Overview

Quote "We know that just teaching about good work is not sufficient if we hope students will actually do good work"

The design of these lesson plans is grounded in our own experience using previous versions of these materials with educators and students and in research about human learning and development. We know that just teaching about good work is not sufficient if we hope students will actually do good work; instead, students also need to be encouraged to reflect and act upon the principles of good work in their own lives.

The following lesson plans have been designed to help students develop their abilities to do “good work” that is excellent, ethical, and engaging. The curriculum guides participants through a series of questions central to understanding the importance of good work in our society, including:

  • How do I define “good work”? How do others define it?

  • What does it take to carry out good work?

  • What are my own personal standards of good work?

  • What are professional standards for good work, and how does that relate to my life as a student and as a worker?

  • What are some of the factors that make it difficult to carry out good work? How can I prepare myself for these challenges?

  • How can my community and/or my workplace support good work?

  • Why is good work important to society?

In order to help encourage and support students in their efforts to carry out good work, we have defined four major learning goals for the lesson plan units:

Unit 1. Students will understand the term “good work” as defined by excellence, ethics, and engagement. 

Unit 2. Students will develop habits of reflection through examination of others, external dilemmas, and personal reflection prompts. 

Unit 3. Students will articulate their own values and beliefs about work.

Unit 4. Students will develop active strategies to accomplish good work in the future.

The above principles, questions, and learning goals inform the design and structure of the following lesson plans.

All lesson plans have been designed to fit into a 45-minute classroom period (see time suggestions throughout). However, the lesson plans are flexible, and we leave it to each individual educator to tailor the timing of the lessons to their individual needs.