Igniting Career Curiosity: Preparing Students for Unseen Careers
In a future where the job landscape is ever-changing, equipping students with the foresight and skills for careers that don't yet exist is crucial. It's a complex task that involves not just understanding the current job market but anticipating and shaping the industries and roles of tomorrow.
November's National Career Development Month presents a perfect opportunity to spotlight innovative approaches to career readiness. TIME for Kids, a partner in our Learning Network, stands out, particularly with their pioneering Your 🔥 Job platform. Candace Dipsey, a former educator turned editor at TIME for Kids, sat down to talk with us about the platform earlier this month.
Your 🔥 Job provides third to eighth graders with a platform to explore diverse career paths, bridging the gap between their current education and future opportunities. “Our goal is to extend learning beyond traditional settings, fostering a connection between students' education and the evolving world of work,” Candace shares.
Through our work over the years with career readiness, Citizen Schools has embraced the value of early exposure to careers, but with a contemporary twist. The traditional ‘Career Day’ has evolved; we no longer rely solely on brief Q&A sessions with experts. Instead, our approach brings volunteers into classrooms to seamlessly integrate students’ current learning with real-world applications, helping them connect the dots and grasp the significance of their education in shaping their futures.
Why does this matter now? In classrooms across the country, students are engaging with content that will lay the foundation for their professional futures. Yet, the path from current learning to future careers isn’t always clear, which impacts student engagement. Understanding which skills will be essential tomorrow and beginning to develop them today is critical. Your 🔥 Job underscores the importance of unveiling the wide possibilities awaiting students, providing them with the tools and insights to contextualize and make their aspirations achievable.
We are committed to being advocates, not just offering students a glimpse of the future but also laying down the pathways that will guide them confidently towards it.
As we foster this crucial conversation, we ask you: How can we integrate career readiness into education to fuel the curiosity and ambition of our students? Read the full interview below and share your insights. Your participation is key to preparing a well-informed, future-ready generation.
After receiving her degree from Lafayette College, Candace Dipsey embarked on her educational career path by joining Teach for America, which ignited her passion for educational empowerment, driven by a desire to combat systemic issues faced by students. She then went on to teach in New Jersey public schools, developing personalized curriculum and improving her own teaching methods through consultation with social workers, literacy, and math coaches. In 2018, Candace deepened her expertise with an Educational Technology certification from Rutgers University, paving the way for her role at TIME for Kids (TFK).
At TFK, Candace serves as an editor for the team leading the innovative Your 🔥 Job platform. Tailored for 3rd to 8th graders, this initiative allows students to explore diverse career paths, emphasizing the connection between classroom learning and future opportunities. Candace champions the understanding that success takes various forms, advocating for trades alongside traditional education.
The platform features the Your 🔥 Job Power Skills Courses, a cache of videos and quizzes to help students master soft skills that they can apply throughout their lives. The site also has a comprehensive Your 🔥 Job Resource Hub, which can guide educators in aligning lessons with student interest. Candace envisions building bridges beyond classrooms, fostering connections with external networks—be it out-of-school time institutions, parents and/or caregivers.
As National Career Development Month comes to a close, the Your 🔥 Job platform stands as a timely and well-aligned resource, contributing to the month’s mission of reshaping education through a passion for learning and opening doors to diverse career possibilities. The TIME for Kids team stands as a catalyst for career development and readiness, emphasizing the transformative impact that informed career choices can have on students' lives. The resources that they provide on the Your 🔥 Job platform can be utilized and returned to as students explore and expand their knowledge of what is available to them.
What does experiential learning (EL) mean to you and why is it important? What would it look like to truly learn experientially? Experiential learning is fully engaging students in every step of the learning process. It’s giving students the freedom to try and to fail, and helping them reflect on the process. We, as adults, understand that most technical skills are developed on the job, once you are truly involved with the work. Replicating this process in a classroom-setting opens students up to deeper learning by attaching a skill or idea to concrete experiences. It helps students see the “why” behind what they are learning, which can lead to increased engagement, motivation, and perseverance. The goal of the Your 🔥 Job program is to expose students to job-related skills and experiences and bring those opportunities to life. We understand that not all communities have the resources to provide students experiences such as career days or internships. The activities, discussions, and reflections provided in the unit of study help bridge the gap for students who might not otherwise be exposed to a wide variety of career paths. Through the learning process, students are encouraged to change their minds and explore new pathways as they reflect independently, with peers, and with educators.
What do you believe is the best first step towards advancing the future of learning? What is necessary to make it successful? Student agency is a crucial first step. This comes to life in the classroom with educators taking on more of a supporting role than a leading one in learning. It also means giving students an opportunity to have a say in what and how they learn. In order for this to be successful though, educators must set clear expectations for students. This way, students understand that they have freedom, but know how to use it responsibly and constructively. The Your 🔥 Job unit of study gives students the freedom to explore their own pathways with support and guidance from educators.
Who was the most influential mentor you have had throughout your life? What qualities did they impart that you continue to embody in your work? My current manager, Stacy Bien, has been an incredibly influential mentor. She has always modeled trust and communication and she supports me in my current endeavors while always considering my future. From my first day at TIME for Kids she trusted me to get right into the work. Since then, Stacy has taken on the role of both a coach and a teammate. She has taken the time to get to know me and my strengths by giving me the opportunities to try out different roles and be part of conversations outside my basic job description. I am exposed to different sides of the work without pressure or expectation. She guides me to reflect on how those roles felt and takes note of where I thrive so, together, we can identify where my interests and strengths might lead. I think this is a great example for mentors and educators and it helped guide me in creating the structure of our Your 🔥 Job unit of study. The lessons set educators up to take a mentoring role as students explore their own paths and try new things. There are also modifications in place for students who may need a little more guidance. As students work through the lessons, they will better understand both the level of support and the type of career that will help them reach a future that feels most successful for them.
If no obstacles stood in the way and you could design the future of education as you see fit, what would that look like for educators and students? My ideal future of education would allow for students to focus on their strengths. Educators would be there to help kids identify where they shine and harness that to help them develop their skills further in that area. Students would have opportunities to utilize these skills in real-world settings to better get to know themselves and what inspires them. The future of education would still have foundational skills playing a role in the learning experience, however, less emphasis would be placed on where students are falling short. The very first two lessons in the Your 🔥 Job unit of study help identify their top traits and strengths and students return to these throughout the unit as they explore the paths that they have available to them.
What drew you to your organization's mission? What drives you to activate this vision? The mission of Your 🔥 Job is to show all young people that there is no single route to success. Research has shown that 61% of college grads would change their college majors if they could go back. Which makes sense because, at 18, many college students have limited exposure to what is out there. Many high school graduates leave unprepared to make a decision about what they want to do with their lives. They might make decisions based on what they see friends and family doing, what they think might be easiest, or maybe what they feel like they should be doing. But your future should never be based on pressure or on the flip of a coin. The Your 🔥 Job program helps people identify areas of interest at a young age so they can start exploring what might be the best fit for them. As someone who found their true passion only five years ago, I am motivated to help others find careers that will make them feel the most successful and bring them the same joy I feel going to work each day.