A Webquest for 12Th Grade Adapted English Students

Career Choices

A WebQuest for 12th Grade Adapted English Students

Ms. Maze

Introduction

You are now seniors in high school, and you will be graduating in less than 3 months! After you graduate, you will be going out into the “real world,” so you must be prepared for the next chapter of your life! You will either be going to a four-year college, two-year college, technical school, military, or finding a job. This Career Choices WebQuest is designed to help you locate information about the choices you have and to assist you in deciding which path you want to take as you move into the next stage of your life!

This WebQuest will answer:

What careers are going to have an increasing number of job openings?
What are the salaries of certain careers?
What skills do you need for certain careers?
What do you need to do and know to start your own business?
What are some benefits of enlisting in the military?
How much does it cost to go to a post-secondary school?
What types of financial aid are available?
What are the do’s and don’t of social networking?

The Task

Purpose:You will be graduating in less than 3 months, so you need to answer the question: Now what?! In order to do this, you will use the PA Career Guide and other Internet resources to locate information about possible career choices and post-secondary options so that you have a better idea of which path you want to take after you graduate.

Objective:You will be gathering information about possible careers and post-secondary plans that you are interested in pursuing after high school.

Final Project: After you gather all the information about possible post-secondary plans, you will write a personal reflection mini-essay about what you have learned about possible career choices during the WebQuest and how this information has helped you or can help you in the future.

The Process

NOTE: You will be independently completing this project.

First, go to the PA Career Zone.
Then choose ONE “Job Family” that interests you and click on it.
Click on up to four of the occupations on the left and then compare the occupations by clicking on “Compare Selected” at the bottom of the page.

After viewing the comparison of these occupations, the preparation required for these occupations, the interests common to their occupations, the salaries, and the projected openings, answer the following questions:

The occupation that most interested me in this group was ______
This occupation most interested me because______
I feel like this (circle one): would would not be a good job for me

because______

4. Then, go to the PA Career Zone Assessment Center.

Choose ONE of the assessments and complete the assessment.
After you receive your results, reflect on the following questions:
Did you agree or disagree with the results?AgreeDisagree
I (circle one) agreed disagreed with the results because______
These traits or skills results show that I am ______

______

These personality traits or skills could help me get a job as a

______because

______

Next, go to the PA Career Guide website.
After you click on the PA Career Guide, you will use the sections of the Career Guide to answer the following questions:

Directions: Using the information on the PA Career Guide, answer the following questions about career choices and opportunities.

The Importance of Finding the Right Job:

1. On average, workers will change jobs about ______times during their career.

2. Nearly ______percent of jobs require some sort of ______.

3. Employers often require ______beyond ______, -either through ______or ______.

4. The key to successfully landing jobs will be ______a

______of skills.

5. Traditional skilled trades, such as ______

______, plumbers, ______, and dental hygienists, will still be in ______.

Want to Be a Star?

1. Experts estimate that only ______out of every 1,000 high school student athletes will make it to the pros.

2. Name at least 4 sports related jobs: ______

______

3. For men’s basketball, 1 in every ______high school seniors will make it to the pros.

4. For football, 1 in every ______high school seniors will make it to the pros.

Media Mythmaking and Employment Reality

1. Pick three of these occupations and say the total annual openings, average income, and typical preparation required:

Occupational Title / Total Annual Openings in Pennsylvania / Average Income / Typical Preparation Required

2. Did any of those numbers surprise you?YesNo

3. If they did surprise, explain WHY they surprised you. If they did NOT surprise you, explain why not:

The Only Constant is Change

1. Because of downsizing, ______, technological advancement and economic disturbances, workers often have to take on

______duties within their current jobs, or

look for new ______beyond what they’re ______to doing.

2. Job security now depends on being ______,

adaptable, and willing to continually learn ______

______.

3. Pick ONE of the “CHANGES” categories, and then explain this category IN YOUR OWN WORDS!

Category:______

My explanation:

Have a Career in Mind? Try It Out First

Name 3 ways that you can “try out” jobs. EXPLAIN what each activity is, in YOUR OWN WORDS.

Activity 1: ______

My explanation:

Activity 2: ______

My explanation:

Activity 3: ______

My explanation:

Discover and Learn

In the green sections “Discover” and “Learn,” find 3 occupations that interest you.

Then fill in the following chart:

Occupation Description / Projected Total in 2020 / Openings per Year / PA Entry (Starting Wage) / PA Average Yearly Wage / US Average Wage per year

Starting Your Own Business (page 42)

Name 3 questions you will need to answer before starting your own business:

Military Training and Careers in the Armed Forces (page 45 and 46)

Name 3 benefits of joining the Armed Forces:

The Costs of College (page 48)

In 2010-2011:

1. ______was the average in-state tuition for PA community colleges (DCCC, etc.).

2. ______was the average total cost for a PA private college/university (Villanova, Penn).

3. ______was the average total cost for a PA college of technology.

4. ______was the average total cost for a PA state (public) university.

5. Were you surprised by any of these costs? YesNo

6. Explain why you WERE or WERE NOT surprised by these prices:

7. Name two types of financial aid and explain what they are:

1. ______My explanation:

2. ______My explanation:

Online Networking (page 55)

Name 3 precautions to take when you are using social networking sites (Facebook, Twitter, etc.):

Personal Reflection: In 2-3 paragraphs, write about:

-The 3 most important things you learned through the WebQuest

-How they have helped you or could help you in the future.

-What you plan on doing after you graduate from high school.

______

Evaluation

-You will be evaluated using the following rubric.

-Please review the rubric ahead of time to make sure that you have included everything on the rubric in the “Exemplary” category.

Beginning
1 / Developing
2 / Accomplished
3 / Exemplary
4 / Score
Completion
Of
The WebQuest / Student leaves most of the WebQuest blank and incomplete. / Student completes some sections of the WebQuest. / Student completes most of the WebQuest. / Student fully and completely works through the entire WebQuest.
Depth of Thought Process / Student answers a few questions with in-depth and thoughtful answers. / Student answers some questions with in-depth and thoughtful answers. / Student answers most questions with in-depth and thoughtful answers. / Student answers all questions with in-depth and thoughtful answers.
Personal Reflection (Content) / Personal Reflection does not meet length requirement and includes very little information required. / Personal Reflection includes some of the information required. / Personal Reflection does not fully meet the length requirement, but includes most of the information needed. / Personal Reflection completely meets length requirement.
Personal Reflection (Conventions) / Includes 5 or more spelling/grammar errors / Includes 3-4 spelling/grammar errors / Includes 1-2 spelling/ grammar errors / There are no spelling or grammar errors
Personal Reflection (Style) / Personal Reflection doe not include a variety of word choice and sentence structure. / Personal Reflection includes a limited amount of word choice and sentence structure. / Personal Reflection includes some instances of variety of word choice and sentence structure. / Personal Reflection includes many instances of variety of word choice and sentence structure.

Conclusion

After completing this WebQuest, you should have a better understanding of your options after high school.

What do YOU want to do?

What can YOU do to help prepare yourself for your future?

WHO can help you during this process (teachers, parents, siblings, friends, guidance counselors, etc.)?

Think about your goals, what you personally can do to achieve them, and who can help you out along the way.

Best of Luck!!!

Credits & References

Pennsylvania Department of Education (2013). Assess Yourself. Career Zone

Pennsylvania. Retrieved from:

Pennsylvania Department of Education (2013). Job Families. Career Zone Pennsylvania.

Retrieved from:

Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry (2013). Career Guide 2012-2013.

Retrieved from:

Photographs:

Page 1: Pellissippi State Community College (2013). Photograph. Retrieved from:

Page 4: Pinellas County Schools (2009). Photograph. Retrieved from:

Page 6: Career Insite (2012). Photograph. Retrieved from:

Page 8: How Stuff Works (2013). Photograph. Retrieved from:

Page 10: Mashable (2013). Photograph. Retrieved from:

Last updated on March 19, 2013. Based on a template from The WebQuest Page