Yikes it’s been a while since I told a one-shot instruction story. Early in this semester, I needed to create a lesson plan and active-learning worksheet for CRS 231: Introduction to Apparel and Related Industries: From Concept to Consumer.
This is a required class for first- and second-year majors in our Consumer, Apparel, and Retail Studies Department (CARS). Student learning outcomes for the class:
- Analyze and explain the organization and operation of the U.S. fashion industry
- Investigate the practical application of industry methods and strategies
- Recognize and discuss the proper terminology from the apparel, textile, and related industries
- Explain how apparel and accessories are designed, produced, and distributed
- Describe and appreciate career opportunities within the apparel, textile, and related industries
The class is usually taught by one of the CARS PhD students. Often this is their first “teacher of record” experience and sometimes they ask me for advice while drafting the research assignments (but not this year which was fine).
35 students this semester. We met in the library’s larger computer classroom, which seats 40.
The assignment:
From a list of possible careers that are available in the apparel and related industries, listed on pages 258 to 261 of your textbook, choose one to research and present via an infographic (you can find templates for this at Canva) posted to Canvas. Your infographic should include the following information:
- Description of the career
- Necessary qualifications to be hired
- Average salary
- Pros and cons of the career and types of companies that offer these careers
Additionally, please provide a references page of your sources in APA format. After posting your infographic, compare and contrast your career, with two other careers posted by your peers.
Personal reflection (if you are interested):
Think about the research skills called for here. Or which skills could begin to be developed using these topics.
Also, what research sources would you have the students use?
My thoughts:
As you know, there are many segmentation systems for business and economic data, including for industries and occupations.
(I just looked at the BRASS Business Research Competencies. I guess this point falls under “Applies fundamental research techniques to navigate business information sources” on page 4. HS codes are mentioned as examples but not NAICS codes.)
NAICS-based industry research often includes payroll data (reflecting the central importance of the Economic Census and County Business Patterns datasets) but not usually occupational data.
Both the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and the American Community Survey have structured lists of occupations. Different lists actually. Occupational segmentation is not industry-based (every industry needs accountants and administrative assistants, for example) but sometimes you can get data on occupations by NAICS, at least at the NAICS subsector or industry level (3-4 digits).
Otherwise, we have to use critical thinking to connect an occupation to an industry.
Another skill: understanding that all lists of industries and occupations are incomplete. Given the data methodologies and instruments of censuses and surveys, the disaggregation can only go so deep. We may not find data, for example, for the “social media marketing manager” and “apparel purchasing manager” occupations. (Those are examples from the CRS 231 textbook.)
Therefore business researchers need to accept and deal with nuance and ambiguity. And not just in entrepreneurship research.
Lesson plan:
I updated the LibGuide and added the Word version of my worksheet (still there in the upper left if you want a look).
The assignment was for individuals, not teams – very unusual for classes I’m involved in – so the students were pretty quiet while they were working. I visited each student to learn how they were doing at least once.
I had the students begin with the classic and easy-to-use Occupational Outlook Handbook from the BLS (which I hadn’t used in years). We immediately talked about how every occupation isn’t covered. “Fashion designer” is, though, a popular choice. Otherwise, the students found the closest match. They summarized the description, work environment, qualifications, pay, and outlook.
I also wanted the students to get some more detailed occupational data, including by geography and by industry. So next stop: the Occupational Employment & Wages Statistics (OEWS) by the BLS. (I use this source all the time.) I asked the students to identify:
- The top industries by levels of employment:
- The top paying industries:
- The metropolitan areas with the highest employment (one of the maps)
Segue to industry research using IBISWorld. “Look up one of the main industries for your career,” I asked the students.
- What are the major companies?
- What is the outlook of the industry?
We subscribe to the NAICS package in IBIS and the specialized industry reports, which as many of you know aren’t limited to NAICS. So some students had unexpected and happy choices in their selection of the industry.
As expected, we ran out of time to do the “WWD [Women’s Wear Daily] articles & other articles about this career” searching in EBSCO Business Source. That’s why I included the screenshot on the handout.
In our concluding discussion, many students asked why there are “no major companies” in the fashion design industry. We talked briefly about fragmented versus concentrated industries. Students were very interested in the detailed wage data provided in the OEWS.
The instructor told me later that the students found the workshop useful but expressed annoyance at the “missing” occupations and industries, as we had discussed at the start.
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