Primary school career counseling - is it a fad?

As a good parent, you care for your child and want the best for him. The recent education reform has brought about many changes that challenged not only teachers, but also you and your child. Therefore, when you saw another novelty - career counseling in the 7th and 8th grade plan, you must have asked yourself the question "Is it necessary? Isn't that too much? Or maybe it's better to focus on more important things. Primary school career counseling.

That is why you may sometimes neglect these activities. Maybe you even consider it a kind of whim (especially at this stage of education). You wonder what benefits can be gained from participation in career counseling, since it is not even entered on the school certificate. It is also not a subject for assessment, although it is compulsory.

So who needs career counseling? As a school career counselor, I am in a hurry to explain. I hope that I will be able to convince you and that I will provide you with arguments to talk to your child who rebels against sitting for another hour at school.

Argument 1. The world is changing and you have to be prepared for it

After all, you also did not participate in any counseling at school and you managed somehow, right? The modern world, however, is characterized by enormous dynamics of changes and instability, much greater than in your school days. A dozen or so years ago, career planning and the related choice of profession were completely different than today. It was much simpler, not marked by so many fears, fears for his own future. And it is in this world that young adults enter the labor market, including, in a moment, your child (you will not even notice how soon it will happen). A serious task facing the school today is to meet the challenges that arise from changes in the current labor market.

Psychologists and educators agree that the transition from the world of school to the world of work is associated with enormous stress. Therefore, it often requires the help of a professional. Without his support, this process may end in your child's failure. And this is not what we want - neither you nor me, because it is also my failure in a way.

The world is developing rapidly. Modern technologies start to surprise us at every step. In order to keep up with progress, you need to constantly improve your qualifications. This is a trivial statement, however, it should be noted that not everyone is prepared for these changes. Moreover, some people, including young people, are afraid of them. Unfortunately, I know from experience that the idea of ‹‹lifelong learning is alien to my students. When, during my classes, they learn that graduating from one school at the age of twenty will not "set" them up for the rest of their lives, they are very disappointed. Therefore, career counseling is aimed at instilling in young people a sense of responsibility for the level of their own competences. It is all the more important as it plays a significant role in positively shaping the attitudes of young people.

The times of our grandparents and parents, who usually worked in one company until their retirement, were over, and people who frequently changed employers were not well perceived. Today, employees with various experiences are valued and even desired on the labor market. Today's teenagers are expected to change their workplace at least fifteen times during their career. Moreover, he will likely have to retrain. Three to five times! Your child needs to be prepared for this. Therefore, it will be necessary to be able to independently analyze the situation on the labor market in order to be able to find a niche there and thus succeed. Counseling is designed to equip your child with this skill. It will not only be useful at the beginning of your career path, but throughout your life.

Argument 2. Costs of unreasonable decisions

It can be noticed that educational and professional decisions, so important after all, which can affect the entire life of an individual, are often made in an irrational way. They are rarely preceded by a reflection on the consequences of one's own actions.

When it asked to students about the reasons why they want to choose a given artical-primary school,  Unfortunately too often hear the following answers: "I'm going there with my friend", "I will earn a lot in this profession" or "I do not want to waste time on commuting and this school is close to home . Reasons like any other, you will say. Well, not really ... Because the consequences of once made decision can affect the life of this young man.

No wonder that adolescents are suggested by their peers, whose opinion they value much more than that of adults. Well, that's the age ... The student is looking for data on schools among friends or on the Internet. The problem is, she usually doesn't know where to look. He just wants to earn a lot and not get tired at work. Such expectations are typical for Generation Z, ie people born after 1995. Talk to your child. Ask them which school they want to choose and why. Follow the topic. You will find that not all reasons will appeal to you.

As a consequence, teenagers' decisions are ill-considered and have negative effects, such as the inability to find a job, dissatisfaction with working conditions, and quick burnout. We all bear the effects of these choices as a society. They include the costs of unemployment benefits, training and retraining. How big are the losses to the economy from wrong decisions? No such research has been conducted in many countries. In turn, in the United Kingdom, it was calculated that they amount to 200 million pounds per year (this is why in 2012 compulsory individual counseling consultations were introduced into the British education system).

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It is therefore necessary to consider the choices that may be the most important in your child's life so far. Thanks to career counseling, an increase in the accuracy of educational decisions can be noticed. As a consequence, the emotional and economic costs resulting from inappropriate career choices are lowered. This is not only my opinion, but the results of many scientific studies conducted on really large groups of the population.

Argument 3. Help in becoming an adult

Help students adjust their individual characteristics to the requirements of a specific job, get to know the assortment of different jobs and professions, define goals, define their own potential and plan activities aimed at effective job search in the future. It is very important. In a world full of fears and anxieties, where 37% of young people do not plan their future at all, a career counselor encourages young people to be reflective and take up such activity. That is why I help you recognize your own abilities and understand other people and the world. Be active and flexible in the world of rapid changes. Help in dealing with fears resulting from uncertainty. In this way, Support young people in their independent endeavors.

Young people learn to control their emotions, get to know their strengths and weaknesses, which in the future is to help them solve problems and avoid mistakes in their professional development. My goal is also to awaken a sense of responsibility for my own development. Through my actions, I want to strengthen the independence of students and convince them of my own self-development abilities. And believe me, we have trouble with that. I don't know if it's a national trait or a matter of upbringing, but we can't talk about our advantages and potential.

It is said that my task is to support people in reaching both professional and social maturity. And this is what I am really striving for. All exercises that I suggest to my students are aimed at shaping key skills, such as: efficient communication and action, and planning your own future, as well as personality traits, such as perseverance and duty. They are indispensable in today's labor market. I also try to develop the ability to make mature decisions in my students.

It should be emphasized that adolescents need support in the process of growing up, which should be understood as the process of socializing the young generation. Contemporary youth needs broadly defined support in entering adulthood. In recent years, due to the pace of change, more and more. Parent, think how many young people around you do not take steps to become independent. Despite the fact that they have a job, they live with their parents and do not look for other possibilities of life, because it is more convenient for them. Such a life is less responsible. Now think about when you had to start living on your own. You will say that if you have succeeded, your child will also succeed. But nowadays, young people cannot cope with it (or do not want to cope with it) mainly because they are afraid of the changeability and unpredictability of the world, independence and taking responsibility for their lives. He is afraid that he will not live up to the expectations. A career counselor is therefore one of the people to prepare your child for adult life.

Acquiring the above-mentioned competences is necessary for the effective management of the course of one's own professional career. While hard knowledge can be acquired in a relatively short time, regardless of its field, competences useful in the labor market, which also include skills and attitudes, develop over the years. So it's important to start as early as possible.

Argument 4. Preventing problems in the future

The modern labor market is unpredictable. It mostly affects young people who cannot yet navigate on it. Thanks to comprehensive analyzes of employers' needs, the causes of unemployment, forecasts of economic development and monitoring of the situation of school and extracurricular education, as a career counselor I am able to predict which professions and specializations will be in greatest demand. And thus, what professions should my pupils be educated in so that they can find employment in the future. I include young people in these predictions. My students are eager to take part in classes on trends in the labor market and professions of the future, which makes me very happy. So let your child also play futurologist. It may turn out that it will amaze you with just how strong the basis of his predictions will be.

Argument 5. Effects of the reform

You are well aware of the fact that due to the reform of the education system, your son or daughter must decide to choose a artical-primary school one year earlier than the previous years. That's a lot at such a young age. Therefore, the help of a professional is all the more necessary in this case.

I hope I have convinced you that well-conducted career counseling brings benefits both here, now and in the future. So don't hurt your child and don't release them from these activities. Rather, try to arouse his interest in the subject of work and the values ‹‹associated with it, the labor market, and the profession. Together, reflect on his future. The decision to choose a profession will probably be the first so serious in his life. A lot depends on it. It needs to be thought out. For it to be appropriate, it needs a solid foundation in the form of knowledge provided during counseling classes. Don't deprive her of the young man. Let him have a chance to make the right choice! I thank you in advance for this on behalf of the whole society. After all, we will all be paying for his possible retraining. It is also your child who will work for our retirement. :) So it is important that he chooses the right one, and the work gives him satisfaction.