Careful attention to the environmental stressors of a specific setting is necessary. Consider the student’s responses to the Environmental Assessment as well as the student’s behavior that you see in classroom and school environments. Your consideration of these factors can often enhance the success of a volunteer experience, a summer or part time job, or a job training placement. In many food preparation and childcare positions, the effects of noises, crowded areas, machinery, the odors of foods, diapers, etc. can create an environment that impedes the student’s best performance. On the other hand, specific restaurant stations can be conducive to (or be adapted for) focused performance. Maintenance activities within childcare facilities and concrete food preparation tasks are both conducive to focused work without frequent (and possibly difficult to manage) opportunities for confusing social engagement.
- Is customer service too over-stimulating for this student? Is direct and frequent interaction with children potentially overwhelming?
- Will the student need a designated workstation to support his focus and attention on the job? Is it possible to consider the creation of such a space with the employer?
- Will food service areas be conducive to limited and predictable transitions and interactions during the workday?
- If customer interactions need to be reduced or avoided, are there sufficient solitary work responsibilities that can be added to the position to assure the student’s success? *Sometimes focusing on the concrete food preparation, busing station preparation or childcare custodial tasks can serve to reduce the likelihood of complex customer and child interactions.
- Are the potential workspaces well organized such that they lend themselves to the needs of the particular student? If the tasks identified for the student are on the restaurant floor, will the student be faced with customer complaints? Will the student be able to handle that level of anxiety and frustration from other people?
- Are the traffic patterns in the workspace heavy around the student’s proposed work areas?
- Are there ways to reduce the physical movement required of the student in this setting by consolidating work tasks in one or two specific areas?
As you look at the general sequence of tasks in the setting, note how environmental design interplays with tasks in your assessment. Look at the distances traveled in transitions and the spaces through which transitions occur. Are there distractions? Are materials and space well organized? Sometimes negotiating a different sequence of tasks or minor adjustments to the space and materials will be quite acceptable to the supervisor if she knows that these adjustments will lead to better work quality. *Note that even a chaotic restaurant setting can sometimes be structured to create workstations that support focused and productive activity! When you go, look for spaces that will support the student’s efficiency.
Again all restaurants are not managed equally. Some are extremely busy and there is a level of frenzy, frequent directions to stop what you are doing and do something else. Your knowledge of the setting before supporting job placement is critical.
Self-Assessment – Career Planning – Environmental Assessment