Lesson Planning Guide

Title: Learn about Career Coach
Note: Career coach is free from the AB Tech website and open to the public / Time Required: 2 hours (one class)
Lesson Submitted By: Dr. Nancy Russell-Forsythe

Lesson Contextualized Toward: ☒Career Exploration
Content Standards Benchmarks Taught:
Digital Literacy Skills Taught:
Computer, internet, log in to website (setting up ID and password), keyboarding skills, navigating through website to find relevant information.
Objectives/Learning Goals:
Learn how to use AB Tech’s career counseling tools via demonstration of Career Coach, with hands-on experience; determine if stated career interests are aligned with career interests derived from assessment on Career Coach; learn about John Holland’s 5 career interest areas; determine if there are specific jobs in the local area that match their interest in welding; see if there are other jobs in similar technical fields. Demonstrate digital skills – keyboarding, use of the internet, navigation through a website, use of interactive website; Demonstrate cognitive skills – analyzing career related information to determine if this information matches their self-views of career interests. Demonstrate writing and speaking skills – complete worksheet about Career Coach and discuss in class or in small groups, report findings to class. Learn and demonstrate teamwork skills. Develop familiarity and comfort with the use of psychological assessment tools, which will lead to more comfort with these types of assessments that may be used in job application process.
Rationale:
Exercise will teach them how to use some valuable internet tools that can validate their career interests. If the interests are not validated, then students will be exposed to other career interests to expand their choices of potential educational study. This information will help students find sources of employment in the local area, learn about tasks and abilities that could be used at a later date in a resume or in an interview. Students will learn better communication skills (writing and speaking), which will be useful in future educational and career endeavors. Students will learn how to work on a team and with a partner.
Materials/Resources Needed:
Smart board and computer for instructor to use; Laptop computers for students to use; paper, pen/pencils, highlighters; audio visual – short video about Holland’s personality/career interest areas; worksheet to write down information gained.
Procedure/Instructional Outline:
1. I will describe what the class will be doing prior to the lesson, and see if there are any questions.
2. Students will be provided with laptops and I will use a desktop computer and smart board to guide
them through the exercises.
3. Ask students to log onto the AB Tech website. If some students are unfamiliar as to how to do this,
ask other students to partner with them to show them the process.
4. When on the home page of abtech.edu, demonstrate via the smart board how to get to Career
Coach www.abtech.edu/career-development-services/career-coach Click on the video about
getting started and ask students to do the same on their laptops. Watch the short video about
using the site.
5. Proceed to the page about taking a Career Assessment to determine general interest areas. Ask
students to take the long form of the assessment. Provide instructions about how to answer
questions and talk about the non-evaluative aspects of the assessment. Describe the use of
psychological assessments in hiring; ask students about their experience in this area; determine if
there are any fears about this process; discuss the purpose of companies using such
assessments; talking about interpersonal aspects of being positive if asked to take such as
assessment. Students will need to establish an ID and a password; provide assistance if needed,
ask other students to provide assistance, remind students to write down their IDs and passwords in
their notebooks.
6. Hand out Career Coach work sheet that guides the students through exploring the site.
7. After completion of the assessment, ask students to write down their top three interest areas, with
percentages; also write out parts of the description that apply to them. Provide students with
handout sheet about Holland’s Six Personality Types and describe the RAISEC theory; show short
video from youtube about Holland the five types (Holland Codes – 3.21 – cartoon or Career Key –
1,2,). Ask students to partner with each other and determine if the information provided fits them or
not. Complete page 2 of the worksheet. Discuss with partners. Report back to class about top
three RAISEC combinations or other areas they think may apply. Discuss comfort level with taking
such an assessment; talk about information gained and if it is helpful or not.
8. Ask students to continue with the work as partners and return to the Career Coach page.
Demonstrate this on the smartboard. Ask students to search for welding careers by putting this in
the search box and clicking; prior to clicking, look on the left side of the page and click BA degree
as educational level. Discuss how many pages of jobs appear (6 pages); return to previous page
and click vocational certificate degree and note how may pages of jobs appear (2 pages). Since
students are working on certificates, discuss the difference between job opportunities with a 4 year
degree and a certificate.
9. Ask students to select a job field to research (pipe fitter & steam fitter, ex.). On the handout sheet,
students will be asked to complete various factual information about the job (wages, pay for
new/normal/experienced workers, tasks involved in the job, if the field is growing in the future,
degree needed).
10. Ask students to click on an actual job opening (pipe fitter & steam fitter, ex.). On work sheet,
complete and discuss with partners the company and location, pay, description of job, experience
needed.
11. Click on Apply and discuss what is needed to apply: name, e mail, phone number, resume and
cover letter. Talk about the importance of a professional looking e mail address and establish a
new one if needed. Talk about how to download your resume (which students will write later in
the course). Talk about the importance of a cover letter, even though the box is optional; explore
reasons why it may be important, talk about writing one later in the course.
12. Ask students to meet in groups of 4 to talk about what they have learned that is new, what is
helpful information, if anything is confusing, how they might use this website in the future, etc.
Ask student groups to report to the whole class what they have discovered.
13. Summarize lesson and see if there are any questions. Tell students that they can continue to
look at current job openings at home. Possible homework assignment – look up 3 other jobs
relating to welding and see how many actual job openings there are; list the companies found for
each one.