,use spreadsheets, or apply statistical processcontrols as they negotiate, identify trends, orsuggest new courses of action. Mathematics skillsare the foundation of such actions as:

& reconciling differences in inventoryrecords;

& mentally estimating discounts whilenegotiating sales;

& using spreadsheet programs to trackexpenditures;

& using statistical process control proceduresto maintain quality; and

& projecting resource needs over the nextplanning period.

Finally, very few of us will work byourselves. More and more work involves listeningcarefully to clients and co-workers and clearlyarticulating one’s point of view. Tomorrow’sworker will have to listen and speak well enoughto explain schedules and procedures,communicate with customers, work in teams,understand customer concerns, describe complexsystems and procedures, probe for hiddenmeanings, teach others, and solve problems. Onthe job this might mean:

& explaining new production schedules to awork team;

& describing plans to supervisors andclients;

& questioning customers to diagnosemalfunctions; and

& answering questions from customers aboutservices offered.

Today, we cannot precisely determine howmany youngsters have skills at the SCANS work-ready level. Our only data source is the 1986National Assessment of Educational Progress(NAEP) survey of 21 to 25-year-olds. Our staffcompared the tasks in Figures F and G with thoseassessed by the NAEP. On this basis we estimatethat less than half of young adults can demonstratethe SCANS reading and writing minimums; evenfewer can handle the mathematics. NAEP doesnot assess the competencies. But since they arerarely explicitly taught or assessed in school, it islikely that reading, writing, and mathematicsperformance represents the upper limits of studentproficiency. Further, today most schools do notaddress the listening and speaking skills directly.

Figures F and G also illustrate that allthree parts of the foundation are required in worksettings and are part of the competencies. Meetingthe challenges presented in both figures obviouslyrequires basic skills. But higher order thinkingskills are also needed. Proposing an effectivemenu requires creativity and mental visualization.Learning how to use a spreadsheet program&bydefinition&cannot be accomplished withoutknowing how to learn. Recommending equipmentrequires decision making. Developing a trainingplan that does not upset production schedulesrequires problem-solving and reasoning skills.

The same observation can be made for thepersonal qualities that are part of the foundation;these qualities are essential for performance.Irresponsible workers or those lacking self-esteemare unlikely to contribute in team problem-solvingefforts. No firm wants discourteous employeeswithout social skills dealing with vendors orsalespeople, let alone with fellow employees orcustomers. Without the capacity for self-management, a worker cannot be given a lengthyassignment, such as analyzing statistical charts and finding ways to improve quality or analyzing

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the waiting time in a restaurant; those who are notself-starters will be looking for step-by-stepinstructions until it becomes easier for themanager to do the job him or herself. Finally, nofirm can afford having workers whose integritycannot be trusted involved in matters dealing withvendors or safety.

As the letter to parents, employers, andeducators that preceded this document states: thereal world does not "...categorize problems intofive domains of competence and a three-partfoundation. Instead, all eight [are applied] to thesituation..." Figures F and G are intended toillustrate that idea.

FIGURE G

MANUFACTURING KNOW-HOW:LEVEL OF COMPETENCE EXPECTED FOR ENTRY ON A

CAREER LADDER(See Manufacturing Scenario, Chapter II)

COMPETENCE EXAMPLE OF WORK-READY LEVEL

RESOURCES Develop a plan to show how the production schedule can be maintained whilethe staff is trained in a new procedure. Estimate the number of additionalemployees or overtime required so that training can occur. Prepare charts toexplain schedule to management and employees; make a presentation andanswer questions about it.

INTERPERSONAL Join a production team brainstorming to find ways to include two newworkers who speak limited English in the plant's improvement program. Thegoal is to have all team members, whatever their English skills, make weeklysuggestions to improve product quality.

INFORMATION Analyze statistical control charts to monitor error rate. Develop, with otherteam members, a way to bring performance in your production line up to thatof best practice in competing plants.

SYSTEMS As part of information analysis above, analyze painting system and suggesthow improvements can be made to minimize system downtime and improvepaint finish.

TECHNOLOGY Evaluate three new paint spray guns from the point of view of costs, healthand safety, and speed. Vendors describe performance with charts and writtenspecifications. Call vendors' representatives to clarify claims and seek thenames of others using their equipment. Call and interview references beforepreparing a report on the spray guns and making a presentation tomanagement.

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FUTURE WORK

This report is the first product of theSCANS Commission. It defines the skills neededfor employment and contains our initial proposalsfor acceptable levels of proficiency.

As this report is in preparation, SCANS iscontinuing its analysis of performancerequirements for 50 jobs, including chefs,electricians, bank tellers, truck drivers, andnumeric control drill press operators.43 When thatanalysis is complete, SCANS will be in a positionto more accurately describe job performancerequirements at the work-ready proficiency levelfor each of five competencies.

The Commission’s activities will concludein February 1992. In the remaining months of theCommission’s service, we will continue ourefforts to propose acceptable levels of proficiencyand turn our attention to the other two tasks withwhich we have been charged:

& suggesting effective ways to assessproficiency; and

& developing a dissemination strategy forthe nation’s schools, business, unions, andhomes.

The work will be undertaken by a series ofSCANS Committees that will address:Assessment, Changes in K-12 Education, Changesin Education for Today’s Workers, and HowTechnology Can Support Educational Change. Wealso have created a special group to address therole of Government as Employer.

AssessmentPresident Bush has called for a nationwide

voluntary assessment of our young people ingrades 4, 8, and 12 in five core subjects: English,mathematics, science, history, and geography. Webelieve measurement of SCANS competenciesshould inform the development of thoseassessments in grades 8 and 12. The President’sprogram states, "Colleges will be urged to use the

American Achievement Tests in admissions;employers will be urged to pay attention to themin hiring."

In the next six months, SCANS willconsider the major issues involved in creatingan assessment system for the competencies andthe foundation.

SCANS understands that the largenumbers of local, state, and nationwideexaminations that are already administered in thenation’s schools add up to a nearly overwhelmingburden in the nation’s classrooms. We have nodesire to add a testing system that is alreadyextensive. At the same time, SCANS is convincedthat most existing tests&largely pencil and paper,multiple choice tests of short-term memory&dolittle to advance the cause of learning. Effectiveassessment techniques should support instructionand student’s knowledge of their progress.

The assessment process we will examinefurther will be aimed at ensuring fairness forstudents from different social, racial, andeconomic backgrounds. The standards embodiedin this assessment process should not be a barrierto student success but a gateway to a new future.This can be accomplished with an openassessment system in which the criteria forperformance are crystal clear. Assessment must bedesigned so that, when teachers teach and studentsstudy, both are engaged in authentic practice ofvalued competencies. SCANS will not developthe assessment process; we will, however,consider and report on the issues involved.

As part of that effort, SCANS willexplore the idea of certifying that theycompetencies have been acquired.

SCANS aims to promote the developmentand use of assessment that can provide the basisfor a new kind of high school credential. Thiscredential will measure mastery of specific,learnable competencies. This approach is intendedto renew the dignity of the high school diploma,giving it real meaning as a mark of competence.

4See Appendix D.

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Certifying the five competencies can serveseveral purposes not now being achieved. Theywill link school credentials, student effort, andstudent achievement; they will provide anincentive for students to study; and they will giveemployers a reason to pay attention to schoolrecords. Finally, they will provide a clear targetfor instruction and learning. Assessment can thushelp improve achievement, not simply monitor it.

In response to President Bush’s requestthat business and labor leaders help create"World Class Standards" of studentperformance, SCANS will work with theDepartments of Labor and Education to"spearhead a public-private partnership" ascalled for in AMERICA 2000. This entity willadvise education officials about work-relevantskills and knowledge as described in thePresident’s education strategy.

The President has charged SCANS toinform the Secretaries of Labor and Education asthey develop voluntary standards for allindustries. We will review this charge underAMERICA 2000 before issuing our final report.

As the Secretary of Education has said"AMERICA 2000 is not a program but a crusade."If the crusade is to succeed, education musteffectively be linked to work. Employers andlabor leaders, therefore, must participate indecisions about what future American schools willlook like, what kinds of skills and knowledge theywill teach, and what kinds of certificates ofcompetence will accompany the high schooldiploma.

Dissemination

Developing a strategy to assure that theSCANS competencies become a part of thelearning opportunity for every child in this nationis a formidable task. There are many issues to beconsidered if schools are to integrate instruction inthese competencies into their current programs.

In the next six months, the Commissionwill consider the implications of the SCANScompetencies and foundation for curriculum,instructional materials, school organization,and teacher training.

The members of SCANS understand thatwhat they are proposing presents major newchallenges to the nation’s schools and educators.Schools of the future, capable of developing thesecompetencies and skills in every student, will notspring up overnight. Creating schools of the futurewill require focusing on their organization andrelated concerns of curriculum, instructionalmaterials, and teacher training.

We realize that these changes will not befree of charge. For example, the AMERICA 2000Excellence in Education Act calls for Governors’Academies for School Leaders and for Teachers.We also realize that good schools will use theirresources efficiently and effectively. In theremaining months left to SCANS, we willconsider how educators might proceed.

Again, SCANS will not produce curriculaor instructional materials. We will, however,examine the implications of our recommendationsfor these components of the learning process.

A BEGINNINGPresident Bush has encouraged all of us to

be revolutionaries in the cause of education. Therevolution required in education will not be easyto accomplish. But the members of the SCANSCommission remain optimistic. Many studentsand teachers are working wonders against greatodds; many schools have begun the work ofreshaping themselves. A review of our nation’shistory demonstrates that the success of theUnited States has always been rooted in the abilityof it’s people to rise to new challenges. Theknowledge that our education system is notkeeping pace with change must be tempered withthe recognition that these same schools producedmen and women who have created changesundreamed of in the world.

For over 200 years Americans haveworked to make education part of their nationalvision, indispensable to democracy and to

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individual freedom. For at least the last 40 years,we have worked to join the power of education tothe ideal of equity&for minority Americans, forthe disabled, and for immigrants. With that workstill incomplete, we are called to still anotherrevolution&to create an entire people trained tothink and equipped with the know-how to maketheir knowledge productive.

This new revolution is not less exciting orchallenging than those we have alreadycompleted. Nor is its outcome more certain. Allthat is certain is that we must begin.

To that end, SCANS contributes thisdocument to the discussion. We do not pretend tohave the final word. As a report on work inprogress,

our conclusions are tentative and incomplete.Nevertheless, we believe that what we haveoutlined here represents a genuine addition to theconversation. We offer it as a contribution to thenational dialogue about education in America.

We ask all who care about the future tojoin us in this conversation. Is the vocabulary wehave provided helpful? Are we on the right trackwith our definition of the know-how needed byyoung Americans? Are the competencies andskills we have defined being taught in your child’sschool or at your place of work? Yourparticipation in this conversation can help refine,correct, and focus SCANS thinking as wecontinue our work. We invite you to be in touchwith the Department of Labor for moreinformation about these issues and for the toolsand materials it can provide to help you test theseideas in your own community.

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APPENDIX AACKNOWLEDGMENTS

We want to express our appreciation to theCommission staff, to the team of contractors whoprovided research and technical support to us, tothose who made presentations to the Commission,to those who attended and contributed toworkshops in which the five competencies and thethree-part foundation were defined, to experts onworkplace skills who attended our meetings orreviewed our materials, and to the businesses andorganizations that permitted us to interview theirworkers. In addition, we acknowledge thecontribution of Roberts T. Jones, AssistantSecretary of the Employment and TrainingAdministration within the U.S. Department ofLabor, and Raymond J. Uhalde, Administrator,Office of Strategic Planning and PolicyDevelopment.

STAFF: Arnold H. Packer, ExecutiveDirector; John Wirt, Deputy Director; AmbroseBittner, Roland Brack, Elam Hertzler, ConsueloRicart, Patsy Terhune.

CONTRACTOR TEAM: Michael Kane,Project Director, Ann Meltzer, Deputy Director,Nancy Matheson, Gwen Pegram, and Sol Pelavin,Pelavin Associates, Inc.; David Goslin, NormanPeterson, and Deborah Whetzel, AmericanInstitutes for Research; Sue Berryman, Institute onEducation and the Economy, Teachers College-Columbia University; Louise Bertsche, NationalAlliance of Business; Phyllis Blaunstein, KevinBoderud, Paul Krell, Doug Smith, and ScottWidmeyer, The Widmeyer Group; Bruce Bostonand James Harvey, James Harvey and Associates;Hugh Frost, Frost Associates; Sherrita Porter,Research and Evaluation Associates.

PRESENTERS: Gordon Ambach,Council of Chief State School Officers; J.E.Dezell, Jr., IBM Corporation; Richard Ferguson,American College Testing Service; RobertGalvin, Motorola Corporation; J. Burl Hogins,Jostens Learning Corporation; Alice Irby,Educational Testing Service; William Kolberg,National Alliance of Business; Douglas McRae,CTB Macmillan, McGraw-Hill; Robert Martin,National Chamber of Commerce; Rockley Miller,The Videodisc Monitor; Barry Rogstad,American Business Conference; RaymondScheppach, National Governors Association;Donald Stewart, The College Board; WilliamWiggenhorn, Motorola Corporation.

WORKSHOP ATTENDEES: ThomasBailey, Teachers College Columbia University;Eva Baker, University of California at LosAngeles; Edward Bales, Motorola Corporation;John Black, Teachers College ColumbiaUniversity; John Campbell, University ofMinnesota; Magda Colberg, Office of PersonnelManagement; Alan Collins, BBN Labs; JodiCrandall, Center for Applied Linguistics; DanDolan, Math Science Education Board; DenisDoyle, Hudson Institute; June Dunbar, LincolnCenter Institute; Janel Elsea, CommunicationSkills, Inc; Sara Freedman, University ofCalifornia at Berkeley; Mike Frey, STRIVE; SolGarfunkel, Comat; Paul Giddens, GE AircraftEngines; Sherri Gott, Air Force HumanResources Institute; Marilyn Gowing, Office ofPersonnel Management; Allene Grognet, Centerof Applied Linguistics; John Guthrie, Universityof Maryland; Richard Hayes, Carnegie-MellonUniversity; Brigette Jordon, Institute for Researchon Learning; Irwin Kirsch, Educational

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Testing Service; Larry Lerer, Defense SystemsManagement College; Thomas Liao, StateUniversity of New York at Stoney-brook; C.J.B.Macmillan, Florida State University; ClarenceMcMaster, Math Science Education Board; LarryMikulecky, Indiana University; Harry O’Neill,University of Southern California; Neil Schmidt,Michigan State University; Sylvia Scribner, CityUniversity of New York; Gary Standrige, FortWorth Independent School District; David Tharp,IBM Corporation; Peter Tobia, Kepner-Trego,Inc.; Andrew Wolvin, University of Maryland.

SKILLS EXPERTS: Gay Arnold, TexasInstruments; Carl Binder, Precision Teaching andManagement Systems, Inc.; David Barbee,Consultant; Jack Bowsher, Consultant; RolphClark, Defense Systems Management College;William Droms, Georgetown University; LeighFaldi, IBM Corporation; J.S. Florence, Jr., IBMCorporation; Patricia Gold-Minton, Consultant;Tony Gordon, Bowling Green State University;Thomas Green, General Telephone andElectronics; Mike Hacker, New York StateDepartment of Education; Chris Hardy, MCICommunications; Joseph Harless, HarlessPerformance Guild; Susan Hooker, MotorolaCorp; Rex Judd, International Time ManagementInstitute; Greta Kotler, American Society forTraining and Development; JoAnne Kurtz,Greater Southeast Community Hospital; KennethLay, IBM Corporation; William Lincoln, FederalExecutive Service; Ronnie Lowenstein,Consultant; James McKenny, AmericanAssociation of Community ad Junior Colleges;

Ira Mozielle, Aetna Life and Casualty; PeterNeary, University of North Carolina; JackNinemeier, The American Hotel and MotelAssociation’s Educational Institute; LynnOfferman, George Washington University; BillRuxton, National Tooling and MachineryAssociation; Sandy Saunders, Office of PersonnelManagement; Karen Sawyer, InformationMapping, Inc.; Benjamin Schneider, University ofMaryland; Robert Schneiders, EDSI; Peter Senge,Massachusetts Institute of Technology; KendallStarkweather, International TechnologyAssociat ion; Carlton Stockton, MCICommunications; Benjamin Tregoe, Kepner-Trego, Inc.; Shoshana Zuboff, the HarvardBusiness School.

EMPLOYERS: Aetna Life and Casualty,American Institutes for Research, Bell Atlantic,Cafe Atlantico, Chrysler Motors, Cigna, FarmersNational Bank, Federal Express, FETEAccomplie, GE Aircraft Systems, GreaterSoutheast Community Hospital, Group HealthAssociation, Hyatt Regency, InternationalBrotherhood of Electrical Workers, M. HallStanton Elementary School, Marriott, MBGraphics, MCI Communications, Mildred D.Monroe Elementary School, National SecurityAgency, National Joint Apprenticeship andTraining Committee, Nordstroms, Ross Dress forLess, Sheraton Park Avenue, Sibley MemorialHospital, Sovran Bank, St. Joseph Hospital, TGIFridays, The Hartford, The New Journal, Truland,UPS, Wachovia Bank, and WestmorelandElementary School.

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APPENDIX BDEFINITIONS: THE COMPETENCIES

RESOURCES

Allocates Time. Selects relevant, goal-relatedactivities, ranks them in order of importance, allocates time to activities,and understands, prepares, and followsschedules.

Allocates Money. Uses or prepares budgets,including making cost and revenueforecasts, keeps detailed records to trackbudget performance, and makesappropriate adjustments.

Allocates Material and Facility Resources.Acquires, stores, and distributes materials,supplies, parts, equipment, space, or finalproducts in order to make the best use ofthem.

Allocates Human Resources. Assessesknowledge and skills and distributes workaccordingly, evaluates performance, andprovides feedback.

INTERPERSONAL

Participates as a Member of a Team. Workscooperatively with others and contributesto group with ideas, suggestions, andeffort.

Teaches others. Helps others learn.

Serves Clients/Customers. Works andCommunicates with clients and customersto satisfy their expectations.

Exercises Leadership. Communicates thoughts,feelings, and ideas to justify a position,encourages, persuades, convinces, orotherwise motivates an individual orgroups, including responsibly challengingexisting procedures, policies, or authority.

Negotiates. Works toward an agreement that mayinvolve exchanging specific resources orresolving divergent interests.

Works with Cultural Diversity. Works wellwith men and women and with a variety ofethnic, social, or educational backgrounds.

INFORMATION

Acquires and Evaluates Information. Identifiesneed for data, obtains it from existingsources or creates it, and evaluates itsrelevance and accuracy.

Organizes and Maintains Information.Organizes, processes, and maintainswritten or computerized records and otherforms of information in a systematicfashion.

Interprets and Communicates Information.Selects and analyzes information andcommunicates the results to others usingoral, written, graphic, pictorial, or multi-media methods.

Uses Computers to Process Information.Employs computers to acquire, organize,analyze, and communicate information.

SYSTEMS

Understands Systems. Knows how social,organizational, and technological systemswork and operates effectively within them.

Monitors and Corrects Performance.Distinguishes trends, predicts impact ofactions on system operations, diagnosesdeviations in the function of asystem/organization, and takes necessaryaction to correct performance.

Improves and Designs Systems. makessuggestions to modify existing systems toimprove products or services, anddevelops new or alternative systems.

TECHNOLOGY

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Selects Technology. Judges which set ofprocedures, tools, or machines, includingcomputers and their programs, willproduce the desired results.

Applies Technology to Task. Understands theoverall intent and the proper proceduresfor setting up and operating machines,including computers and theirprogramming systems.

Maintains and Troubleshoots Technology.Prevents, identifies, or solves problems inmachines, computers, and othertechnologies.

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APPENDIX CDEFINITIONS: THE FOUNDATION

BASIC SKILLS

Reading. Locates, understands, and interpretswr i t ten in fo rmat ion in prose anddocuments&including manuals, graphs, andschedules&to perform tasks; learns from text bydetermining the main idea or essential message;identifies relevant details, facts, andspecifications; infers or locates the meaning ofunknown or technical vocabulary; and judges theaccuracy, appropriateness, style, and plausibilityof reports, proposals, or theories of other writers.

Writing . Communicates thoughts, ideas,information, and messages in writing; recordsinformation completely and accurately; composesand creates documents such as letters, directions,manuals, reports, proposals, graphs, flow charts;uses language, style, organization, and formatappropriate to the subject matter, purpose, andaudience. Includes supporting documentation andattends to level of detail; checks, edits, and revisesfor correct information, appropriate emphasis,form, grammar, spelling, and punctuation.

Arithmetic . Performs basic computations; usesbasic numerical concepts such as whole numbersand percentages in practical situations; makesreasonable estimates of arithmetic results withouta calculator, and uses tables, graphs, diagrams,and charts to obtain or convey quantitativeinformation.

Mathematics. Approaches practical problems bychoosing appropriately from a variety ofmathematical techniques; uses quantitative data toconstruct logical explanations for real worldsituations; expresses mathematical ideas andconcepts orally and in writing; and understandsthe role of chance in the occurrence and predictionof events.

Listening. Receives, attends to, interprets, andresponds to verbal messages and other cues suchas body language in ways that are appropriate tothe purpose; for example, to comprehend; to learn;to critically evaluate; to appreciate; or to supportthe speaker.

Speaking. Organizes ideas and communicatesoral messages appropriate to listeners andsituations; participates in conversation,discussion, and group presentations; selects anappropriate medium for conveying a message;uses verbal language and other cues such as bodylanguage appropriate in style, tone, and level ofcomplexity to the audience and the occasion;speaks clearly and communicates a message;understands and responds to listener feedback;and asks questions when needed.

THINKING SKILLS

Creative Thinking. Uses imagination freely,combines ideas or information in new ways,makes connections between seemingly unrelatedideas, and reshapes goals in ways that reveal newpossibilities.

Decision Making. Specifies goals and constraints,generates alternatives, considers risks, andevaluates and chooses best alternatives.

Problem Solving. Recognizes that a problemexits (i.e., there is a discrepancy between what isand what should or could be), identifies possiblereasons for the discrepancy, and devises andimplements a plan of action to resolve it.Evaluates an monitors progress, and revises planas indicated by findings.

Seeing Things in the Mind’s Eye. Organizes andprocesses symbols, pictures, graphs, objects orother information; for example, sees a buildingfrom a blueprint, a system's operation fromschematics, the flow of work activities fromnarrative descriptions, or the taste of food fromreading a recipe.

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Knowing How to Learn. Recognizes and can uselearning techniques to apply and adapt newknowledge and skills in both familiar andchanging situations. Involves being aware oflearning tools such as personal learning styles(visual, aural, etc.), formal learning strategies(note taking or clustering items that share somecharacteristics), and informal learning strategies(awareness of unidentified false assumptions thatmay lead to faulty conclusions).

Reasoning. Discovers a rule or principleunderlying the relationship between two or moreobjects and applies it in solving a problem. Forexample, uses logic to draw conclusions fromavailable information, extracts rules or principlesfrom a set of objects or written text; applies rulesand principles to a new situation, or determineswhich conclusions are correct when given a set offacts and a set of conclusions.

PERSONAL QUALITIES

Responsibility. Exerts a high level of effort andperseverance toward goals attainment. Workshard to become excellent at doing tasks by settinghigh standards, paying attention to details,working well, and displaying a high level ofconcentration even when assigned an unpleasanttask. Displays high standards of attendance,punctuality, enthusiasm, vitality, and optimism inapproaching and completing tasks.

Self-Esteem. Believes in own self-worth andmaintains a positive view of self; demonstratesknowledge of own skills and abilities; is aware ofimpact on others; and knows own emotionalcapacity and needs and how to address them.

Sociability. Demonstrates understanding,friendliness, adaptability, empathy, and politenessin new and on-going group settings. Asserts selfin familiar and unfamiliar social situations; relateswell to others; responds appropriately as thesituation requires; and takes an interest in whatothers say and do.

Self-Management. Assesses own knowledge,skills, and abilities accurately; set well-definedand realistic personal goals; monitors progresstoward goal attainment and motivates self throughgoal achievement; exhibits self-control andresponds to feedback unemotionally and non-defensively; is a "self-starter."

Integrity/Honesty. Can be trusted. Recognizeswhen faced with making a decision or exhibitingbehavior that may break with commonly-heldpersonal or societal values; understands theimpact of violating these beliefs and codes on anorganization, self, and others; and chooses anethical course of action.

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APPENDIX DJOBS ANALYSIS

The SCANS concepts of competencies anda foundation, and the use of scenarios describingwork in context, was developed by theCommission and staff based on a review of theliterature and advice from numerous experts.Convinced that this new language represented apromising start, SCANS extended thisconversation into the research and businesscommunities. We wanted to ensure that the fivecompetencies and the foundation were, in fact,critical to job performance. We also worked toensure that the workplace scenarios representedexpert reflection on what today’s worker actuallydoes.

During Phase I of this effort 15 jobs havebeen analyzed through detailed, in-depthinterviews, lasting up to four hours each, with jobholders or their supervisors. The interviewsexplored the general job description, confirmedratings of the importance of skills, and inquiredabout "critical incidents" and illustrative tasks andtools used on the job.

The 15 jobs, by employment sector, are:

& Restaurant and Accommodations&Chefs&Front Desk Clerks&Assistant Housekeepers

& Manufacturing and Construction&Electricians&Numeric Control Drill Operators&Offset Lithographer Press Operators

& Office and Finance&Bank Tellers&Underwriter Assistants&Secretaries

& Health and Human Services&Medical Record Technicians&Registered Nurses&Teacher’s Aides

& Trade and Communications&Truck Drivers&Retail Salespeople&Inside Equipment Technicians.

In Phase 2 of the SCANS research, the following35 jobs will be added to the research base:

& Manufacturing, Agri-Business, Mining,and Construction&Plastic Molding Machine Operator&Blue Collar Worker Supervisor&Farmer&Excavating Machine Operator&Carpenter&Expeditor/Purchasing Agent&Construction Contractor

& Health and Human Services &Childcare Aide&Dental Hygienist&Dietary Manager&Licensed Practical Nurse&Medical Assistant&Medical Technician/Technologist&Optician

& Office, Financial Services, andGovernment

&Graphics Designer&Computer Operator&Accounting/Financial Analyst&Programming Technician&Personnel Specialist&Law Enforcement Officer&Quality Control Inspector

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& Accommodations and Personal Services&Food Service Unit Manger&Waiter/Waitress&Industry Training Specialist&Accounting Executive/ Executive Meeting Manager&Hairstylist/Cosmetologist/Esthetician&Beauty Shop Owner&Show Operations Supervisor

& Trade, Transpor tat ion, andCommunications&Order Filler&Traffic, Shipping and Receiving Clerk&Outside Equipment Technician&Truck Delivery Salesperson&Telemarketing Representative&Travel Agent&Customer Service Representative

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FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION AND MATERIALS,CONTACT :

U.S. Department of LaborSecretary’s Commission on Achieving Necessary Skills

200 Constitution Avenue, N.W.Washington, D.C. 20210

Telephone: 1-800-788-SKILL