A person’s career is considered their “journey” through life, and the Career Education curriculum offers students the opportunity to pursue this journey in personally meaningful and goal-oriented ways. Career-life development with intent is the ongoing process of self-discovery, growth in competence, and learning from experiences in educational, work-related, and personal life contexts.
The Career Education curriculum supports students in becoming successful, educated citizens by helping them learn how to effectively manage their life journey toward preferred future possibilities. This area of learning requires students to identify and develop their personal interests, passions, and competencies. Students reflect on learning experiences in school and community, build confidence through their contributions, and explore multiple career-life roles and choices. The curriculum fosters lifelong learning, beginning in Kindergarten and continuing through to graduation and beyond.
Features of the Career Education curriculum
The Career Education curriculum:
- promotes a holistic view of the student, providing opportunities to explore identity, purpose, and well-being in diverse learning contexts and related to multiple life roles
- recognizes the value of experiential learning, community connections, and reflection in advancing career-life development
- is organized in three Content areas that foster purposeful career-life development: personal development, community connections, and planning
- includes consistent and gradual growth in the Curricular Competencies to support specific learning in career-life development as well as learning across disciplines
- is structured to facilitate integration across multiple areas of learning
Flexible teaching and learning
The language and design of the Career Education curriculum promotes flexibility for teachers in pursuing career-life development with students. This flexibility accommodates the range of student interests, needs, and goals, as well as the diversity of school and community contexts.
The Career Education curriculum consists of three major phases: Developing Foundations, Exploring Possibilities, and Pursuing Preferred Futures. The connection between grade levels and phases is one of emphasis: many high school students will still need to focus on developing foundations, for example. Students will transition through each phase based on their personal development, community context, and emerging career-life opportunities.
Grades 6-9: Exploring Possibilities in Career-Life Development
In Grades 6-9, students continue to reflect on, self-assess, and set goals in personal competency development and determine their strengths and preferences as they explore career-life concepts such as identity, leadership, personal planning, and transferable skills. Students are introduced to increasingly diverse experiential learning opportunities and ways in which family, mentors, and community networks support their continued career-life development.
All grade 9 students, in SD #48, will have the opportunity to reflect on/contribute to their journey through the creation of a MAP (My Action Plan).