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This chapter explores the evidence surrounding Schleicher's contention that episodes of employer engagement can impact on the academic motivation of teenagers by using the unique dataset on student attitudes and academic proficiency: the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) own Programme International Student Attainment (PISA). It looks at the impact of both commonplace careers guidance activities and engagement with employers to further investigate the character of such relationships. The chapter seeks to build on the existing literature by specifically investigating hypotheses, exploring whether relationships can be drawn between participation in what the OECD describes as career development activities and both more positive attitudes towards education and improved academic achievement. It investigates whether participation in selected career development activities is associated with higher PISA mathematics scores. Work experience and other forms of employer engagement demonstrate to young people the links between what they do in the classroom and how those skills ultimately will be used in the labour market.

Abstract from publisher's website.

The volume from which this chapter is taken is available in VOCEDplus at TD/TNC 133.717. Show less

Building on new theories about the meaning of employability in the twenty-first century and the power of social and cultural capital in enabling access to economic opportunities, this book considers how employer engagement is delivered and explores the employment and attainment outcomes linked to participation. The book is a companion volume to 'Understanding employer engagement in education' (Mann, Stanley and Archer, 2014) [available in VOCEDplus at TD/TNC 117.1548]. Introducing international policy, research and conceptual approaches, contributors to the volume illustrate the role of employer engagement within schooling and the life courses of young people. The book considers employer engagement within economic and educational contexts and its delivery and impact from a global perspective. The work explores strategic approaches to the engagement of employers in education and concludes with a discussion of the implications for policy, practice and future research.

Abstract from publisher's website with additional information.

The contents are as follows: Preface / Andreas Schleicher; Introduction / Anthony Mann; 'Employers at the heart of the system?': the role of employers in qualification development / Prue Huddleston and Andrea Laczik; Investigating how benefits of an industry-school partnership vary between industry sectors / Kerry Lee, Fatima Abdulghani and John Hope; Who is getting prepared?: Year 11 students' views on careers education and work experience in English secondary schools / Julie Moote and Louise Archer; Competences, capabilities and capitals: conceptual paradigms in the educational-employment relationship / Michael Tomlinson; Socialised social capital?: the capacity of schools to use careers provision to compensate for social capital deficiencies among teenagers / Anthony Mann, Elnaz Kashefpakdel and Christian Percy; Tell it like it is: education and employer engagement, freelance and self-employment / Prue Huddleston and Heidi Ashton;

'Selling the dream': stakeholder perceptions of the translation of employability policy into university strategy / Roy Priest; 'My brother's football teammate's dad was a pathologist': serendipity and employer engagement in medical careers / Steven Jones, Anthony Mann, Elnaz Kashefpakdel and Rachael McKeown; Someone in your life who really believes in you: evidence and practice in employer mentoring / Tristram Hooley and Jonathan Boys; Aligning school to work: assessing the impact of employer engagement in young people's transition from education to work / Terence Hogarth and Lynn Gambin; Ethnographies of work and possible futures: new ways for young people to learn about work and choose a meaningful first career / Nancy Hoffman with Tobie Baker Wright and Mary Gatta; What impact can employer engagement have on student attitudes towards school and their academic achievement?: an analysis of OECD PISA data / Elnaz Kashefpakdel, Jordan Redhill and Matteo Schleicher; Young people in the labour market: how teenage employer engagement makes a difference to adult outcomes / Elnaz Kashefpakdel, Anthony Mann, Rachael McKeown and Jordan Redhill; Insiders or outsiders, who do you trust?: engaging employers in school-based career activities / Christian Percy and Elnaz Kashefpakdel; Between two worlds: linking education and employment / Simon Field; Conclusions: implications for policy, practice and research / Prue Huddleston. Show less

This study seeks to analyse whether greater teenage engagement in school-mediated career development activities, which include elements of direct exposure to the working world, can be associated with more positive attitudes towards schooling. The 2012 PISA survey asked a series of questions which explore teenage participation in career development activities and subsequent attitudes towards schooling. In the analysis, four activities are isolated (participation in internships, job fairs, job shadowing and speaking with a careers advisor in school). Only a minority of countries taking part in PISA 2012 opted into these questions and of these six have been selected for this analysis (Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland and Ireland).

The report finds that there is a strong, statistically significant relationship between participation in career development activities and more positive attitudes towards schooling. The most consistent positive effects are found in relationship to speaking with a careers advisor in school and attending a job fair. Of the six countries, it is teenagers in Finland and Ireland who demonstrate the greatest levels of responsiveness to participation in career activities. Further analysis will explore the relationship between participation in career development activities and academic achievement.

Edited excerpt from publisher's website. Show less

'Drawing the future', the biggest survey of its kind ever conducted, asked primary school children aged seven to eleven to draw a picture of the job they want to do when they grew up. Over 20,000 entries have been received from UK and Internationally. To ascertain the factors influencing career aspirations, the survey asked children their gender, ethnicity, favourite subject and if they knew anyone personally who did the job and, if not, why they had chosen the job. The survey has produced some significant findings, highlighting that children from an early age often have some sophisticated and thought through ideas about who they want to become when they grow up. The findings also show that from a young age children often stereotype jobs according to gender and their career choices are based on these assumptions with the majority of boys wanting to be sportsmen and girls wanting to be teachers. And the findings have implications for all of us seeking to improve social mobility: children's career aspirations are most influenced by who they know - their parents and friends of parents and the TV and media. Worryingly, less than 1 per cent of children have heard about the jobs through people from the world of work coming to their school. And the survey shows clearly for the first time that this is a global issue.

Excerpt from publication. Show less

This chapter investigates which industry sectors are supporting schools and why they are doing so. It begins with an explanation of the driving forces behind industry-school partnerships and the accompanying changes to the education system. The chapter outlines a New Zealand study which investigated the benefits to various industry sectors when they linked with schools. It explores some of the political motives which may have influenced these changes to both education and business practice. The findings, discussion and conclusion identify the benefits to each industry sector as well as the value of further research for both education and industry sectors. Developing links between education and industry has been seen as a key tool to address economic and social policy goals. Industry-school partnerships can occur at all levels of education from kindergarten through to tertiary. These partnerships can be mutually beneficial to teachers, students and industry.

Abstract from publisher's website.

The volume from which this chapter is taken is available in VOCEDplus at TD/TNC 133.717. Show less