Tuesday's assignment - 2016-02-23

Good morning everyone,

Task one:

In order to get familiar with the Canadian workplace, there are a lot of things we need to consider. Click on this link and follow the instructions given. 

Task two:

Here is a list of business idioms that are taken from this website. Please go over them and try to understand each one’s meaning and then follow the tasks below.
Pick five to six of the following idioms and use them in sentences of your own.

• -          Please send me the information ASAP because I’m late with this presentation.
• -          Let’s do the things by the book.
• -          We have a game plan to submit this project.
• -          We should go the extra mile for our company.
• -          I have to raise the bar to show what I can do.

Take three:

Compose a short story about any event/meeting that has happened to you at your previous workplace. Use at least five to six from these idioms n your story.

Request two from your peers to check and edit your work before you publish it on your blog.

-    When I was looking for a job, I saw something under the table. Everything was up in the air for me because it was a uphill battle to get a job.

I felt like other people had a upper hand.

I didn’t want to be a yes man to get a job, but I was trying to get a white collar job. So, I did some calls and touched base with some people and got a new job.

Monday's assignment - 2016-02-22

Monday's assignment

National Occupational Classification

The National Occupational Classification (NOC) is a system of organizing information about occupations in Canada. Every occupation in Canada has a NOC job description, which provides listings of the main duties, employment requirements and job titles. These descriptions are identified by a four-digit code called the NOC code.

Knowing the NOC code for the job you are interested in can make online research easier and quicker. This is because many job search services organize their job listings and occupation information by the NOC code. Here’s how the NOC code works:

• The first number identifies the sector. There are 10 sectors in total (0–9). For example, 0 refers to management occupations, while 6 refers to sales and service occupations.

• The second number refers to the level of education or training the job requires (1–6). Generally:

1 requires a university education

2 or 3 requires a community college or apprenticeship training

4 or 5 requires a high school diploma and/or job-specific training

6 usually requires a short demonstration or on-the-job training

• The third and fourth numbers refer to specific occupations within the sector.

In the example on the right, the 2 refers to the sector Natural and Applied Sciences; the 1 means it generally requires a university degree; together, the code 2146 is the code specific to aerospace engineers. Because the NOC groups occupations that are similar to each other, it is easy to find information about occupations that are related to your occupation of choice. This can be useful if you cannot find a job in your occupation and want to broaden your job search.

Locate the NOC website (www5.hrsdc.gc.ca/NOC). 

Task 1:

List the 10 sectors that the first digit of the NOC code refers to. In small groups, brainstorm three occupations for each sector.

0 Management occupations	6 Sales and service occupations
1 Business, finance and administration occupations	7 Trades, transport and equipment operators and related occupations
2 Natural and applied sciences and related occupations	8 Natural resources, agriculture and related production occupations
3 Health occupations	9 Occupations in manufacturing and utilities
4 Occupations in education, law and social, community and government services
5 Occupations in art, culture, recreation and sport

Task 2:

Think of an occupation you would like to enter in Canada (either as a survival job, or in the occupation you are trained for). Which of the above sectors is this occupation in?

5 Occupations in art, culture, recreation and sport 

Task 3:

Find the NOC (5243) code for an occupation that interests you. Read the NOC description for this occupation.       

a) How many Major Groups are listed in this sector? 
There are 5 Major Groups listed. What are they?

- Technical occupations in libraries, public archives, museums and art galleries;

- Photographers, graphic arts technicians and technical and co-ordinating occupations in motion pictures, broadcasting and the performing arts

- Announcers and other performers, n.e.c.

- Creative designers and craftspersons

- Athletes, coaches, referees and related occupations

b) What types of occupations are within this Major Group (represented by the three-digit code)?

The types of occupation are:

5241 Graphic designers and illustrators

5242 Interior designers and interior decorators

5243 Theatre, fashion, exhibit and other creative designers

5244 Artisans and craftspersons

5245 Patternmakers - textile, leather and fur products

Read the example titles in the NOC description. Do you think knowing these titles can be useful in your job search? How?

Yes, they can be useful because they can help me to find my correct position.

Example: With this description, I can see wich education level they need for this job.

Read the main duties in the NOC description. List the duties you think are most relevant to this position.

The most relevant duties are:

- Creative ability, as demonstrated by a portfolio of work, is required;

- Use of computer-aided design (CAD) software;

- A university degree.

Task 4:
Prepare a short presentation for the class about this occupation. Include related job titles, main duties and employment requirements.

Monday's Assignment

Monday's Assignment

Good morning, our first activity this morning is on accent reduction. Do you have an accent? How thick is your accent? How much have you spent on accent reduction?

Everybody has an accent. Is your accent sin or sick, thin or thick? More cartoons here.

How important is it to have a Canadian or North American accent? Why? Discuss with a partner.

Here are your tasks:

1. Check out the following accent reduction programs:
1. Accent Master
2. Accent School
3. Accent Science Systems
4. Test Den
5. Udemy
2. Fill in the following table:

Program	Pros	Cons	Price	Rank (Best = 1)
Accent Master	Video lessons, private & small group classes and customized software	price	-          $ 1280 for 12 sessions. -          $ 1720 for 18 sessions -          $ 2140 for 24 sessions	3
Accent School	Free Accent reducing software	Looks superficial	$ 255 five 60 minute sessions	4
Accent Science Systems	·         Customized lessons for different language backgrounds ·         Extensive video, audio and text materials			1
Test Den	DVD course + online practice + 1.5 hour private lesson	Looks superficial	$99	5
Udemy	Oline Course		$ 25	2

Post the table of your results on your blog. Feel free to comment specifically on Accent Science Systems. Then visit your classmates' blogs and publish your comments.