Above link found on the ERIC (Education Resources Information Center) website;
Source: RMLE Online: Research in Middle Level Education, v34 n5 p1-9 2011
This article caught my eye because it immediately made me think..."Aren't middle schoolers a little young to be thinking about career choices?" However, as I read through the article and reflected back to my days as a middle school student, I realized that middle school is a great time to discuss possible career choices. As middle school students approach high school they have so much on their plate, and they begin to feel the pressure of choosing what they will do after high school. Many high school students know what they are going to do, but many are still unsure. Many students will be unsure even after high school, changing majors in college several times, or making several job or career changes after high school. With so many career options, students need to have a time when they can really find what they like, find what they are good at, and what will make them happy.
Incorporating career education into the middle school curriculum allows students to see how current learning will help them in the future. It's no surprise that this article connects to This We Believe, because the authors stated the connection to the NMSA in their introduction. They state that by incorporating career education into the curriculum we are meeting the characteristic of "Curriculum that is challenging, exploratory, integrative, and relevent." Making a strong, direct connection between content and a specific career path will allow students to see that what they are learning is relevent, and allow them to explore a variety of career options. Research in the article found that students are more engaged in the curriculum if they see that it connects to life after middle school or high school. Those middle school years will give students the opportunity to contemplate many different career paths without feeling the pressure that comes when they enter high school.
While reading your post, I found myself thinking back to my 8th grade year. Class: Career Orientation. Teacher: MRS. WALTERS! One of the craziest teachers who I just adore and will always remember! I thought so too as an 8th grader, why am I in a career class. For me, I always knew what I wanted to do, and wished that entire semester that the class would've been an elective, but each 8th grader was required to take it at my school.
ReplyDeleteI love what you said about how students have so much on their plate when approaching high school comes around. And I so agree that by presentation in middle school on career options can allow time for thought processes to get a rolling and to start sinking in, so that somewhat of an idea has been formed for students.