What do you want to be when you grow up?
Ask an elementary-aged child what they want to be when they grow up, and the answer will likely be teacher, vet, doctor or nurse; also popular - sports star, police officer, firefighter, actor, ballerina and pilot; while Youtube star has started hitting the lists as well.
Few children that age think, ‘what will give me the most money’; most are clearly considering what is important to them, following up their answers with ‘because I like young children’, ‘animals’ ‘helping people', ‘performing’ or ‘playing football’. Sometimes, they choose the profession of a close relative, thinking that as they are inspired by this person, what they do must be inspiring.
Of course, there is a naivety to children’s choices; they don’t yet know the hard reality of having to pay bills and get ahead in the world. But there can be a naivety in the opposite view that pay and status are the hard realities of life without consideration of anything else; that as adults we can pick the ideal profession for a child, and then mould them into it.
We not only spend most of our alert waking hours in our jobs, but they also come to define us. ‘What do you do?’ is one of the first questions we ask a stranger at a social occasion. We think it says it says something essential about ourselves and others. This is what younger children instinctively realise.
Next week, Grade 10 students take Morrisby psychometric tests to form their own profile of strengths and preferences. This will help them make choices about their last two years of high school and what they may do beyond. It is an essential part of our approach to careers advice. We don’t view school as a giant sorting mechanism where the ultimate preference is to go to an elite university for an elite job. We all have our own goals, and our views of a valuable life.
In everything we do, we start with the child; know and connect with them - build from their specific strengths, address their specific weaknesses. One size does not fit all. Education at its best is about encouraging each individual child to flourish in their own set of talents and interests, and then setting up students for a life in which they can continue to flourish - as well as paying the bills.
Careers advice is only one way we support students’ to become the best version of themselves. This is a handy guide to what we have in place for high schoolers. Check out the community hub for a wider guide to our services.
There are many routes to success in adult life. Whichever our students choose, I am sure there is one thing they will have in common. All will be thriving global citizens.
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