by Frank Hall*
Much of the current interest in career education in BIA schools resulted from seven career guidance institutes which were held during the 1973-74 school year. These workshops generated interest, beyond those attending, through reports of the workshop which were shared with other locations. Five of the workshops were leadership institutes which were from 2 to 3 days duration. The Choctaw Agency and the Albuquerque Area held semester- long institutes during the second half of the 1973-74 school year.
The Navajo Area held meetings of key educational leaders concerning career education and participated in a career education workshop with public schools in Scottsdale during May, 1974. The Eastern Navajo Agency organized career education committees in each of its schools during 1973-74. A goal was set for full implementation of career education in the curriculum of all Eastern Navajo Agency schools in grades K-8 by April 1, 1975.
The Wingate Incorporated School Board of the Eastern Navajo Agency received a $50,000 grant during 1973-74 to set up a career education curriculum offering in the area of agriculture. This grant was from the Four Corners Commission. Wingate High School also contracted with Northern Colorado University to set up a special career education program for certain students who appeared to need a more motivating curriculum.
The Phoenix Area has incorporated aspects of career education in some of its schools and is taking steps for broader implementation. The Portland Area has adopted the career education program of the State of Oregon for its Chemawa High School and has such areas as a college career cluster, a business cluster, a health education cluster, and various shop area clusters in its curriculum.
Mt. Edgecumbe High School, in the Juneau Area, has a career education center at the school and has had some inservice training for incorporating career education in the entire curriculum. The Aberdeen Area has had strong interest in career education at its schools at Flandreau, Mandaree, White Shield, and Bridger, among others.
The Anadarko Area held a second and longer career guidance institute during August, 1974. It was a joint venture of Education and Employment Assistance. The Muskogee Area is also planning a second and longer career guidance institute during the 1974-75 school year. The Choctaw Agency expects much activity in the area of career education during 1974-75 as a result of many of their teachers having participated in the semester-long career guidance institute during the second half of the 1973-74 school year. The same is true for the Albuquerque Area.
CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT
The Far West Laboratory for Educational Research and Development has a contract with the Curriculum Development Center of the Office of Education to design, develop, and test a program of study for American Indian youth, grades 7 through 9. The program will integrate academic subjects with career awareness, orientation, and exploration. The program expects to provide Native American students with an introduction to a broad spectrum of careers and to increase self-awareness and their ability to make rational choices about future educational programs, career explorations, and career selection. The Indian Education Resources Center of the Bureau of Indian Affairs is serving as a resource to this project. The term of the contract is from July 1, 1974 to June 30, 1976.
During the project, an information and knowledge base—needed to make curriculum decisions—will be established and a career education needs assessment will be conducted. The information generated from this base, will shape the design and development of curriculum guides, student information sheets, evaluation manual, and sample teaching- learning modules. The guides and modules will be tested in various environments across the nation. The products, reports, and other documentation will be presented in final form and dissemination arrangements will be made.
To accomplish these tasks, a Consortium of combined talents and resources supporting the project has been established. The Consortium includes, the Far West Laboratory for Educational Research and Development; the Indian Education Resources Center of the Bureau of Indian Affairs; and appropriate agencies of the State Departments of Education of Arizona, California, and Nevada have established a Consortium of combined talents and resources supporting the project.
Cooperative arrangements are being developed with the Boy Scouts of America and possibly other youth programs in general, and the Institute of Indian Studies, and other organizations representing Native Americans specifically.
The Consortium will be advised by an Indian Education Advisory Committee. A third- party evaluator will perform independent assessment of the project.
In the career education project one of the basic tasks is to create alternatives for American Indian students which will offer new options for their development and future. Careers and career styles represent a sphere of awareness and decision making that students should be familiar with at many levels, but especially in the middle school/junior high grades. Native American students, in particular, can benefit from a broadened acquaintance with the nature and requirements of particular careers, due to the lack of adequate career education resources within their communities.
The program will focus on developing self-awareness and social awareness; understanding, and exploration of the world of work and avocation; developing social skills and competence in career planning.
The first phase of the project will identify and analyze, (1) programs and resources that are now available to support the career education of Indian youth, and (2) identify the characteristics and special career educational needs of Indian youth.
GENERAL CAREER EDUCATION INFORMATION
The remainder of this paper consists of definitions and other information which was supplied to Area Offices during the 1973-74 school year who were planning career guidance institutes. Those planning each workshop made their own decisions concerning a workshop agenda and resource materials for participants. Considerable participation and input came from local offices of the National Alliance of Businessmen, State Departments of Education and regional or local career education centers.
WHAT IS CAREER EDUCATION?
"An effort to make education at all levels more relevant to the world of work." (Elliot Richardson, Secretary, Dept. of HEW)
"Career Education is a comprehensive educational program focused on careers which begins in grade 1 or earlier and continues through the adult years."
"Career education not only provides job information and skill development, but also helps students to develop attitudes about the personal, psychological, social, and economic significance of work." (California State Department of Education)
"Career Education is a systematic way to acquaint students with the world of work in the elementary and junior high years and to prepare them in high school and college to enter and advance in a career field carefully chosen from among many." (Education Briefing Paper—A media service of the U. S. Office of Education, May 1972)
HOW DOES CAREER EDUCATION DIFFER FROM VOCATIONAL EDUCATION? While career education embraces many of vocational-technical education's skill- producing activities, it fully integrates career orientation and preparation into the academic curriculum from all students at all grade levels.
Career education reflects a broader understanding of the purpose of education—the need not only to fit a person to work efficiently but to make him aware of why he is doing what he is doing. He must be educated, not just trained.
Three factors distinguish career education from traditional vocational education:
(1) It is offered as part of the curriculum of all students,
(2) It permeates the entire spectrum of a youngster's education from kindergarten through high school, and
(3) It offers a much wider range of occupational choices than are available in regular
vocational education programs.