IAEVG 2019 International Conference – Parallel sessions planner
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Wednesday 11 Sep 2019
13:30 - 15:00 Parallel sessions 1
Conference symposium 1 - Career Guidance policies in CEE
Career Guidance in the context of the Czech educational policy
Silvie PýchováPlenary room
This paper is prepared as an input to the doctoral research with the aims to examine public policy actors´perceptions of career guidance in education in the Czech Republic and to contribute to the understanding and development of the policies in this field. This paper is only one part of this research and its aim is to make a secondary analysis of data which are available from the participative process Delphi running in the frame of the preparation of Strategy of Educational Policy 2030 in the Czech Republic. The goal of the collection of these data in 2019 was to discover what the involved stakeholders consider to be priorities in education in the Czech Republic until 2030. In the context of this process, I made a secondary analysis of data provided from almost hundred Czech stakeholders. I looked at these data from the perspective of career guidance and I was interested if development of career guidance is mentioned (in any form) among the problems in education identified by these stakeholders in our country. Results of this analysis show that carer guidance is not considered a priority in education by Czech stakeholders. This analysis will serve as a complementary input to my phenomenografic research using individual interviews with various actors of public policy in the Czech Republic that I plan to organize within my dissertation. This should help to create a more detailed description and understanding of the perception of career guidance in the Czech Republic.
Career Guidance policies and practice in central European countries – A workshop to discuss actual states and further developments
Peter Weber & Rebeca Garcia-MuriasPlenary room
Fifteen years after the OECD report on Career Guidance (2004) (CG) systems and ten years after the ELGPN publication on Career Guidance Policies in Europe (2009) this workshop will invite practitioners and experts from central European countries (particularly Poland, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia) to review the actual state of CG policy and practice and the needs for further developments in these countries.
The workshop assumes that CG has reflected the changes in our societies and labour markets. Whether we focus on high or low qualified people and their particular chances and problems in the world of work, CG practice and CG policies in our countries have reacted to these challenges and developed further.
The workshops will put the central questions from the conference on the table and invite practitioners and experts to contribute with their reflections about the actual state and developmental needs in their countries:
• To what extent does CG and career development affect individual’s position on the labour market and the mobility of individuals in their working life?
• Does CG and career development help to prevent social marginalization and exclusion? Did the role of the career guidance and career development change in recent years?
• Is there a change in the roles and objectives/conceptualizations of career guidance in the countries?
• What is the role of teachers, career guidance practitioners, and career guidance education in preparing young generation for 4.0 labour market?
• How are CG practitioners prepared in the light of actual challenges and the new roles of CG in the different systems?
• What policy framework needs to exist for effective career guidance and career development?
• Is CG (still) seen as a marginalized policy area or is there a change in the relevance?
The moderator of the workshop will invite representatives of the Central Europen Countries to prepare themselves to reflect on the questions of the conference and contribute to the discussion in the workshop. The workshop will make use of a dynamic methodology to bring participants into discussion and to involve the people in active networking activities. The workshop might be an opener for further exchange between the involved countries for further discussions.
Non-changing nature of work values in Hungary and implications for the practice of career guidance and counselling
Tibor Bors Borbély-PeczePlenary room
This abstract was prepared for the IAEVG 2019 Conference in Bratislava “Career Guidance for Inclusive Society” as a modified and shortened version of an already published article in Hungarian . The original aim of the article was to argue the changing nature of career development vs. the still standing traditional-survival values in Hungary and the also changing – and more polarized – nature of paid work where entry jobs lost its nature of serving as springboard for a better career (Standing, 2011, Piketty, 2014, Bell-Benes, 2012). This global tendency was cross-analysed with the very different regional values based on data of the World Values Survey (WVS), where Hungary and Central-Eastern-Europe after 40 years of Communism (1947-1990) and 30 years of transformation (1990-2019) period still stands as a traditional-survival values region (WVS, wave 6, Inglehart, – Welzel, 2015).
This fact has strong implications for careering and the daily routine of career counselling and guidance in Hungary and in the region. The use of the individual work value inventory in practice need to be connected with counsellors’ knowledge and understanding about the values and trust in the society as such. It requires a cross-disciplinary training of the counsellors where sociology is equally present during the training and CPD. In practice the adaptation of any counsellors’ tool, techniques in the local context would require a detailed analysis of the “social contract” (Rousseau) in place as we can see from the Hungarian case this adaptation step is partly missing or for example the adopted counsellors’ tools such as Super WVI haven’t been adjusted since the 1980’s. The acquisition of such tools in the daily practice of the professionals may have negative consequences on the ethical practice as well as negative effects on the clients’ careers.
Oral session 1.1 - Innovative approaches
Clearing the FOG – Studying personal participation in solution-focused counselling
Kirsi Raetsaari & Suorsa TeemuB1.06 Kysuce
Based on the idea of the subject-scientific research on subject's personal conduct of everyday life we describe a subject-scientifically informed way of conducting solution-focused counselling conversation. We take a practical look at counselling conversations by utilizing a methodological concept of ‘fabric of grounds’ (FOG) as counsellor’s tool. The experiences are gained in conducting research interviews by the means of solution-focused counselling and analysing the data by the FOG method. We present a case example of these research interviews illustrating how the conversations were designed and analysed. We suggest, that it is possible to construct three different FOGs in counselling conversation: a 'problem FOG', an 'alternative FOG', and a 'process FOG' between the first two. The results show, that in addition to helping students to outline alternative solutions to their problems in counselling conversation, with FOGs, we can create knowledge (1) about different ways of students' participating in the (past, present and possible) scenes of their everyday living, and (2) about the conditions experienced by them in the context of counselling at the school. Therefore, with the knowledge gained in everyday work, the counsellor is able to continuously develop the counselling practices and conditions. In addition, we suggest, that the FOG also works as a tool for the students offering them a way to consider and create solutions in future problematic situations.
Exploring the efficacy of a Hope-Based Future Orientation Intervention within a Sustainable Livelihood Framework
Gloria MarsayB1.06 Kysuce
Unemployment in South Africa is presently at an all-time high. The gap between rich and poor continues to widen. Without sufficient perceived options for establishing a meaningful work life, many South Africans are left with a sense of hopelessness and helplessness. Clearly, it is necessary to find ways of instilling and restoring hope and empowering people with skills to earn a sustainable livelihood.
The unique foundation of the approach discussed in this paper, intertwines the theory of hope with a future orientation programme to assist young people make the transition from education into the world of work within a sustainable livelihood framework.
The paper begins by examining the role of language in making meaning of work-related constructs, followed by a brief discussion of selected dominant theories used as foundation to the approach. The structure of the blended approach is described. The efficacy of this way of working was tested in three different studies in the South African context. The studies used specific qualitative research designs. The effectiveness of the Hope Based Future Orientated Approach can be considered for the following reasons: It develops fundamental hope and enables preferred future orientated decisions as an essential part of the process; It is multi-faceted (internal and external factors); It is strengths based; It is flexible enough to address the diversity of individual and context; It is a relatively cost and time effective. The results obtained in these pilot studies indicate that this approach is worthy of consideration as a more ethical approach to counselling in the South African context.
Open space in counselling and guidance
Maria Peltola & Jussi SilvonenB1.06 Kysuce
The process of counselling has been described in counselling theories in various ways, as interaction, as dialogue between counsellor and counselee, as narrative construction, just to name few of them. Counselling as helping process is, however, complex in many ways. That complexity of agency and control is described in Immanuel Kant’s pedagogical paradox. In this presentation, we will look at how interaction in counselling creates developmental spaces where this paradox is solved. The zone of proximal development contains the idea, that in interaction other one, adult or counsellor, makes it possible to the other to reach the potential level in his development. But it does not indicate, how this transition actually occurs in practice. We argue that the concept of open space makes it possible to take a closer look at developmental processes in counselling. This requires an analysis of how developmental open space is created and constructed in interaction. In our presentation we will demonstrate how the concept of open space can be used in the analysis of student’s life at university level.
Oral session 1.2 - Quality in career guidance
Certification development framework: assuring the quality of career practitioners
Jeroen BregmanB1.07 Liptov
There are numerous quality marks in the field of career guidance, both for individuals and for organisations. Often, those quality marks are quite difficult to compare, especially in their underlying rationales and considerations. On the other hand, it has proven to be rather difficult to develop coherent quality assurance systems that meet actual needs, since more often than not they are based on desired outcomes – ‘it must be ISO’ – instead of the underlying needs itself.
The presented certification framework, being developed by Noloc, the Dutch professional association for career guidance practitioners, as part of the EU co-funded QUAL-IM-G project, is based on three principles:
1. It is generic enough to deal with specific needs and circumstances of different target groups, sectors or countries;
2. It is specific enough to grasp the essentials involved in the development of a quality assurance framework specifically targeted on the certification of the profession of ‘career guidance practitioners’;
3. It focuses on actual needs instead of desired outcomes.
The framework itself is being built up by providing answers to the questions raised with respect to numerous elements – categorized in blocks and sub-blocks – that could be part of building a specific certification framework. Providing different answers, will lead to different outcomes and – therefore – different frameworks. This way of developing and implementing makes the framework both a highly flexible concept, as well as a concept that can be fully adapted to local, sectoral or national needs and circumstances.
In the workshop an overview of the main questions to be raised when developing a certification framework will be provided, using the structure of building blocks and sub-blocks. Of course, it is up to the certification framework development team to either skip questions or add additional questions, depending on their actual needs.
Enhancing the quality of career guidance in secondary school
Giulio IannisB1.07 Liptov
Career guidance at school is becoming crucial for preparing students to the complex and challengeable transition to a dynamic global labour market. The MYFUTURE project (Erasmus+) represents an international action research aimed at improving quality in career guidance at school. The international and local research teams have carried out focus groups and have led working groups in five countries to develop innovative models and tools (myfutureproject.eu/resources), starting from the shared framework of career management skills.
Among these tools (which included video tutorials, dynamic geo-mapping tools, career e-learning environments and e-portfolios), the Handbook, “Enhancing the quality of career guidance in secondary school” was created to support teachers and practitioners’ learning pathway. Thanks to the contribution of Professor Ronald Sultana, this tool presents a new quality framework for career guidance at school and the main steps to improve the quality standards in each school. The Handbook is organised to both enhance critical reflection and to provide resources to translate understanding into improved career education and guidance.
Part one carefully looks at what we mean by ‘quality’. ‘Quality’ is in fact a difficult and contested concept and the way we define it has profound implications for what we aim to achieve with students in schools. This part also describes how and when quality of career products and services in schools should be reviewed while guiding us through different models and options.
Part two describes six important features which are typically found in career guidance services in secondary schools. The proposal argues that quality of career guidance can be improved if the school pays attention to: the career learning programmes, the career information made available, the personalised support offered through career counselling, the provision of a well-organised and accessible career resource hub, the development of a partnership in career education and the formation of reflective practitioners.
The Gatsby benchmarks and its contribution to social mobility
Jill Hanson & Siobhan NearyB1.07 Liptov
Young people face a lengthening transition from education to the world of work. The average age that young people leave full-time education has been rising for over a century. Within the education system they are frequently asked to make multiple choices about subject, institution and qualifications that will exert a profound influence on their future lives. This is an issue for all young people, but it is particularly concerning because social capital (Bourdieu, 1986) is a significant influence on careers (e.g. Greenbank, 2009) and some young people can lack the social capital to develop an awareness of careers and labour markets, decision making around careers and progression routes through education and training to them. They can then be at risk of being outperformed by their more advantaged peers when building their careers. This paper discusses recent developments in policy and career strategy in England for young people and the extent to which career strategy is moving away from being a marginalised policy area. It examines a recent pilot which has operationalised elements of the new career strategy for young people and an evaluation of it which explores how career guidance, as an all-inclusive measure, is being used to impact positively on all learners (including those with disabilities or from disadvantaged backgrounds) attainment and destinations.
Oral session 1.3 - Career learning in elementary schools
A Pilot Study on the Newly Introduced Career Portfolio, "Career Passport" in Japanese Elementary Schools
Teruyuki FujitaB1.08 Orava
In March 2017, the Japanese National Ministry of Education declared its new policy to introduce 12-year consecutive career portfolio named "Career Passport" from Grade 1 in elementary schools. The portfolio is designed for ALL students in elementary, junior high, and senior high schools nationwide. The Ministry will mandate every school to introduce the "Career Passport" from April 2020.
It certainly is not difficult to find countries and regions in which many of the secondary school students use career portfolio that includes their academic records, vocational qualifications, career narratives, etc. However, in the global aspect, it typically is unique for elementary school students to start using career portfolio from Grade 1.
Obviously, the Ministry is not trying to persuade elementary school students to specify their career paths and encourage them to obtain certain vocational qualifications. Then, what are the purposes for the Ministry to introduce such career portfolio starting from Grade 1 in elementary schools? Do such endeavors bring forth preferable impacts to the career development of the students, especially those in elementary schools?
This study will illustrate the features of newly introduced career portfolio in pilot elementary schools, and their effects on the development of students' career development and on teachers' (i.e. in-school career guidance and counselling practitioners') understanding and recognitions of students' growth.
Among many positive effects on the career development of elementary school students, career portfolios significantly give opportunities to build clear self-recognition of the physical and cognitive growth; to increase self-esteem; and to enhance team-building skills, resilience, curiosity and other generic transferable career competencies.
Also, this study will analyze the model/sample sheets and the tips for teachers in the Teachers Manuals published by the Ministry of Education in March 2019, and identify the characteristics and its latent issues.
Career Programming in Elementary Settings: Facilitators and Barriers
Kimberly A. S. HowardB1.08 Orava
How do we ensure that quality developmentally-appropriate career programming is available to all of a nation’s youth? How do we convince school leaders that fostering positive career development in elementary school children is an important goal? How do we assist schools and school counselors in developing and implementing quality career programming for K-6 students? This project is identifying best practices in elementary school career development programming, so as to inform state and school district policy and ensure that all youth receive a quality career development foundation to support their later college and career readiness. To this end, this project is examining the current state of elementary school career development programming in six northeastern U.S. states, identifying the 1) beliefs and attitudes about providing career development programming in elementary schools, 2) the pre-service preparation and in-service professional development, 3) the career development foundations and resources, and 4) the school counselor-specific factors and the context-specific conditions that are associated with the provision of quality career development programming to elementary school-aged students. Further it will identify the typical content of elementary school career development activities, the typical processes through which elementary school career content is delivered, and the strategies used by elementary school counselors to ensure that all students have access to and benefit from career development programming.
Career-related learning in primary schools: poverty and privilege
Elnaz Kashefpakdel & Deirdre HughesB1.08 Orava
Whilst there is a plethora of research into post-primary schooling, early childhood career-related learning (CRL) is relatively under-researched. To address this gap, we postulate that at the heart of innovative career development is the need to present robust evidence that explains why and how CRL in primary schools is a vital component in a child’s career development journey. This workshop provides a brief synthesis of CRL theory, research and practice applied in selected OECD countries between 2014 – present. We present evidence-based case studies to highlight the role of CRL in primary schools
Globally, there is a growing need to address gender, ethnicity and social class stereotypes (inter alia: Archer, 2014; Crause et al, 2017; Kashefpakdel et al, 2019). In the UK, Spain, Switzerland, Australia, Canada, Nigeria and further afield a new wave of CRL initiatives are aimed at encouraging schools, employers and careers advisers to strengthen career dialogue within and outside of the classroom. Internationally, interest is strong too in national administrations and transnational bodies committed to raising aspirations from an early age and addressing inequality and gender stereotyping. Interest in part stems from finding cost-effective solutions to skills mismatch, addressing skills gaps and drop out rates in schooling.
We will draw upon selected findings from an international literature review and highlight some strategic key challenges and opportunities that exist. We then describe types of CRL and why this is important in primary schools. This is followed by a brief overview of the desired outcomes from CRL and contrasting case studies from primary school practice. We briefly discuss a theory of change (ToC) model designed to guide teachers’ continuous professional development in CRL.
We conclude by offering suggestions for further research highlighting the contributions that future work in this domain could make.
Oral session 1.4 - Career and gender
Transforming students’ stereotypical representations of professions: the role of a group career counseling program
Patricia Dionne & Eddy Supeno & Amélie Simard & Sylvain BourdonB1.09 Turiec
Gender inequalities persist on the labour market in Canada, particularly with respect to wages and working conditions. In the field of educational and vocational guidance, several emancipatory schemes, based on the social norm of equality, are aimed at countering these inequalities starting from youths’ initial training. Nevertheless, few young women and men are actually moving into non-traditional sectors, and for some, stereotypical gender-related representations of professions seem to limit their professional opportunities or career choices, and can create inequalities of access to certain professions. Based on a cultural-historical activity theory analysis, we discuss how a group career counseling program designed in Quebec (Canada), and having emancipatory aims, can support the development of young people’s empowerment and their critical consciousness regarding their career choices and aspirations. The results uphold that the students gradually appropriate the linguistic instruments that are transmitted in the group, particularly those regarding gender stereotypes. The students become progressively conscious of the stereotypical gender-related representations that influence their professional choices and, more broadly, their gender social relationships. The groups are also a space for speaking up. As such, especially for certain young women who are not used to this, the groups allow students to assert themselves, to participate in debates and to dare to formulate their opinions on issues that concern them, both within their group and more broadly in their community. In conjunction with democratic participation, the participation in these groups give voice to students on issues related to gender inequalities and more broadly to inequalities in their school context or in their communities. Accordingly, group career counseling and guidance counselors can play an important role in supporting the development of students’ competence to speak out on issues of inequality and social justice that affect them.
Value Affordance Perceptions, Personal Work Values, and Interests in Gender-typed Occupations
Bora Lee & Joonyoung Yang & Sooin Jee & Eunjin Kim & Junghwa LeeB1.09 Turiec
Although the gender gap in career choice seems to be closing, we still observe gender segregation in the workforce. Women have a stronger preference in “people” jobs while more men are represented in “things” jobs (Su, Rounds, & Armstrong, 2009). South Korea is no exception. For example, 96.7% of nurses and dental hygienists are women, while only 1.3% of driver jobs are taken by women (Korea Statistics, 2013). Scholars around the world have tackled with this question for decades and various factors, such as biological, social, cognitive, and cultural factors, seem to be in play. In the current study, we focus on values as one factor that might explain individuals’ career choice. We had three goals. First, we tried to examine individuals’ perception about already-existing occupations. We asked individuals to rate on how much of a value can be afforded within a given occupation. Second, we ask individuals what values that they endorse most. We tested if there are any gender differences shown in value endorsement. Third, we tested if personal values explain any variance in showing interest in gender-typed occupations. Results revealed that individuals perceived masculine occupations to afford more money, power, and altruism, while they perceived feminine occupations to afford more family value. Girls/women were more likely than boys/men to endorse all four values. We also found that boys were less likely to show interest in female-typed occupations, and those who endorsed more altruism values showed more interest in female-typed occupations. Adults were less likely than children to express interest in feminine occupations.
Work-family importance and job search behavior among career-interrupted men and women
Bora LeeB1.09 Turiec
In South Korea, women are in a vulnerable situation where their career trajectories are likely to be interrupted by family responsibilities, such as childcare. These women are often called „career-disrupted women“ or „career-interrupted women“ and much research is ongoing regarding this population. Prior research had focused on understanding these women, and therefore a majority of the studies took samples of only women. The current study, however, included men in the study to compare them to women and find out what actually is unique about these career-interrupted women. Accordingly, in the present study, a sample of both women and men were taken to examine differences between them. Another focus of this study was taking into account individuals’ work and family importance. Work and family importance are the degree to which one rates each domain to be important to them. These importances can function differently for men and women. In a society with strong gender norms, holding a strong family/work value may mean something different for men and women. Thus, in the present study, how this work-family importance interacts with gender in predicting their job search behavior was tested. In sum, the present study examined how work and family importance were associated with job search behavior and whether there were any gender differences in those associations. A sample of 284 Korean adults whose career trajectories have been interrupted was used in the present study. Job search behavior and antecedent variables including work and family importance were measured. Using regression analyses, findings suggested that there are gender differences in job search behavior where men were more active in job search behavior than women. Work and family importance also played significant roles, but in different ways for men and women, suggesting that differential societal norms may be at play.
Oral session 1.5 - Social justice
Everywhere I see bliss, from which alone I am irrevocably excluded.
Jean-Jacques Ruppert & Andreas Frey & Berndt-Joachim ErteltB1.10 Záhorie
The 2008 United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) has been a milestone against the discrimination of people on the basis of disability. Nevertheless, the challenges facing the implementation of more “inclusive” policies are substantial. Furthermore, connecting the notion of “inclusiveness” and/or “inclusion” to guidance and career counselling is quite challenging. There is also some confusion between integration and inclusion even if both terms are regularly used as synonyms. The most important difference is however that an inclusive approach implies that a given system adapts to an individual and his needs whereas an integrative approach signifies an adjustment of that individual to a given system. Nevertheless, many fundamental issues referring to an “inclusive” society with its promise of social justice remain unclear. If the “inclusion” debate is well established within education, the topic is however mostly approached in a generalist unspecific manner in other domains including guidance and career counselling. Furthermore, putting too big an emphasis on inclusion risks raising unrealistic expectations that are not or only partially achievable in the societies we live in. In our paper we aim to discuss these issues as well as present the results of a survey investigating concerns such as the basic attitudes of guidance and career counsellors to inclusion, their assessment of resources at their disposal, their training for inclusion, …
Individualised career education as a means to equal opportunity - a research approach
Svenja Ohlemann & Katja Driesel-Lange & Ulrike Weyland & Angela IttelB1.10 Záhorie
Studies show that in Germany career development and later career success are strongly related to social background (Volmer & Köppe, 2019). The disadvantages in the process of career choice resulting from endogenous and exogenous factors lead to an inequality of opportunities. They can only be remedied to a limited extent throughout the career path. School-based career education providing individual support based on adolescents’ needs might counteract these systematic disadvantages early on. However, in Germany, individual needs are rarely considered in school-based career education. To adjust the vocational curriculum, those responsible for planning career education in schools need more information regarding the requirements of specific groups. But to date, there is little knowledge about the effectiveness of specific career-related interventions on career development in the context of endogenous and exogenous factors. This is partially due to the difficult comparability of interventions, even within one intervention type, e.g. internships.
We present the research design of a comprehensive study that addresses the question on how adolescents acquire career competence and which factors within career education programs are relevant to address their specific needs during this process. The model of career competence by Driesel-Lange, Hany, Kracke, and Schindler (2010) provides the theoretical basis for this study. Eleven secondary schools in three major German cities, differing in terms of school type, socio-economic environment and percentage of students with a migrant background, are participating. The three-year study follows a mixed-method design: About 4,400 adolescents take part in the longitudinal quantitative analysis of career competence development. Questionnaires and guideline-based interviews with school management and teachers provide insights on schools’ perspectives on and concepts of career education. The career-related interventions used are examined using qualitative document analyse. Triangulating the results will help to understand which interventions best support each student. Limitations, future research and practical implications are discussed.
Oral session 1.6 - Career guidance in Asian countries
Comparison of career education for youth among Asian countries
Hyuncheol Kim & Takao MimuraC1.06 Gömör
National Youth Policy Institute in Korea(NYPI) and Asian Regional Association for Career Development(ARACD) held the biannually international conference to compare career education for youth among ten Asian countries or areas, such as Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, India, Pakistan and Iran in 2017.
We had several findings from the presentations of these countries. Korea and Japan emphasize youth work experience and have shown their efforts to link with competencies as a result of work experience. But it is estimated that work experience is weakly linked with the curricula in both countries. Singapore, Hong Kong and Taiwan tend to integrate career education policies with their curricula and promote educational reforms, curriculum reforms, teaching and learning revamps, rather than emphasizing work experience like Korea and Japan. These countries do not provide youth with many work experiences compared to Korea and Japan. Even though Malaysia, Indonesia, and Iran have high secondary school enrollment rates and are also focusing on career education like Korea, Japan, Singapore, Taiwan and Hong Kong, they don’t seem to achieve yet sufficient results. They might be classified as types that emphasize TVET rather than career education. India and Pakistan have low secondary enrollment rates and do not seem to have reached their career education policy goals. But they continue to promote career education in the public or private sector.
We could say that a high secondary school enrollment rate should be premised on improving career education. On the other hand, in areas such as Korea, Japan, Singapore, Taiwan and Hong Kong with high secondary enrollment rates, career education is emphasized as a means to overcome the problem of excessive academic competitiveness. It seems that excessive academic competition may hinder activating career education.
The Need of the career guidance services for young people in Mongolia
Tumennast Gelenkhuu & BAZARVAANI Khishignyam & BISHKHORLOO Boldsuren & DAGVA-OCHOR Bumdari & ONKHOOROI Batbaatar & SONOMDARJAA Munkhbat & ERTELT Bernd-Joachim & SCHARPF MichaelC1.06 Gömör
Career guidance services are relatively new in Mongolia and therefore the government has released a set of policy documents and strategies to develop career guidance system recently. As described in the UN documents, the term youth regards 15-25-year-old people. Mongolia is a country of children and youth, and by the statistics of 2018, young people are about 15.0 percent of the whole population. Main findings of our empirical research show this target group made the career decisions mainly without valid and reliable information or professional advice by career counselors.
Two-thirds of students, who participated in the survey, have limited information or nothing about the career choice. Almost half of the students do not know about career counsellors, and twenty percent of them do not have such services at their schools. The students, who participated in the survey, responded that it is very important to have career information and to meet with a career counsellor. The main issues with regard to career choice of students are that first, one-third of them worry about couldn't find jobs in the labor market, or low wages, 25 percent are worried unstable employment and 20 percent have limited information about job opportunities. The key criterions of their career choice are job image, reputation (20 percent), personal development opportunities (20 percent), wages and job guarantee (13 percent), job availability (11 percent) in the labor market. Approximately two-thirds of university students were planned future professions, but 40 percent of them are dissatisfied with their current profession. Therefore, after graduating from university, there will want to study and work abroad.
Based on results of our research, we outline challenges for further development of career guidance services, especially demand oriented information management and counseling methods, as well as counselor training and organizational development.
Workshop 1.1
Career Development for Reconciliation and Social Change
Kris Magnusson & Roberta Neault & Sareena HopkinsC1.07 Horehronie
Canada has a troubled and shameful educational history in its treatment of Indigenous peoples. Aboriginal children were removed from their families and communities and sent to Residential Schools, starting in the 1800’s and continuing until the last school was closed in 1996. The personal and social impacts of residential schools led to Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission, and the issuing of 94 calls to action. Although the system of residential school education was responsible for the devastating impacts on Indigenous societies, the Commission recognized the power of education to bring reconciliation and create a more inclusive society. As Indigenous scholars point out, the goal is not simply reconciliation, but resurgence for all First Nations, Metis and Inuit people in Canada.
In this session, we provide three examples of how career development is contributing to reconciliation and resurgence in Canada. We will first provide participants with an historical overview of the Residential School System and its impact on Indigenous peoples. We will then provide 3 very different examples of how career development can be an instrument to prevent social marginalization, how services may be delivered, and how individuals and communities can be empowered. Dr. Roberta Neault will discuss equipping career development practitioners to provide contextualized and culturally relevant supports. Sareena Hopkins will then describe two career development programs that have been used with Indigenous Canadians and other marginalized groups to bring hope, purpose and pride. Dr. Kris Magnusson will then present an example of career development as a subversive activity, where principles of career development were applied to a reconciliation process at one university in Canada.
Workshop 1.2
Career guidance as a way to reduce early school leaving at secondary schools
Dorota MadziováC1.08 Šariš
In the workshop we will discuss the topic of How to work with children / young people at risk of early school dropouts and we will explore the role of career guidance in this field. Concrete activities of the work with vocational school students in the context of their motivation for study will be presented. The aim of the workshop is to show the connection between the competence management skills, motivation and learning.
Workshop 1.3
Sustainable Employability and continuous career development; experiencing the value of Core Qualities
Gert van Brussel & Judith SemeijnC1.09 Zemplén
Sustainable employability of workers is an important issue for todays’ labour market. From research it is known that sustainable employability is affected by different factors, amongst others the personal characteristics of people. The development and stimulation of sustainable employability and labour participation can be supported by insights in and the awareness of the personality of individuals. After an introduction in the latest insights from research, this workshop will therefore offer exercises to get acquainted with the so-called Core Qualities as a method to work with personal characteristics that may be of importance for your behaviour and sustainable employability. We will experience and test the value of these personal characteristics that can be applied by every attendee. In addition, we will evaluate the practical value of the Core Qualities and its related concepts of Pitfalls, Challenges and Allergies for career counselling and guidance.
Workshop 1.4
15:30 - 17:00 Parallel sessions 2
Conference symposium 2 - Quality in career guidance
Quality in Careers: Opportunities, challenges and planning for the future.
Moderators: Siobhan Neary, Erik Hagaseth HaugPlenary room
This event draws together a collection of projects with cross cutting themes addressing quality assurance of career development activities. It provides an opportunity to explore theoretical and implementational aspects of quality applications focusing on existing and developing practice. This is an interactive symposium providing an opportunity for delegates to discuss and reflect on examples of quality approaches from Europe and wider field.
Moderators: Siobhan Neary (University of Derby), Erik Hagaseth Haug (Inland Norway University of Applied Sciences)
- Peter Weber (University of Heidelberg, Germany)
- Erik Hagaseth Haug (Inland Norway University of Applied Sciences)
- Jill Hanson (University of Derby, UK) – Gatsby Benchmarks
- Anita Montagna (Pluriversum, Italy) – Myfuture project (European project)
- Jeroen Bregman, (Noloc, Netherlands)
- Schany Taix (Fédération Nationale des CIBC)
- Tomas Sprlak (European Federation of Centres of Career Guidance and Bilan de Compétences) - quality auditor
Oral session 2.1 - Social-Emotional Learning
Teachers’ Perceptions of SEL skills in South Africa: Lessons Learnt from Cross-Cultural Data Collection
Gloria MarsayB1.06 Kysuce
Three challenges identified by the Department of Higher Education in South Africa are poverty, unemployment and inequality. These social challenges emphasize the need for social support within communities. Unstable fragmented family life leaves children with little social support and limited role models. Unfortunately, crime and violence occur often in many South African schools. Schools have been identified as important places to curb the negative impact of prevalent violence. Specifically, two protection factors, that build resilience have been suggested namely, supportive relationships with significant others; and, growing up in a safe social environment. Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) skills are fundamental to promoting resilience in young people, especially those who are making the transition from secondary school into tertiary education and training, and the world of work. Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) list five core competencies – self-awareness, social awareness, self-management, relationship management and responsible decision-making.
This presentation will describe the initial stages of a collaborative international study. The aim of the study is to examine teachers’ perceptions of social and emotional learning (SEL) skills, and how these skills are used personally and professionally to bolster resilience in young people. Qualitative questionnaires were used to collect data from a purposive sample of educators working with disenfranchised learners. Emerging themes were identified and coded. Meaning was made of the data through an iterative process. Lessons learnt from the research process and preliminary findings will be discussed.
Oral session 2.2 - Evaluation and impact
A tool for assessing interdisciplinary career guidance
Lilja Taru & Päivi Pukkila & Jaako Helander & Anne Leppänen & Seija MäkinenB1.07 Liptov
This research deals with career guidance as interdisciplinary collaboration offered at the Finnish Guidance Centers. In One-Stop Guidance Centers, career guidance is offered by experts representing different fields of expertise as well as different administrative sectors involved in guidance service provision. Career guidance plays an important role in the service and it seems to have a strong interdisciplinary base but while lacking previous studies, there is no guarantee that it in fact is truly interdisciplinary. We define interdisciplinary career guidance broadly as a shared understanding of the objectives, methods and ways of working in career guidance between the experts working in One-Stop Guidance Centers.
In this study, we consider how to systematically assess interdisciplinary career guidance in an interdisciplinary service. We present a semi structured observational form that was created during the ESF funded project CAREER! (2019-2021). The ultimate purpose of the form is to help evaluate how the guidance professionals act both as a part of interdisciplinary working
community and with the client. It is designed to assess the activities of interdisciplinary career guidance service and can be used in contexts other than One-Stop Guidance Centers as well.
Effects of career counselling: results of a formative and a summative evaluation programme
Nicola KunzB1.07 Liptov
The systematic measurement of changes in the counselling process has increasingly come to the fore in recent years. For a long time now, it has not only been a question of asking clients at the end of the counselling process whether they considered the counselling to be useful, but also of concepts that focus on concrete constructs which should be changed during the counselling process on the one hand and take account of several measurement points on the other hand.
In this presentation two studies are presented which try to take this challenge into account. Results of two studys are going to be presented. The aim of both studies is to analyse changes in career counselling outcomes – before and after the counselling session as well as one year later. Results indicate that career counselling can have an direct impact on different person-related variables like confidence or claerness of aims already. Variables that are more related to life-designing themes need more time for a change.
Evaluating the effect of counselling services on employability indicators in the context of public employment services
Tomas Sprlak & Katarina Sochorova & Miroslava Smatanova & Rastislav LetnickyB1.07 Liptov
In 2017, Slovak employment services (Central Office of Labour, Social Affairs and Family) developed a specific framework of factors with the objective to operationalize the concept of “personal employability” that would allow to better monitor the impact of the counselling programmes and promote the individualization of the service to the specific needs of jobseekers.
The initial version of the framework is inspired by existing European practices and was developed in consultations with counsellors and employers. The model contains 16 items formulated as career management skills, divided into four areas, inspired by foreign practice: 1. Identity and motivation, 2. Strengths/potential, 3. Horizons and planning and 4. Networks and relationships.
The framework was tailored for the target group of adults in the situation of unemployment, and many jobseeking competences are included among career management skills. The framework is used as a checklist during the initial interview of a counselling programme to assess the situation of the jobseeker and his career management skills. This assessment leads to set learning goals of the counselling programme. The same checklist is used during the last interview to assess the progress of the jobseeker.
Initial testing of the framework (n=873 jobseekers) showed a significant increase in all the indicators between initial measurement and measurement after the counselling process. The most significant positive impact was measured on jobseekers knowledge of different ALMPs, ability to prepare CV and motivation letter, action planning and self-presentation. The testing also lead to the identification of a common g-factor and to further optimisation of the construct validity of the tool. The framework is now used for impact evaluation of all internal and external counselling services at Slovak employment services.
Oral session 2.3 - Emerging adulthood
Does Development of Career Management Skills Reduce Freshmen’ Anxiety about Their Career in Labor Markets?
Sachiko MorijaB1.08 Orava
A university freshman who has the opportunity to select the desired course of study believes that he/she has succeeded in choosing the right career path. However, even those students sometimes have serious anxiety about their careers in the labor markets. The reason why is that it is too difficult for them to predict their future careers due to rapid globalization and technology development and so on. In such circumstances, it is thought that the career management skills (hereinafter called "CMS") development will play an important role for them in order to survive their uncertain life. Therefore, we investigated the difference of the following four CMS in the high and low career anxiety groups of freshmen. (1) Adopting to change in the society, (2) Managing goals and time, (3) Developing long-term career and learning and (4) Working effectively in diverse teams. Furthermore, we analyze which CMS are more effective in reducing career anxiety. As a result, the low-anxiety group scores were higher than high-anxiety group scores in all items. In particular, knowledge and skills of (1) and the knowledge of (3) are significantly different between two groups. This result indicates that acquiring these knowledge and skills in career guidance program is effective for reducing the career anxiety of university freshmen.
Predictors of using career guidance services by emerging adults
Lenka Hloušková & Petr Hlaďo & Bohumíra LazarováB1.08 Orava
The paper presents partial outcomes of two waves of data collection within the framework of the longitudinal research project: Career adaptability of vocational upper-secondary school graduates during the school-to-work transition. Both waves of data collection took place in two regions of the Czech Republic (the South-Moravian Region and the Moravian-Silesian Region). The first wave of data collection took place in March and April 2018. A total of 3,028 full-time students, before graduation from VET, were participants in this study. The second wave of data collection took place among the same participants in February and March 2019 with a time interval of 10 months and we received 499 questionnaires.
We will present the possible predictors of use of career guidance services in this group with respect to the variety of services emerging adults may use after completion of upper-secondary education. We will focus on the level of career adaptability and other variables that lead emerging adults to use career guidance services.
In the first wave of data collection, it was demonstrated by means of multiple linear regression that one-off or multiple use of career guidance services increases not only overall career adaptability, but also the dimension of career concern and curiosity. After the second wave of data collection, we have been investigating what level of career adaptability measured just before completion of upper-secondary education leads emerging adults to use career guidance services after completion of upper-secondary education and at the same time which other variables may be considered predictors of using these services. Taking into account the previous findings, that the use of the services enhances career adaptability and what predicts the use of these services, we may open up a discussion about the potential of career guidance services for the development of an inclusive society.
Oral session 2.4 - NEET
Preventing At-Risk Youth Becoming NEET: Effective High-School Work-Integrated-Learning Policies and Programs in Canada
Loraine Godden & Atsushi OkabeB1.09 Turiec
One of the most recommended and promising educational structures for curtailing youth under- and unemployment is vocational education or work-integrated-learning (WIL). WIL has been commended by researchers reporting individual outcomes and data at the societal level. International organizations have also recommended better use of interfaces like WIL to link education and work. WIL refers to educational and other interventions (based in schools, colleges, and agencies) for high school students and young adults that facilitate learning by placing them in supervised placement in the workplace for all or part of their educational program. These learning experiences include workplace mentoring, paid or unpaid work experience, instruction in workplace competencies, and cooperative education. WIL is a promising approach to bridging the relationship between at-risk youth and their educational context preventing youth from becoming NEET. In this presentation, we present an overview of the range of school-based WIL programs from two provinces of Canada, Alberta and Ontario that are purposefully intended to provide students with a range of vocational and work-related options during their compulsory schooling (high-school, aged 14-18). In our presentation we discuss the commonalities and differences between the two provinces providing an opportunity for the audience to learn how about specific features of the programs are positioned to meet the needs of youth at-risk of non-completion of high school and becoming NEET youth in Canada. We will also facilitate discussion for the audience to compare and contrast with their own systems for supporting at-risk and NEET youth through vocational and WIL school-based programing.
Preventing NEETness: career focused mentoring in English schools
Jill HansonB1.09 Turiec
In England only “one in three disadvantaged students gaining very good GCSE grades, compared with more than 60% of their wealthier peers. As a consequence, almost one million young people are currently not in education, employment or training.” (https://www.futurefrontiers.org.uk). One organisation in England is tackling this through a career mentoring programme for year 11 school pupils. It matches every pupil to a career coach for ten sessions of coaching and employer engagement (a form of mentoring) that aims to equip them with the information, skills, and mind-set to realise their career aspirations and maintain the motivation to achieve their full potential. The aim is to create long term engagement at school by developing pupils' aspirations and build practical connections to their education. The programme has recently been evaluated to ascertain the impact on participants. This paper discusses this evaluation which used a quasi-experimental design with a control group and found significant increases in career readiness, thinking about work, talking about work and thinking about school.
Young people NEET – how do they make their career decisions?
Mags BexonB1.09 Turiec
The current labour market is increasingly complex and competitive which is making it challenging for young people to be confident in making the best decisions about their future careers. This research has gained an in-depth understanding of how young people Not in Employment, Education or Training (NEET) come to make decisions about their careers and next stage plans. The participants in this research live in the Thames Valley region in England. The research makes a contribution to our understanding of the career decision making processes of young people who are NEET through their voices.
My research is motivated by a desire to understand and explain the actions of NEETs and how they come to make decisions about their futures. It is underpinned by an interpretive theoretical framework which has allowed for the development of the voice of the participants, as well as reaching a level of understanding about their lives. Looking through this interpretive lens has allowed me to come to understand the lives of the participants, rather than simply explain.
I have chosen participant observation and informal semi-structured interviews, supported by an interview guide, as my methods. These were selected to allow for a relationship of trust to develop between myself and my participants and to ensure that interactions with them were as natural as possible.
The discussion in this paper is based on my preliminary data collected during my PhD. It discusses themes that have emerged from the data that are having an impact on the ability of my participants to make sound and informed choices about their future. Large barriers such as low academic attainment, fragile personal well-being and a lack of structure in the lives of the young people are identified. It is observed that these are having a detrimental impact on their ability to proactively make plans and decisions about their futures.
Oral session 2.5 - Career and gender
Business as a career strategy for Czech woman
Lucie VáclavkováB1.10 Záhorie
The identification of the problem is the result of author’s observation during practice as a career counsellor. This article summarizes researches, studies and data focused on women on the labour market and women entrepreneurs in the Czech Republic, then deals with their motivation, the risks of this career choice and problem of precarisation. The findings came from various sources (literature, articles, research, studies, etc) and were connected into a meaningful unit. There were compared and confronted various findings and opinions.
The Czech Republic is one of the countries with the greatest negative impact of motherhood on a women’s career, with high unemployment rate of mothers with children under fifteen and problem with return after maternity leave. As main obstacles are considered unavailable childcare and lack flexible working patterns, especially part-time.
The number of Czech female entrepreneurs is growing. Between 2011 and 2017, ten times more Czech women than men started their own business. Just as men do, women want to have their own business, be independent and use the opportunity. But according to the research, for some women business activity is the only choice to avoid unemployment, to combine work and family and to gain some income. Women entrepreneurs (especially self-employed) are vulnerable to precarisation.
The author suggests possible measures for policy, career practice and education. Some of them support women as entrepreneurs, the other promote employment prospects, so that the business remains the choice and not the necessity.
Professional transit of women into IT
Monika Ptacnikova & Dita Prikrylova & Petra DrahonovskaB1.10 Záhorie
Digital literacy is becoming a standard requirement for many other occupations, and its importance is likely to grow due to rapid advancement in technologies. However, young women do not consider IT as a choice for further education or employment. Therefore, only 15 % study IT and 10 % work in IT-related fields. This paper deals with the professional transit of this underprivileged group into the IT field (a typically male field). The results are interpreted on the basis of a two-year program of the Digital Academy from Czechitas focusing on retraining 300 women (mainly women on and after maternity leave and fresh university graduates) for technical positions in 2017 and 2018 in the Czech Republic. Czechitas is young Czech organisation which help women, girls, children but also parents and teachers to explore the world of information technologies through workshops and long-term courses on different levels of expertise, focused on particular knowledge or technology. Czechitas are focusing on new approaches to helping people identify and develop skills that are relevant for high-demand jobs. Through their existence they have realized that for the successful career transit into computing fields there is a need to empower and equip women with a complex system of hands-on technical workshops and also well designed concept of soft skills trainings.
Oral session 2.6 - Social justice
Supported Employment: Facilitating Inclusion and Career Engagement to Overcome Marginalization
Roberta NeaultC1.06 Gömör
Although the career development sector has always valued social justice, in recent years the notion of inclusion has expanded to encompass individuals who may have previously been considered unemployable. Employment barriers may include, but are not limited to, physical and cognitive limitations or developmental delays, mental health concerns, substance use/abuse issues, and environmental sensitivities. In the spirit of inclusion, many countries such as Canada have implemented “one stop” career/employment services intended to be accessible and welcoming to all clients. However, not all career development practitioners have the specialized training and experience required to facilitate the effective workplace inclusion of such diverse clients.
The focus of this paper will be the emerging role of supported employment specialists as a bridge between diverse clients and organizations ready to contribute to an inclusive society. To begin, the current philosophical foundations of “employment first” and “employment for all” are introduced. The Career Engagement model (Neault & Pickerell, 2019) serves as a conceptual framework for understanding and facilitating meaningful and motivating work for all. The impact of an increasing level of precarious employment is also examined.
Career development practitioners require additional knowledge, skills, and attitudes to function effectively as Supported Employment Specialists; these go beyond the core competencies identified in professional standards and guidelines or competency frameworks, A recent Canadian partnership between a professional association, mental health commission, and a career development training organization addressed this need by combining their expertise to create an e-learning opportunity to develop foundational competencies for supported employment specialists. Beginning with an environmental scan, the project was informed, shaped, and piloted by a “Community of Practice” working group. It is anticipated that accessible and affordable training for supported employment specialists will facilitate greater and more sustainable workforce inclusion for some of the most vulnerable and marginalized members of society.
Workshop 2.1
The baby and the bathwater: career guidance and innovative matching instruments
Jouke PostC1.07 Horehronie
In this workshop we will explore innovative and adaptive ways of matching people with jobs in the context of a Dutch policy initiative aimed at the skills mismatch in the region of Amsterdam, called ‘the House of Skills’. In this project career development plays an important role, although it is organized in a more systemic and network-centric way, in which various stakeholders work together on sustainable careers.
The workshop will consist of three components. We start with ‘setting the scene’: a compact presentation of the main objectives of this policy initiative. Then we ‘zoom in’ on a specific set of pilots, related to skills mismatch, that aims to innovate the matching routines of partners in the network by searching for and experimenting with a digital and data-driven skills- or competency-based approach. We will see that the emphasis at the demand side of the labour market changes from occupations to tasks and skills (World Economic Forum, 2019). Consequently, skills will increasingly prove to be a relevant element in matching people with jobs and turn out to be a suitable proxy for advanced and tailormade career guidance, enabling job-seekers to discover effective and appropriate reskilling pathways and job transitions opportunities. We will study some concrete examples: how does this work in guidance and counseling and what does this mean for our instruments and profession?
The third and important component will be to ‘zoom out’: we will have a critical and hopefully inspiring discussion on the matching theory and Person-Environment (P-E) model. Because there is always this central tension in guidance: fit for whom (Moore, Gunz & Hall, 2007)? The challenging question is therefore: how can we as profession benefit from this concept of fit, and use it in contemporary ICT-driven ways that can help people become more agentic in their career?
Workshop 2.2
The Existential Dimension in Group Counselling – How to Use LEGO Bricks as a Scaffolding Tool
Charlotte Juhl-Nielsen & Grethe Fogh NielsenC1.08 Šariš
The aim of this workshop is both to present the conclusions from research completed in Denmark in 2018 and to show how LEGO bricks can work as a scaffolding tool to support the existential dimension in group counselling.
Through video recordings and focus group interviews the focus of the research was to investigate the significance of the existential dimension in group counselling for young people who have been assessed as ‘not ready for education’.
The research question was defined around the vitalization psychology as it is presented by Professor Jan Tønnesvang (Tønnesvang 2015a) and read: How does career counsellors work with the existential dimension in group counselling and which elements are significant for it to become:
1. A process that gives young people faith in themselves and their plan (“need for autonomy”) (Tønnesvang 2015b).
2. A process that makes sense to the young people (“need for meaning”, ibid.).
3. A process that promotes the young people’s coping (“need for competence”, ibid.).
4. A process that supports the young people’s belongings in the group (“need for relatedness”, ibid.)
One conclusion from the research was that all the young people preferred group counselling over individual counselling but when the counsellors moved into the existential dimension it was difficult for the young people to reflect and give detailed answers. In such situations they needed their counsellors to facilitate and scaffold the activities.
One successful scaffolding tool we observed in the video recordings were the use of LEGO EDUCATION. A special box of LEGO bricks which are used to jump start the young people’s reflection and to share their ideas and thoughts.
In the workshop it will therefore also be possible to work with LEGO and to discuss the advantages and challenges with this scaffolding tool as to support the existential dimension in group counselling.
Workshop 2.3
Is society inclusive for older workers?
Lyn Barham & Marie Inger BakkeC1.09 Zemplén
Most guidance activities are aimed at young people or at adults who are going through education or employment transitions. With an ageing population, this will have to change. If guidance services do not take into account the particular situation and needs of older workers, then we have a double loss: loss for the individual of the benefits of working and making a secure transition to retirement, and unnecessary loss to national economies of much needed skills.
This workshop will explore two perspectives on older workers’ needs. One is the findings from a small-scale Norwegian research project involving older female academics, who experienced little interest or respect from others towards the end of their lengthy devotion to their career. The other perspective is larger scale trialling of mid-life career interventions in the UK which gives indication of the training needs of career guidance professionals delivering such reviews, and an outline of proposed training materials. Underlying both perspectives is the desire of older workers for respect from others for their life experience and work contributions, and a desire to find ways of integrating three key concerns: maintaining good health; planning for a financially viable retirement pension; continuing paid employment until ready for transition into satisfying activities in retirement.
Whilst governments address the need to retain skills and reduce state pension costs, our profession should have wider concerns. Older workers are our future; each one of us will become an older worker, and our countries will have larger percentages of older workers. Supporting older workers’ needs in the last decades of working life affects social inclusion and wellbeing into oldest age.
Workshop 2.4
Creative arts as a tool for career development and education
Helena Koštálová & Lenka Nemcová & Eva KavkováC1.10 Zips
This interactive workshop will introduce the possible benefits and challenges of using creative methods such as visual arts (craft, photography, film, collages), drama and storytelling in individual and group career guidance. The main objective is to share our good practice with multidisciplinarity in career guidance and open a discussion about the application of creative arts into career guidance.
Creativity plays a vital role in constructivist approaches to career guidance. Individuals are not the only ones who should be creative in their career planning (Peiperl et al.,2002), also career counsellors are encouraged to use creativity in their work (e.g., Amundson, 1998, Peavy,2004). The incorporation of creative arts into the counselling process is one of the possible ways how to strengthen clients’ creativity and support them in discovering new perspectives. According to our experience however, this creative approach using arts is still received with mixed feelings and many doubts by career counsellors in the Czech Republic.
The first part of the workshop will introduce the methodological background, the benefits and the challenges of applying art therapy methods into the career guidance process. The main focus will be in introducing the connection between art and drama therapy techniques and our clients’ self-knowledge improvement and skills development. We will present examples of our good practice in incorporating creative methods while counselling different target groups (unemployed adults, parents on maternity leave, migrants and children). The second part of the workshop will be practical – participants will try some techniques focused on creativity development. The workshop will end with a reflection of their experience by participants and a discussion about the possible ways of incorporating creative methods into their daily practice.
Thursday 12 Sep 2019
09:00 - 10:30 Parallel sessions 3
Conference symposium 3 - Social-emotional learning
Oral session 3.1 - Reflective practice
Career theories and models in practice: Best practice principles
Mary McMahon & Nancy Arthur & Roberta NeaultB1.06 Kysuce
The field of career guidance is replete with theories and models that take multiple perspectives on career development and people’s work lives. Ideally, career theory should provide a foundation for practice. To a large extent, however, throughout the history of career guidance, theory and practice have travelled on parallel tracks. The esoteric nature of some theories makes them seem remote from practice producing a theory-practice divide. In an effort to address this divide, the presenters published an edited collection featuring more than forty chapters written by authors from four continents and nine countries that specifically focused on the application of career theory and models to practice. To this end, each chapter concluded with a set of practice points specifically intended to bridge the theory-practice divide. Although some practice points were theory or model specific, others were more generic in nature and were evident in several chapters. In total, 295 practice points were presented across the chapters. In order to provide a succinct resource for practitioners, the presenters distilled a set of key practice concepts by conducting a thematic analysis of the practice points.
This presentation reports on a project to bridge the theory-practice divide. It first considers contributing factors to the theory-practice divide and outlines the background to the project. The process of data analysis is described and the results, in the form of a set of key practice concepts across the domains of practitioner competencies and practice considerations, are presented. Practitioners are encouraged to reflect on their own practice from the perspective of the key practice concepts.
Client-centred careers practice: firm foundation or shifting sand?
Barbara BassotB1.06 Kysuce
The purpose of this presentation is to question and critique the concept of client-centredness, often taken for granted in career development and guidance. Client-centredness has been at the heart of ethical careers practice for many years, to the point where it has become accepted as a given by many professional practitioners. On the surface, questioning it seems unwise and even unthinkable, but at a deeper level it is important to consider its flaws and the limitations it can sometimes place on professional practice. The presentation will be illustrated with an example of work with a client to show some of the complexities involved. It will conclude with an emerging theoretical model which seeks to offer an explanation of the need for understanding the culture of the client, the factors at play in their lives as they experience significant transitions and make important career decisions, all within the context of the opportunities presented by the labour market.
Oral session 3.2 - Training of counsellors
Agency in competency-based study counselor education in two Finnish universities of applied sciences
Tiina Laajala & Pirjo-Liisa Lehtelä & Outi Rantaanen & Ari JusillaB1.07 Liptov
Competency-based model of learning in vocational education was implemented throughout Finland in 2017–2018 to strengthen the relationship between education and the fast-changing world of work and to meet the needs of the current society better. In competency-based education individual study paths make possible for the students to recognize the skills previously acquired and outline what kind of skills need to be developed.
The emphasis of agency has increased in career counselling theories of postmodern society. The present interpretation of career emphasizes life design. The current concept of agency is linkable to the central goals of competency-based education which are: supporting and strengthening students’ role as autonomous learners and offering them opportunities to plan personal study paths.
In this qualitative study we investigated how counselor students (N=50) presume competency-based study counselor education supports their agency in their career development process. The students reflected their autonomy, their development in study counselor’s competencies and their construction of study counselor’s identity in competency-based education. From the material emerged that the students are different in terms of agency and the ability to take full responsibility of their study path. Our study reveals that different forms of agency are present in the context of competency-based study counselor education. It is important that educators in competency-based education support the students’ agency in their career and life-design processes.
Education and Training in Career Guidance at FHNW Switzerland: A strictly competence-oriented framework for psychologists/non-psychologists
Anna RadvilaB1.07 Liptov
In Switzerland, career guidance is regulated by federal law: the State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI), in cooperation with the Swiss Conference of Managers of Career Guidance Centers (KBSB), developed a skills profile which everyone must fulfill to achieve a diploma in career counseling. Since 2012, the University of Applied Sciences Northwestern Switzerland (FHNW University) has offered multi-disciplinary training for career counseling following the method of an apprenticeship, which consists of both a theoretical and a practical component. With regard to the former, lecturers from different departments of FHNW University (e.g., economics, applied psychology, social work, pedagogy), economic specialists and professionals from the fields of career counseling and reintegration counseling teach theoretical concepts and approaches and offer the possibility to practice in small groups. Simultaneously, the practical component takes place at a career guidance center where students are supervised and assessed by experienced, qualified career counselors. The skills for career counseling, as defined in the SERI skills profile, are assessed at FHNW University and at the career guidance center where the student is doing their apprenticeship. The university not only admits students with a university degree (in psychology or other), but also those with a higher vocational education and several years of professional experience in various fields. Our initial experiences with this MAS program show that career guidance centers benefit from their cooperation with FHNW University as a possibility to train new employees near to the needs of the workplace and actively participate in advancing the profession of career counseling.
The goal of the oral paper is to show the competence frame developed and used in Switzerland, and to present our MAS programme as an example to train and educate students with multi-disciplinary backgrounds in an inter-disciplinary setting at FHNW University in cooperation with career guidance centers.
Towards inclusive education – Developing transdisciplinary guidance between special needs educators and study counsellors in secondary education in Finland’s teacher training
Simo Uusinoka & Lilja Taru & Jaako HelanderB1.07 Liptov
In this rapidly changing world education is still the key factor to avoid adolescents and young adults drifting outside education, employment or training (the NEETs). Transdisciplinary counseling and recognizing students with special needs are essential factors in every school setting. Project Right to learn – Skills to teach (funded by Finnish Ministry of Education and Culture) aims to develop upper secondary education teacher's training in the framework of guiding, counseling and supporting students with special needs. The project is related to the reform of general upper secondary education in Finland that aims to emphasize the importance of transdisciplinary guidance and special support.
In our study we present a model for development work of the project that takes place in teacher training in Finland. The research work includes a survey aimed to special needs teachers and guidance counsellors to determine the focus points of their work and how these professionals see their work in the future. We will also use target group interviews for broadening our knowledge of themes mentioned above. Information we collect will form a solid basis for developing teacher training in Finland to meet the challenges of the education in the future. We would like to see all this as a forming a new operational culture in general upper secondary education in Finland. Preliminary results will be obtained in the autumn 2019.
Oral session 3.3 - Counselling for migrants
Disrupted life-story: Career construction with adult third culture kids
Gudbjörg VilhjálmsdóttirB1.08 Orava
Migration calls for major life changes, both personally and socially (Cohen-Scali et al., 2018). In the case of adult third culture kids this reality may be hidden since they are expected to be integrated in the old country, even though they might never have lived there and do not have the same cultural knowledge as their parents (Pollock & Van Reken, 2001). When third culture kids return to their homeland as adults many things have changed and they might not speak their native language properly. Career construction theory (Savickas, 2011) is used here to help adult third culture kids create new career paths in their native land. Case study results from two interventions using the CCI are reported and analysed with a literary method called semiotic analysis (Vilhjálmsdóttir & Tulinius, 2009). This method of analysis looks for the basic structure of narrative. The two career interventions are evaluated with an Icelandic version of the Career Adapt Ability Scale (CAAS-I). The two participants are women aged between 30 and 50. The findings show that the CCI captures well the women’s life stories and career identity, although the two women differ in being creative in their situation. The CCI interventions are successful in assisting the women in goal settings and developing career identity. Only one woman shows real progress on the CAAS-I, something that reflects her creative and positive outlook on her situation as an adult third culture kid. The two case studies show that the CCI is an effective counselling method in exploring strengths and weaknesses in the participants’ careers. The literary analysis extracts life themes and allows reflexion on concerns and emerging opportunities and the CCI process enhances the sense of personal dignity and agency by its emphasis on individual strengths.
Migration: Theory, research and practice in guidance and counselling
Deirdre Hughes & Gideon ArulmaniB1.08 Orava
Today all over the world many people make one of the most challenging decisions in their lives: to leave their homes and townships in search of a safer or better life. Migration is a term that encompasses a wide variety of movements and situations that involve people of all walks of life and backgrounds. More than ever before, migration touches many countries and people in an era of deepening globalisation. There is a growing need for analytical tools and approaches that allow us to deal with the complex, contradictory, and contested nature of migration. We will share key findings from the British Journal of Guidance and Counselling, International Symposium Series on migration and consider the implications for career development policies, research and practice.
The terms “refugee”, “asylum-seeker” and “migrant” are often used to describe people who are on the move, who have left their countries and have crossed borders. The terms “migrant” and “refugee” are often used interchangeably but it is important to distinguish between them as there is a legal difference. There are negative perceptions of migrants in many societies. This is often framed in popular notions of "us" and "them”, presenting economic challenges, or perhaps being seen as raising security concerns or creating ambivalence in cultural and political spheres, all of which have affected how migrants are perceived by host societies. 9 academic peer reviewed articles and a book review provide insight to key themes and research underpinning guidance and counselling approaches. The growing rhetoric of building a wall, creating a new border force, establishing a camp, stopping the boats or restricting access has political, social and humanitarian consequences. We outline six key recommendations for policymakers, practitioners, academics and other interested parties. Finally, we call for more dynamic and cross-disciplinary research investigating this global phenomenon.
Oral session 3.4 - Towards social inclusion
Career guidance for emancipation of adults without a first diploma
Rachel Bélisle & Amélia SimardB1.09 Turiec
The possession of a high school diploma is a well-known indicator of income, quality of work life, social support, mental and physical health. The Quebec state, with its lifelong learning policy (Gouvernement du Québec, 2002), has adopted diverse measures in support of the acquisition of a first diploma by adults (18 to 64). More than 10 % of adults in Quebec do not have a secondary diploma. In continuity of that policy, we have documented the specific needs for lifelong guidance services of adults without a diploma. Even if they receive services, this specific population is understudied by the research communities of lifelong guidance, vocational guidance, career counselling and career development. They are present in studies about low-educated and/or low-skilled adults (e.g. special issue of the British Journal of Guidance & Counselling), adults in a situation of precarity or far from the job market (e.g. Michaud, Bélisle, Bourdon, Garon & Dionne, 2012) but rarely with specific analyses.
The goal of this mixed-method research was to document the lifelong guidance (orientation professionnelle) needs of adults without a diploma. Combining group and individual interviews (n=135) and a Quebec-wide telephone survey (n=450), this communication will focus on characteristics and lifelong guidance social representation of adults without a diploma and give a portrait of their limited access to lifelong, vocational or career guidance services (Bélisle et Bourdon, 2015, in French). We also want to open a dialogue on the contribution of research and practice in lifelong guidance to social justice and the emancipation of adults without a first diploma or low skilled adults (CEDEFOP, 2016).
Counselling and initiate education in the education of adult Roma from marginalized communities
Marek Lukáč & Silvia Lukáčová & Ivana PirohováB1.09 Turiec
The aim of the paper is to emphasize the need to change the way counselling is delivered in further education of adult Roma from marginalized communities. Educational activities with adult members from Roma marginalized communities (especially segregated) are often full of mutual misinterpretation and misunderstandings. We are based on the analysis of theoretical background of multicultural approach of B. Fay (2012), Wlodkovski studies on the differences in the motivation and learning of adults (2008, 2009), critical theories in education (Freire, 2000; Mezirow, 1981), Bernstein’s language code theory and from the practical experience from education and counseling with this target group. We argue that the differences of cultural capital and language code of councelors / educators and their clients, the setting of educational and counselling procedure and techniques according to the concepts of middle class aimed on clients/learners coming from underclass, are incomprehensible and thus ineffective. The development of counselling competences of an adult educator can help both - him and the learners / clients in articulating and meeting educational goals as well as their own needs. In education and counselling with marginalized Roma, the educators expertise is not enough. The perspective embodied in educator/councellor praxis of middle-class education needs to be changed. In the end, we add some practical sample of situations where counseling and learning methods have been shown to be ineffective along with the ways the counselors / educators tried to overcome it.
Protective and Risk Factors in Career Development
Iva Šverko & Toni BabarovicB1.09 Turiec
Traditional career theories emphasized the importance of congruence (Holland, 1959) and career maturity (Super, 1953) for achieving good career outcomes. However, empirical studies obtained low to moderate correlations between congruence and career maturity and career outcomes, like work satisfaction, work performance, or work engagement. Career outcomes depend on numerous additional factors, which are in part recognized in the literature but still not systematically categorized. Thus, we decided to integrate qualitative empirical findings with insights from literature to develop a conceptual model of protective and risk factors that can influence the course of career development. For empirical findings, we relied on the experience of adolescents personally involved in career development and on the experience of career development experts. We conducted focus groups in which we have discussed factors that can facilitate or inhibit free and autonomous career choice and development. The participants in focus groups were elementary school students, high school students, university students, school psychologists, career counsellors, and human resource psychologists. Based on these qualitative results, evidence from literature and our personal professional experience in this area, we proposed a taxonomy of protective and risk factors in career development which we present in this paper.
Oral session 3.5 - Youth in focus
Resilience and Career Decision Making Self-Efficacy among Greek Neets. Implications for career counseling
Argyro K. Charokopaki & Andronikos Chr. KalirisB1.10 Záhorie
The study explored the role of resilience as a predictor of career decision making self-efficacy of Greek Neets (young people not in employment, education or training). Using a sample of 92 Greek Neets, results indicated that resilience accounted for 40% of the variance in career decision making self-efficacy. The findings indicated the importance of resilience on career decision process and on career development in general and are discussed with reference to Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT) framework. Implications for research and Neets’ career counseling are also discussed.
Strengthened career guidance provision in the framework of employment services? Insights from a national programme Reštart
Ivana Studená & Zuzana KožárováB1.10 Záhorie
In this contribution we are referring to research undertaken within H2020 ENLIVEN project exploring the nature of the barriers to participation in lifelong learning. We draw on key informant experiences of young NEETs in Slovakia participating in national programme Reštart which was set to provide individualised career guidance services to NEETs bellow 29 years. Programme Reštart has been specifically designed responding to experience with inability of young NEETs to identify and follow plausible training and career development options that would lead to improved lifelong employability. While participation in the programme has been mandatory and as such was at first perceived with reservations, all interviewed participants assessed the career guidance provision positively. The policy trail methodological approach combining qualitative interviews and contextual policy mapping proved particularly important source of information for more holistic view and assessment of career guidance programmes. Similar research insights are crucial source of information for a way forward for improved and long term public policy support to individualised lifelong career guidance as an integral part of national policies. Multiple benefits have been reported by the participants in this programme providing strengthened career guidance element via public employment services.
The influence of social class stereotype on school guidance among middle school’s pupils
Gautier Degrugillier & Caroline Desombre & Célénie Brasselet & Mickaël JuryB1.10 Záhorie
Research has shown that students ' socioeconomic status (SES) plays a role in terms of both, achievement and experiences. However, few studies have investigated how SES influences students' pathway within the vocational system. Our study aims to replicate Channouf, Mangard, Baudry & Perney (2005) by showing that students' SES plays a role into teachers and counselors' school guidance between academic and vocational curriculum. We also sought go one step further by showing that a similar influence may exist into vocational curriculum, between two programs which differ from their selectivity. Seven hundred and ten participants had completed an online survey in which fictitious school records described either a low or high-SES tenth-grader pupil. Our result shown that high-SES pupil was more oriented toward the selective program of vocational curriculum than the low-SES pupil. This study highlight that differentiated recommendations may exist into the vocational curriculum, based on pupils’ SES and contribute to maintain the SES hierarchy.
Oral session 3.6 - Family in career guidance
Adolescents in one-parent families: A previously unnoticed group in inclusive career education?
Jerusha Klein & Svenja Ohlemann & Katja Driesel-LangeC1.06 Gömör
Choosing a vocation is an important developmental task. To foster this task in senses of creating an individually successful career, adolescents need support to manage this process. Career development is strongly influenced by socio-economic factors, among others, children from families with lower income are at a disadvantage (Eshelman & Rottinghaus, 2015).
In Germany, one-parent families are at a higher risk of social decline into precarious circumstances, which in turn results in poorer educational opportunities for their children (Bartels & Stockhausen, 2017). Studies have also shown that career development is positively related to support from parents and teachers (Mayhack & Kracke, 2010; Schindler, 2012). We therefore investigate a) whether adolescents in one-parent families differently perceive parental support and b) whether they demonstrate a lower development level in terms of career competence.
The study is based on the theoretical model of career competence by Driesel-Lange, Hany, Kracke, and Schindler (2010). The 3,187 students in this sample were 16.38 years old on average (SD = 1.64) and enrolled in one of eleven German secondary schools. The data came from the second time point in a five-wave longitudinal study.
Conducting an analysis of variance with family composition as independent variable and perceived parental support as dependent variable, we found lower mean levels of perceived parental support for adolescents in one-parent families in comparison to those living with both their parents. Hierarchical linear regressions, furthermore, showed that adolescents living in one-parent families had in average a lower development regarding four of twelve career competence facets, namely: occupational knowledge, career curiosity, exploration and self-regulation. Also, higher teacher support predicted a higher mean level of these facets. Effects of family composition in this analysis were like those of the family’s socio-economic status. Limitations, future research and practical implications are discussed.
Family conference - method of preventing early school leaving (ESL)
Markéta FišarováC1.06 Gömör
The Family Conference (FC) method in some states is referred to as Family Group Conference, Familien Auffstellung, etc. It is a simple tool that even a layman can use in his work. It is based only on one fundamental idea: "Family is an expert in his life". FC tries to activate and utilize primarily family resources; however, in areas where the family does not have the capacity, knowledge or resources that involve secondary professionals who continue to work with the family are employed. The main reason for preparing and carrying out FC is in response to a change in the family situation, which can have negative consequences, such as school failure, absence of attendance, change of behaviour or various problems for the child.
My oral presentation will offer a set of situations in which the family and a particular young person can be supported in their choice of study or profession. The FC coordinator ensures that the wider family network has full awareness of the process and that the family agrees on a procedure for the collaboration of professionals with family members for the next half-year. The professionals’ expertise is sought after when the family itself cannot help with a particular issue. The advantage is the possibility of creating a "safety net", setting the foundation for cooperation even if a member of the family or the young person himself/herself will fail.
Throughout the course of preparation of the FC and during the meeting, the family has time to discuss the joint plan in their mother tongue and communicate with experts through a selected family member or interpreter.
This method of working with the family also produces good results when working with migrants, national minorities and socially excluded people.
Workshop 3.1
Context Counts in Career Development
William BorgenC1.07 Horehronie
Engagement in work related activities is a major life involvement for many people across societies. The major aim of career development activities often is to help people sort out their skills and abilities and values and help them consider the types of employment that may reflect their interests and passions. However, what happens when jobs related to the person's sense of vocation are not available, or they lose a job which, even if it doesn't exactly match their interests, financially supports them and their families.
In many countries internationalization and rapid technological, social and economic change have led to erratic and unpredictable changes in labor market opportunities. For increasing numbers of individuals this means that seeking assistance in managing career/employment transitions has become necessary across their adolescence and adulthood. The rapidly evolving nature of the labor market in many areas of the world can cause these transitions can be protracted and personally challenging, which can precipitate a range of challenging psychological reactions that can hinder the person from being resilient in effectively engaging in activities that can lead to future employment.
The workshop will have five major aims:
• provide an overview of the influence of rapidly changing labor market contexts that can challenge the assumptions and processes underlying career development services;
• review personal career transition experiences and those of unemployed people and workers affected by change affecting their, work based on studies that have been conducted over number of years;
• discuss the role of those involved in the development and delivery of career development services within this context of change;
• describe and discuss a counselling focused needs assessment process that has proven to be very effective in charting a course for further career development activities;
• consider the aims, processes and outcomes of career development services in the current context.
Workshop 3.2
Mentoring programme - an important tool for the professional development of career guidance practitioners during the process of quality certification
Müllerová Alice & Csirke Andrea & Karen SchoberC1.08 Šariš
In the workshop, development of the mentoring programme supporting career practitioners certification will be presented, together with specific examples of designed tools and activities. A goal of the mentoring programme is to support career guidance practitioners to gain career guidance quality certification.
The process of mentoring development started with data collection followed by the design of a preliminary version of the programme that underwent two phases of testing. The final version of the mentoring programme contains teaching guidelines together with worksheets for participants and guidelines for mentors.
Participants in the workshop will have the opportunity to learn about the process of mentoring development, compare feedback from Czech, German, and Slovak practitioners and also examine some of the activities prepared for participants.
The mentoring programme itself was designed within the ERASMUS+ project Improving the implementation of quality assurance in career guidance (QUAL-IM-G).
Workshop 3.3
Guidance in communities of students in upper secondary school - changing the guidance practice
Cecilie Nesborg & Tine Andersen & Torben TiedemannC1.09 Zemplén
The workshop “Guidance in communities of students in upper secondary school to distinguish and choose study, career and other transitions in a democratic context - changing the guidance practice” will present the counseling performed in groups by Study- and Career Guidance Denmark. Furthermore, it will give examples on how to generalize the students’ questions, doubts, hopes and dreams encouraging students to engage, reflect and have dialogues in a counselor-facilitated community.
Based on one of our many guidance activities for groups, we will argue why the guidance in communities should be student-engaging, and discuss how we, as counselors, balance on a knife edge to ensure that the choice of education and career will be of the greatest possible benefit to the individual and to society as a whole. We will make concrete suggestions for exercises and methods which, in our view, initiate student thinking and reflections on their individual wishes and opportunities in terms of education, jobs and other transitions in life, in order to introduce them to new perspectives and ease and generalize their doubts and choices.
In addition, the workshop offers perspectives on and discusses how the counselor role has changed in Study- and Career Guidance Denmark in order to increase the focus on creating student-engaging guidance activities. Finally, the workshop invites participants to reflect their own practice in regard of Study- and Career Guidance Denmark's.
Workshop 3.4
Career components in basic education
Štefánia HrivňákováC1.10 Zips
Traditional professional distinction between teachers (addressing the curriculum) and career guidance professionals (addressing the career choices) does not lead to expected results due to the shortcomings of counseling service. The teachers, besides their educational roles, should also assume the role of career guides. Practical example is demonstrated on the subject matter lesson of career development support in the instruction. Five points structure of the lesson or the blocks of lessons is demonstrated with the career development components that are integrated into subject matter. The students need to have support for their career development in the basic schools and they need to develop the career management competencies. This is long run process for each student, not only episodic career guidance service due to scarcity of the service. The career development management needs to start in the classroom environment, and the teachers need to take partially career guidance in the instruction.
The World of Work – Counselor Training and Activity for Students
Pavla Frňková & Dana SklenářováC1.10 Zips
We are presenting a practical activity for two target groups – educators/school counsellors and students. The goal of the activity is to develop professional competences of school counsellors /educators in group career guidance. The goal regarding students is to increase students´ understanding of jobs descriptions, matching between students´ own skills and skills needed for different professions and reflections on vocations across their own families. The activity consists of set of methods for both target groups.
The practitioners can apply the whole set of methods or they can choose one or two of them applicable in their own practice both with groups and individuals.
09:00 - 11:00 Posters exhibition
Posters
Poster 01: Addressing gendered decision-making: adapting career guidance and counselling practice to the contemporary family structure
Emma BolgerFoyer
Research into the career decision-making processes of young people in gender atypical occupations can inform practitioners how we can adapt and develop our practice to ensure inclusivity. Simultaneously, to ensure continued applicability, career development theory requires continuous review and adaptation in practice to meet the needs of individuals in society. In this study, these two themes combine to address why some vocational routes remain ‘out of bounds’ to young people for social and cultural reasons. The poster presents a major study of young people’s career decision-making processes, undertaken as part of a project examining how gendered career decision-making affects entry routes to the contemporary labour market. Using the Scottish Modern Apprenticeship programme as a data source, the research considers both the decision maker and the individuals that influence people’s career decisions, with a specific focus on the modern family structure. The study relates to equality and inclusion agendas in education, vocational training, further and higher education and employment and the related issues of the economic impact of skills (under-) utilisation and social inclusion. The conclusions will offer career guidance and counselling practitioners new approaches to improving gender inclusivity in their practice.
Poster 02: Career competencies - research on a sample of Slovak respondents
Stefan Vendel & Ivana ZilkovaFoyer
The aim of this study was investigated what career competences could be identified and operationalized through a newly created career competency instrument. The theoretical basis for the construction of the instrument - questionnaire - was an integrated framework of career competencies (Ackermans et al., 2012). In the creation of the universe of items, it was drawn from items of existing foreign instruments and from interviews with experts in career guidance and human resources management (N = 7). 68-items version of the questionnaire was administered to a sample of adult employees to determine the factor structure of the questionnaire. Using an exploratory factor analysis, a 5-factor model was identified explaining 52.2% of the total variance. The five identified factors (five career competencies) were named as Career Reflection, Contact Networks, Labour Market Research, Career Management, and Self-presentation. Based on EFA results, a final version of the 30-item questionnaire was composed and verified. On a sample of 259 respondents adequate evidence of the reliability of questionnaire scales was showed by verifying the internal consistency of scales, α = .86 to .94. Construct evidence of validity was demonstrated by the replication of the 5-factor structure of career competences by EFA (67.16% total variance). In addition, differences were found in the scales of the questionnaire between senior employees, as well as highly qualified staff and regular employees with a higher score of the first two in the scales: Career Reflection, Contact Networks, Career Management and Self Presentation. Evidence of a divergent validity has been demonstrated through the identified weak correlations between career competencies and a different construct, i.e. personality traits. Evidence of the criterial validity was obtained by demonstrating relationships between career competences and career success indicators, namely career satisfaction, perceived employability, earnings and the amount of promotion.
Poster 03: Career education curriculum - possible development in the Czech Republic
Petr ChalušFoyer
Paper is based on study prepared for National Institute of Education and experts working group meetings about possible developments of Czech curriculum.
In the Czech curriculum exists currently educational area “Man and the World of Work” and only one topic from lot of others under this area (The World of the Work) is close to career education. Expected Outcomes are: become oriented in the work activities of selected professions; evaluate his/her potential when selecting a suitable profession and professional training; make use of professional information and advisory services for the selection of appropriate education; show in model situations the ability to present himself/herself when entering the labour market.
The main weakness is limited time, low priority and poor practice of the important topic (World of Work). It is realised only during the last years of basic education (8th or 9th). Schools can go through topic very quickly and to be focused only on the transition to secondary level of education. And most of other topics under the educational area “Man and the World of Work” are far from from CMS development (Work with Materials, Construction Activities, Food Preparation, etc.).
Possible strengths in the Czech curriculum are key competencies when Working Competencies are defined partly close to CMS: uses his or her knowledge acquired in the various educational areas for the benefit of his or her own development and preparation for the future; makes well-founded decisions regarding his or her future studies and/or profession;
Competencies are more declared than implemented in school practices. The main question in current expert debate is to use Czech curriculum strengths in next developments, to recognize CMS models, and to create space for continual development of career competency from beginning to the end of school education.
Poster 04: Career education for an inclusive society: School management’s and teachers’ stance on providing individual support
Kathrin Kahner & Katja Driesel-Lange & Svenja Ohlemann & Ulrike WeylandFoyer
In German secondary schools, usually teachers plan and organize career education, often aside their teaching obligations (CE-teachers). As schools must promote equality of opportunity, career education should also address individual needs. Our study investigates school management’s and CE-teachers’ stance and perspective regarding facilitating individuals` career development through individualised career education.
Individuals’ career development can be based on Savickas´ (2011) Career Construction Theory. Accordingly, school-based career education should be examined i.e. regarding its content, organization, assessment modes and the necessary teaching personnel (Sultana, 2018). The Thuringian model of career education combines aspects of individual career competence development, the school-organizational level and teachers’ skills to accompany career education (Driesel-Lange, Hany, Kracke, & Schindler, 2010).
Delivering helpful career education programs requires involvement from teachers and a clarification of their roles (Hooley, Watts & Andrews, 2015). However, there is little research on school management’s and teachers’ perspectives on career education and the tasks and challenges that arise through its individualization.
This study is part of a larger, mixed-method design-based research project. The sample contains members of school management and CE-teachers at eleven secondary schools. In 2018, we conducted twenty-two guideline-based expert interviews. The interviewees come from two main, four comprehensive and five grammar schools in the states of Berlin and North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Twenty interviews were recorded, transcribed and analysed with a qualitative content analysis according to Mayring (2010).
First analyses showed that different levels of awareness regarding the necessity of career education exist among school management. The commitment to deliver individual support and to tackle the related organizational challenges strongly differ between school types. Also, schools in social hotspots seem to implement the idea of an inclusive society better and more intensively in terms of career education.
Poster 06: Career Management Skills – The Importance of Their Application and Possibilities of Measurement
Libor KomárekFoyer
The main aim of this paper is to define and present Career Management Skills (CMS), to show why they are important and to discuss possibilities of measurement of their development and outcomes.
One had only a few times of transition in past. We chose our career path only once in our lives but not anymore. Recently we have more transitions and more changes in our career path. We need to have some meta-skillset for sustainable employability and we call them CMS. Although their definitions vary widely their meaning stays the same.
We map and describe the existing CMS frameworks from DOTS theory to modern national blueprints and discuss the opportunities for the establishment of the one global model, which seems to be impossible because of differences in educational and political systems between countries.
We discuss the application of CMS in different stages of education mainly in the Czech Republic. Some of CMS are part of curriculums at elementary and grammar schools, however, we don't have a curriculum or any recommendation at universities. The result of this is the fact, that those young people are taught in vocational topics but not in life or career topics.
The last part deals with the problems of measuring and evaluating of programs about CMS. The main difficulties are connected with a wide spectrum of factors influencing career choice and decision making, problems with a comparison between researches because of their different target groups, methods and techniques and differences between the political context of countries.
It leads us to the idea that we can collect all similarities and common parts of every CMS model and try to create a tool for valid measurement of CMS, which could be used throughout the countries.
Poster 07: Career-Focused School Counseling as a start for Career Construction
Kimmo PekkanenFoyer
Successful experiences in working life bolster integration and human agency. In work-based basic education (TEPPO), career-focused school counseling is the City of Vantaa’s new directive operating model that has not consciously been targeted at young people with immigrant backgrounds, but has in a short time given good signals as regards promotion of integration. In TEPPO activities, career-focused school counseling is viewed as a recurrent learning environment, beneficial for the young. Young people ages 14-16 can perform 5-7 learning-at-work weeks as part of the school year's learning and counseling process. Working-life knowledge, learning working-life skills, and development of career-planning competences act as support forms and promote integration (vantaa.fi). Thus, the adult workplace communities are important actors in guiding the young. They can provide a directive environment for carrying out goal-oriented processes.
In work-based basic education, career-focused school counseling is naturally placed on the surface of career counseling and study counseling where also the life-long guidance time span is prevalent. Patton and McMahon (2006) describe the building of career choices while at school with the help of a systemic model. In addition to perceiving the field of self-knowledge and possibilities, especially the transfer-stage decision-making skills are boosted. The possibilities of obtaining education and employment are the higher, the better facilities an individual has for handling changes in life course.
Many highly educated immigrants striving for the labor market remain unemployed, underemployed or work in jobs that do not correspond with their education (vantaa.fi). Basic-education actors shall ensure that the new generation of immigrants will not be left on the sidetrack of education and working life. TEPPO activities’ career-focused school counseling builds new competences also for academic careers.
The effectiveness of counseling will improve when the goals and methods are consistent with one's own life experience and cultural values. The benefits from working-life connections can often turn the problem-oriented integration discussion into a more solution-focused direction. Instead of listing mere challenges and restrictions, attention is focused on potentials.
Poster 08: Changes in gender-stereotyped interests during the transition after high-school
Mirta Blažev & Toni Babarović & Iva ŠverkoFoyer
The aim of this study was to investigate the changes in vocational interests during the career transition after high-school and to determine the effects of gender in this change. We were particularly focused on highly gender-stereotyped interests as Holland's Realistic and Social interests and Tracey’s Mechanical, Data Processing, Social Facilitating and Helping interest. We have expected the decrease is same-gender-stereotyped interests, and increase in opposite-gender-stereotyped interests after the transition. Participants were final-grade high school students (18 years old) that were followed for a year and a half, during the transition from high school to work or higher education. Results showed, as expected, that men expressed stronger interests for Realistic, Data Processing and Mechanical domains, while women expressed stronger interests for Social, Social Facilitating and Helping domain, both in high-school and after the transition. After the transition, we observed only decrease in Mechanical interest in men sample and decrease in Social and Helping interest in women sample. This decrease can, to some extent, indicate that with age vocational interests become less gender stereotype consistent.
Poster 09: Civility and direct violence in high school senior Mexican students
Gabriela Cabrera & Patricia GomezFoyer
The increase in social violence in Mexico has impacted the daily lives of young people. Corruption and poverty are problems that generate social exclusion and are a cause of loss of confidence in the future, this favors the strengthening of conservative, individualistic and lacking expressions of shared social responsibility and solidarity with the common wellness.
In Mexico, the high school senior is the educational level prior to the university. For most students, it is the educational level where the first autonomous decisions are made, such as the choice of career and the age for the exercise of their citizens' rights and duties is reached. Therefore, during this stage, Guidance is crucial for the construction of life trajectories of students, also to the promote the democracy values.
Objective: Identify the most frequent civic, ethical and violent behaviors in the high school senior students of the UNAM.
Method: Descriptive study. Scale with 30 Likert items, Frequency from never to always. Sample: 865 High school senior students UNAM, from September to November 2018.
Results: The most frequent behavior was that "I speak badly of others". The less frequent behavior was the "I respond with blows if there is no other solution to a conflict".
"I speak badly of others" is a form of psychological violence that has been normalizing in Mexican society, due in part to the socializing action of sharing personal information among young people, this situation acquires a fun and social inclusion character for many adolescents, therefore, they start to practice more often this behavior, highlighting the nicknames to other students or teachers (Hoyos & others, 2011).
Conclusion: The young people should be support with Guidance strategies focused on the development of social skills to improve coexistence and promote respect for human rights, proper to an active citizenship.
Poster 10: Clusters based on Personality and Behavior on Korean Career Counselors and Job Stress of Clusters
Au YunkyungFoyer
This study classified career counselors into three ‘clusters’ according to personality and behavioral factors. Based on previous research, personality factors were focused on depression(D), psychathenia(Pt), and social introversion(Si). In addition, behavioral factors were focused on both active and passive coping strategies. This study used MMPI-2; Depression(D), Psychathenia(Pt), Social Introversion(Si) T score and the stress coping scale. A cluster analysis was conducted on the sample of 87 Korean career counselors, 8 males(9.2%), and 79 females(90.8%) and was guided by the following research questions: Can Korean career counselors be clustered according to personality factors(depression, psychathenia, and social introversion) and behavioral factors(active or passive coping strategies)? How do the patterns of personality and behavioral factors vary according to the clusters? How is the level of the job stress according to the clusters?
The results demonstrated that the career counselors were divided into three clusters; namely, adaptive perfectionism, maladaptive perfectionism and nonperfectionism clusters. Furthermore, this study found that the adaptive perfectionism cluster was less susceptible to burnout and maintained their mental health better than the other clusters. It also showed the lowest levels of depression, psychathenia, and social introversion amongst counselors. On the other hand, the maladaptive perfectionism cluster had the lowest levels of coping strategies and high levels of depression and social introversion. And the level of job stress on the adaptive perfectionism cluster was lowest among the clusters. The study confirms that the use of active coping strategies as well as passive strategies is effective to prevent career counselor’s burn-out.
This study implies that career counselors need to use both active and passive coping strategies in their field. Also ‘extroversion’ has been regarded as better than ‘introversion’ in social life. But if career counselors of high ‘social introversion’ use two coping strategies effectively, they can prevent their burn-out.
Poster 12: Constructing career and meaning in life in a personal way: exploring the links between experiencing meaning of life, career indecision, and temperament and character dimensions
Szabolcs Urbán & Monika Kissné ViszketFoyer
In emerging adulthood the searching and constructing meaning in life are important components of optimal psychological functioning, and promote personal growth. These processes are closely link to personal tasks such as career choise and career construction. Moreover, the connections between lack of meaning in life and career indecision, are strongly influenced by personality traits.
The aim of this study was to investigate the relationships between experiencing meaning of life and career choise from perspective of personality differences.
We used Hungarian version of Meaning of Life Questionnaire for measuring the extend of search for meaning and presence of meaning. Hungarian version of Career Factors Inventory were used for measuring career indecision, and the shortened Hungarian 55-item version (TCI55) of the Cloninger’s TCI for identification of personality differences. Hungarian young adults completed the questionaires.
Our results show that there was correlations between the presence of meaning and dimensions of career indecisions, however the extend and patterns of these associations differed depending on both personality traits.
We can conclude that temperament and character dimensions strongly influence not only the career construction, but the more fundamental personal task of searching meaning in life. Our results confirm that everyone can design their life in their own way.
Poster 13: Decision-making and student motivation for careers in nursing: a pre-employment focus group interview
Hiromi Atsuzawa & Tanaka Emiko & Watanabe Kumi & Anme TokieFoyer
Background: Currently, Japan must expand the field of nursing and its workforce in order to provide services for a super aging society, within a social background of a declining birthrate. However, qualitative changes are being made in nursing higher education and the specialized/certified nursing system. A report on career and vocational education was announced from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology in 2011, and career education was promoted.
Methodology: We conducted a focus group interview with 2 groups of 7 students who would soon begin employment as nurses. We assessed their motivation toward their occupation and their thoughts about future careers, and then conducted a qualitative content analysis based on career theory.
Results: The analysis revealed that students felt the necessity to have clinically relevant skills, and that students who were highly conscious of the formation of their careers were thinking about obtaining degrees and future careers outside of clinical settings. College students had vague goals associated with future careers, but had chosen environments that might fulfill their ambitions. Though participants already experienced clinical training at a university, they experienced difficulty forming concrete images because their main source was real experiences and information from familiar people or the Internet. They also thought that relationships in the workplace greatly affected career development as a nurse. Based on this, participants had an positive attitude towards their profession and were motivated to think about approaches and skills to help them meet their career goals.
Conclusions:The training of practical skills is important in nursing, but students are seeking human relationships that can aid learning across educational backgrounds and age barriers. It may be necessary to enhance the diversity of career education in the field of nursing.
Poster 14: Development of Hungarian Counselling Psychologists’ Subjective Professional Competences and Their Professional Collective Self-Esteem
Kissné Viszket Mónika & Paszkál Kiss Károly GáspárFoyer
Background and aims: Perceived professional competences are necessary elements of professional identity, and a developing professional identity reinforces subjective professional competences in turn. We study how graduate university studies shape counselling psychology competences and professional identity at a counselling psychology professional postgraduate programme in Hungary.
Method: Paper-pen questionnaires were used to explore Hungarian counselling psychologists’ perception of their professional competences. Their professional collective self-esteem was measured by a Hungarian adaptation of Crocker and Luhtanen’s Collective Self-esteem Scale We asked 334 postgraduate counselling psychologists entering or finishing the professional training of counselling psychology after their Psychology MA. The data collection was conducted in 2015, 2016 and 2017.
Results: Graduating students in the counselling psychology postgraduate training programme felt significantly more competent as compared to their first year answers. Significant increase was detected in the competences covering personal-, family- and group-counselling, crisis-intervention, in the competences of helping lifestyle change, motivating clients to psychotherapy. In a multiple regression analysis, competences in counselling intervention and in conducting first (explorative) interview appeared as the main predictors of a perceived general professional competence. The dimensions of professional collective self-esteem (private, public, identification, membership) change as well during the training, and correlate with the strengthening of the perceived professional competences at the same time.
Discussion: Our results show a significant and meaningful change in both perceived professional competencies and professional identification during postgraduate studies. And we could also show their mutual reinforcement.
Poster 15: Differences in Resilience According to Cluster Types based on Career Commitment and Career Flexibility
Sujung LeeFoyer
This study examined cluster types based on career commitment and career flexibility and investigated differences in resilience of each cluster. A survey was conducted with 555 prospective graduate students in four universities. Cluster analysis was carried out and one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was conducted to investigate the group differences in resilience. Four clusters were suggested and each cluster is characterized by the level of career commitment and career flexibility: commitment-flexibility, commitment-inflexibility, disengagement-flexibility, and disengagement-inflexibility. It is proved that commitment-flexibility group exists. That is, a group choosing a certain career and simultaneously opened to various alternatives is possible to exist. In addition, commitment-flexibility group showed the highest resilience that having both committed and flexible attitude toward career has positive influence on adaptation in adverse situation. The implication from the study results is that flexibility and commitment are emphasized simultaneously in career and thus new perspective of future career counseling in practice and career education is proposed.
Poster 16: Distance Learning Master´s Programme for Professionalisation of Career Counselling in Mongolia
Michael Scharpf & DAGVA-OCHIR Bumdari & BAZARVAANI Khishignyam & BISHKHORLOO Boldsuren & ERTELT Bernd-Joachim & NERGUI Doljin & SANJPERENLEI NandintsetsegFoyer
Mongolia is one of the most sparsely populated countries in the world due to its size. Almost half of the population lives in rural areas, mostly as nomads. At the same time, the Mongolian economy needs qualified specialists. For example, there is currently a shortage of around 40,000 skilled workers in the raw materials sector. The Mongolian VET system is currently unable to meet this demand. A major reason for this is certainly the lack of vocational orientation among school leavers and the inadequate provision of professional career guidance and information. In addition, counsellors often lack the necessary qualifications. The National University of Mongolia (NUM) has recognised this need for action. Since 2017 a Master's programme in Career Studies – since 2018 also in distance learning format – has been implemented. Yearly, up to 30 students with work experience in related fields are qualified as career counsellors. The distance learning programme is mainly used by students from the rural regions of Mongolia. After completing their studies, graduates can offer professional counselling services in their provinces. In this way, vocational guidance and counselling will also be disseminated in the rural regions of Mongolia. The distance learning programme can serve as good practice for other countries that are in the process of transformation. The programme thus forms the basis for future development projects, e. g. capacity building in career guidance in the international higher education sector.
Poster 17: Education, Development, Advice in educational and vocational guidance: Evolution of the professionalism of the practitioners in the French state school system
Lydia DEYREM & Suzanne BULTHEEL & Sylvie AmiciFoyer
This poster discusses the role of the psychologist who intervenes in school. It addresses three points:
1- From career advisor to Psychologist and vocational counselor.
2- From Psychologist and vocational counsellor to the Psychologist in the National Educational system
3- Role of the Psychologist within the French National Educational System
And in conclusion what is a free public service of the French Ministry of Education?
Poster 19: EURAXESS Slovakia: collaborating for better careers in research
Janka KottulovaFoyer
The poster introduces various activities and services provided by SAIA/EURAXESS Slovakia in the field of career development for researchers and highlights how these activities require that SAIA takes over the role of knowledge-broker and active networker engaging variety of actors across different sectors and fields. As mobility funding agency, SAIA has a long record of promoting mobility as an important aspect of researchers’ career development. The extension of EURAXESS mandate towards more holistic support for professional development of researchers leading to careers both within and outside academia prompted the members of the network, including SAIA, to search for the ways how to deliver such services, in many cases, without the prior experience or specific expertise in the field of career support. Besides developing the internal capacities, different types of networking with intra-institutional and external partners have been identified as the most effective response to this challenge. For SAIA/EURAXESS Slovakia this networking has three main dimensions: First, as a member of European network and partner in several EU-funded projects SAIA benefits from the possibility to exchange with and learn from other members with the tradition of providing career support for researchers. Second, as an institution with established position within the Slovak HE and research landscape SAIA has and uses the opportunities to streamline the topic of researchers’ career development towards different stakeholders, including policy makers and management of the universities and research institutions in Slovakia. Finally, collaboration with external actors and experts is a crucial part in the provision of career focused activities organised by SAIA for PhD students and early career researchers.
Poster 20: Guidance and counselling in ODL programs - Case Nepal
Seija Koskela & Anne LeppänenFoyer
During the last two years two Finnish universities of applied sciences, JAMK and HAMK, have been supporting the Tribhuvan University (TU), the biggest university in Nepal to develop their open and distance learning (ODL) processes in a project funded by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland. While developing the ODL processes, guidance and counselling was included in them as a new element because the importance of guidance and counselling had been well recognized. Thus one of the project aims was to establish a guidance and counselling progress plan in TU and regional campuses to ensure that students get support to progress in their studies, and that they are aware of their higher education and career options.
As guidance and counselling is a relatively new concept and guidance and counselling practices are not familiar in the Nepalese higher education context, we have arranged workshops and trainings to familiarise them to the teaching personnel. As the current project aims at supporting the university to reach educational equity by offering ODL courses for students who live in remote areas as well as to female and other minority group students and students with disabilities – for all those students who cannot attend regular courses, one essential factor in this effort is to provide guidance and counselling from the very beginning of the study pathway all the way until the graduation. The development process is still going on but so far we have reached encouraging results in promoting guidance and counselling ideology to the participating university staff members.
Poster 21: How are career services supporting international students?
Erik ZeltnerFoyer
The rising number of international tertiary students and their successful transition from higher education into the graduate labor market, including the utilization of their international experience on a globalised market after graduation, is not only a challenge for the students but has also become a critical factor for host universities and career and employability services. This development and a lack of quality in the career service provision for international students in European countries raise the question of the current state in the career service provision in higher education and the service provision for international students and graduates.
Based on case studies generated in cooperation with different European higher education institutions (HEIs) in Germany, the UK and the Netherlands, I provide a contrasting analysis regarding the evolution of career service provisions, how services are embedded in the career and employability strategy of HEIs and/or how they emerge from the HEIs strategy. Additionally, I take marketing of services, environmental trends and developments, and career expectations of international students and their expectations regarding the services into account.
By the end of the session participants are able to:
- Analyze aspirations of international students and environmental conditions and trends that are relevant for the employability of international students in different European countries;
- Identify different strategies of career services of European HEIs for international students;
- Identify best practices by contrasting various career services, its evolution, strategies (selection of the fittest, instrument of inclusion, etc.), marketing and generate new ideas for their own HEI;
- Receive a free copy of a journal article directly related to the topic, if they participate actively.
Poster 22: How to find strength and motivation for studies
Eeva Kylä-Setälä & Heli Sipilä & Maarit HeusalaFoyer
Diaconia University of Applied Sciences is involved in the ESR-project the target of which is to prevent the suspension of studies, to support students comprehensively during their studies and to improve students mental health and coping skills. In this presentation the focus is on developing support models for students who haves difficulties in their studies. According to research, the first signs of difficulties can be seen during the first year of studies. We focused on second and third semester students most in need of support most by consulting lectures, counsellors and study guidance counsellors. The criteria to find the right students to support were ECTS credits, absences and other worries.
The main idea was to offer support for students in the formed groups. The approach was the pedagogy of strengths. The keywords in action were student participation, solution-oriented approach and life management skills.
The first pilot group was formed in autumn 2018. Students who were interested were interviewed. We pointed out the meaning of commitment for participating and confidentiality. Seven students started the group process. The support group included four meetings. Each meeting had a special theme: identity and values; time management; self-perception, understanding of self as a learner, thought patterns of oneself; stress and wellbeing.
The experience was a success. The project continues and in spring 2019 we had two separate groups. The need for support is apparent also in the middle and end stages of studying. For the later stage students the themes are the same. The method was psychodrama.
Support is also needed when a student returns to studies after a break and during the time leading up to graduation. Support was also developed for these situations. The main focus in these groups has been thesis support. The need for this kind of group is also obvious.
Poster 24: Quality Assurance Standards in Career Guidance: A synthesis of research on 21 quality standards across Europe
Siobhan Neary & Vanessa Dodd & Erik Haug & Tristram HooleyFoyer
The poster presents the results of the QUAL-IM-G Erasmus + funded project which builds on the experience of different projects in the field of quality assurance for career guidance. The project reviewed current national and transnational quality assurance processes The poster presents an analysis a range of transnational and national quality assurance (QA) practices in career guidance within partner countries, 21 quality activities were assessed. The results identify the variation of different approaches, the factors that enable these approaches and the impact of these different approaches.
Most labels submitted were for individuals and organisations predominantly addressing all age needs, although specialist awards were identified that have a focus on SEND. Certification processes tended to be organisational focused, with smaller numbers addressing individual counsellors or both. Most of the labels examined were national standards and were voluntary. Only 14% of quality standards provide mentoring as part of the support resources for organisations and individuals. Assessments of quality standards tend to include both internal and external elements. A range of resources are available to support the process and include workshops, mentoring, portfolios, case studies and webinars for example. Audit methods predominantly include the production of portfolios of evidence and or assessment visits. Accreditation lengths lasted on average for 3 years but the longest being 5 years and shortest 1 year. 67% of quality labels had associated costs, these varied between €262 and €7500. Most quality assurance standards addressed multiple and inter-related aspects of provision including, professionalism, CPD, evaluation, partnerships, LMI, client satisfaction and leadership. Implications of these findings are discussed.
Poster 25: Quality Development of Career Professionals and Organisations in Slovakia – results and lessons learned from the participative process
Tomas SprlakFoyer
The process of development of the Slovak quality assurance system for career guidance was initiated by the Association of Career Guidance and Career Development in 2017 as a grassroot initiative. The process of development included an international research into more than 20 existing career assurance practices in several European countries, as well as a wide consultation process with practitioners and stakeholders in Slovakia through focus groups and survey (n=135). This research was conducted in collaboration with partner organizations and universities from several European countries. The resulting quality standard contains 18 quality criteria in 5 quality areas. The innovativeness of the framework lays in its formalization of quality development: Quality criteria are formulated in 4 quality levels in order to promote the dynamic use of the standard for quality development. Also, a mentoring programme for practitioners as well as quality development framework for organizations were developed.
Poster 26: Shine On The Future/Light Your Future regional system to support pupils' educational and vocational choices
Jan Brabec & Jana SlezákováFoyer
The poster acquaints interested persons with the concept of platform „Posviť si na budoucnost (Shine On The Future/Light Your Future)“. It interprets the main pillars of the festival and its wider shot as a regional system of supporting educational and vocational way of the students in an understandable way. It’s mainly about the structure of the fair, methods of work in the preparing phase, during the event and afterwards and about additional activities of the platform outside the fair itself. The poster illustrates the atmosphere and venue of the event including the worksheet as a main tool of the methodology. The methodology itself builds on self-knowledge based on transferable (soft) skills, setting goals and motivation of the students for particular steps that aims at implementation of these objectives. Actually it is the methodology that makes the festival innovative and development model with higher potential for their outputs. It’s based on current paradigms in career and lifelong guidance that build on principle of empowering the target group and actively developing their career management skills (CMS).
The event itself represents possible tool for preparing future generation of (to become) labour market creators. According to the Industry 4.0 challenge, the closer linking of educational and work domains is shown as one of the potentially most effective way how to prepare upcoming generations for their career future. Empowering their own approaches to the learning process, reflecting the continual changes facing their own skills, goals and primarily, meaningful footprint in the society, the festival methodology focus on boosting these topics and developing them in contact with other schools and employers. At least, by the participating of the regional employers, it helps to connect and prepare for future trend of economic localization considering real limits of economic globalization as it can be seen today.
Poster 27: Students’ trajectories during their Masters’ studies in the areas of Social and Legal Sciences in Spain
Beatriz Malik Liévano & Torrado, M. & Figuera, P. & Álvarez, P. & Arraiz, A. & Jurado, P. & Miranda, C. & Romero, S. & Llanes, J. & López, D. & Valls, R.G.Foyer
The concern about the factors that affect the permanence and academic achievement of students in higher education has contributed to the increase of research studies on transition processes and trajectories of university students. However, the level of Master's studies has been the least studied internationally. This contribution presents the preliminary results of a longitudinal study developed in the context of Master's degrees in the field of Social Sciences and Law (SSL) . Specifically, the adaptation process and the initial academic satisfaction of the students and their evolution are analyzed, as well as the levels of career adaptability and professional identity and their possible association with the profile of students and the previous trajectory of access. A total of 44 master's degrees from seven Spanish public universities participate in the research, constituting, as a whole, a representation of the different types of master's degrees existing in the Spanish territory. A questionnaire (Q1) was administered at the beginning of the course and another one (Q2) after the first months into it. The participant sample consists of 1795 students in the first phase (participation rate of 54.4%, sample error = 1.6%) and 1352 in the follow-up survey (participation rate of 46.1%, sampling error = 2% ). The results confirm the existence of differences between the profile and trajectory of access to the Master’s degree, depending on the type of master. They also confirm the importance of enhancing career management skills at this level, especially among those students who, after a continuous academic career and with limited work experience, have difficulties in developing a professional identity. Former professional experience is an important factor in the dimension of adaptability and professional identity.
Poster 28: The Čadca Model of Interactive Professional Counselling - CAMIP
Alena HraškováFoyer
The Čadca Model of Interactive Professional Counselling – CAMIP is a longitudinal project dealing with the career orientation system for pupils in interaction with actual trends and possibilities of labour market. Project has been implemented since year 2000. This interactive job selection programme is innovative regarding to the methods which are being used within it, but also because of new topics, quality of provided services and mainly because of the connectivity between labour market, schools, pupils and Pedagogical-Psychological Counselling and Prevention Centres. It is being longitudinally implemented in five-steps modules: the first module is focused on the cooperation of educational counsellors towards pupils. Their first contact with this program starts at the age of 6. During this first phase of the program, methodical – supervision workshops, interactive lectures and counselling services are held. The second module enables pupils intra – natural environment program – The Days of Job Selection. It is composed of four sections Self – examination (psychological test and inquiries diagnostics – TIP, OTPO, Attitude Inquiry), Trends of labour market, Computer programmes of career counselling and Individual counselling interview for pupils and their parents whereby everybody obtains a methodical material officially named “What Am I Going to Be?”. The third part is implemented in the international spectrum and it carries on during international event in Čadca, in cooperation with ÚPSVaR as The Trade Fair of Information, Education and Employment and is closely connected to previously mentioned “Days of Job Selection” system leading up to complex system of preparation of job selection. Invited to take a part are assistant managers of schools, companies and cooperating organizations, pupils, students, children and parents. The fourth phase is composed of consultations – Counselling Days are focused also on specific topics as personal problems, health weakening issues and it is also keen on help for children from social disabled environment, gypsy children, etc. The fifth phase deals with the control survey focusing on the factors according to which children select their future job. Based on the data from the survey we regularly modify program for the next year. This project is longitudinal whereby it was developed through several phases – from experimental to implementation phase, and at present time we successfully implement the system model of CAMIP. The result creates an effective process of professional counselling.
In recent years, the CAMIP model has also been extended to secondary school students, EXPO CAREER ČADCA, the literal contest called “My Future Job”, workshops for high school students named “How to succeed in a job interview” and “Coffee with a career counsellor” workshop. There are held also other contests keen on the providing of job description information to pupils in the last year of their studies. The CAMIP model has its own website www.camip.sk and has been awarded several times in recent years.
Poster 30: Training Career Counselors in Contemporary Narrative Approaches: Concerns and Future Directions
Katerina Argyropoulou & Katerina Mikedaki & Nikolaos Mouratoglou & Andronikos Kaliris & Sofia PapatheodorouFoyer
The National and Kapodistrian University of Athens developed and delivered, for the first time, a program that aims at training career counselors in designing and implementing contemporary interventions based on narrative and reflective techniques, such as My Career Story workbook (MCS; Savickas & Hartung, 2012) and the intervention “Constructing my future purposeful life” (Di Fabio, 2015). The present study presents the evaluation from 20 participants working as Career Counselors in NGO's, as well as the private and public sector. Data were collected via focus groups –based on the four factors (active participation, research-practice gap, models, collaboration) suggested by Savickas et al. (2009) – and an online survey. The qualitative data were analysed with Qualitative Content Analysis, while the quantitative with SPSS 25.0. The conclusions reached –even though limited due to the small sample size– refer to both the methodology and the content of the training program. Specifically, participants mentioned that participants' number should be limited in order to guarantee active engagement and promote effective collaboration among them. Furthermore, a brief review of contemporary research should be completed prior to experiential activities, in order to ensure that learning will be integrated in a context, forming a conceptual continuum. Despite the fact that the present program included multiple experiential activities, participants stated that they needed more. This statement indicates that the major part of such programs should be oriented towards the implementation of methods, tools and techniques. Moreover, participants stated that the evaluation of such programs should also be checked in due course (follow-up), in order to enable participants reflect on their daily practice and provide enough time for skills/knowledge transference. Only then will the four factors suggested by Savickas et al. (2009) serve as a functional framework, based on which we can deepen and reflect on a career counselor training programs' effectiveness.
Poster 31: Vocational interests, transferable competences, job choice behaviour and coping strategies of unemployed young people
Jenny SchulzFoyer
The poster shows the results of a bachelor thesis written in 2017. Young unemployed people have to make vocational choices. Their former career paths are multifarious and episodes of unemployment cause new career choice processes. Vocational interests, transferable competences and the ability to cope with stress have an important influence on young people´s vocational choices.
This study investigates these personality traits and points out a number of interdependences.
The sample consisted of 57 unemployed young people aged 18 to 25 who had contacted the services of the German Federal Employment Agency. They volunteered to take part in paper-pencil surveys including MZZ-interest scales developed by Noworol and smK72+ scales developed by Frey and Balzer. Furthermore, stress-coping scales developed by Frey and questions investigating heuristics and vocational decision processes were used in this investigation.
The sample group could be divided into two clusters using different coping strategies. Cluster 1 used actional and cognitive involvement less often than cluster 2. The second cluster showed significant higher interests and competences and made more pondered decisions. The first cluster did not make use of heuristics and made quicker vocational decisions by ignoring information.
These findings show that counsellors also have to focus on the way their clients cope with stress. Recognizing clients’ coping strategies in counselling may help to find out how counselees make their vocational decisions. Thereby, counsellors will be able to detect their clients’ lack of information and help them to structure their information activities.
Poster 32: Work Meaning Inventory: A Validity Study with Portuguese Workers
Joaquim Ferreira & José Rabaça & Eduardo Santos & Lídia Matos & Hida GashemiFoyer
Previous theory related to meaning of work and related constructs point to three main dimensions of the construct: Positive meaning in work, work as a means of making meaning, and the desire to contribute to the greater good (Steger, Dik, & Duffy, 2012). While there is research on meaning of work in the US (Kamdron, 2005) little is known about this construct in Portugal. We therefore conducted a validation study on a measure designed to assess the above dimensions: the Work Meaning Inventory (WMI; Steger, Dik, & Duffy, 2012). The sample consisted of 366 Portuguese working adults (65.6% males and 34.4% females; ages 22-74 years; M = 44.70, SD = 10.82). Participants completed a self-report online survey which included demographics (e.g., gender, age, job tenure, social ladder), the Work Meaning Inventory, the Job Satisfaction Scale, and the Satisfaction with Life Scale. Results revealed that the 3-factor correlational model provided an acceptable fit on the fit indices, χ²(df = 32) = 103.861; CFI = .95; TLI = .93; SRMR = .035; RMSEA = .078; RMSEA 90% CI = [.062, .095]. We also predicted job satisfaction and life satisfaction using a hierarchical regression model. The full model explained 46% and 37.3% of the variance of job satisfaction and life satisfaction, respectively. Endorsement of positive meaning and meaning making through work were associated with more job satisfaction (p < .001), whereas positive meaning was also positively associated with higher life satisfaction (p <.001).The current study confirmed a 3-factor structure of the Portuguese version of the Work Meaning Inventory. Predictive validity revealed the importance of the positive meaning and meaning making through work factors to job satisfaction and positive meaning to life satisfaction criteria. We discuss the similarities and differences of our results with those reported in the U.S.
14:30 - 16:00 Parallel sessions 4
Conference symposium 4 - Decent work and career counseling in Sub-Saharan Africa: A focus on Burkina Faso and Togo
Adapting and strengthening educational guidance and career counseling to promote decent work in Burkina Faso
Abdoulaye Ouédraogo & Issa Abdou Moumoula & Idrissa Ouili & Jean François Kobiané & Donatien DahourouPlenary room
An efficient and inclusive education system is a key element for the development of a country. Despite several efforts made by the international community, education remains a concern for most of the West African countries. To deal with these issues, Burkina Faso has led several reforms of its education system in order to make it more efficient. Despite these efforts, access to decent work remains difficult for most school leavers. Decent work contributes to the life and well-being of individuals and was defined by the International Labor Conference in 1999 as productive work, carried out in conditions of freedom, equity, security, and human dignity. Decent work is also mentioned in the eighth objective of the United Nations’s 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. The psychology of working theory (Duffy et al., 2016) states that contextual and individual factors have an impact on individual work paths, and suggests that appropriate educational and vocational guidance can promote access to decent work and preserving well-being. This conception of work requires new efforts in terms of pedagogical and professional orientation. Thereby, Liñán and Chen (2009) suggested that to support economic development in these countries, entrepreneurship training could be included in educational and vocational guidance interventions for young adults preparing for their transition from school to work or for adults to manage their career transitions. For these reasons, the system needs to be reformed. Thus, the objectives of this research conducted in Burkina Faso is to (1) describe the supply of educational and vocational guidance and assess its adequacy with the population needs, (2) to assess how the education system takes into account the needs of the economy and the labor market, (3) to check whether the psychology of working theory and the model of entrepreneurial intentions can be used in Burkina Faso and to what extent these models can be adapted to the local context, (4) develop appropriate career counseling interventions and entrepreneurship training, and (5) make interventions available and produce policy brief for policymakers at national and international levels.
Decent Work Scale and the Psychology of Working Theory in Togo: Initial tests of theoretical assumptions
Kokou A. Atitsogbe & Yawavi Kossi & Paboussoum Pari & Jérôme RossierPlenary room
The newly developed psychology of working theory in the US has been tested in some countries in Europe and is receiving growing attention from career investigators. However, no study has examined the theory in low-income countries or developing economies such as Sub-Saharan Africa, where decent work is still uninvestigated. Thus, our purpose in this paper was to provide a validation of the French versions of the Decent Work Scale (DWS) and the Job Satisfaction Scale (JSS) and test some psychology of working theory basic assumptions in a Sub-Saharan African context. For this reason, a Togolese sample of 334 primary school teachers responded to a questionnaire that included the DWS, the Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS), the JSS, and a single measure of work meaning. Results indicated that the DWS fitted well the Togolese data as well as the adapted form of the JSS, suggesting that both measures are perfectly usable in this context. Our findings mostly supported theoretical assumptions in Togo. As expected some personal and socio economic variables (i.e., age, job insecurity, seniority, social status) and pay satisfaction were related to subscales of decent work. Overall decent work predicted the outcome variables of job satisfaction and life satisfaction. Furthermore, overall decent work mediated only between pay satisfaction and life satisfaction. Nevertheless, possible specific points to be considered for the theory’s adaptation in Africa are discussed.
Decent work, meaning, and well-being, in the formal and informal sector in Burkina Faso
Jérôme Rossier & Abdoulaye OuédraogoPlenary room
Decent work is crucial for an individual’s career and life development. In the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development of the United Nations, decent work was made an explicit goal. However, people perception of a decent work may vary from one context to the other. Moreover, the psychology of working theory suggests that personal resources may buffer or mediate the relationship between socio-economic constraints and decent work. For this reason, a first qualitative study aimed to describe how decent work is defined by people working in the formal and informal sectors in Burkina Faso. A second quantitative study described the links between socio-economic constraints, personal resources, decent work, and meaning and satisfaction at work in the formal and informal sectors in Burkina Faso. Fifty participants were interviewed about their ideas of what constitutes decent work and more than 500 participants completed a survey about decent work, work volition, and meaning and satisfaction at work. For most interviewees, decent work was defined as work that allows living, but also has dignity, and allows access to some social recognition. Decent work should provide a socially recognized social identity. Quantitative analyses showed that large differences exist between formal and informal workers, in terms of level of education, salary, and social class (d > 0.80). The differences were however surprisingly smaller for work volition and meaning and satisfaction at work (0.20 > d > 0.50), and even non-significant for decent work. Finally, work volition and decent work did predict meaning and satisfaction at work in both the informal and formal economy, decent work partially mediating this relationship. Overall, these results illustrate that the psychology of working theory can be applied meaningfully in a variety of cultural settings and that social recognition may be a key element when defining decent work.
The Togolese formal education system and perspectives
Chair: Jonas Masdonati; Yawo A. Holu & Paboussoum Pari & Pazambadi Kazimna & Akila Alfa & Tchonda MasamaéssoPlenary room
Global abstract for the symposium
Theories, researches and practices in vocational psychology and career counseling have been criticized because they almost exclusively focus on populations of western societies (Blustein, 2013). In the current globalized world, there is then the need to better understand the issues of low-income countries and developing economies, and to adapt the existing career counseling models to these realities (Ribeiro, 2018; Van Esbroeck, 2008). The symposium addresses this challenge by specifically investigating decent work issues in the Sub-Saharan Africa (Togo and Burkina Faso) through both a contextual and a theoretical/empirical lens.
From a contextual perspective, the education systems in these countries have to cope with the double goal of ensuring universal access to school and developing effective vocational training that fosters professionalization and facilitates the access to decent work. Stating the existence of a structural gap between educational outcomes and the labor market needs, presentation 1 and 2 stress among others the necessity, both in Togo and in Burkina Faso, of reforms that take into account the demand of workforce, such as designing entrepreneurship training for students entering the world of work (Atitsogbe et al., 2019).
From a theoretical/empirical lens, the Psychology of Working Theory (PWT, Duffy et al., 2016) seems relevant to address and assess the characteristics, antecedents and consequences of decent work in the Sub-Saharan Africa, as long as it takes into account the specific issues of work in that context. In line with the necessity to adapt the PWT to non-western countries, communications 3 and 4 empirically verify the relevance of some of its assumptions in Togo and Burkina Faso. Despite tending to confirm the suitability of the PWT, they pave the way for reflections on how to better grasp the specific characteristics of meaningful work within these contexts and to consider the social dimension of decent work, which appears to be essential in both countries.
Abstract of the presentation:
The Togolese educational system has undergone new changes and adjustments in the light of the circumstances. Education in Togo, after the country recovered its international sovereignty, sought to equip itself with means of action with the aim of fostering its socioeconomic development while freeing itself from colonial burdens. Numerous legal and institutional arrangements will then be put in place for a more dynamic contextualization of Togolese education. Indeed, during a three five-year period (1970-1985), the public authorities, in the cyclical economic buoyancy, implemented the 1975 education reform in order to bring it into conformity with the requirements of the international institutions such as UNESCO. This reform had three objectives: (i) give all children equal opportunity and build an effective school system through the provision of appropriate teaching materials; (ii) train and motivate teachers, following an active and participative pedagogy;(iii) adapt the educational system to the realities of the country and direct it towards a greater professionalization. To that end, and in accordance with the provisions of Order No. 087 / MEPSA / CAB / SG of August 26, 2010 concerning the internal reorganization of the Ministry of Primary, Secondary Education and Literacy, in its article 104, Educational and Career Counselling has been rehabilitated under the name of Centre National d’Information et d’Orientation Scolaire et Professionnelle (CNIOSP) [National Centre for Information and Vocational Guidance]. Despite this concern to make the educational system a means of promoting human capital formation more effective, tremendous difficulties hinder its implementation. These difficulties are related to the lack of reference documents, the shortfall of counsellors in educational and vocational guidance and a lack of communication. Moreover, the lack of connection between several institutions (e.g., career counseling services and the National Agency for Employment) have made the transition from education to work more difficult for young graduates. Some studies conducted in Togo have attempted to analyze the transition from education to work, especially the entrepreneurial behavior of young job applicants (Pari, 2014, Pari, Kazimna and Adita, 2016, Pari, Kazimna and Amedjrovo, 2018). These studies reveal among respondents a preference for paid employment. The underlying assumption that this study seeks to examine, is the inadequacy of an entrepreneurial culture in the practices of the current education system that should be reviewed.
Oral session 4.1 - ICT
Challenges in implementing ICT in career services: Perspectives from Career Development Experts
Jaana Kettunen & James P. SampsonB1.06 Kysuce
Information and communication technology (ICT) has gradually gained a firm foothold within the field of guidance and counselling. There is evidence of significant progress in integrating ICT into career services and related practices; however, the potential for further improvement persists. With constant technological developments, improved implementation of ICT in career services becomes increasingly important. In order to achieve this aim, both policy and practice must by a broader understanding of the challenges of ICT implementation. By better anticipating challenges before they occur, less time will be needed to resolve issues that could have been avoided.
This presentation on career development experts’ perspectives across 16 countries provides insights into the perceived challenges involved in the implementation of ICT in career services. Four categories, which can be considered on a continuum ranging from inadequate access to inadequate integration, were identified. The hierarchical structure of the categories enables policy-makers and other stakeholders to deepen their understanding of critical aspects that may play an important role in further developments and the successful implementation of existing and emerging technologies in career development. The presented results may serve as a catalyst for discussion on challenges in the implementation of ICT in career services that were previously avoided or overlooked. In addition, the hierarchical structure of the findings may provide a tool for evaluating developments regarding the implementation of ICT in career services at both national and international levels. Ultimately, more effective implementation is seen to promote better use of higher-quality resources and services by citizens.
Challenges of gamification in school career guidance
Zuzana FreibergováB1.06 Kysuce
This paper presents desk research of online career guidance games devoted to school pupils aged 12-14 that are standing before difficult task of finding out their own educational and vocational orientation and choosing a follow-up study path.
The use of computers and the introduction of the Internet have been advancing career guidance since 1960, concerns access to career guidance information, skills assessment tools, linking online client to career guidance counsellor, etc. The use of these systems facilitates accessibility and awareness of the world of work, increased self-awareness, increased confidence in education and career opportunities (Harris-Bowlsbey, 2013).There is quite a lot of computer-assisted career guidance systems available on internet in several languages. Most of them are devoted to adult population, are based on sets of questions, lack the fun factor, and are long and therefore for school pupils aged 12-14 boring and inappropriate.
Another possibility offers gamification, which is term for using game-like elements in non-gaming situations. Games are effective and enjoyable way to support learning experiences, and are especially useful in triggering learning, knowledge structuring and cognitive change in children (Bounfour & Edvinsson, 2012). However, there do not appear to be many games developed or deployed in the area of career guidance in schools. The publicly available games will be assessed and compared as to their aims, goals, structure, information base, user friendliness, etc.
The desk research has three goals. First goal is to find the best example of career guidance game which can be developed for the Czech school pupils ages 12-14. Second goal is to enhance the game’s author / owner to consider further development of their product. Third goal is to present the most interesting, comprehensive and innovative career guidance games and discuss them at the Bratislava IAEVG 2019 conference.
Oral session 4.2 - Enhancing employability
A joint approach to career management: enhancing employability outcomes
Daniel Kooistra & Sara De Hauw & Judith Semeijn & Beatrice Van der HeijdenB1.07 Liptov
This study aims to unravel the impact of career self-management and organizational career management practices on the so-called ‘employability chain’ (wherein movement capital affects perceived internal and external employability, which in turn affects internal and external job transitions). It incorporates the perspective of not only employees and their direct supervisors, but also of the career professionals involved.
In order to be able to determine the impact of career management on the employability chain we include the perspectives of three different stakeholders in this process (employees, supervisors and career professionals). This study will indicate how they can synchronize their efforts and collectively contribute to strengthen a person's sustainable employability by elucidating the effectiveness of instruments and interventions over time for different roles. Therefore, and more specifically, career professionals may learn how their efforts contribute to this process.
The design consists of a longitudinal quantitative survey at three measurement moments with 6-month intervals, and allows us to explain the impact of career management on organizational and individual outcomes over time. Data are collected from three large public service organizations, all of them situated in the Netherlands. The survey includes context-specific measures on the organizational career management practices, career self-management, movement capital, perceived internal and external employability, and measures for internal and external job transitions.
In this contribution, results are presented based on the first data wave, gathered in the first half of 2019.
Academic competences in preventing students' educational and professional failures
Jakub Wierzbicki & Małgorzata RosalskaB1.07 Liptov
The basic thesis of the speech is the assumption that deficiencies in the same competence areas can cause both educational and professional failures. The analysis of various models of academic competences and employability skills indicates that both ranges of competences have a large common set. On the basis of this thesis, it can be assumed that it is possible to provide consulting and educational projects addressed to students who will develop individual resources facilitating both academic and career success. The aim of the presentation is to indicate systemic possibilities of designing consulting offers aimed at preventing educational and professional failures. This issue was presented both in the context of strengthening individual competence resources of students, as well as as part of the advisory system implemented at the university level, whose aim is to reduce the percentage of drops out and sifting of students. The possibilities of using academic competences in combating educational and career failure were discussed in relation to three basic levels of prophylaxis. Systemic proposals for supporting students whose aim is not only to strengthen their academic competences but also to build their careers are shown through the recognition of offers from selected Polish universities. Preventive, intervention and compensation activities were analyzed.
Capacity Building in Adult Education: Sharing and Developing Best Practices in Eastern Ontario
Lorraine Godden & Sandy YoumansB1.07 Liptov
This report details the activities undertaken during the Phase Two of the Ministry of Education Adult Education Strategy, the Capacity Building phase in eastern Ontario, Canada. During this phase, researchers collected data to provide a documented record of the developmental processes undertaken by the Eastern Regional Partnership for Adult Education (ERPAE) as it built capacity over the 2017-2018 period. Data collection and analysis helped us monitor and evaluate the progress we made toward the previously identified key areas of the ERPAE strategic plan. The research team collected data from field notes, generative products, photographs, participant interviews, participant surveys. The 2017-2018 ERPAE Capacity Building sessions (CBSs) were intended to build capacity in Adult Education staff in the Eastern region by helping them learn about Adult and Continuing Education from within the region and from outside the region. The ultimate goal of the CBSs was to prepare ERPAE members to develop and implement innovative pilot projects to improve vulnerable adult learners pathways to employment and other successful outcomes in their respective school boards. Interviews and survey responses from participating ERPAE members provided valuable insights about the effectiveness and outcomes of the Phase Two: Capacity Building sessions. In analyzing the range of data collected throughout the Phase Two: Capacity Building process, we identified key components of a collaborative coalition model for professional development (CCMfPD) and how it can be used as an effective means of professional development in adult education to support innovative ways of meeting the needs of vulnerable and marginalized adult learners.
Oral session 4.3 - Ethics in career guidance
Contracting-out counselling for young third country immigrant`s transition to work in Austria, Finland and Czech Republic
Esien Eddy BrunoB1.08 Orava
This paper examines contracting-out employment counselling from public to private employment service agencies to enable young third country immigrant employment-related transition in Austria, Finland and the Czech Republic . Existing research pointed contracting-out of employment counselling as a major trend of Public Employment Service reforms. Given the enthusiasm to contracting (in general) for welfare from public to private sectors, assuming that non-state employment agencies are better off to meet consumers need and less bureaucratic in the implementation process. Yet, on the one hand, private enterprise may have too strong incentives to cut costs with self-interest and opportunism to maximised profit that can impair counseling service implementation quality. On the other hand, local government units faced costly administrative procedures and information asymmetry to monitor agency counseling activities. Based on document analysis, this paper concludes information, delegation of specific task, and monitoring as relational contractual agreement to enhance transparency and accountability that enable young third country immigrant employment-related transition from welfare to work in the selected entities. The outcome point to a new market-based performance management governance to negotiate huge sum of taxpayer`s money in times where countries are still facing economic crisis and fiscal burden with gross domestic product deficit. This is relevant to understand the pluralistic arrangement in a mixed economy setting with tension of interest between the public and private service providers in times of anti-immigration perspectives where not only hard-core unemployed non-EU citizens faced challenges, but the society and (global) economy to sustain social cohesion.
The ethics of disgust – uncovering inequality in career guidance practice
Dimsits MiriamB1.08 Orava
Career guidance practitioners often set high standards for professional ethics and values regarding an inclusive practice in relation to marginalized citizens. Inclusive practice, however, often places career guidance counsellors in a central role as a figure bridging center and periphery in the career guidance relationship, which ascribes the practitioner a critical and powerful role in completing political, ideological and societal goals. A phenomenological example study of encounters between career guidance counsellors and marginalized citizens with a focus on disgust and disgust sensation uncovers a deep and often silenced inequality between societal groups. Silenced, perhaps, because professional discourse regarding ethics and humanity does not allow a discourse concerning the interconnectedness of body, taste and class. The study proposes that career guidance practitioners should engage in learning activities that investigate the root of the practitioner’s own disgust sensations in terms of social and cultural habitus, which can enable the counsellor to take responsibility for bridging the gap between different societal groups.
Oral session 4.4 - Social-emotional learning
Nature and Value of Socio Emotional Learning in a group of Italian teachers
Lea FerrariB1.09 Turiec
Alongside the inclusion of children with disabilities that in Italy has existed since the 70s, the increasing number of students with a foreign background is today posing new challenges to the teaching and inclusion of all the students and their families. In this evolving context the need to give teachers new theoretical and practical points of reference to positively impacting their students life emerges as crucial.
This study presents the Italian results of an international research project designed to evaluate educator perspectives regarding Social Emotional Learning (SEL) at the end of the first year of working. The project involves 34 scholars from 20 countries. Teachers were asked to provide written responses to a series of open-ended questions about their understanding of SEL, their perspective on SEL’s relevance to their own effectiveness as educators, and whether and how they perceive SEL as relevant to classroom teaching and career development. Using NVivo, the coding booklet about the perspective of Italian teachers will be discussed.
Oral session 4.5 - Changing labour market
“HR4.0”: How to thrive amid the increased career flexibility demanded by the 4th Industrial Revolution
Chris Percy & Ngoc Tram NguyenB1.10 Záhorie
Longer lifespans, more frequent industry disruption and more diverse technology-enabled modes of work collectively point towards more common and more substantial career changes taking place during people’s working lives. As people increasingly aspire to such career shifts, there is a risk of conflict with employers who prioritise retention and HR practices which aim for cost-efficiency, consistency and risk reduction in workforce management.
This paper reports the results of a semi-structured interview process, engaging ten HR and careers professionals, with more than 80 years experience between them across a range of sectors and countries. The process is designed to develop practical ideas for how HR practice might evolve and thrive to better serve such a workforce. Ideas are identified across the full range of an employee’s potential journey, from pipeline building prior to application, recruitment, in-company career and exit/alumni management.
Motivations for employers are identified in a quantitative evidence base relating productivity and wage gains to increased exposure to multiple employers and employee mobility, but interviews suggest such motivations are unlikely to be evenly spread across sectors and roles.
This potential evolution of HR practice is placed within an historical context that extends from the Taylorism of the late 19th century through workplace conditions and talent management, to position such an “HR 4.0” as the continuation of a trend in which HR pays attention to an increasingly broad range of features that define a person’s working life.
Labour market inclusion in a country in transition: A Mongolian model
Sara Galbaatar & Bernd-Joachim Ertelt & GELENKHUU Tumennast & MONKHOOROI Batbaatar & NERGUI Doljin & SANJPERENLEI Nandintsetseg & SCHARPF Michael & SONOMDARJAA MunkhbatB1.10 Záhorie
Mongolian current situation is characterised by economic dependency on mining sector, lack of skilled employees with vocational education, tendency to exclude NEETs, and weakness of HEIs’ programmes to meet labour market requirements, as well as labour migration in the sense of brain drain. This situation has created the need for a scientific based education and training of career guidance counsellors on international standards.
The scientific based development of the Mongolian career guidance system is crucial for successful completion of the economic transition. To do this, the National University of Mongolia cooperates with international and national organisations (such as German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ) and University of Applied Labour Studies (HdBA, Germany)) to establish a scientific based master programme for career guidance. In addition to this academic programme, empirical research on career guidance counselling services and methodologies has been realized in Mongolia.
In this session, we will also discuss with experts from other countries about our experiences with this programme and possibilities for cooperation in the frame of bi-lateral and/or international projects.
The impact of the changing labour market on the practice of career guidance counsellors
Jenny Bimrose & Sally-Anne BarnesB1.10 Záhorie
While much progress has been made in integrating information communications technology (ICT) into career counselling and guidance practice, there is room for improvement. Existing research indicates that its successful integration into career practice is contingent on three key factors: policy support, at both the macro (government) and micro (organisational) levels; workforce capacity development, so that practitioners feel confident and competent in this aspect of their work; and for the design of ICT systems and applications that ensure that they are fit for purpose.
This presentation will consider the impact of Industry 4.0 on the way that career and labour market information is obtained, stored and disseminated in career guidance counselling practice. Using a theory of professional identity formation, it will focus on the use of technology in providing online learning support for practitioners who are, in turn, integrating technology into their services to support clients. It will highlight the potential enhancement of services provided, alongside some inherent tensions, particularly with regard to social inclusion. A particular exemple of ongoing research, funded by government in the UK, will be used to highlight the potential of this technology: ‘LMI for All’, funded by government in England, uses state-of-the-art technology to collect, and mediate the dissemination of robust, current and reliable labour market information to support career interventions. Some fundamental implications for practice will be presented.
Oral session 4.6 - Reflecting on practice
Career Guidance as a matter of school culture
Andrea CsirkeC1.06 Gömör
Albert Einstein used to say that it is almost a miracle that modern teaching methods have not yet entirely strangled the holy curiosity of inquiry. Not yet. Society's expectations on students are to be obedient and willing to learn something others think is important to their future and in a way that others think is beneficial to them. Students are not motivated to do it. They resigned and think that everything, what concerns them is running on an “about them but without them” basis. Most of them think it should be like that because it has always been so. The story is about our approach to children and young people. As they are still children, we don’t consider them being our partners and therefore we adults know better what they need and how. Our excessive care which may kill their curiosity, motivation and desire to work on themselves and to learn, may be devastating. The result is a person who is not motivated to learn and to be responsible for his or her own education. In response to this situation career guidance and counselling tries to invent and introduce experience-based methods of guiding and counselling to consolidate the situation. We are unable to solve problems facing us - they remain and new ones arise.
We need young people who will think and act creatively, who will know themselves and the community, who will be able to learn, communicate and make agreements, who will be able to make informed decisions about their lives taking the community into account. When we want to preserve these values in favor of our future, it is our duty to create a learning environment that promotes freedom and responsibility. This oral paper is my contribution to this goal.
Career guidance facing the climate change – thoughts for career practitioners
Hašková KateřinaC1.06 Gömör
The presentation is reflecting current discussions regarding climate change, considering the consequences for career guidance theory and practice based on previous works of various authors (e.g. Irwing, 2013; Plant, 2014; Librová et al., 2016). The paper is specifically focused on how the efforts to decrease climate change can influence labour market and career(s) and career decision making, whether there are connections between solutions of social inequalities and environmental problems, and finally, what can be the role of career counsellors facing climate change.
Changes at the Czech schools – How to set up a sustainable career guidance system?
Helena Koštálová & Lenka Nemcova & Eva KavkovaC1.06 Gömör
In the Czech Republic, career counselling still does not have a stable and clear position in the school system. Whilst in the 20. century the main goal of the school counsellors was to “give the right advice”, nowadays they more or less face a big puzzlement. On one hand there is a big expectation from the society and parents, but each group follows a different goal. The government needs skilled and adaptable workforce responsible for continuous self-development, the parents wish for their children safe and promising career path and the global world of work is ever changing, unstable and unpredictable. On the other hand there is neither methodology nor structure to support Czech school guidance system and the school counsellors claim lack of methodology. The Czech pupils have to do their first and crucial career choice at the age of 15 and usually do not have sufficient information about the dynamics and challenges of the world of work.
In the presentation I will share the experience from a Czech training organisation EKS with over ten years’ experience. Since 2017 we have been developing a pilot project to improve the system of preparing students for the labour market of the 21.century. The first step of this project was a pre-research (using questionnaires) and thorough assessment of the situation at the pilot schools. The next steps consist of setting up the system tailored to the schools ‘needs and the implementation.
In the presentation we are going to describe the process of evaluation, design and implementation of the school guidance system by presenting a case study of one of the pilot schools.
Workshop 4.1
Supporting secondary schools to engage parents as partners in careers work
Annemarie Oomen & Anthony BarnesC1.07 Horehronie
In this interactive workshop, aimed at policy-makers, careers teachers, consultants and trainers at national, regional and local level who are keen on involving parents in careers work in secondary schools, we will explore with and through the participants recent research, policies and practices around the world.The literature confirms that parents have a major influence and role in the career development of their adolescent children. Many countries are now responding to this with a political drive to involve parents in the educational and career decision making of their children in secondary education, e.g. to prevent drop-out in higher education. However, examples of parent-involved career interventions in careers work in secondary schools are limited, under-researched and mostly short-lived which may explain why knowledge of how to involve parents successfully in careers work is underdeveloped. We will start off by making an inventory of good and interesting practice at national, regional and local level shared by the workshop participants. We will map these examples against research rooted in systems thinking (Patton and McMahon, 1999), and a taxonomy of parental involvement (Oomen, 2018), which sets new and challenging objectives for developing the parental capacity to be involved in their child’s career development and stimulating educational innovation. In the workshop, we will share instruments and materials, available in hard copy and digitally, that we have inventoried and were developed on involving parents in careers work. We will lead a reflection on what are the potential benefits of a policy to involve parents, but also on a strategy and approach to parent-involved career interventions at national, regional and local level. Finally, we will reflect on the well-known barriers to parental involvement in the school system and how we can recognise and overcome them.
Workshop 4.2
Workshop 4.3
Bilan de compétences (skills audit) in the practice of career counselling (Slovak language workshop)
Peter CsoriC1.09 Zemplén
The goal of this workshop is to practically demonstrate the realisation of the skills audit (bilan de compétences) in the practice of career counselling. The process as used in the practice of Slovak employment services, as well as in other country contexts (France, Italy, Belgium) will be presented and a selection of tools will be practically demonstrated. Practical outcomes and experiences of clients will be discussed.
Career tree and work with career cards (Czech language workshop)
Sylvie NavarováC1.09 Zemplén
A Career Tree allows to work with clients in the field of self-knowledge, search for their inner sources, and it helps to monitor clients´ skills and to work with their visions, set targets and action steps on the basis of an original unifying element of the Tree. A combination of attitudes and systemic coaching techniques are used, as well as coaching inspired by M. H. Erickson and John Holland´s career theory. The creation of the Career Tree makes use of self-reflection, feedback, drawing and career cards. The cards we use depict STATES on the basis of RIASEC theory. They describe MOTIVATION AND NEEDS inspired by the International manual of professional orientation methods. The cards called PICTURES are integrated according to the age of the client. The cards are used for creating visions and life path reflection. The counsellor, who guides the client through the process, uses a coaching approach by asking open constructive questions. By making use of the Career Tree in the counselling process, we employ creativity and guide the clients to self-awareness in the area of their career planning and responsibility for their own lives.
16:30 - 18:00 Parallel sessions 5
Conference symposium 5 - Mobility Guidance
Transition counselling for university graduates with a migration background
Michael Scharpf & Eva Bruening & Bernd-Joachim ErteltPlenary room
In Germany, about 20% of all HEI graduates have a migration background. This target group faces particular challenges in integrating into the labour market. These mainly concern legal, linguistic and cultural aspects, prejudices on the part of employers as well as individual uncer-tainties regarding the further career. In a current empirical study, the previous counselling of-fers for the target group in their studies and in the transition were analysed. The following results seem particularly important:
• The transition counselling must already begin during the study programme.
• From the point of view of the universities, there are gaps in specific offers. It is also critically noted that the responsibility for counselling services within the university is not always clearly regulated.
• The existing offers are not always transparent for students with a migration background. The target group also shows passive behaviour when using these services.
• For this target group, professional counselling during the transition often does not take place, due to weak counselling competencies of staff members and not detailed knowledge related to the labour market conditions.
• Another striking feature is the frequently mentioned lack of networking between counsel-ling services, both inside and outside the university, e.g. with companies and public em-ployment services.
Oral session 5.1 - ICT
Career Choice – The new online career guidance system in Croatia
Toni Babarović & Iva Šverko & Mara ŠimunovićB1.06 Kysuce
The paper presents a new computer-assisted career guidance system developed in Croatia – Career Choice. The Career Choice is a free online system designed for career guidance and counselling of individuals preparing for educational transitions, rethinking their careers, or facing a career change. The system relies on the principle of person-environment fit, according to which the careers that are the most congruent to individual’s preferences are suggested as appropriate. The system takes into account a total of 31 job aspects by which any occupation can be described, such as communication, writing, caring for others, working conditions, independence, earnings. The client estimates his or her preference of each aspect in the desired career, and the subjective importance of each aspect in the process of career choice. The database consists of 230 occupations (job titles) evaluated by experts by all job aspects. The system selects the most appropriate occupations for a client respondent based on compensating algorithm rooted in expected utility model (EUM). The algorithm calculates the differences between client’s preference for each job aspect and real representation of the same aspect in different occupations, multiplies it with subjective importance of the aspect, and sums it over the 31 aspects for each occupation. The ten occupations with the minimal total sum are presented to the client as suitable career options. This computer counselling system has passed the first evaluation phase in which 229 high school students, 625 university students, and 130 employees used the system. Now it is in the second evaluation phase with a sample of approximately 400 high school students as clients. In this paper, the basic elements of the system’s validity are presented, as well as some of the elements of clients’ satisfaction.
Distance career counselling: new professional knowledge?
Michel Turcott & Liette GoyerB1.06 Kysuce
The general objective of this research is to analyze the phenomenon of transfer and production of professional knowledge from face-to-face career counselling practices towards a distant environment. As more and more people are using and integrating ICTs into their daily lives, there is ongoing pressure on the integration of ICTs into the provision of counselling services (Bimrose, Kettunen and Goddard, 2015; Kettunen, Vuorinen and Ruusuvirta, 2016). Our research aims to examine what is the professional knowledge transposed from the initial training in professional career counselling and integrated over the experience gained by the counsellor, and the production of new knowledge that emerge when applied to distant career counselling. The collection and analysis of the data is guided by the Enhanced critical incident technique suggested by Butterfield, Borgen, Maglio and Amundson (2009). Preliminary results show that counsellors are substantially using the same tools and intervention processes that they master in face-to-face mode. However, many realize that the way they conduct interviews has begun to change, especially on the matter of keeping the control of the interview process, especially when visual stimuli are absent. During the oral communication, we will present the main themes of the professional knowledge created when intervening at distance.
Vocational, College and Career Counseling in Switzerland – Blended Information and E-Counseling in a digitized world
Marc Schreiber & Daniel ReumillerB1.06 Kysuce
In the course of the 2030 agenda of vocational education and training (VET) in Switzerland, career development and career management skills in a digitized working world play an important role (SERI, 2017). Therefore the Swiss State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI) commissioned a scientific report on the future of career counseling in Switzerland (Hirschi, 2018) as part of the mission statement for vocational education and training in Switzerland. In this paper we will present two stand-alone initiatives directed at fostering vocational, college and career counseling in Switzerland by incorporating elements of automation and digitization.
First, a blended information concept for the media libraries of the public career guidance centres in the Canton of Berne / Switzerland and second an e-counseling concept for vocational, college and career counseling at the IAP Institute of Applied Psychology at Zurich University of Applied Sciences (ZHAW).
Oral session 5.2 - Career guidance in secondary education
Personalized career and academic planning - a promising policy and practice
Angela Andrei & V. Scott SolbergB1.07 Liptov
This proposal explores the career development policy and practice strategies used in the United States of America (U.S.A.). It discusses what it means to implement and evaluate an Individual Learning Plan (ILP), named Academic and Career Planning (ACP) in middle and high school in the state of Wisconsin. The methodology comprises: a review of literature, analysis of reports, artifacts and documents related to the ACP and an interview with a decision-maker at district level. It discusses how ACP is integrated in the school curriculum, who is responsible for the activities, how staff is trained, what kind of professional resources are used, how schools cooperate with family, community and businesses. It also analyses how activities are evaluated, what benchmarks and indicators are used, how stakeholders and beneficiaries are involved in the process of evaluation, how the participation in ACP influences students. In addition, the strengths and challenges faced in the ACP process are discussed as well as the adjustments made.
Student Persistence in Secondary Education: Developing and supporting decision-making processes of young adults regarding dropout
Kristina Mariager-Anderson & Stine JacobsenB1.07 Liptov
In Denmark, 20% of each youth cohort has not completed an upper secondary or VET qualification seven years after completing lower secondary education (Ekspertgruppen, 2017). These young adults are often referred to as a vulnerable group of students. This group is central in an ongoing research project “Staying on track. New perspectives and sustainable solutions to dropout among young adults" focusing on dropout among Danish 18-25-year-old students in vocational education and training (VET) and general adult education. The aim of this paper is to explore the role of career guidance in relation to developing and supporting young adults’ decision-making competences in order to strengthen the students’ educational persistence as well as to prevent dropout. While the aim can be seen as grounded in a political and societal interest in making the individual an active citizen (CEC, 2000, p.7), it can also be seen as a significant measure to empower young adults. The project's theoretical framework combines existing knowledge about dropout and factors effecting dropout with decision-making theory and motivation theory (Hunt et al., 1989, Højdahl & Poulsen, 2009 & Mariager-Anderson et al. 2015). Data for this analysis consists of two rounds of data collection, surveys and interviews conducted with 60 students from 12 different colleges during the autumn of 2017 and the autumn of 2018. Based on a preliminary analysis of the data, we find that the students' thoughts and actions concern matters both inside and outside the school. Furthermore, seemingly trivial matters in the students' lives are shown to have a potentially decisive influence on the students' thoughts about staying in or dropping out of a programme. These findings confirm the importance of focusing on students' decision-making processes in research on dropout.
Suject teachers´ position as homegroup teacher in Finnish general upper secondary school; counselling competences and practical knowledge
Tiina RautalinB1.07 Liptov
Subject teachers in general upper secondary education are usually described as experts in pedagogy, which they are. Subject teachers have also some other duties at school among their teaching. They have responsibilities in guidance counselling as it is said in national core curriculum of Finnish general upper secondary education. Students are guided and supported by homegroup teachers during students´ three-year studies. It means that every group of students have their own homegroup teacher. The position of homegroup teacher is not an easygoing role for subject teachers and their might have some discordant thoughts about working as homegroup teacher. As a guidance counsellor I have been asked a question by teachers: “Why we must do guidance counselling even we are incompetent for that? We are teachers and we just want to teach”.
The aim of my study is to describe how subject teachers describe themselves as homegroup teachers and how they talk about guidance counselling issues. I´m curious to know what kind of counselling competences homegroup teachers have and why they describe themselves incompetent in guidance counselling. The second aim is to find out what homegroup teachers talk about their practical knowledge in guidance counselling and how they use their practical knowledge to manage in challenging counselling situations at work as homegroups teachers.
This study has narrative research approaches. Research data was collected in peer group mentoring meetings for subject teachers. Peer group mentoring is an effective and adequate method to talk about issues of guidance counselling and to share thoughts and experiences with other homegroup teachers.
Oral session 5.3 - Career as a lifelong journey
Effects of public career guidance on adults 40plus: What are the expectations of different stakeholders?
Anne Jansen & Michelle ZumstegB1.08 Orava
Due to digitisation, automation and demographic change employees are increasingly required to develop and maintain their employability throughout their working lives. Accordingly, public career counselling services are confronted with an increasing need for career counselling from all age groups. However, for the adults 40plus with professional education, little is known about what effects of career counselling are desired and achieved and which are relevant indicators that could be used to measure those. The study therefore aims to explore the effects of public career counselling for adults 40plus that are expected by different stakeholders namely individuals, organisations and society and propose relevant indicators to measure those effects. First, we conducted a literature research to gather described effects and impacts of career counselling. Then we conducted qualitative interviews with former clients 40plus, Human Resources managers and representatives of work integration offices representing the different groups of stakeholders (individual, organisation, society). Finally, we will propose indicators to measure those impacts and will validate these with vocational counsellors. So far, our results show that literature describes various effects of career counselling, but the needs and expectations of adults 40plus are not particularly specified. Our qualitative data will provide insights about what effects this target group strive towards and whether companies and work integration offices have specific requirements what career counselling should achieve for this group. Specifying the effects that different stakeholders expect from public career counselling services might provide useful evidence that can be used to design interventions for adults 40plus. In addition, the results might provide answers to questions about the extent to which public guidance services should cooperate with companies to provide guidance to older workers.
Fostering Executive skills and Future Orientation for inclusive future designing of individuals experiencing complex work-transitions
Teresa Maria Sgaramella & Lisa RiondatoB1.08 Orava
Individuals facing complex work transitions are systematically exposed to a double demanding task, that is dealing effectively with everyday activities and at the same time keeping their view open to future goals. They are then required effective executive skills and a future time perspective.
Main Executive Skills (ES), that is planning, monitoring and control processes, are in fact linked to important outcomes, including work inclusion (Meulenbroek, & Turkstra, 2016) and social participation (Douglas, et al. 2016). Future time perspective is associated with the ability to set career goals, to create conditions for success in personal and work life (Lang, 2000; Taber, 2015; Zacher & Frese, 2009). Relationships have been shown between executive skills and future orientation (Schacter, Addis, & Buckner, 2008; Sgaramella, et al., 2008).
The aim of the study was to analyse the effectiveness of a 5 sessions group program, fostering executive strategies and agency toward future, in developing positive future selves of individuals experiencing complex work transitions.
Sixteen Italian adults, male (12) and female (4) were involved (their age ranged from 25 to 47 years old). All experienced unemployment and sporadic work activities. A control group attended a short course on work search.
Baseline and effectiveness of the intervention measured: perceived executive skills (Carrieri, & Sgaramella, 2008); career adaptability, resilience and time perspective, hope and optimism (Santilli, et al. 2017; Ginevra, et al. 2017); occupational time perspective (Zacher, 2013). Qualitative interviews were used to analyse future goals (Sgaramella, 2018) and action plans (McMahon, et al., 2005).
After the intervention changes were observed in personal attitudes and strengths. Future action plans were by far more detailed and evidenced positive future selves.
The study underscores the potential contribution of the domains addressed in a career counseling and guidance aimed to empower individuals and preventing social marginalization and exclusion.
Oral session 5.4 - Transitions in the higher education context
Entry at university, what meaning for first-year students?
Lucie Bonnefoy & Olry-Louis IsabelleB1.09 Turiec
The transition from high school to university is a topical issue in France. This paper focuses on the meaning of entering university for freshmen students after high school in the French context. Our research is particularly centred on the representations that high school students have regarding the university. Furthermore, we studied how the representations changed during the first year. For this paper, we based our work on developmental approach and also on theories which come from the psychosocial field. We decided to emphasize our analysis on the experience lived by these teenagers/young adults. Based on our results, we identified an ambivalence in the meaning of higher education for students. An ambivalence is also sometimes found in counselling between research and practice. Thus, on this political, practical and theoretical subject, we wonder how to put the student at the centre for an effective career guidance.
How important is the professional identity of a student?
César Escobar EscobarB1.09 Turiec
This session shows the process of developing undergraduate students professional identity in the preparation for their intership. This process is part of a 10 year class evolution, complemented by a theorical basis, now part of a 4 year doctoral research. Work stability is broken, so is the opportunity to form a professional identity. The implications are seen in the decision-making aptitudes young adults have. At the end, we have an array of young adults jumping from one experience to another, with no real connection between them, a direct consecuence of a lack of professional identity. If a student has a defined professional identity, it can understand where he can create a value proposition through time. This person can understand the value of hard work, specialization and learning, generating a sense of mastery in the activities he does. This presentation will not only display our process, based in Self-knowledge, Self-efficacy and market exploration, it will show the importance of the professional identity in the students decision-making. At the end, this is a learning process. Our goal is not to help them “find their selves”. Is more to teach them a process where they can redefine their professional identity whenever life needs them to.
Innovative services for lifelong learning and guidance in life transitions: challenges for University
Proietti EmanuelaB1.09 Turiec
The paper aims at exploring the implications for university lifelong learning and guidance on transitions and the role of counselling in supporting and facilitating them. Interested targets are different. Transitions can refer to people entry or return to the workforce, change or progress in their careers, or leave work due to unemployment, retirement, or personal choice, but also to people who return to university as a free choice; in these situations, University involves adults in different opportunities. A significant need of guidance is emerging in people who are about to graduate and in neo-graduates, in canonical age. The School-Work Alternance new system is involving Universities and Schools in innovative partnerships, in order to facilitate the transition of young people from school to the world of work.
The first objective of the paper is to reflect on what services are working and for what kind of beneficiaries. The connection between person needs and university services can arise from an in-depth analysis with regard to person, but also, to labour market. This process requires time, competent human resources, appropriate spaces and financial investments. A problem of sustainability is present.
University should be able to tackle career changes and transitions, to take into account the life cycle of learning and skills and to develop a useful process to the professional who needs to build further projects for their future. These needs and changes require an institutional involvement of University, with particular reference to the Third Mission.
The paper presents results of some innovative Roma Tre University Projects for guidance and life transitions services, with particular reference to the work of the Research and Service Centre for Innovation, Education, Lifewide Learning for Persons and Organisations and Bilan de competénces, which is member of the European Federation of Centres of Career Guidance and Bilan de Compétences.
Oral session 5.5 - Innovative approaches
Facilitating client change in Career Construction Counseling
Paulo Cardoso & Inês Mendes & Miguel M. Gonçalves & Maria do Céu Taveira & Inês Sousa & Filipa SilvaB1.10 Záhorie
Background. The Innovative Moments Model offers conceptual and methodological tools to analyze clients’ change during career counseling. From this perspective clients’ change occurs by the emergence of new ways of thinking, feeling and/or acting outside a dominant and problematic self-narrative These moments of narrative novelty are called innovative moments (IMs). Reconceptualization is the most complex type of IMs once it implies that clients distance from self-experience to describe the changes achieved and the factors underpinning such changes. Despite theory and research in psychotherapy suggesting the importance of reconceptualization IMs for change, research in career counseling has not yet clarified the role of this type of narrative novelty for clients’ change, which justifies our study.
Aim. To analyze the role of reconceptualization IMs in facilitating and sustaining clients change in Career Construction Counseling
Method. Measures of vocational certainty, vocational identity, career indecision and psychological distress were applied to 42 participants, one week before CCC intervention. All participants received from three to five weekly 50 minutes sessions of CCC. Post-test was carried out after the last CCC session. After CCC intervention, 21 participants in experimental group benefited from 2 reconceptualization sessions and 21 participants benefited from neutral sessions (control group).
Results. Using hierarchical linear model to analyze data we obtained results showing that CCC increased significantly participants’ levels of vocational certainty, vocational identity and decrease significantly both vocational indecision and distress. However, after the intervention reconceptualization sessions increased significantly vocational identity and reduced significantly distress of experimental group participants over those of the control group. Implications for practice are discussed, namely, the importance of the identification and specification of clients change processes to enhance career counseling practice, in general, and with disadvantaged populations, in particular.
Oral session 5.6 - SK/CZ
Bilan de compétences (skills audit) - Innovative approach in counselling for unemployed clients (in Slovak)
Peter CsoriC1.06 Gömör
This session will present the realisation of the skills audit (bilan de compétences) in the practice of career counselling for unemployed in Slovakia. It is an innovative counseling and educational approach and also an active labour market measure that can help unemployed clients to be used on the labour market.
Career decision-making style and other characteristics of personality as predictors of career decision-making difficulties among adolescents (in Slovak)
Natália KöverováC1.06 Gömör
The aim of work was to verify the extent to which career decision-making styles and other characteristics of personality contribute to explaining career decision-making difficulties among adolescents. The results confirmed the significance of seven styles in career decision-making as predictors of career decision-making difficulties: procrastination and dependence on others were confirmed as significant positive predictors, speed of making the final decision, locus of control (internal) and aspiration for an ideal occupation as significant negative predictors and willingness to compromise and desire to please others as significant positive predictors. Three styles – information gathering, information processing and effort invested in the process – were not confirmed as significant. Also a significance of optimism and anxiousness was not confirmed.
The experiences with offering career counselling to victims of domestic violence (in Czech)
Martina JežkováC1.06 Gömör
As a part of its Intervention Centre service, Spondea, a public benefit organization, has always strived to provide a wide range of services improving the quality of life of its clients. We offer assistance in the struggle for a life without violence but also with extra services based on grant projects – legal assistance, long-term psychological care, and lately also career counselling. From our experience we know that one of the side effects of domestic violence is a limited ability to succeed in the job market. A victim’s resources is often exhausted due to the experienced violence and thus unable to enter the job market, change jobs or even perform adequately in their current job. Many clients are long-term unemployed a dependent on social benefits; many have been restrained by their violent partner in their efforts to keep a job, restrained in their social contacts. All of this limits their ability to succeed in the job market. Thanks to a grant project “The Path from Violence to Dignity and Self-Sufficiency” we could start providing systematic individual and group career counselling to domestic violence victims. The author’s long-term experience with both career counselling and domestic violence counselling was a key advantage in the beginning. As it shows, domestic violence victims have specific characteristics when it comes to career counselling and these need to be considered. Often, acute trauma is present, and it is necessary to decide the timing and sequence of psychological interventions and career counselling. Amotivation and passivity are frequently present bringing motivation and empowerment of our clients to the forefront of our career counselling.
Workshop 5.1
Workshop 5.2
Career counselling in groups
Karina Meinecke & Lotte Wegge AndersenC1.08 Šariš
Group counselling is a method used in Copenhagen Youth Center, as part of career counselling in public and private schools with pupils between the ages of 14 to 16. The counselling method has been used in different contexts, but the overall goal is to empower the pupils to develop and increase personal and social skills.
Career counselling in groups give the pupils an opportunity to get inspired by peers. Research shows that it creates a community where the pupils can share mutual reflections, and thus explore different ways of thinking and seeing the world. It provides space for reflection, and the group acts as a source of insight and support.
The issues covered by group counselling can vary, but in Copenhagen we have focused on motivation, the 24 VIA character strengths, how to cooperate, social and personal skills, respect and tolerance. These considerations are of key importance in the educational arena, and in the pupils' future working life as part of a democratic society.
The career counsellor's role is to facilitate the group and encourage reflection on the topic, but also ensure that the participants become aware of how to make the changes necessary to meet their goals. We see the career counsellors as change agents.
In this workshop we will demonstrate aspects of our own practice and give examples on how career counselling in groups can contribute to successful learning experiences and maximize the impact of learning. Participants of this workshop will be required to participate in different group activities.
Workshop 5.3
Interinstitutional cooperation and holistic approach to students’ study path in Finland
Helena Kasurinen & Päivi-Katriina Juutilainen & Mervi Lätti & Arto SalorantaC1.09 Zemplén
The Finnish education system is strongly based on the ideology of equality. Even after the completion of the compulsory education (comprehensive school), the strong societal aim in Finland is to guarantee second-level education for the whole age group. The second-level education in Finland is divided into two sectors: academically orientated upper secondary school and vocational education. Both routes give eligibility for further studies in higher education. The goal for lifelong learning in Finland is to grow the number of young adults with higher education degree up to at least 50 %.
In the workshop, we will introduce results of two projects. First, the project that dealt with holistic and partnership approaches, and inter-institutional cooperation. In this project vocational schools and universities of applied sciences made cooperation in order to find flexible routes for students to continue their studies. The project also included research, and the results of students’ experiences of career guidance during their study path will be presented in the workshop. Moreover, the practical models developed and national recommendations for future cooperation are introduced.
The second example is a research project in which a multidisciplinary approach was used when exploring students’ well-being and future beliefs at vocational schools and universities of applied sciences. The questionnaire dealt with resilience, agency, study skills, and career management and employment skills. In the workshop, we will describe the main results of the research project. Moreover, we will introduce the digital Service and Support Need Indicator developed in the project that started in 2018 following the earlier mentioned research project.
Workshop 5.4
16:30 - 18:30 Tools fair
Tools
Tool 01: Bilan de compétences / skills audit adapted to Roma people – experience from Hungary Bulgaria, Romania and Greece
Ronald SchonknechtFoyer
Bilan de compétences / skills audit is a specific approach career guidance based on an analysis of knowledge, skills and competences of individuals, including their aptitudes and motivations to define a career project and/or plan professional reorientation or a training project.
The bilan de compétences is based on the voluntariness and active participation of the participant and uses evaluation of competences acquired in formal and informal context as well as personal characteristics and motivations related to the occupational, economic and social environment of the client. It leads to elaboration of the realistic career objective and the action plan. It is based on multidisciplinary approach and strong cooperation with local stakeholders (employers, employment services, NGOs etc.).
Since 2013, this approach has been in use in different projects in the region of Kiskunhalás (Hungary) and Buzău (Romania) as a tool for helping members of the marginalized Roma population to integrate the labour market.
The adapted methodology of the bilan de compétences/skills audit for the population of Roma will be presented: competence portfolio, personal survey, group observation exercises, final report and action plan as well as other practical counselling tools and approaches used in practice.
Tool 02: Building Learning territories through Open Badges: enable the encounter of individuals recognition and territories needs.
Eden Jean-Marie & Muriel MoujeardFoyer
We believe that the role of the counsellor is no longer to guide but to help the individual to perceive and widen the field of possibilities. These capacities are closely linked to the reflective practice which includes two orientations: one turned towards yourself (internal), the second one towards the environment (external).
We assume that the individual and his counsellor will have to act on two dimensions: the individual dimension – the development of skills, feeling of competence, and desire to act; the collective dimension – the resources and opportunities offered by the socio-economic environment, but also the individual’s perception and feeling of control over these opportunities.
We support the emergence of a reflective practice affecting both orientations (internal/external) and both dimensions (individual/collective), by accompanying individuals and territories with two complementary approaches: one focused on the individual dimension (DIA#LOG), the other one on the collective dimension (building Learning territories with Open Badges). While DIA#LOG responds to the internal orientation, the creation of learning territories integrating Open Badges aims to allow the external orientation of reflective practice.
Our objective is to design pathways for the identification, acquisition and recognition of transversal skills to enable people excluded from the world of work to embark on pathway of learning. These pathways are based on identified skills needs and existing resources of the territory materialized and translated into co-constructed Open Badges.
Tool 04: E-learning in career counselling
Veronika Zibrínyiová & Zuzana KožárováFoyer
Career development, including the enhancement of career management skills, is considered one of the key areas of student development in the context of employability. The report focuses on the description of the electronic (online) course, which aims to help students of Pavol Jozef Šafárik University in Košice to understand the functioning of the labour market, to realize their own competencies and to name them in relation to employability. At the same time, it allows them to develop a career plan as a basis for future work success. The report also describes the results of testing the pilot version of e-learning on a small sample of students. The benefits of e-learning include increasing the likelihood of students/graduates employment on the labour market, increasing the availability and attractiveness of career counselling through the use of innovative methods to as many university students as possible, including students with specific needs, and linking it with the activities offered by the university and University Counselling Centre, in addition to their studies.
Tool 05: How I Do It - career guidance activities
Miroslava BřezinováFoyer
Day D and The Child / student company: practical introduction to employment opportunities not only as an employee but also as an employer - entrepreneur
(distribution into "business" groups, business plans, advertising slogans, production of products (service), presentations)
Journey to the profession:
theoretically: description of the work of the individual activities that are applied in the companies
practically: in the form of excursions with the possibility to try different professions.
These activities are usable in career counseling at primary school for pupils of 8th and 9th class.
Objective of the activities: basic familiarity with the topic of choice of occupation, business and application in regional companies
Activities are usable within RVP / ŠVP - Working activities - the world of work
Tool 06: JOB CENTER: Review of the initiative to rehabilitate vulnerable groups in Municipality of Athens, Greece
Georgiou ElisavetFoyer
The economic crisis and the rising unemployment in Greece over the last decade has led to the creation of the first Job Center in Greece was created with the initiative of the Municipality of Athens.
Its specific and ultimate goal is to help individuals of vulnerable social groups to progress through a holistic model of mobilization, skills’ empowerment, support throughout the job search, as well as the support to adapt to their new work environment.
The benefiting population groups are targeted at people who are disadvantaged in terms of their smooth integration into the labor market due to economic, social and cultural causes such as unemployed young people, unemployed people over 50, unemployed women, single parent families, illiterate, long-term unemployed, former or current prison prisoners, juvenile offenders, people with linguistic or cultural specificities refugees and immigrants.
After two years of operation, we are pleased to have served more than 300 beneficiaries, of whom about 4 out of 10 are actively working.
By applying an innovative approach with the holistic support of the beneficiaries and by supporting them in the social and psychological issues they face, combined and in co-operation with various specialized stakeholders, we have been able to increase the rates of the work placements every month.
Our motto is "Together we create a new beginning" because we want to teach the beneficiaries how to fish and not eat the fish that someone gives them by solidarity.
Tool 07: JOBLAND – improving career learning at school in primary education
Anita Montagna & Iannis GiulioFoyer
By challenging stereotypical views about certain careers and promoting self-exploration, career learning (CL) activities help children raise aspirations and play a crucial role when it comes to improving social mobility and contrasting disadvantage. Despite robust evidence on the importance of CL in an early age, this remains a key challenge in many European Countries.
The JOBLAND project represents an international action research on early CL (www.joblandproject.eu). The research, funded by Erasmus+, is promoted by an international partnership among universities and career guidance providers. It aims to investigate the state of the art of early CL in Europe in order to help schools improve the quality of CL activities during the first step of school education (with resources, educational games, training materials).
The JOBLAND consortium decided to adopt as pedagogical approach the methodology of Participatory Action Research with the active involvement of the project stakeholders in the co-creation of the project outputs.
As a preliminary step of the project, 160 teachers, guidance practitioners and public authorities from Romania, Italy, UK, Spain and Turkey were involved in 21 focus groups which investigated the participants’ understanding of CL, their emerging needs and mapped existing CL activities.
Results show that participants‘ definitions of CL generally focus on two main areas which broadly refer to self-explorations/self-awareness and to undestanding the world of work and careers. Many participants highlighted the role of CL in preventing early school leaving, leveraging social inequalities and fighting stereotypes.
Participants listed a variety of activities done at a school, regional and national level which often lack a comprehensive terminology, methodological framework and quality assurance methods. Participants consistently reported the need for training materials and educational resources.
Results of the focus groups represent the foundational step of the JOBLAND project. They offer a strong rationale for building effective models of early CL and for developing tools and resources as foreseen in the JOBLAND project.
Tool 08: KIPINÄ: SPARKS Career Counselling (Practical tool/method/activity)
Minna KatteliFoyer
I will present the key characteristics of the SPARKS career counselling model for individual counselling and peer group counselling of young people and adults, and the tools used in the counselling process: the visual and structured SPARKS chart, the SPARKS cards, and the SPARKS menus. The objective of the SPARKS model is to make transparent the career counselling process and to help the counsellee visualize the various areas of their life (using the SPARKS chart) which impact career and action planning. The SPARKS model has its theoretical foundation in constructivist approaches, including sociodynamic career counselling (Peavy, 1997, 2004), life design counselling (Savickas, 2012), and contextual action theory (Young & Valach, 2004). (Kattelus, 2019b)
In the SPARKS model, visualization is the main counselling method used to analyze the career counselling session and record it on the SPARKS chart using text, drawings, and colours. Visualization here also means using different visual tools in the counselling session to promote dialogue. The SPARKS questions and task cards contain a great many methods for visual counselling, activity exercises, narrative exercises, as well as tasks and questions based on mental imagery. The SPARKS strengths and emotional description cards can help to reveal counsellees’ true feelings and thoughts, and the SPARKS menus are handy tools that assist counsellees to quickly identify strengths and areas needing improvement—as well as what are, for them, important qualities in future jobs.
For counsellees, the SPARKS Career Counselling process means analyzing their objectives and options, strengthening their motivation and self-confidence, and bolstering their belief in a positive future. The approach helps them to mentally link themselves to the boundary conditions of their vocational preferences.
Tool 09: Learner-centered digital ecosystem of competence development - Enterprise Architecture guiding the digital transformation
Antti Laitinen & Ari RouvariFoyer
CompLeap (www.compleap.eu) is an EU (DG Connect) funded project developing new kind of digital solutions to support lifelong competence development. Since there is already a lot of different digital solutions available in the market the project aims to create the framework architecture design which helps to create interoperability between such services. This kind of method is useful also when developing digital guidance services and basically any kind of digital services for learners – the problem is that quite often the development of digital services is not based upon this kind of shared architecture and therefore for example different information systems often are not at all interoperable which also makes their use difficult.
Upon the framework architecture design created in this project CompLeap is also creating new kind of digital service prototypes to this ecosystem. A practical tool that could be used also in career and study guidance is the digital competence profile which gives recommendations of suitable educational paths based on your interest and earlier competence development.
Framework architecture design:
In CompLeap project the enterprise architecture (EA) method is used for creating an integrated and holistic learner-centred digitalised ecosystem framework that will look beyond existing, often siloed, structures.
Main aims and reasons to use EA in general are:
1. Putting the strategy into action
2. Visualizing the ideas and future
3. Steering, leading and decision making
4. Communicating and co-operating
5. Interoperability in all architecture layers
6. For gaining digital transformation
EA is a well working, actually crucial, tool for planning and achieving the learner-centred digitalised ecosystem of competence development.
Tool 10: REFLEX - Researcher Career Development Scheme (Online and off-line tool)
Janka KottulovaFoyer
The REFLEX scheme is a tool developed to help research institutions and professionals assisting researchers to take a more comprehensive and sustainable approach to the career development of researchers. Specifically, the tool aims to (a) support research institutions in developing tailor-made institutional strategies for career development of their researchers and (b) help researchers, their supervisors and career advisors discuss the individual professional development strategies. The tool can be used in both individual and group setting, and it is suitable for both one-off discussion and brainstorming sessions as well as for the long-term strategy building activities. The tool was developed within the REFLEX project supported by the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme for research, technological development and demonstration. More information about the tool are available at the REFLEX project website: https://euraxess-reflex.saia.sk
Tool 11: Research driven workshop for developing career counselling practices in HE
Leena Penttinen & Leena ItkonenFoyer
In 21st century, HE students have more feelings of insecurity because of the changing world of work and society. At the same time, resources for career guidance are limited and academic staff is struggling in identification of their role in supporting students’ career related tasks.
Embedding employability into the academic curricula has received increasing attention during the last decades. There is also a need to understand how employability and work life relevance are transferred into career planning skills. The traditional means and methods of developing employable and confident graduates in HEs include developing students’ career skills, linking curriculum learning and career skills, supporting students’ career and professional identity development and learning from experience and career information (LMI). However, the co-operation between the academic staff and the career services often contains challenges though there is a mutual understanding that the curriculum needs to have working life relevance.
This method has been developed to the practical needs for co-operation between the career services and the academic staff. It is used to identify students’ career concerns and categorize the career related activities in studies in HE (Lairio & Penttinen 2006; Penttinen, Skaniakos & Lairio, 2013). The co-operation between career counsellors and academic teaching staff can clarify different kind of activities to support students’ career related processes in HE. The theoretical framework for the method lies on the ideas of Savickas’s (2005) career construction theory and the sociological viewpoint introduced in Careership theory from Hodkinson and Sparkes (1997).
The method is introduced by active group work. A clear theory-driven model is introduced for organizing a workshop which helps to develop the co-operation between career service and counsellors and academic staff.
Tool 12: Salmondo – web application for support of career counseling
Tibor KučeraFoyer
Salmondo is a web application that aims to support career counselors at secondary schools in providing their services effectively to all students who need it.
It helps its users to gain deeper knowledge of their talents through the mapping of the structure of their personality, motivation, interests and skills. Subsequently Salmondo helps users to define their personal vision, plan their goals and motivates them on their way to fulfil them through periodic coaching.
Students can work with Salmondo independently through web application and make use of psychological tests, questionnaires, positive psychology modules or search in database of professions or study fields. The outputs of each module can be easily shared in the app with the career advisor and used as a support material for the individual counseling. Thanks to that career counselor gets much additional information about students she/he can build on and contribute to student’s career decision easier.
Salmondo’s architecture is based on the best practices of career counselling and it links the key areas of career counselling: self-knowledge, planning and activity (motivation).
Self-knowledge chapter is focused on better understanding of users’ personality, strengths, interests, values and motivation. It includes several psychological tests and questionnaires, as well as modules based on positive psychology and managerial techniques. In following sections, users are led to work with all information they put together in self-knowledge chapter and make use of other relevant information from databases of study options (schools and study programs) and occupations. They can create a personal long-term plan (vision) with specific (SMART) goals that leads to its fulfilment. Subsequently they can use online GROW coaching, track their progress and stay motivated to achieve their goals.
Tool 13: The “Talents & Transitions Patchwork” (TTP) method
David John BourneFoyer
The “Talents & Transitions Patchwork” is both a counselling method and a product. It was first designed by an occupational psychologist, David J. Bourne, during career counselling sessions. Nowadays, the method is widely used by more than 200 practitioners in France (FONGECIF, CIBC, GRETA, PES,…) to facilitate the exploration of individuals experience especially in the frame of “Bilans de Compétences” and in the frame of career counselling.
The method offers the metaphor of a patchwork quilt for exploring individuals’ life experiences from a holistic and constructivist perspective.
The patchwork is considered and used in the career counselling process as a medium of self-expression. It “captures and illustrates activities experienced by individuals throughout their lives: each patchwork is made up of different patches sewn together, symbolising experienced activities in which the individual can bring contrasting backgrounds together to create meaning” (Pouyaud and Bourne, 2017). As a highly significant personal pattern, the patchwork is co-analysed by the client and the practitioner through the counselling process”.
The TTP method offers an effective manner to explore personal construct systems by allowing easy access to content that may otherwise be difficult to verbalise. In that sense, it is an innovative way of helping people describes their worlds with their own words and drawings.
Tool 14: The Career and Values Genokeygram (CV Genokey) – Empower Yourself With the new Genokey Lens!
Esther Tan & Josephine Kim & M. NakkulaFoyer
The Career and Values Genokeygram (CV Genokey) was newly-developed as a career counseling tool that explores the impact of significant relationships on one’s career decisions.
Career choices and the career-life values of key people (familial and nonfamilial significant others) are examined to uncover their underlying influences on one’s choices as these key people influencers often play key roles to influence our career-life trajectories in more ways than we know. The CV Genokey draws from the foundations of career genograms, but incorporated significant others beyond one’s family of origin by adding on one’s later-life positive and negative influencers, with a key addition of a deeper exploration of one’s career-life values, all in one diagram. The Genokey’s goal is to facilitate the process of exploring one’s past, present, and future and aims to reveal hidden roadblocks and clarify implicit and unnamed career-life values, ultimately empowering one to make changes in career goals. The tool consists of two parts: a visual component where one draws a Career and Values Genokeygram, followed by a reflective exercise, where one engages in the structured process of reflecting and journaling. Three case studies will be presented alongside to illustrate the application of the Genokey to an Asian clientele, across varying age groups.
This tool helps the counsellor to consolidate the client’s personal attributes such as interests, values, skills, together with unexamined key influencers, all in one diagrammatic form for further analyses and processing together with the career counsellor. It helps the counsellor to organize information quickly in a structured manner, and with aid of structured reflective questions to surface one’s thought-action gap in fulfilling what they would like to pursue, rather than what their significant others’ might have wanted them to pursue. The tool facilitates a process to uncover, clarify, and empower.
Tool 15: The e-portfolio: a new tool for career learning
Anita Montagna & Giulio IannisFoyer
The portfolio is a tool for promoting self-reflection and is often used in career education to foster self-regulated learning, favour sense-making processes and promote career management skills, a set of transversal key competences for managing lifelong study and work transitions.
The e-portfolio represents a fully customisable digital version of the portfolio. It allows the creation of personalised and flexible learning environments and can be used both in its landline and mobile versions. The e-portfolio supports different input materials, allows both individual and group activities and is completely open-source.
The e-portfolio provided by Mahara (an open-source platfom) was used and adapted to help a group of n=70 higher secondary school students document and reflect on their learning-at-work experience (LAWE) and to help them enhance the guidance potential of these experiences.
The intervention lasted for three weeks. The e-portfolio worked as a support tool for the entire intervention (using both computers and mobile phones). Prior to the LAWE, students were offered an initial session of career education focused on self-exploration, expectations and on mapping the learning-at-work professional context. They then took part in their LAWE and for three weeks documented and tracked the experience. In the last day, they attended a follow-up closing session to reflect on, evaluate and locate the experience done in their career journey.
Using the Mahara e-portfolio, the practitioner was able to dynamically track the students’ progress and to measure a series of key indicators of impact (such as grade of completion of the different sessions, students’ satisfaction, qualitative analysis of the content created, expectations met).
Students reported high satisfactory levels for the intervention, improved knowledge of the professional profiles associated to the LAWE context and increased self-awareness on personal interests, strengths and future plans. Results suggest the potential of the use of the e-portofolio to support LAWEs.
Tool 16: Workbooks “8 myths about choosing a future profession. Choose Your High School"
Katerina Malkova & Petra SnepfenbergovaFoyer
Workbooks “8 Myths” represent a practical tool for the selection of secondary school and future career path for pupils of the 8th - 9th classes of primary schools. The choice of vocational education at the age of 14-15 years is a complex task that is influenced by many factors. It's a personal immaturity, insufficient degree of self-knowledge, lack of knowledge of the labor market, low awareness of the opportunities of the education system, focusing on short-term goals, suggestibility opinions by the reference group (parents, peers, teachers, advertising schools). Promoting the ability of adolescents to make autonomous and responsible decisions based on clearly defined criteria is crucial in the process of choosing a future educational and career path. Therefore, the first part of the workbook is devoted to the stereotypes that often lead to incorrect reasoned decision. In this section, teens are encouraged to reflect on their own opinion of 8 most common myths about career choice. In the second part of the workbook there is a set of practical exercises in a logical sequence performed teenagers determining the actual educational goals, shaping ideas about their future life, the process of self-knowledge, awareness of their abilities and interests to the selection of secondary school and plan action steps. The key to selecting a discipline is Howard Gardner's Multiple Intelligence Theory. Among other things, pupils learn about such important terms as competences, values, learning styles, personal branding, lifelong learning. Workbooks are supplemented by links to other information sources from career guidance network in the Czech Republic, thematic videos and a recommended books for teenagers. Pilot use of workbooks for primary schools in teaching the subject "Career Choice" will run from September 2019 with the support of the Local Action Plan ORP Tišnov in the South Moravian region of the Czech Republic.
Tool 17: SOMOPRO programme as a tool to encourage gender balance in research at the South Moravian region
Michael DoležalFoyer
SoMoPro – the South Moravian Programme for Distinguished Researchers was established in 2009 to support the research base in the South Moravian region. Since its establishment, a total of 71 researchers have participated in this unique scheme. The programme helps the host institution to keep research on European level, contribute to networking with research centres and arrange for knowledge transfer.
The programme offers equal opportunities for both males and females. However, to increase the number of female researchers a special Career Restart Panel has been introduce to soften the entry conditions for women after a career break.
Special arrangements have been in place to deal with women on maternity leaves during the project span. This helps to improve the work-life balance for female researchers.
Tool 18 (book signing): Career Theories and Models at Work: Ideas for Practice (2019)
Nancy Arthur & Mary McMahon & Roberta Neault (Eds.)Foyer
Join us to learn more about a new book on theories and models of career development! Our new edited international collection of contemporary and emerging career development theories and models is practice-focused. The book can be used by practitioners or as a text for undergraduate and graduate career counselling courses. Readers have shared ideas about how they have been using the book in creative ways, individually and with colleagues. Join us to learn more about those ideas to help you transfer knowledge about theories and models to your practice setting.
This publication provides practitioners with a tangible resource they can use to develop theory-informed interventions.
• Contains 43 chapters on the theories and models that define the practice of career development today
• Contributors are 60 of the leading career researchers and practitioners from four continents and nine countries: Australia, Canada, England, Finland, India, the Netherlands, New Zealand, South Africa and the United States
• Featured authors include the original theorists and those who have adapted the work in unique ways to inform career development practice
Presented in a reader-friendly format, each chapter includes a Case Vignette that illustrates how a theory or model can be applied in practice, and Practice Points that summarize key takeaways for career practitioners to implement with clients. Additional references are also included. This is the book that makes theories and models practical!
Tool 19 (book signing): Making school relevant with individualized learning plans
V. Scott SolbergFoyer
Counseling expert V. Scott H. Solberg introduces a new paradigm and framework for career development focused on teaching skills that all students need to set long-term goals and experience postsecondary success. Based on nearly a decade of research and technical assistance in schools, the book shows how educators can leverage the use of individual learning plans (ILPs) to help students identify their interests and create their own career pathways using resources inside and outside of school.
In Making School Relevant with Individualized Learning Plans, Solberg argues that the most effective career development is delivered using a multiyear whole-school approach led by caring advisors and other mentors, combined with the use of readily available online tools and resources. Core chapters provide examples of specific activities and resources that advisors and others can draw on for helping students develop three critical skill sets: selfexploration, career exploration, and career planning and self-management, all of which are needed to succeed in the world of work.
This book will help educators and youth development leaders understand how ILPs prepare their youth to become college- and career-ready and thereby transition from high school with the competencies and drive necessary to pursue their career and life goals.
Tool 20: IMMERSE YOURSELF IN THE WORLD OF THOSE WHO ARE NOT ALWAYS VISIBLE: Virtual reality & online living library challenges prejudices
Juraj Récky & Ondrej MlynárFoyer
The labour market today is very challenging. Many companies are searching for motivated employees who would be able to work. Nowadays companies have more focus on how to get to their potential employees who are not visible or they did not have an opportunity to start their working career because of discrimination or bad social - economics environment. How it is to be in their skin?
If you work as a Career Counsellor or HR Manager the opportunity to try Virtual reality and get into the skin of the others is here. Thanks to the non profit organization EDUMA you can try what does it mean to be young Roma, person without home, sightless or to have some handicap and to go through obstacles in our society.
What would you do in their situation? What would you do if you could not put of the Virtual reality? Experience how it is to be different but at the end the same. Know more their stories also through the Online Living Library.
Virtual Reality enables you to peep into the world of the deaf, blind, Roma or people with physical handicap. Find yourself in the skin of those who experience obstacles in our society. Thanks to Virtual Reality you will hopefully come to understand, how it feels to face the prejudices, intolerance and rejection in the society.
The Online Living Library is an online educational portal which is full of Human Books that have found the courage to share their stories. They openly speak about their obstacles to overcome their handicap, race, culture, religion or social background. They help us understand young people who face rejection and discrimination. Human Books should not only inspire and motivate, but also break down prejudices towards disadvantaged groups of people. Its goal is to make people build and develop their own ideas and critical thinking, not only copy the opinions of others, as well as to help them perceive a particular topic from many viewpoints and to be able to form their own attitudes.
Friday 13 Sep 2019
09:00 - 10:30 Parallel sessions 6
Conference symposium 6 - Early career adult education
Early career adult education trainers and their learning and career pathways in organisations
Günter Hefler & Denisa Fedakova & Francesca Rapana & Eva Steinheimer & Ivana Studena & Gabriel Weibl & Janine WulzB1.06 Kysuce
This symposium consisting of 4 contributions draws attention to the role of an individual's learning at the workplace and the intersection of individual and organisational factors shaping the individual's learning and career pathways. H2020 ENLIVEN research project employs interdisciplinary approach to gather evidence on how early career workers access and deploy learning opportunities in 3 diverse sectors (metals, retails, adult education) across 8 EU countries. In this contribution proposed for the IAEVG conference we focus on a selection of research work undertaken in different subfields of adult education sector in 3 countries. The arguments for direct relevance of this work for adult career guidance includes: i) occupational and educational information is one of the key resources for career guidance professionals and their structuration of provision of quality career guidance models; ii) not only are adult education provision and carrier guidance closely inter-connected organisational fields, the professionals in this field are often professionally active simultaneously in both fields, career counselors providing training courses in different thematic areas and vice versa; iii) quality career guidance is often necessary pre-requisite for any adult who faces lack of motivation to learn further. For vulnerable adults facing more important difficulties and barriers to participate in lifelong learning activities, complex career guidance and support are vital. Complex information source on the conditions, drivers or barriers to learn in lifelong perspective are increasingly demanded from the lifelong learning stakeholders, policy makers and education professionals in the face of technological and societal changes the generations face and are expected to face in the near future.
Oral session 6.1 - French touch
Representations of work among low qualified young workers in different countries: a cross cultural qualitative approach
Valerie Cohen-Scali & Jonas MasdonatiPlenary room
Young people are particularly exposed to work precarity. The aim of our research was to identify and compare the representations of work among young low qualified workers in different parts of the world. The social representations approach (Moscovici, 1984) and the Psychology of Working Framework (Blustein, 2006), addressing key features of decent work, were used as theoretical frameworks. Ten young adults have been interviewed in eight countries of Europe (France, Iceland, Switzerland), America (Brazil, United-States), Western Asia (Lebanon) and Africa (Burkina Faso). The 70 interviews transcriptions have been processed according to a qualitative cross-cultural research methods analysis (Liamputtong, 2010).
Results showed similarities between these groups regarding decent work representations, work expectations, and the place of work in life. An adequate salary and good working conditions are considered as important expectations toward work, and the quality of the relationships at work is a key component of decent work across countries. Differences among cultural groups were observed regarding young adults’ experienced working conditions, which seem to reflect the Human Development Index of each county involved. Understanding the situations of young workers in different parts of the world enables to build more efficient career counseling devices taking into account socioeconomical and cultural issues.
Subjective age, ageing stereotypes, seniors´ employability
Sophie Tripon & Even LoarerPlenary room
In the context of the current demographic and organisational changes, and changes in the content of jobs, this research aims to analyse, for adult workers, the relationship between subjective age and career.
Our hypothesis is that subjective age might be a better predictor of career decisions and strategy than chronological age, especially in the second part of this career.
Our research aims to explore potential links between career construction, by different career specifications (learning, internal or external mobility, professional bifurcation, entrepreneurship, no change) and individual attitudes to age and aging, by the notion of subjective age.
A qualitative interview survey was conducted with 50 adults. It focuses on attitudes towards age, aging and career. An analysis of the main characteristics of career choices and career strategies examined the relationship between subjective age and career guidance strategy and behaviors. Several questionnaires were also used. These questionnaires focus on individual representations and adherence to stereotypes of aging in a chronological perspective (past, present and future).
The study corroborates the existence of a subjective age, different from the actual age, and an inter and intra individual variability of this subjective age.
The subjective age is contextualized and depends on several individual and contextual factors. Subjective age seems to be related to individual representations of age and aging, but also to dominant social norms.
The results also corroborate our hypothesis of more significant relationship between subjective age and career choices than with chronological age.
Understanding the professional ambition to develop it better: the example of WorldSkills competition
Catherine Valmorin & Even LoarerPlenary room
Several so-called "manual" professions suffer from a negative image. "Underjobs", Unattractive, painful, poorly paid, ghettos of underprivileged students, "default" professional choice ... However, some young people who undertake these jobs, push their search for mastery, perfection and excellence until becoming national champions or Olympic champions (“WorldSkills competition”) in their profession. The origin of their motivation is off great interest for us. They have talent, will, or luck but that does not explain their motivation to succeed. We chose to study the origin of their ambition.
Ambition, often equated with motivation, has been little studied so far and remains largely unknown. We propose here to study the psychological and social factors of professional ambition by a study conducted with members of the French team engaged in the Olympics games of professions. For this, we used an autobiographical approach, involving the analysis of life stories and cognitive mapping. First of all, this method allowed us to examine to what extent the support offered by WorldSkills constitutes both a "path of excellence in learning" and a powerful tool of professionalization for these young people. In a second step, we analyzed the psychological dimensions of their professional ambition.
Oral session 6.2 - Career and mental health
Contribution of Decent Work to the Relationship-to-Current-Work and the Mental Health of Canadian Workers
Viviers, Simon & Fournier, Geneviève & Lise Lachance & Imane Zineb Lahrizi & Liette GoyerB1.07 Liptov
Mental health problems are, according to the World Health Organization, a major issue of humanity to address in the century to come. Work can constitute a major vector for the construction of mental health. However, having a job is not enough to guarantee people's psychological health: good work conditions and organization are decisive concerning that issue. This oral paper explores the contribution of decent work to mental health amongst Quebec workers (Canada), considering also the relationship of these workers to their current job. Based on a psychosocial approach to decent work, this cross-sectional quantitative study was conducted by online questionnaire with 305 workers. Findings of SEM reveal a two-folded concept of decent work, which is predicted by socio-economic positions, and predicts in turn positive outcomes on relationship to current work and mental health. Questions raised about the differential effects on mental health of the dimensions of decent work that may or may not be related to instrumental indicators of job quality.
Should public health be a goal of career guidance policy?
Pete RobertsonB1.07 Liptov
Public health experts stress the importance of the social causation of disease. Work and education among the key determinants of health. Health detriments are associated with negative career experiences. This is illustrated by the substantial literature linking unemployment to increased incidence of mental health conditions. An emerging evidence base suggests that there may be long term ‘health scarring’ effects of youth unemployment that endure long into adulthood. It is reasonable to see career as an important category of factors influencing health outcomes.
If health has social determinants then it follows that follows that social interventions can contribute to public health. Public health interventions can been seen as offering three levels of protection, by acting to:
i. Prevent the onset of health conditions
ii. Shorten the duration and reduce the severity of health conditions, and prevent their re-occurrence,
iii. Ameliorate the severity of illness experiences and reduce their impact on functioning.
Poor health leads to economic costs for governments due to increased demand for health and social care. In the working age population, economic impacts are amplified by absenteeism, reduced tax revenues and increased welfare benefit costs for those unable to work. Interventions that improve these outcomes have both health and economic value.
At a national level, career guidance can be conceptualised as a public health intervention. Recommendations will be made as to the implication of this for practitioners, for services, and for working with policymakers.
Taking Agentic Action at the Intersection of Career and Mental Health Domains
Mary Sue RichardsonB1.07 Liptov
This paper proposes that the notion of taking agentic action provides a crucial intersection between career and mental health domains. Agentic actions are actions that one wants to take, on some level; taking agentic actions is the ability to take such actions, to be intentional and self-directed in one's life. This paper is informed by a holistic, contextual model of human development, counseling for work and relationship, that stipulates three major social contexts of development, (a) market or paid work, (b) care work in personal lives (unpaid), and (c) relationships, through which most people co-construct their lives. Taking agentic actions, especially in market work contexts, is central to contemporary career theory and practice. It is also important in psychotherapy, the signature intervention practice in mental health where the ability to take agentic action is widely considered an outcome of successful psychotherapy. A focus on taking agentic action opens up significant areas of collaboration between these two domains. For example, mental health issues may negatively impact the ability to take agentic action in the social context of market work. Conversely, constraints in the social context of market work may negatively affect mental health and adversely impact the ability to take agentic action across life contexts. Furthermore, such collaboration may help to heal the split between the personal and the social realms of human experience that has been reified in these two domains of theory and practice. Finally, the issue of inclusivity is central when discussing agentic action because the structure of opportunities significantly impacts the experience and expression of agentic actions, especially in relation to market work contexts. Narrative methods relevant to both career and psychotherapy practices may help to address the narrowing of lives due to constraints on agentic action in market work contexts.
Oral session 6.3 - International student mobility
Career Mobility of non-European Graduates from European HEIs
Erik ZeltnerB1.08 Orava
For international graduates from European higher education institutions (HEIs), their rising numbers and the attempts to utilize their international experience in a globalized labor market result in an increasingly challenging transition period. This development is accompanied by the students’ intention of staying in the respective host country after graduation, which is consistently above 60% in several European countries, and there is a discrepancy between this intention to stay and the actual stay rates of European host countries. Moreover, data suggest that recent non-European graduates are more likely to be unemployed than their European colleagues or must contend with longer periods of unemployment. Furthermore, international experience is not necessarily a key factor in recruitment. Regardless of whether graduates can stay, return home or establish a career elsewhere, the transition process is often accompanied by the challenges of (re)entry and (re)acculturation.
Based on several case studies of international students and their transitional experience of non-European graduates from study to work, I provide an integrated analysis of transcripts of semi-structured interviews conducted with non-European graduates from German and UK HEIs. Based on multiple case study research, which I carried out in cooperation with a German and a UK HEI and ten of their non-European fulltime master’s graduates, I particularly analyze and contrast their educational, professional and cultural transition experience and the entrance of host societies considering their expectations and motives for studying abroad, including their aspirations for migration, and the correspondence with experienced reality. Subsequently, conclusions are drawn regarding career development and management for prospective and current non-European students, including individual and institutional aspects of transition, such as policy and promotion of employment for foreign graduates in Germany and the UK, as well as implications and directions for further potential research activities will be discussed with the audience.
Cross-border career counselling for students: A case of Euroregion Nisa
Kateřina MaršíkováB1.08 Orava
The paper introduces topical issue of the cross-border counselling in the Czech and German part of the Euroregion Nisa. The paper presents key findings of the Gemini project and the study findings of the qualitative and quantitative survey data collected in this project between 2016 and 2019. Possibilities at the labour market in Euroregions open the question if and how students of secondary schools get an information support to find a job in the neighbour country. The survey found out that students of secondary schools in the Liberec region are willing to find a job abroad but the institutional support (state structure, frame and also school level) are not sufficient. Most of the schools do not have a specialist and students get information mainly from parents or the Internet. The analysis during the Gemini project identified gaps in the legislation frame, labour market differences, importance of setting of eurocompetencies and also the need for brining tools for professionals to support students in their preparation for future career in Czech and German part of the Nisa Euroregion. For the support of a development and an improvement of these factors it is important to carry out initiatives of professionals, secondary schools, projects and specialised publications in the cross border context. This issues have been discussed in the paper.
Exploring factors influencing career outcomes of international STEM master’s students of English-taught programs in Japan
Yuko RyanB1.08 Orava
Japan, in 2016, was ranked among the top four host countries of inflows of international tertiary-educated students among OECD countries, and it occupied the top position in the non-Anglophone country category. Alongside the “300,000 International Students Plan” announced in 2008, Japan introduced a direct policy pathway for study-related migration. Although Japan has become a key nation for international student mobility/migration (ISM), ISM research pertaining to Japan is scarce. By exploring the issue from the angle of facilitation of international university students’ education-to-work transition, this case study attempts to identify the key factors that helped or hindered career decision-making and job search of international STEM master’s students of English-taught programs in Japan. Drawing on primary data from the surveys conducted in a particular university, aspects that are considered to have some influence on international students’ decisions pertaining to their career path and their career outcome are explored. The findings are relevant to international students, career supporters, universities as well as policymakers, since Japan needs to form posts for the “300,000 International Students Plan” as this was the target set for 2020.
Oral session 6.4 - Career education
Career Education for Teachers toward an Inclusive Society: Focusing on the Issues of Sexual Diversity
Tomoe Kawasaki & Masahito YoshimuraB1.09 Turiec
Inclusive education has been referred to mostly as a synonym of special needs education in the Japanese context, although it has often been defined internationally as a wider concept (UNESCO, 2005, 2009). Special needs education for minorities with mental, physical or sensory impairment is now an essential topic or area in every teacher education/training program in Japan, but other factors for inclusion have not been dealt with. There is rather large minority groups, however, that has been invisible in the Japanese cultural context but gradually disclosed: gender and sexual minorities.
The purpose of this research is to investigate how we can tackle the issues of gender and sexual orientation in the teacher education program at the graduate level. We decided to utilize a career development model that we had already developed (Kawasaki, Yoshimura & Nakai, 2015, 2017), partly modifying the model and implementing classes concerning the issues. The effects of the program were evaluated through analyzing the results of a questionnaire survey for pre-service and in-service teachers in the program. We could observe significant changes in their understanding of diversity in schools and communities, deepening of their human rights awareness and their attitude concerning interrelationships with others.
Oral session 6.5
Building Learning territories through Open Badges: enable the encounter of individuals recognition and territories needs.
Eden Jean-Marie & Muriel MoujeardB1.10 Záhorie
We believe that the role of the counsellor is no longer to guide but to help the individual to perceive and widen the field of possibilities. These capacities are closely linked to the reflective practice which includes two orientations: one turned towards yourself (internal), the second one towards the environment (external).
We assume that the individual and his counsellor will have to act on two dimensions: the individual dimension – the development of skills, feeling of competence, and desire to act; the collective dimension – the resources and opportunities offered by the socio-economic environment, but also the individual’s perception and feeling of control over these opportunities.
We support the emergence of a reflective practice affecting both orientations (internal/external) and both dimensions (individual/collective), by accompanying individuals and territories with two complementary approaches: one focused on the individual dimension (DIA#LOG), the other one on the collective dimension (building Learning territories with Open Badges). While DIA#LOG responds to the internal orientation, the creation of learning territories integrating Open Badges aims to allow the external orientation of reflective practice.
Our objective is to design pathways for the identification, acquisition and recognition of transversal skills to enable people excluded from the world of work to embark on pathway of learning. These pathways are based on identified skills needs and existing resources of the territory materialized and translated into co-constructed Open Badges.
Guidance at Postgraduate level: Students and Graduates Trajectories in an Online Master's Degree in Argentina and in Spain
Silvia Batlle & Beatriz Malik Liévano & Juan Cingolani & Cristina Sansone & Emmanuel Pacheco & Carolina AlbertoB1.10 Záhorie
Abstract:
In recent years there has been an important transformation of the Higher Education System, both in Argentina and internationally, bringing about an expansion of distance postgraduate courses, an option increasingly sought after by students due to the greater scope of access and the possibility of more autonomous learning. The diversity of institutions has multiplied, with an increase of the number and type of postgraduate courses, and the number of students enrolled.
From a lifelong guidance perspective, we consider that entry and graduation are moments of transition which are important to study in order to develop guidance and support mechanisms for students and institutions. The theoretical approach of the study is psychosocial, in which both the subjective aspects of the students as well as the institutional and contextual ones are considered. This type of approach allows us to analyze and understand how students construct part of their personal, educational and work trajectory during the passage through this educational level.
The methodological research strategy is qualitative. In this paper we will present the comparison of the academic trajectory (degree course, motivation to choose the Postgraduate programme and modality -distance or face to face-, and socialization during the master's degree) of a sample of 5 current students and 5 graduates of a virtual master's degree in Argentina, and a similar sample in Spain (the results will be presented at the Conference).
Based on the results obtained in the present research, ideas for guidance at the Postgraduate level, in transition economies and uncertain times, can be derived.
Interest, work values and STEM fields - Secondary school students' opinion on future work
Csilla TudlikB1.10 Záhorie
Interest and work values form each other though values have a more stable base. Kozma (2005) says that students prefer university majors linked to their values, while Sőrés (2012) claims that values get stronger during university education. According to Bocsi (2014) higher education is a transition: the least pragmatic the trainings are, the most changes in values happen over working years. We have examined secondary school students' work values and interest (n=150) by using Super Work Values Inventory and Holland Interest Inventory, and then compare the results to prior higher educational researches. The result shows that the two age-group's value list is similar at the first places. However, intellectual work, work performance, and creativity is more important for higher education students, which indicates the starting point of becoming intellectuals. Furthermore, Kiss (2015) demonstrated the main values linked to STEM fields and we have found that secondary schools students do not share exactly those values. As for interest, secondary school students are mostly sociable (both girls and boys), and they like economics and arts, but show slight interest in realistic and investigative activities. On the whole, the young do not find neither in values, nor in interest the STEM fields attractive, however they have the biggest chance to live and benefit from the fourth industrial revolution. We would like to raise the attention that there is lot to do to reach the goals of EU STEM Coalition
Workshop 6.1
Critical Reflection as a Tool for Social Justice in Career Guidance and Counselling
Eva Kavková & Siobhan NearyC1.06 Gömör
The workshop aims to explore critical approach towards professional practice in career guidance. Giroux (1992) or Apple (2001) have emphasised the need to explore power concepts of social and economic reality in order to uncover inequalities and social injustice that are deeply embedded within racial, gender, and class relations. Career guidance is becoming a powerful tool that can shape those realities and therefore career counsellors must question their professional practice to analyse, whether their work is reinforcing or reducing inequality (Irving, 2005).
In our workshop, we aim to introduce methods of critical reflection, which are widely used in social work, in order to ‘look outward, to the social and cultural artifacts and forms of thought which saturate our practices and inward to challenge the processes by which we make sense of the world’ (White, 2001). We will focus on transferability of those methods into the field of career guidance and introduce a concept of a ‘critical career counsellor’.
We will present key approaches in the first part of the workshop, such as anti-oppressive approach, anti-discriminatory practice, reflexivity and critical incident analysis.
Participants will get acquainted with biographical work in the second part of workshop. They will explore their own roots to uncover the way in which their life-story contains clues as to why they have chosen their vocation. They will reflect on turning points and relational and structural influences that will help them to better understand their strengths and weaknesses, identify and question their underlying values and beliefs, acknowledge and challenge possible assumptions on which they base their ideas and actions, recognize areas of potential bias or discrimination, acknowledge their fears and identify possible inadequacies or areas for improvement.
Workshop 6.2
Interdisciplinary teams for career guidance as a mechanism for improvement of career guidance services
Ružica Madžarević, Ivana VulićC1.07 Horehronie
In the Republic of Serbia, educational institutions are the key places for career guidance services (CGS) since they can reach large scale of students in the transitional periods (from one educational level to another, from school to work etc.). Although some of CGS were always present in the schools, they are now an obligatory part of schools’ annual programs, planned and implemented by Teams for CGS which were established by the set of educational reforms from 2013 onwards.
According to the research conducted in Serbia in 2016, both professional associates (school psychologists and pedagogues) and teachers are recognized as key carriers of CGS in over 70% of secondary school career guidance programs (Đurović, Golović and Jevtović, 2016). Students, school principals, former students, parents’ councils as well as higher education institutions, National employment service and employers are recognized as key partners in at least half of the school programs (ibid). Inclusion of partners with such different educational and working background can support the interdisciplinary approach to CGS which can be very beneficial for the quality of these services on the other hand (Sultana, 2018).
During this workshop participants will have the opportunity to hear more about how interdisciplinary career guidance teams can be a mechanism for quality of CGS in schools based on the experience of workshop leaders with implementation of continuous professional development programs for practitioners involved in the work of these teams. The workshop will be focused on the following topics: the organization of teams’ work, key elements of quality designing and planning of teams’ activities. Participants will have opportunity to integrate workshop content within their working experience through various practical exercises while gaining the idea about implementation of this kind of interdisciplinary teams in their working context.
Workshop 6.3
Publishing in an academic journal: Meet the editor(s) of the International Journal for Vocational and Educational Guidance
Jerôme RossierC1.08 Šariš
In this session we aim to demystify the editorial process of scientific journals of our field. We will first describe the overall functioning of a scientific journal (the role of the association and the role of the editor) and which type of articles that a journal such as the International Journal for Educational and Vocational Guidance publishes. The role of the editors, the editorial board, the advisory board, and reviewers will be detailed. We will present how manuscripts are assessed and how editorial decisions are made. We will also discuss which kinds of manuscript are usually assessed positively and are evaluated as interesting for our audience. We will present the criteria typically used by reviewers and editors to make their suggestions and make their decisions. Finally, we will address how to best format a manuscript in order to maximize its chances to be sent out for review and considered positively for publication. This presentation will be followed by an open discussion.
Workshop 6.4
Supporting career paths in Universities of Applied Sciences
Maija Joensuu & Kirsi Paavola & Irmeli Lignell & Katja MunterC1.09 Zemplén
This presentation gives an overview of a project “Supporting Career Paths in Universities of Applied Sciences (UAS)” and the development work done in the project. The project focuses especially on students who need special support in their studies and in career guidance, for example due to learning difficulties or mental or physical restraints. The aim of the project is to support the inclusive and accessible study path in universities of applied sciences and from universities to the world of work.
Supporting Career Paths in UAS -project is a national development project in Finland. It is funded by European Social Fund (2014-2020) and it partly applies practically oriented action research. Practically oriented action research enables the integration of planning, acting and evaluating of processes and repeating this cycle flexibly. The project started with a survey that aimed to deepen the knowledge about the current status, needs and experiences of career guidance services for students with special needs. These results will be the basis of focusing the career guidance service development during the project.
The preliminary findings in the project support the idea that accessible and inclusive career guidance practices in universities of applied sciences should focus on
• Supporting the individual needs of the student based on his/her strengths and competences to be developed
• The personal encounters and guidance sessions with students
• Improving the connection between world of work and universities of applied sciences
• Delivering accessible self-study materials via variable channels
• Ensuring the adequate guidance for all students based on their needs
• Improving alumni connections
This presentation aims to raise discussion about the inclusive and accessible career guidance in higher education from these aspects.
Workshop 6.5
The era of automation and robotization / opportunity or threat for career counselling
Zuzana ZáhradníkováC1.10 Zips
Based on the prognosis of Silicon Valley medium-skill professions and also middle-management roles will disappear in the next 25 years. Majority of Accountant and Auditors jobs will soon disappear due to the automation.
Also a number of low-skilled jobs will decrease significantly due to the robotization.
Major industries to be impacted are: Manufacturing, Technology, Cleantech, Food & Beverages, Finance, Law, Medical services etc.
In general there is a fear increasing of having no job in the future. By 2025, we’ll lose over five million jobs due to automation. Already 56% of companies globally have partially implemented automation.
How much do career guidance practitioners’ skills and career management skills need to be changed for 4.0 labour market. 65% of today’s 12-year-olds will have jobs that don’t yet exist...
14:00 - 15:15 Keynote workshops
Workshop 7.1
Workshop 7.2
The Question is the Answer: The Cultural Preparedness Approach to Assessment for Career Guidance
Gideon ArulmaniB1.02 Bohemia
An important proportion of the engagement between a career counsellor and a client focuses on bringing together information that would sharpen self-awareness for effective career decision making. The methods used to collect and organise this information could be influenced by the philosophic and theoretical models to which the career counsellor is committed. The rationale underlying methods of assessment and measurement have been the subject of extensive debate and the field has differentiated into the quantitative (psychometric) and the qualitative (non-psychometric) positions. Methods of assessment that are not culturally relevant to a given population could, albeit unintentionally, become agents of marginalisation and exclusion. However when an assessment technique draws upon context and lived experience it can become a powerful tool for inclusion and empowerment.
This workshop presents a brief critique of assessment methodology and demonstrates the Strengths and Accomplishments Questionnaire (SAQ), which takes a blended approach to assessment for career guidance, based on the cultural preparedness model. Participants will have a chance to experiment with the method and consider how it could be adapted to their contexts.
Workshop 7.3
Participating in integrative qualitative-quantitative career construction counselling in a group-based context
Kobus MareeB1.03 Moravia
It is common knowledge that career counselling is no longer regarded merely as an intervention aimed at advising people on matters such as finding an optimal fit between their traits and the requirements of a certain job. Instead, today, the primary aim of career counselling is to elicit people’s ‘stories’ through qualitative/storied assessment and their ‘scores’ through ‘testing’. Used integratively, these stories and scores can be drawn on to help people clarify their preferred interests, attributes, and strivings related to their career-life tasks and also their key career-life themes. Activities linked to certain life tasks can be planned jointly by counsellors and their clients and merged in relation to their key life themes to form career-life projects. This promotes the development of people’s career life-themes and enhances their career adaptability, career resilience, employability, and career agility – ultimately, improving their chances of designing purposeful lives.
In this workshop, by building on self- and career construction theory, life design counselling theory and by promoting reflection and reflexivity, participants will be helped in a group context to integrate their own ‘stories’ (outcomes obtained from completing the Career Interest Profile, a qualitative career counselling instrument that enables career counsellors to identify clients’ interests, areas for development, and major career-life themes) and their ‘scores’ (the outcomes of completing the Maree Career Matrix, a twofold quantitative measure of career interests and self-estimates of confidence in aptitudes to follow certain careers). Participants’ skills in career counselling will be raised to a level that is more contemporary, holistic, and contextualised.