College & Workforce Readiness

Planning Classes to Match Career Interests Early Can Pay Off

By Caralee J. Adams — May 21, 2012 1 min read
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Being passionate about a career can ignite learning in the classroom.

That’s the concept behind working with students early on to help identify their interests and possible career paths. More and more districts are working with kids as young as 6th grade to explore different vocations and map out a plan to get there.

These individual learning plans are often developed with counselors and tracked online through a students’ middle and high school years. Knowing the end goal can help students make sure they prepare with the right classes and activities. It can also spark an early interest in the college search and possibly part-time work or internships in their chosen field of study.

The Rennie Center for Education and Research in Cambridge, Mass., evaluated the landscape of individual learning plans and found 23 states mandate the process, and many others are considering it. States, such as Minnesota, have discovered early career planning can lead to increased student motivation and performance.

At 2 p.m. EST tomorrow, Tuesday, May 22, I will be moderating a webinar on this topic. The discussion will kick off with presentations from Chad d’Entremont, executive director of the Rennie Center, and Shelly Landry, Webster Complex lead counselor for the Minneapolis school district.

Join us tomorrow for Improving Student Engagement by Early Career Mapping by registering for this free event here.

A version of this news article first appeared in the College Bound blog.