Value Lab — Entrepreneurship Education Standards Alignment (Ch 1–4)

This document provides a standards alignment overview for Value Lab Chapters 1–4, mapped to the National Content Standards for Entrepreneurship Education (NCSEE).

Important note: This is an alignment mapping (how learning experiences and student outputs correspond to standards). It is not a claim of “certification.”

What Chapters 1–4 cover (the curriculum arc)

• Chapter 1 — Picking the Right Audience: students choose a target audience using research + interviews, then make an evidence-based “Choice Statement.”
• Chapter 2 — Turning Research into Ideas: students transform problems into solution ideas, explore solution types, create mockups, and write solution plans + refinement questions.
• Chapter 3 — Building Your MVP: students select one solution and build a scrappy MVP (timeboxed), then document it (optional submission/showcase artifact).
• Chapter 4 — Market, Listen, Iterate: students run 2–3+ cycles of marketing, feedback collection/patterns, and iterations using repeatable “cycle” worksheets.

How to read the matrix

We use a simple coverage key:

• ● Strong: explicitly taught, practiced, and reflected in a student work product
• ○ Moderate: meaningfully supported, but not the primary emphasis
• — Not a focus (Ch 1–4): typically addressed in later modules or optional extensions

Alignment matrix (Ch 1–4)

Entrepreneurial Skills → Entrepreneurial Processes

Entrepreneurial Skills → Entrepreneurial Traits / Behaviors

Ready Skills (emphasized in Ch 1–4)

Evidence (what students actually produce in Ch 1–4)

This section highlights the concrete student outputs that support the standards alignment.

Discovery

• Chapter 1: brainstorm 10+ audiences; apply an audience selection framework (UNDERSTAND / REACH / CARE); research 2 audiences; conduct interviews; validate pain/frequency/gap/willingness; choose 1 audience with an evidence-based Choice Statement.
• Chapter 4: collect real user feedback and identify patterns across multiple cycles.

Concept Development

• Chapter 2: generate 10+ solution ideas; explore solution types; create 2–3 mockups and solution plans; draft refinement questions for testing assumptions.
• Chapter 3: select ONE solution to build and define ONE “value action” for MVP scope.

Resourcing

• Chapter 3: timebox an MVP to 1 week / 10 hours max; define must-haves (max 3) vs. later; create a step-by-step build plan; identify tools/resources and at least one early test user.

Actualization

• Chapter 3: build a real MVP (not just a plan) and capture proof (link, screenshots/photos, or demo steps).
• Chapter 4: execute outreach + run real cycles (Market → Listen → Iterate).

Harvesting

• Chapter 4: run 2–3+ cycles with repeatable “cycle” worksheets; each cycle includes:
• marketing materials and outreach plan + execution
• minimum 5 feedback entries collected and categorized
• patterns/insights identified
• 2–3 iterations made and documented
• “what users value” statement based on evidence across cycles

Traits/Behaviors (Leadership, Personal Assessment, Personal Management)

• All chapters include pre-quiz curiosity prompts + post-chapter reflection prompts (metacognition / self-assessment).
• Ch3–4 explicitly reinforce action and iteration mindset (“build first,” “scrappy,” “quick wins,” repeated cycles).

Standards typically addressed beyond Chapters 1–4

Chapters 1–4 intentionally focus on customer discovery, solution creation, MVP building, and iteration. Standards that are usually addressed in later modules and/or extension activities include:

• Finance / accounting / pricing rigor
• Human resources / staffing
• Legal considerations / compliance
• Operations management depth

These can be addressed in later chapters, optional workshop modules, or facilitator-led extensions.

Detailed crosswalk by standards ID

The appendix below provides a standards-by-ID crosswalk for the NCSEE indicators most directly supported in Chapters 1–4.

Appendix A — Selected NCSEE standards crosswalk (Ch 1–4)

What’s included here

This appendix is intentionally focused on the standards that Chapters 1–4 most directly support. Many additional NCSEE standards are typically addressed in later modules and/or extension activities.

Crosswalk table

Alignment key (for the appendix)

• Strong: directly taught + practiced + captured in a student artifact in Ch1–Ch4
• Moderate: meaningfully supported, but not a primary emphasis
• Light: touched indirectly (or depends on facilitator extension)
• Not covered (Ch1–4): not addressed until later chapters / add-on modules