The benefit of acquiring advanced level of education and skill comes with a hefty price. Indeed, graduate school can be a tough financial burden that most opt not to pursue it. And yet, they miss out on the rewards of attending graduate school.
The economic recession and the resultant growth of unemployment often lead people to rethink their career choices. Oftentimes, this leads to getting additional training in their current field for broader opportunities or training in a wholly different field where better opportunities lie.
Fortunately, there are more ways to receive training than there was before. Just a few years ago, training was restricted to taking formal classes in a college or university. Long distance and correspondence trainings were not taken seriously.
Nowadays, alternative training and education such as correspondence courses are no longer demoted to a fad or cheap propaganda. Thanks to the advent of the Internet, these alternative forms of education have become more accessible than ever and with it carried a change in which people regard them. People who take up alternative forms of education are now seen as self-disciplined and motivated individuals. Employers see people with these kinds of qualities as desirable and an indispensable asset to the company.
Alternative education can take in the form of certifications, distance courses, and weekend and night classes provided by private for-profit schools. Certifications and distance courses, often pursued with self-paced and self-motivation, have gained much growth and recognition in recent years. Some elite schools like Harvard and Columbia have even taken into granting degrees through distance courses. On the other hand, the rise in private, for-profit schools have made pursuing study and training in a more formal set-up more accessible. The various venues for training effortlessly make it possible to provide any prospective student a choice that would fit his/her preferred field and schedule.
Choosing which school or field to pursue is often the easiest part in continuing education. The hardest part of it is finding a way to finance it. Fortunately, there are ways to go about it.
You may try for a scholarship. However, scholarships were primarily designed for students just entering college or students returning to college. They were developed long before any had a mind to develop alternative learning techniques and distance courses. Though there are a few scholarships that could cater to non-traditional students, these scholarships are quite few. Oftentimes, the scholarships offered by private for-profit schools are no more than a discount on the tuition.
Federal financial aid also offers little help for returning and non-traditional students. Financial aids are only available for undergraduate students. So if you’re thinking of doing graduate work, no federal financial aid would be available for you. The same is true if you are taking up a technical or vocational program.
Now, perhaps the best way to finance your pursuit of additional training is by acquiring a student loan. This type of financial aid makes no difference between undergraduate and graduate students, technical and non-technical courses, and vocational and degree programs. Moreover, student loans are quite easy to qualify for and repayment may be deferred while in school or extended for some period after graduation.
By: Low Jeremy
Posts Tagged ‘Career Choices’
Pursuing Adult Education With Economic Recession
Thursday, December 24th, 2009Elementary School Career Education – The Need, Basics, Examples, and Guidelines
Sunday, October 18th, 2009According Ediger (2000), elementary school career education is important. Ediger stated that “the elementary school years are not too early to begin to achieve a vision of what one desires to do in life contributing to the world of work”. Without career education, students have unrealistic perceptions of careers due to a lack of knowledge and poor decision making. Students have limited knowledge and exposure to careers. (2,3) When students look at the different industries e.g. sports, media and entertainment, most students underestimate the skills and time required to have successful careers. (3)
The Basics for Elementary School Career Education Programs
In career awareness programs, students do not make premature career choices. Elementary school career education is not career exploration or career preparation. Elementary students remain open to new career ideas and possibilities. (7,8,13,15) Elementary students build awareness of self, personal interactions, school, and the workforce. (2,15) Elementary school counselors and teachers build self-awareness, family awareness, school awareness, community awareness, career/ work awareness, attitude development, skill development, decision making strategies, and self-worth. (2,4,11)
Career awareness programs use age appropriate materials that match the developmental levels of the students. Age appropriate activities expose students to a variety of different jobs, career information sources, and the reasons why people work. Programs also incorporate academic career pathways into classroom activities. According to CareerTec (2000), the preliminary career education skills serve as foundations for future skills. As the students progress, previous skills are reinforced, developed, and expanded. (2,4,11)
As elementary students get older, the students modify career visions and goals. After completing an elementary school career awareness program, students have higher grades, higher academic achievement, improved school involvement, as well as an increase in career awareness exploration, personal, and interpersonal skills. (1,15) In addition, the students complete more complex courses and have a higher graduation rate from high school. (9)
In summary, in career programs, students:
Learn and apply the academic material
Know and value self
Build self-esteem and confidence
Identify interests and build relationships between the school environment and the work force
Build academic, communication, problem solving, and social skills
Increase awareness of the need for future jobs skills
See the connections between learning in school, academic skills, job related skills, and careers
See career possibilities
See themselves as a future contributor to the job force
Receive empowerment
Build self-determination (2,7,9)
Examples of Elementary School Career Education Resources
Career awareness programs widely use tools are the Individual Career Plan (ICP) and the Individual Career Develop Portfolio. According to the Ohio State Department of Education (2000), Individual Career Plans (ICP) are essential for the development of self-awareness, employability skills, decision making and goal setting, community involvement, economics, and the reduction of bias. Students use the Individual Career Plans as they identify and explore initial career goals and educational plans. Elementary students use Individual Career Plan (ICP) to develop skills and to prepare to make future educational and career decisions. (12)
Another important tool is the Individual Career Develop Portfolio. Individual Career Develop Portfolios are collections of the career awareness activities and experiences that have occurred during the school year. (12) Other elementary school career awareness activities include:
Artistic displays
Career Days
Career Fairs
Career research
Career videos
Collages, murals
Community speakers
Educational games
Family group discussions
Field trips
Information interviewing
Job shadowing
Library book report
Mentors
Poetry
Phonics
Pictured dictionary
Puppets
Role playing
Scrapbook
Story reading
Student group discussions
Word search and comprehension activities (8,9,11,12,16)
Elementary school programs help students build connections between academics and real life situations. (9) Teachers and counselors use career education principles to stress the importance of language arts, mathematics, social studies, and science. Language arts have many uses in the workplace: Reading, writing, and listening skills. The uses for Mathematics include: Addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division skills to solve problems. In Social Studies, students gain understanding about other countries, languages, cultures, and the aspects of living in a global marketplace. Students learn the importance of Science having skills to solve problems as well as understanding how science is involved in different industries, such as food, media, agricultural, and automotive industries. (8)
Guidelines for Elementary Education Career Resources – National Career Development Guidelines
The NCDG Guidelines is a career knowledge, skills, and decision-making framework. The NCDG framework has three domains, goals, and indicators. Teachers and counselors use the domains, goals, and indicators as guidelines to design and create career resources. The three domains are: Personal Social Development (PS), Educational Achievement and Lifelong Learning (ED), and Career Management (CM). Each domain represents a developmental area in a career education program. Under each domain are goals or competencies. Under each goal, indicators highlight the knowledge and skills needed to achieve the goal. The National Career Development Guidelines (NCDG) is the foundation for career education products, research development, tests and tools. (14)
Summary
Elementary school career education programs build self-awareness, family awareness, school awareness, community awareness, career/ work awareness, attitude development, skill development, decision making strategies, and self-worth. Elementary school career awareness programs use age appropriate materials that match the developmental levels of the students. As a results of career education, schools reported that students had higher grades and academic achievement, improvement in school involvement and performance, as well as an increase in career awareness exploration, personal, and interpersonal skills. Career awareness activities include Individual Career Plan (ICP), Individual Career Develop Portfolio (ICDP), Career Days, Career Fairs, Field trips, information interviewing, and library book report.
References
1. American Counseling Association, Office of Public Policy and Legislation. (2007). Effectiveness of School Counseling. Alexandria, VA: Author.
2. Angel, N. Faye; Mooney, Marianne. (1996, December). Work-in-Progress: Career and Work Education for Elementary Students. (ED404516). Cincinnati, OH: Paper presented at the American Vocational Association Convention.
3. Benning, Cathleen; Bergt, Richard; Sausaman, Pamela. (2003, May). Improving Student Awareness of Careers through a Variety of Strategies. Thesis: Action Research Project. (ED481018). Chicago, Illinois: Saint Xavier University.
4. Career Tec. (2000). K-12 Career Awareness & Development Sequence [with Appendices, Executive and Implementation Guide]. (ED450219) .Springfield, Il: Author.
5. Carey, John. (2003, January). What are the Expected Benefits Associated with Implementing a Comprehensive Guidance Program. School counseling Research Brief 1.1. Amherst, MA: Fredrickson Center for School Counseling Outcome Research.
6. Dare, Donna E.; Maddy-Bernstein, Carolyn. (1999, September). Career Guidance Resource Guide for Elementary and Middle/Junior High School Educators. (ED434216). Berkeley, CA: National Center for Research in Vocational Education.
7. DuVall, Patricia. (1995).Let’s Get Serious about Career Education for Elementary Students. AACE Bonus Briefs. (ED386603). Hermosa Beach, CA: AACE Bonus Briefs.
8. Ediger, Marlow. (2000, July). Vocational Education in the Elementary School. (ED442979) Opinion Papers
9. Gerver, Miriam, Shanley, Judy, O Cummings, Mindee. (2/14/02). Answering the Question EMSTAC Extra Elementary and Middle Schools. Washington, DC: Technical Assistance Center, (EMSTAC).
10. Hurley, Dan, Ed.; Thorp, Jim, Ed. (2002, May). Decisions without Direction: Career Guidance and Decision-Making among American Youth. (ED465895). Grand Rapids, Michigan: Ferris State University Career Institute for Education and Workforce Development.
11. Maddy-Bernstein, Carolyn; Dare, Donna E. (1997,December).Career Guidance for Elementary and Middle School Students. Office of Student Services Brief, v9 n1. (ED415353). Berkeley, CA: National Center for Research in Vocational Education.
12. Ohio Department of Education, Division of Vocational and Career Education, Ohio Career Development Blueprint, Individual Career Plan, K to 5 (ED449322). Columbus, Ohio, 2000
13. Splete, Howard; Stewart, Amy. (1990). Competency-Based Career Development Strategies and the National Career Development Guidelines. Information Series No. 345. (ED327739). Columbus, Ohio: ERIC Clearinghouse on Education and Training for Employment & Ohio State University
14. U.S. Department of Education Office of Vocational and Adult Education. (1994, 2004). National Career Development Guidelines (NCDG). Washington, DC: Author.
15. Williams, Jean A., Ed. (1999, January). Elementary Career Awareness Guide: A Resource for Elementary School Counselors and Teachers. (ED445293). Raleigh, NC: NC Department of Public Instruction, NC Job Ready.
16. Woal, S. Theodore. (1995). Career Education–The Early Years. AACE Bonus Briefs. (ED386603). Hermosa Beach, CA: AACE Bonus Briefs.
By: Mary Askew