Career development plan

Owing to the difficulty that students meet in choosing a career, it is often necessary for them to make the right decision when doing this. Choosing a wrong career often leads to disappointments and regrets. The way forward is for adults to get involved in the process. However, even with their involvement, there are right and wrong ways to choose a career. For High school students released or recently from incarceration, the problem is twofold. They need support re-entering their community and at the same time, would find information on career selection useful. The article, “Table or Circles: A comparison of two methods for choosing among career alternatives” by Amit and Gati could be effective for such students.

The article seeks to compare two methods which are commonly used for choosing careers. One may ask himself, “What difference does it make?” but Amit and Gati argue otherwise. According to them, while more trust has been put on the table method in choosing of careers, the circle method has been found to result o happier decisions and more logical thought.

The book starts by analysing steps of career decision making. According to them, a decision passes through the pre-screening, in-depth exploration and, finally, choice. The study argues that while the first two stages have been well studied, the final stage has been neglected. It is for this reason that this study gives it preference, it being the most important part of the process.

The study then reviews decision making styles. According to the authors, there exists two styles of decision making, rational and intuitive. While the two styles are different and work better in different decisions, they are both equally important.

The authors then explore the two methods of career choice. The table method is an 8-step process that often requires that the individuals make lists of their preferred courses and then compare them in terms of their importance and utility. The two are then multiplied for each career factor and summed for each career. The most preferred choice ends up with more points.

The circle method involves writing down up to five choices in circles. The circles are then filled with factors that influence the decision towards its selection. These factors may be positive or negative. The individuals are then asked to imagine working in each of the occupations and to finally select the most appealing one.

The study sought to determine if the point of the decision making process determined which method worked better. It also sought to determine if the decision making style determined which method worked better. To determine which method worked better, the confidence of the chosen occupation, perceived effectiveness and the number of factors listed were used.

The studies showed more confidence with the decisions made using the circles method. They also preferred the circles method if they had more knowledge about the course.

In using this information as study material for high school students who have been High school students released or recently from incarceration, it would be used to help students understand which methods are available for their careers choice. The course could help the students to help identify where they lacked sufficient information which would otherwise hurt their decisions. This would therefore help to identify weaknesses in the career selection and help to strengthen them.

References

Amit, A., & Gati, I. (2013). Table or Circles: A Comparison of Two Methods for Choosing Among Career Alternatives. Career Development Quarterly, 61(1), 50-63. doi:10.1002/j.2161-0045.2013.00035.x retrived from: http://content.ebscohost.com/pdf29_30/pdf/2013/CDQ/01Mar13/86069664.pdf?T=P&P=AN&K=86069664&S=R&D=aph&EbscoContent=dGJyMNLe80SeprE4yOvqOLCmr0yep7ZSsKe4Sa%2BWxWXS&ContentCustomer=dGJyMPGntUmxrbRMuePfgeyx43zx

Another material that is reliable for high school students who have been recently released is the article “career flow: a hope centred model of career development” by Niles. The author explores a method of approaching career choice innovatively taking in regard the current level of developments in terms of technology. The article argues that different workers often experience different demands at certain times. A job is therefore boring, exciting, or overwhelming depending on the time.

For this reason, it is usually necessary for students to make decisions with which they will be comfortable in the long run. The career choices should be well guided with relevant information.

This article deals with the different aspects of the work situation by helping the workers to learn how best to deal with stages of their jobs as they work. While this program is intended for workers, it is often necessary for students to be exposed to such information so that they stay focussed and prepared for challenges of work ahead.

The article also points out the importance of making career choice a continuous process hence making it even more relevant to the students. The other aspect of this model that is important for students from incarceration is the use of hope, self clarity, self-reflection, visioning, goal setting and career planning to motivate individuals. These are all aspects that relate well with individuals from incarceration. Students who have been recently released from incarceration may at times find themselves lacking of these properties. Being informed about this model however reawakens the spirit of hope over their futures and motivates hard work.

According to this article, the inclusion of these qualities in the model to approach challenges often leads to more productive communities. Unlike common methods, it is more innovative and hence more reliable.

References:

Niles S. (2011). Career flow: a hope centred model of career development. American Counselling Association. 48 pp 173-175

Lesson plan 1

Career development – Visit to a manufacturing industry

Preparation

In preparation, the teacher is going to identify a manufacturing company that is not far from the school. He is also going to make an appointment for the students to visit the company. In this tour, their chief objective is to learn about the different aspects of work, the challenges and the motivations.

The teacher will also seek to speak with different personnel from different parts of the company.

Activities

Once the teacher identifies the workers they are going to interview, he is going to guide the students through the creation of interview questions. Sample questions include:

• How old were you when you got your first job?
• What are your roles in the company?
• What are your main challenges?
• How do you measure your productivity at work?

For higher level employees, the students can ask about production of the company and profits, leadership challenges and much more. These are just questions to guide the students. Career students should be creative and so independence should be motivated.

The teacher may opt to arrange students into groups and then allocate each group a person to interview. This process should take 20-30 minutes.

On the day of the trip, teachers should allow each group to interview one or two groups while others take notes

Lesson plan 2

Title: Green Jobs

Requirements

Student worksheet

Teacher’s notes

This class is founded on student contribution. The student therefore uses past knowledge to explore the options available with regard to green jobs

Introduction

Join the workshop with past examinations and converse with understudies about the choices people need to make about jobs, occupations, and professions. Help scholars to remember a percentage of the issues that effect the development of occupation markets and the amount of jobs accessible.

Activity

1.         Assess what scholars think about “green jobs”, particularly green jobs in their group. Be ready for contrasting conclusions on whether “green jobs” are a great thing.

2.         This stage permits scholars to work freely or in sets to make a “green employment” for the future in 2020 and further! Learners ought to record their data on the learner worksheet and be ready to impart first to a little gathering and after that with the class all in all (time allowing).

3.         Presentations –place the individual people or understudy accomplices in like-vocation bunches or occupation aggregates with the goal that they can impart their work. Ask these gatherings to condense the sorts of green jobs that may be made their word related range or vocation bunch and be ready to impart this data to the entire gathering.

4.         Have the gatherings offer outline arrangement of new jobs with the whole class

Lesson Plan 3

Jobs, Occupations, and Careers

LESSON Target(s)

►        Definition of the terms “work”, “occupation”, and “vocation”

►        Examples that outline the expressions “work”, “occupation”, and “profession”

►        Understanding of why it is critical to know the distinction between the terms

Measure(s) OF SUCCESS

Learners will have the capacity to:

►        explain the contrasts between jobs, occupations, and careers

FACILITATOR NOTES

The expressions “work”, “occupation” and “vocation” are all utilized reciprocally and it is confounding for scholars to comprehend the distinction. This workshop is intended to bail learners deal with the contrasts between the terms and to create the utilization of essential profession/specialized vocabulary.

The lesson helps people take in the definitions.

CORE ACTIVITY

Offer with people that this workshop concentrates on thinking about the contrasts between jobs, occupations, and careers.

Activity

1.         Move students into groups of three and hand-out the Student Worksheet: Jobs, Occupations, and Careers.

2.         Ask scholars to partition up the perusing under the “Jobs” segment so that one person peruses the Definition, an alternate learner peruses the Requirements and Time, and the last scholar peruses the area on Income and Security. Give learners time to peruse and offer what they read in their gathering.

3.         As an entire group, quickly go over the definition and its parts. Make an arrangement of what sorts of jobs the understudies portray. Quickly impart data about your first employment.

4.         Give gatherings time to examine and response the initial three inquiries on the Student Worksheet. Look at/offer replies from gatherings

a.         list jobs young people may have the capacity to get

b.         list jobs of the grown-ups you know

c.         list jobs that investment you later on (as a grown-up)

5.         Repeat the perusing and dialog process for the term, occupation. Ask people to respond to and examine the following two inquiries on the Student Worksheet.

6.         Finally, have understudies investigate the term, profession. Conceptualize, as a class, choices students will need to make as they consider their lifetime of work in the middle of now and the following 30 years. Have the gatherings finish the inquiries on careers on the Student

LESSON 4

You are the boss

LESSON Target(s)

►        introduce the qualities, abilities, and practices representatives are expected to show in the work environment

Measure(s) OF SUCCESS

Learners will have the capacity to:

►        apply key ideas on worker qualities, aptitudes and practices to work circumstances suitable for their age

FACILITATOR NOTES

This workshop obliges that learners ponder the qualities, abilities, and practices required to turn into a successful representative by placing them in the position to “contract” different people as volunteer representatives of a neighbourhood organisation. It obliges that they work in groups to settle on those choices.

CORE ACTIVITY

Presentation

Clarify that scholars are going go about as a council proposing teens for occupations at as a volunteer at the neighbourhood organization.

Action

1.         Brainstorm with scholars in the matter of what qualities, aptitudes, and particular practices do you think teens would requirement for this position. Make arrangements of each as starters for people. Meanings of abilities, qualities, and practices with samples are recorded underneath.

Abilities: Something an individual can do, a capability picked up or created through preparing or experience. Case in point,

•           Math abilities

•           writing abilities

•           Skill in sorting out materials

•           Skills in arranging other individuals,

•           Skills in conversing with other individuals and conveying viably

Qualities:  A particular characteristic or trademark. For instance:

•           Honest

•           Positive

•           caring

•           Imaginative, imaginative

Practices:  The moves an individual makes. For instance,

•           Always on time

•           focuses reliably on the undertaking

•           Only takes breaks as concurred upon

•           helps others as required with their undertakings

2.         Share that every person will rate the petitioners freely and afterward the group will need to go to a choice. Learners will rate the seekers as having:

         Excellent qualities, aptitudes, and practices

         Average qualities, aptitudes, and practices

         Below normal qualities, aptitudes, and practices

3.         As a group, understudies will give every hopeful a rating of

1)         Recommend first for openings

2)         consider proposing if there are sufficient openings

3)         Do not propose for openings.

4)         Give the groups the chance to examine and rate the hopefuls.

5)         Either on a white board or graph paper, make an outline that schedules the applicants and the evaluations by each one gathering. Record each one bunch’s appraisals without any discourse.

6.         Open the exchange in the matter of what the class perceived in experiencing the procedure. Have them examine contrasts of feelings in the event that they exist.

Closing

Ask learners to think about what they’ve gained from taking a gander at others and to survey their own particular