Career Mark Guidance Note 3

Careers Education, Information and Guidance – Your contribution as a Teacher/Tutor

As a tutor/subject teacher you are likely to be a point of contact for your learners seeking advice about their future plans and options. It is important that you feel supported in this role and have the required knowledge and information to be effective.

  • The Year 7 induction programme helps students to learn how to cope withtransitions: moving to secondary school involves a new environment, new roles and responsibilities, new subjects, new relationships.Reviewing this process develops self-awareness
  • Self-assessment work helps students to understand themselves and teaches them a new skill: reflection on their own strengths and weaknesses.
  • Equal opportunities themes help to build understanding of peoples’ roles/challenging stereotypes and appreciation of diversity.
  • Group tasks, project work develop some of the major employabilityskills needed for work; ‘team working’ and ‘self-presentation’.
  • Reviewing academic progress helps students to begin to learn the skills involved in planning ahead; linking self-awareness with requirements of the world of work.
  • Recognizing that making school relevant to the future can encourage students’ motivation and aspiration; setting goals/targets which are realistic and contribute to aspiration

Here are some of the other ways in which, as a form tutor, you may be involved in careers education and guidance:

  • Encouraging students to use the careers library.
  • Putting up careers notices in the tutor room.
  • Visiting some of your group while they are on work experience.
  • Talking to students about their careers interviews and their action plans.
  • Helping students to make the links between their school subjects/achievements and the world of work
  • Having a go yourself at careers software packages.
  • Supporting students (from Year 7-9) in their GCSE options.
  • Supporting Year 10 and 11 students to think through their post-16 options.
  • Liaising with the SEN co-ordinator where a student may require additional advice.
  • Using self as a role model; talking about how you made decisions or coped with transitions.
  • Using materials from the careers library to do research into different careers.
  • Being aware of the limitations of your role; knowing when a student requires more in-depth guidance and knowing who and how to refer onto

As a subject teacher there are also ways to incorporate careers education into your lessons:

  • Student project researching the career opportunities available to them with qualifications in your subject area (Options choices)
  • Research project displaying skills developed in subject linked to employability and the world of work
  • Creating displays to show some of the careers and skills linked to the subject
  • Researching famous people to find out how they followed their career path
  • Compare how jobs have changed over the years (eg history/geography scheme of work)