NCDA Curriculum

What You Will Learn – The Curriculum

Chapter 1 – Developing a Helping Relationship

Students will be able to demonstrate appropriate use of helping skills in their facilitator’s role, from intake interview through termination of work with a client.

1. Defining helping skills
   
2. Identifying a client’s needs, strengths and barriers
   
3. Identifying community resources
   
4. Terminating a client

Chapter 2 – Training and Leading Groups

Students will be able to prepare and develop materials for training programs and presentations

1. Ways in which GCDFs work with groups
   
2. Group facilitative skill and principles of good teaching

Chapter 3 – Career Development Theory and its Application

Students will understand career development theories, methods, and techniques, and how to apply them to diverse client populations they serve.

1. Assumptions of five different types of theories: trait and factor, learning, developmental, life-as-career, and transition
   
2. Learn about John Holland, John Krumboltz, Donald Super, L. Sunny Hansen, and Nancy Schlossberg
   
3. Apply theories to client cases

Chapter 4 – The Role of Assessment in Career Planning

Students will be able to describe the various types of assessments and explain their uses.

1. Learn general guidelines for the appropriate use of assessment techniques: informal and formal
   
2. Distinguish between informal and formal assessment, identify uses for each

Chapter 5 – The Ethics of the Career Development Facilitator

Students will understand the code of ethics that affects the GCDF role. They will also know how to accept suggestions for performance improvement from their supervisor and/or consultant.

1. Understand the code of ethics that affects the GCDF role
   
2. Apply ethical standards for behavior of GCDFs to specific cases

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Chapter 6 – Providing Career Services to Multicultural Populations

Students will be able to recognize the specialized needs of individuals from diverse populations and adapt services to meet these needs.

1. Describe diversity
   
2. Describe new attitudes toward and approaches to managing diversity in the workplace
   
3. Organizational and individual barriers affecting career planning and success for diverse populations
   
4. Laws (federal, state)

Chapter 7 – The Role of Information and Technology Resources in Career Planning

Students will be able to state how individuals in the career planning process use information, what the sources and characteristics of the information are, and how to help them find and use it. This chapter will look how technology plays a key role in career services and development.

1. Describe the career planning process and how information relates to it
2. Roles and responsibilities of the client and the GCDF
3. Define labor market and labor market information
4. Government resources for labor market information, additional resources for clients
5. Classifying occupations
6. Research occupations and training opportunities
7. Effective ways to use computer based systems
   

1. Informational interviewing
   
   
2. Primary purpose of a resume and create one
   
   
3. Complete job interview process and coach clients in effective techniques
   
   
4. Job Club
   
   
5. Skills and personal traits

Chapter 9 – Designing and Implementing Career Planning Services

Students will be able to assist in the planning and promotion of services for clients.

• Importance of planning and designing programs
  
  
• List and describe the nine steps of the program development process
  
  
• Roles of the GCDF in this process
  
  
• Knowledge of case management, instruction, group facilitation, and career center management
  
  
• Designing and ideal career center

"The CDF class was extremely interesting to me. I was learning a lot of new techniques from the other students in the class. Techniques that not only would help me as a CDF in my school district but also as a teacher. We shared ideas and helped each other through the course. It was a great experience and I made a lot of lifetime friends. The instructor was awesome and I totally enjoyed the face-to-face meeting. Mark you are a great instructor. Thanks for being so understanding."

Stephanie - Harrisburg, Arkansas