SISI - Standards and Indicators

Standard 1 - Academic Performance - Curriculum
1.1e The school curriculum provides specific links to continuing education, life, and career options.
1.1g The curriculum provides access to common academic core for all students.

Standard 5 - Learning Environment - Student, Family and Community Support
5.1c The school maintains an accurate student record system that provides timely information pertinent to the student academic and educational development.

Scenario

It was almost the end of the school year. Mrs. Johnson, the school counselor, had announced a meeting for all eighth graders. Jane had heard that it was time to declare a major and plan for high school.  She and her friends were struggling.  They were afraid to declare a major and be committed to a schedule and career choice.

First of all, Jane was not sure about a career.  None of the teachers had spent much time-sharing with her class about what career choices were available.

Secondly, Jane was a responsible student and tried hard, but for some reason when it came time to take a test she rarely made above a C. She was pretty sure that she would never be able to go to college or make above minimum wage. 

Finally, Mrs. Johnson had said that her parents were to come to the meeting and Jane knew that would never happen.  Her parents never went to school for meetings.  After the last bad experience, her mother made it clear to never include her in any school activities.

Introduction

Middle school students need to begin career exploration.  Students must prepare for and establish career goals that help determine a specific career interest.  If a career interest cannot be identified, then selecting some type of work that is enjoyed will help the student to begin to envision life after high school.  Job shadowing often gives the student the needed motivation to study and practice study skills to set goals and stay in school.

1. What career exploration and preparation do Middle School students need to make dreams become reality?
2. What role must school administrators; classroom teachers and school counselors play in provided career exploration?
3. What preparation will be necessary for students to have a well-planned sequence of courses, which focus on a career cluster? (Individual Graduation Plan) 

High schools expect that all students will develop and follow an Individual Graduation Plan. www.KDE.com It is important that a sequence of academic and Career and Technical courses provide students the maximum opportunity to develop academic and technical skills based on their career goals.  Today’s employers are demanding that their future employees be able to apply academic and technical skills to real-world problems that are encountered in the workplace. “At age 11, I learned I could make my future career a reality through preparation and persistence.” (Jason R. Dorsey, Connecting students’ Futures with the Present, The ASCA School Counselor Journal, April 2002)

A key practice to help the student in success is to provide the initiatives the will raise student expectation.  Possible initiatives might be, integration of academics and career/technical education, career guidance and planning, and work-based learning.  www.kde.state.ky.us/osis/voced/wbl guide.asp, and www.ked.state.ky.us.osis.voced.pathy

 

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Strategies

Middle school students have the greatest age span, academic expectations, planning and decision making than at any other school level.  Instruction, assessment, and guidance in career exploration are essential.  For this to happen administrators, school counselors, and faculty must work together in identifying courses of study that maximize the students’ potential for success at the postsecondary level or into the workforce based on the students’ career goals. (Kentucky Program of Studies) www.kde.com a career planning record system is an excellent way for students to organize their career and self-exploration activities and to serve as a guide and resource.  Each student by the end of grade eight should have a stated career objective. The school classroom and library must serve as the source for research, software, reading material, and class guided activities.

A successful and beneficial guidance program that will give the student the opportunity to grow and develop needs to be based on developmental guidance principles.  Seven principles should direct the program:

1. The program should be systematic, sequential and comprehensive.
2. The program should be jointly founded upon developmental psychology, educational curriculum, and counseling methodology.
3. Process, product of the program and the individual participating should be stressed.
4. All the personal domains---cognitive, affective, behavioral, experiential and environmental –should be emphasized
5. Programs should emphasize preparation for the future and consolidation of the present
6. Individualization and transfer of learning should be central to program procedure and method
7. Evaluation and corrective feedback are essential      (American School Counselor Association)

Keeping these program principles in mind, classroom teachers and school counselors must coordinate courses of study based on Kentucky Core Content, Kentucky Program of Studies and basic career clusters.

 Basic career clusters are:

Agriculture                                         Human Services
Arts and Humanities                         Information Technology
Business and Marketing                  Manufacturing
Communication                                  Public Services
Construction                                      Science and Math  
Education                                            Social Sciences
Health Science                                   Transportation

At Boyd County Middle School, students learn in applied science class’s not only scientific method, but relevant information that directly applies to careers.  

Boyd County Middle School
1226 Summit Road
Ashland, Kentucky 41102
(1-606-928-9547)

School Administrators must be supportive of staff changes in teaching techniques and curriculum choices.  Professional development is most often necessary for the school faculty.  School administrators must willing not only provide the professional development but be an active participant in order that all partners in the school will be knowledgeable of the relationships between academic expectations and career education.

When students experience learning in specially designed classes as described above, they are prepared to meet with school personnel and parents to develop and individual graduation plan.

Work-based learning is another example for students to gain career knowledge. Work-based learning provides experience that is gained at a work-type setting. Work-based learning can be at school or the actual job site.  The work-based experience is to be in direct relationship with school studies.  www.ked.state.ky.us/osis/voced/wbl guide. asp

Kentucky Administration Regulation for Cooperative Program Standards

Provisions must be made to meet the needs of all students.  All learners are to be provided with support services to assist them so that they might successfully complete the program.  Two major areas of support are shadowing and mentoring.  These support services are easily available when a partnership with business and industry is used. 

Finally, student organizations provide unique motivational programs for middle/junior high students.  These organizations are not “clubs” but tools to integrate the career, curriculum, and classroom.  (Example: VICA-Kentucky Career and Technical Education)

 

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Barriers

Career education in the middle school at times, is difficult due to classroom teachers lack of interest and desire to integrate and develop a program that includes career information. 

 Partnerships with business and industry can be difficult and not easily arranged due to location, interest, and injury insurance. 

Funding if pursued is seldom a problem.   

 

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Resources

Kentucky Resources

Guide to Selecting Career Clusters and Career Majors in Kentucky, Kentucky Department of Education, Frankfort, Kentucky

Kentucky Occupational Information Guide, Cabinet on Workforce Development, Frankfort, Kentucky

Position Paper Recommended Roles of Counselor for Implementing School-to-Work, Kentucky Department of Education

Resource Guide For Primary-Middle School (Kentucky School-to-Work) Kentucky Department of Education, (Division of Career & Technical  Education) Frankfort, Kentucky

Transition Implementation Guide, Kentucky Department of Education, Frankfort, Kentucky

School Programs:

 

Walton-Verona High School      

Marcella Howard
(859)-485-6444      

                                                  

Johnson County Middle School 

Melissa Wells 

(606)-789-4133   

           
McNabb Middle School
Gay Warren
(859)-497-8770

 

Programs and Curriculum

Economics America, Kentucky Council on Economic Education, 203 East Jefferson Street, Louisville, Kentucky 40202

Project Discovery, Education Associates Inc., 340 Crab Orchard Road, P.O. Box 4290 Frankfort, Kentucky 40604

Other Resources

U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Educational Research and Improvement, Studies of Educational Reform,

http://www.edgov/pub/EdReformstudies/EdReforms/summ.html

ERIC Clearinghouse on Adult, Career, and Vocational Education,  1900 Kenny Road, Columbus, Ohio 43210 , (1-800-848-4815) www.osu.edu/units/education/cete/ericacve/index.html 

National Center for Research in Vocational Education (NCRVE), 

University of California at Berkeley, 2150 Shattuck Ave., Suite 1250

Berkeley, California 94720 (1-800-762-2124)

Blueprint for the Future: Career Preparation in Florida’s Schools, Castor, Betty, ERIC Clearinghouse No. ED299438

Books

Improving Career Counseling Services, Ettinger, Judith, Ph. D.; Center on Education and Work, University of Wisconsin at Madison (1-800-446-0399)

Occupational Outlook Handbook,  U.S. Department of Labor, Washington D.C. 

Career Education  Management Guide , Gould, Catherine, ERIC Clearinghouse  No: Ed15099

Software

Electronic Student Portfolio-Software Program designed to collect career data, Education Associates Inc., 340 Crab Orchard Road, P.O. Box 4290, Frankfort, Kentucky 40604  

Career Cruising, - a battery of administrative tools that help students monitor and manage, assess, explore, and develop portfolios, Steve Yaun, Educational Sales Consultant, Madison, Wisconsin   1-800-562-1079 (stevey@careercruising.com  )

National TeleLearning Network Inc. 120 Mallard Street, Suite 180, St. Rose, Louisiana 70087-9452

Videos

At Work Video Series- Middle School set of 6 videos, - Shows just how critical each class in school really is for today’s world of work ---Education Associates Inc. 340 Crab Orchard Road, P.O. Box 4290. Frankfort, Kentucky 40604

U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Educational Research and Improvement, Studies of Educational Reform,

http://www.edgov/pub/EdReformstudies/EdReforms/summ.html

 

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Key Words

careers, career eduation, Individual Graduation Plan, IGP,career clusters, career majors, employment , work based learning

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