Local Employment Opportunities
| Title: Local Employment Opportunities | Author: Robert Schoen |
| Subject(s): Career Development | |
| Grade Level(s): 9-12 | Total Time: Four 45-minute class periods |
Overview / Description:
In this lesson, students will identify careers at local businesses. By communicating with area employers and identifying potential careers, students could possibly find a career they identify with and could pursue as a career path. This would help both students with career choices and local businesses with possible new employees.
Learning goals/objectives:
After completing this activity, students should be able to
- identify careers at local businesses.
- research a career found at a local business.
- present information about a career to a group.
Workplace Readiness Skill:
| x | Social Skills | x | Communication |
| x | Teamwork | Critical Thinking | |
| x | Attitude and Initiative | Planning and Organization | |
| Professionalism | Media Etiquette |
Content Standards:
Wisconsin Common Career Technical Standards
Career Development
Standard: CD2: Students will identify the connection between educational achievement and work opportunities in order to reach personal and career goals.
CD2.b.9.h: Analyze local and regional labor market and job growth information to select a career pathway for potential advancement.
Educational Frameworks:
ASCA National Standards for Students
B.2 Apply knowledge in establishing and achieving academic goals.
B.12.2.3 Identify postsecondary options consistent with interests, achievement, aptitude, and abilities
Materials:
Learning Activities:
WHO (T=Teacher Focus Lesson; WG=Whole Group\; SM=Small Group; I=Independent)
| Learning Activity Task | WHO is responsible for this step? | Approximate time for task |
| Day 1 - Teacher will introduce the lesson by discussing area businesses and the different jobs found in a business. Personal experience with a local business and the wide variety of careers available there would be encouraged (such as that gained through the CESA 8 Career Academy Teacher Externship Program), and a guest speaker could be invited from a local business to discuss the variety of careers available at their company. | WG | 15 min. |
| Students will brainstorm a list of all area employers. This can be done in a variety of ways. One might be to have a piece of chart paper for each of the sixteen career clusters. Students could circulate around the room adding businesses they know to the charts. After an initial brainstorming session, pairs of students could be assigned to continue to research businesses from a particular cluster through the Web or through Xello/Inspire business landing pages. Each students will choose an employer from the list to research for potential career options. | SG | 15-30 min. |
| Day 2 and 3 - Students will use a variety of means to collect a list of careers for their chosen business, including visiting the company website, contacting the employer's Human Resources department to identify career opportunities, or collecting career data through the Xello/Inspire business landing page. | SG | 30 min. |
| Each students should pick a career that interests them and research it using the Career Research Form. Students will then create a career presentation on their chosen career. Students may choose to use a slide deck, a display board, or a video to present their career. Presentations should take approximately 3-5 minutes, and students should include the company that they initially researched in their presentation so students are aware of the connection between local businesses and available careers. | I | 60-90 min. |
| Day 4 - Each student will present their career to the rest of the class. | I | 45 min. |
Assessment:
Wrap-Up:
- Discuss all the different careers available at local businesses.
- Discuss what the students found surprising about the local job market.
Extension Activity (for intervention or enrichment):
- Students could attend a local chamber of commerce meeting.
- The teacher could schedule a visit from the local chamber of commerce to discuss the local job market and advantages of choosing a career locally.
- A representative from a local technical college could be scheduled to discuss local businesses which are willing to pay for additional certifications/coursework.