shcherbak graham

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NATALYA SHCHERBAK & LINDA GRAHAMDEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION, MACQUARIE UNIVERSITY, AUSTRALIA

Investigating high school students career

choices in an unequally developed economy:Perspectives from the different rungs of the socioeconomic ladder

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Content

Problem

Conceptual framework

Methodology

Main findings

Further research

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Problem: background information

Two-speed economy

New South Wales:

~51% of population of employment age rate

Highest youth unemployment (up to 40%)

Decrease in unemployment is correlated with

increase in Disability Support Pension

Changes in the ratio of blue collar to white

collar occupations

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Conceptual Framework

Drawing on ideas of:

Human Development theory Moral education and autonomy

Democratic threshold of education

Career choice is a multi-stage formative

process involving:

opportunities to discover career options experiences helping to develop the

intellectual and technical skills

Main questions of the research project: Who is and who is not active in career

decision-making

Difference in their educational experiences

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Methodology: Focus Groups

Exploratory Stage

Qualitative data collection andanalysis

40-60 min group interviews

Participants:

4-6 Year 10 students per focus group

Different geographic areas of New South

Wales, Australia

Different Index of Community Socio-

Educational Advantage (ICSEA) strata (low

to high)

All schools - co-educational

Focus on student:

Ability to articulate a viable career choice

Students perceptions related to school

preparation/education

Demographics and socioeconomic background

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Career Education

Most disadvantaged schools tend to be targeted by Government initiatives

Schools with middle range ICSEA are often left without action

Delayed career education sessions and advice

Less targeted by Government programs

Schools with high ICSEA often rely on parents advice or assume that children will go

to Universities to get high status professions

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Articulation of Career Choices and

Pathways

Students from high ICSEA tended to articulate: 1 career choice (with 1 or several pathways)

Students from low ICSEA tended to articulate:

More than 1 career option,

Often in jobs that were unrelated to each other and organised:

1. By preference (interest) and

2. By achievability

Among all groups, regardless of ICSEA:

Some students havent yet got a clear idea of what they want to do

Some students wanted to go to University, but didnt know what they wanted to study

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Helpful experiences

Bulls eye:

Discovery of opportunities and pathways

Seeing examples of

other students who already made their career

choice

people from industry

what is happening at University

Scholarship programs to help to decide

what to do in future

Career sessions

Personality test

Writing resume

Excursions

Seeing what parents do

Goal-setting seminars

Visits of Army representatives

Experiences provided by parents:

Travelling overseas

Visiting museums and historical places

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Role models

Parents and their friends Siblings and their friends

Other relatives

TV shows (i.e. movies, talk shows)

Teachers

University/Government initiatives (examples

they provide)

Work experience

Abby Sciuto (NCIS)

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Good life

A lot of similar goods considered to be necessary to HAVE by all students

Some differences in the ways students talked about goods highlight:

different attitudes and

the way students adapt to their personal circumstances and life experiences.

Higher ICSEA:

if you at the point where you havent got like enough money to afford a car, you can probably get

by by public transport means time, but cars convenient.

Lower ICSEA: You dont really need a car. If you really wanted one you can go get one if you could afford it.

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Good life

Students from lower ICSEA expressed: Owning a house or a car as a responsibility

having life to buy everything

Having a really good proper education

Freedom being who you are not being pressured into being someone else

Students from higher ICSEA expressed:

Having a big house isnt important, its more important that you have friends and family with you

Having savings (as a way to have less financial pressure and stress)

Having steady job and steady income

purpose is needed in life. Lots of people get that from their job

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Self in the world

Family values were present in all groups, but expressed in a different way:

Student from lower ICSEA:

To feel good and liked I dont want to be alone. Id like a family. Even if it means living with my parents or

anything, I dont want to be on my own.

Student from higher ICSEA:

walking into a house that had a happy family inside, where they were all happy and had what they liked

and werent selfish.

Travelling was mentioned in most of the groups:

Student from lower ICSEA:

I want to do something different adopting the children, going overseas, helping people

Student from higher ICSEA: Travelling as a way to get understanding of the world

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Highlights

Students from different ICSEA backgrounds have different:

Life (and school ) experiences

Attitudes and preferences (often adapted to the circumstances)

Role-models (with less reliance on family in low ICSEA)

Schools play a vital role in providing experiences that some

families are unable to provide

Different students require different kinds of educational

experiences to help them reach the level of

Informed Career Choice

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Further research

Career decision-making readiness

Awareness and access to different sources of information

related to career decision making

Career opportunities that students can access Ability to connect school experience to their future careers

Quality of school education and career advice received

Self-vision: self-direction,

autonomy self-efficacy,

self-determination

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Thank you for your time and

participation!

Questions?

[email protected]

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