The focus in this test administered in the second and third grades (and in this program) is on language skills. The rationale for the content and intent of this part of the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills(R) is examined, and sample items similar to those found in the tests are presented, as are suggestions for teaching the basic verbal skills that are being tested.

Providing a service is different from producing a product because service is produced at the moment of delivery-a one-time opportunity to satisfy the customer which, once lost, is often lost forever. This program shows what the customer expects in the way of service, and how he or she reacts to both good and bad service. The program also describes the service cycle and the techniques for empowering employees, and illustrates specific techniques for...

Using the EEOC definition of sexual harassment, this program shows how this damaging and expensive problem in the workplace takes place, how situations get out of hand, and how the problem can be addressed and stopped. It reviews all the well-worn excuses for ignoring harassment, provides suggestions for action if harassment is suspected, and highlights the cost of failing to take action at various stages of harassment.

This program deals with the nature of biases and preconceptions, pointing out that almost everyone sees the world from his or her own perspective and stressing the need to examine one's own thinking about "us" and "them. It covers the subjects of being "in" and "out" and the role of peer groups, community institutions, schools, and the media in determining what is "good" and "bad"; permits members of minorities to speak out about how bias affects...

This program focuses on those who choose to become legislators, and why. Many senators and representatives, from all walks of life, speak about what motivates them to seek public office. Interviews with factory workers, farmers, housewives, and policemen, who also serve in their state legislatures, dispel preconceptions about overly ambitious politicians. We learn that campaigning has become a nearly continuous process for representatives. The program...

A history and explanation of the history of acid rain and the dangers posed by industrial carbon and sulfur emanations that interact with airborne moisture to produce acid rain. The program provides chemical definitions, illustrates geological and meteorological interactions, and traces the sources of acid precipitation. It also demonstrates ecological concepts, and suggests possible solutions.

In the shadow of continuing turmoil in North Korea, the South continues to prosper under its current president, Kim Young Sam. This program looks at the combination of centuries-old tradition and modern technology that has turned a small, war-torn agrarian country into a major industrial power. It shows the effects of modernization on traditional values, covers the roles of education and religion, and relates Korean history, language, and culture...

This program is devoted to the ways in which the demands of a diverse work force can best be met: how schools can help prepare students, how businesses can help build bridges, how all Americans can-and must-learn to value, respect, and benefit from diversity in society and in the workplace.

The customer is not always right, but the customer's needs remain the number one priority. This program moves beyond the fundamentals of good customer service to the problems of dealing with more complex and difficult situations: How do you satisfy customers who want something you cannot give them? How do you work out a deal with a customer when you cannot agree on the terms? What are the most effective ways of dealing with angry customers?

This program offers some useful tools for using the telephone to communicate with customers, and it highlights some of the things customers find most irritating about phone communication: the unanswered phone, answering without identifying yourself, the customer kept on hold for what seems like forever, multiple transfers to other extensions or people, and so on.