MEDINA ISD

Education & Training Career Cluster

The Education and Training Career Cluster focuses on planning, managing, and providing education and training services and related learning support services.

• Principles of Education and Training
  • ​(1 Credit) Principles of Education and Training is designed to introduce learners to the various careers available within the Education and Training Career Cluster. Students use self-knowledge as well as educational and career information to analyze various careers within the Education and Training Career Cluster. Students will develop a graduation plan that leads to a specific career choice in the student's interest area.
• Human Growth & Development
  • (1 Credit) Human Growth and Development is an examination of human development across the lifespan with emphasis on research, theoretical perspectives, and common physical, cognitive, emotional, and social developmental milestones. The course covers material that is generally taught in a postsecondary, one-semester introductory course in developmental psychology or human development.
• Instructional Practices 
  • ​(2 Credits) Instructional Practices is a field-based (practicum) internship that provides students with background knowledge of child and adolescent development as well as principles of effective teaching and training practices. Students work under the joint direction and supervision of both a teacher with knowledge of early childhood, middle childhood, and adolescence education and exemplary educators or trainers in direct instructional roles with elementary-, middle school-, and high school-aged students. Students learn to plan and direct individualized instruction and group activities, prepare instructional materials, develop materials for educational environments, assist with record keeping, and complete other responsibilities of teachers, trainers, paraprofessionals, or other educational personnel.
• Practicum in Education & Training
  • ​(2 Credits) Practicum in Education and Training is a field-based internship that provides students background knowledge of child and adolescent development principles as well as principles of effective teaching and training practices. Students in the course work under the joint direction and supervision of both a teacher with knowledge of early childhood, middle childhood, and adolescence education and exemplary educators in direct instructional roles with elementary-, middle school-, and high school-aged students. Students learn to plan and direct individualized instruction and group activities, prepare instructional materials, assist with record keeping, make physical arrangements, and complete other responsibilities of classroom teachers, trainers, paraprofessionals, or other educational personnel.

Hospitality & Tourism Career Cluster

​The Hospitality and Tourism Career Cluster focuses on the management, marketing, and operations of restaurants and other food/beverage services, lodging, attractions, recreation events, and travel-related services.

• Intro to Culinary Arts
  • ​(1 Credit) Introduction to Culinary Arts will emphasize the principles of planning, organizing, staffing, directing, and controlling the management of a variety of foodservice operations. The course will provide insight into the operation of a well-run restaurant. Introduction to Culinary Arts will provide insight into food production skills, various levels of industry management, and hospitality skills. This is an entry-level course for students interested in pursuing a career in the foodservice industry. This course is offered as a classroom and laboratory-based course.
• Culinary Arts
  • (2 Credit) Culinary Arts begin with the fundamentals and principles of the art of cooking and the science of baking and includes management and production skills and techniques. Students can pursue a national sanitation certification or other appropriate industry certifications.  This course is offered as a laboratory-based course.
• Advanced Culinary Arts
  • (2 Credits) Advanced Culinary Arts will extend content and enhance skills introduced in Culinary Arts by in-depth instruction of industry-driven standards in order to prepare students for success in higher education, certifications, and/or immediate employment.  This course is offered as a laboratory-based course.
• Practicum in Culinary Arts
  • (2 Credits)  Practicum in Culinary Arts is a unique practicum that provides occupationally specific opportunities for students to participate in a learning experience that combines classroom instruction with actual business and industry career experiences. Practicum in Culinary Arts integrates academic and career and technical education; provides more interdisciplinary instruction; and supports strong partnerships among schools, businesses, and community institutions with the goal of preparing students with a variety of skills in a fast-changing workplace.

Peer Assistance and Leadership® (PAL)

• The Peer Assistance and Leadership® (PAL) program focuses on working with elementary, middle, and high school-age youth. Participants receive effective training in resiliency strategies.
• Course content and interactive activities combat issues like school violence, drug use/abuse, teen pregnancy, gang participation, school dropouts, and/or behavior problems.
• PAL® began in 1980 as a peer mentoring program, commonly referred to as “peer helping”, by combining peer assistance and peer leadership strategies originally developed in the 1970’s. PAL® applies these basic prevention strategies by implementing the program as informal, extracurricular activities, or as structured, evidence/curriculum-based programs.
• The outcomes identified through the implementation of the PAL® program in a school setting are a reduction in substance use/abuse, an increase in academic performance, a reduction of absences/truancy, a reduction of discipline referrals to the school office, and an increase in positive decision-making skills and risk resiliency. Parents and school administrators note a favorable perception of the program's effectiveness.