Empowering Students for STEM Success: Course Counseling Trends for Secondary Pathways and Transitions

1. Course Counselling Forum Secondary Pathways and Transitions May 2015

2. Overview The program today will focus on: • appropriate and challenging pathways for senior school students • counselling for WACE 2016 • a whole school approach to preparing students for course selection • opportunities for sharing practice • resources and support

3. Focus 2015 – Directions for schools

4. Success for all students • Plan to increase the emphasis on STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) education … • Increase the proportion of students in ATAR pathways and achieving university entrance

5. STEM “ … significant emphasis in boosting our focus on science, technology, engineering and maths because science is at the heart of a country’s competitiveness …” Prime Minister of Australia, June 2014 • National agenda • Improving Australia’s international competitiveness

6. STEM • Office of the Chief Scientist • Position paper: Science, technology, engineering and mathematics: Australia’s future Sept 2014 • Why Stem? (page 7) • Education and Training role (page 20)

7. Why STEM? • STEM skills are critical to … the day-to-day operations of competitive firms • An education in STEM also fosters a range of generic and quantitative skills and ways of thinking that enable individuals to see and grasp opportunities

8. Why STEM? • These capabilities – including deep knowledge of a subject, creativity, problem solving, critical thinking and communication skills – are relevant to an increasingly wide range of occupations • 75% of the fastest growing occupations now require STEM skills and knowledge (international research)

9. Education and Training Objective: Australian education, formal and informal, will prepare a skilled and dynamic STEM workforce, and lay the foundations for lifelong STEM literacy in the community This will require: • a high level of STEM literacy across the workforce, in addition to a reliable pipeline of specialist STEM skills and practitioners • and a lot more

10. STEM • Office of the Chief Scientist • Occasional Paper: STEM skills in the workforce: what do employers want?

11. What do employers want? • >80% of respondents believe employees with STEM qualifications are valuable even when their field of study does not match their role • >70% of respondents nominated STEM employees as among their most innovative • Approx. half of respondents expect their needs for STEM professionals, technicians and trades people to increase over the next 5 to 10 years

12. What do employers want? • 40% of respondents reported difficulty filling technician and trades roles • 31% of respondents reported difficulty recruiting STEM graduates • Employers are now looking for STEM qualified employees to work in other areas, eg accounting firm in Perth is employing engineers as accountants • Bring the knowledge of the context of clients • Can easily gain the accounting skills

13. ATAR • Increase the proportion of students in ATAR pathways and achieving university entrance • Why? Secondary pathway data • Short term: focus on students who have shown potential to succeed – lower school data

14. Secondary Pathways - SAIS

15. ATAR • Research: Longitudinal Survey of Australian Youth • Greatest influences: peers and parents • Research: Victoria – influences on Year 12 student performance/pathways: • 2 factors (86% of variation): prior academic performance and ICSEA (socio-economic)

16. ATAR Short term: • Current Year 10-12 students • Survey of student consideration of pathways (if not, why not?) • Course Counselling • Monitoring and intervention in Year 11 and 12 • Goal setting • Message: Position yourself to have a range of options open to you

17. ATAR Long term: • Career development • Curriculum mapping (written and unwritten) to support ATAR success • Early intervention to build aspirations

18. ATAR Other ideas: • School culture: recognition of high achievers (lower school high achievers club, 90+ club, messages from teachers and school leaders, whole school approaches) • Aspirant ‘club’ – open to anyone interested – mentors, guest speakers …

19. Counselling for WACE 2016

20. WACE 2016 • WACE 2016 requirements • Points of clarification • Confirmation of understanding through activities • SPT consultants support

21. Activity 1 WACE True/False • Designed to cover key aspects and clarify requirements • A strategy for use in training your school course counselling team • Resources in folder

22. WACE achievement • The Authority does not use the term ‘graduation’ • Review wording in school documentation • Reconsider terminology in conversations with students and parents • Year 12 students will graduate from school • Not all students who graduate will achieve the WACE

23. WASSA All students who do not achieve the WACE will receive a Western Australian Statement of StudentAchievement (WASSA) Goal is to: • record as much as possible • at the highest level possible Includes: • all endorsed programs • OLNA reading, writing or numeracy if met the standard

24. Western Australian Statement of Student Achievement - WASSA • Details of every course and program a student has completed in their senior secondary years • Helpful when applying for further training or employment

25. Students transferring courses • In Year 11, students may change course after the completion of one unit • In Year 12, students are enrolled for a year long course • Details on early and late transfer, WACE Manual 2015-16, pages 32-35 • In 2016, students enrolled in Year 12 courses (T code) will be unable to change courses after Week 8, Term 1

26. Special considerations – VET Schools may apply on behalf of students who, for reasons outside of their control, have been unable to meet the Certificate II minimum requirement for WACE including: • overseas, remote/regional students where there is either an absence or limited supply of training • students affected by school/ RTO partnership issues

27. students who moved to a new school unable to accommodate the completion of a qualification in time for the end of Year 12 • students who have experienced significant issues with RTO certification processes (including issues with the Unique Student Identifier for VET)

28. New Authority awards • More awards from 2016 • Two new awards – replacing Certificates of Commendation: • Certificates of Distinction • Certificates of Merit • Based on students’ achievement – grades awarded by schools • Allocation of points – WACE Manual 2015-16 p. 105

29. Authority awards changes Awards based on ATAR course examination scores: • General Exhibitions • Course Exhibitions • Certificates of Excellence Beazley Medal: VET - selected from students who are recommended for a VET exhibition - school nominations

30. Student achievement data • Student Achievement Information System (SAIS) • SAIS Dashboard • Reporting to Parents (RTP)

32. SAIS - Individual Student Table

33. SAIS – current students

34. School performance

35. Individual student data flow

36. Student Analysis – P-10 Analysis

37. WACE tracker

38. WACE tracker – expanded view

39. Career development and exploration

40. Global context The Meaning of Life Dan Howell born 1991 - an English video blogger YouTube channel danisnotonfire reaches over 4 million subscribers

41. Challenges • Volatile, changing workforce • Traditional job roles disappearing • 60% of the jobs 10 years from now haven't been invented yet • Work needs to be integrated into learning not something begun after a long period of study

42. Projections • Projections indicate increase in need for: • Health care and social assistance • Professional, scientific and technical services • Education and training • Fastest growing occupation by 2025 • registered nurses, nursing support and personal care workers

43. Future jobs Before 2020 Augmented reality architects Urban agriculturalists Seed capitalists Avatar designers Avatar relationship managers 3D printing engineers Wind turbine repair techs Data hostage specialists Organ agents Privacy managers Social education specialists 2030 and beyond Drone dispatchers Tree-jackers Plant psychologists Extinction revivalists Time hackers Clone ranchers Body part and limb makers Time brokers Mass energy storage developers “Heavy air” engineers http://www.futuristspeaker.com/2011/11/55-jobs-of-the-future/

44. Young people need skills to deal with • Change • Complexity • Chance • Uncertainty

45. Case for career related learning in primary schools • Eight year olds are narrowing down occupations they will consider • By age of 10, they have already closed off 60% of available occupations based on • Gender, social setting • Parameters set very early • Gender stereotypes from early years

47. Lion Tamer or a … • zookeeper • pet groomer • animal rescue volunteer • dog walker • exotic bird breeder • marine biologist • safari tour guide • vet Astronaut or a … • racing car driver • stuntman • archaeologist • fighter pilot • spy • deep-sea diver • adventurer • submarine commander • astronaut

48. Need for career development • Encourage student aspirations/achievement • Link between learning and future life opportunities • Students more engaged/inspired and looking to a future seeing how their learning fits in

50. Career development Students need to be equipped and supported to: • make informed choices about learning, work and life opportunities. • take personal responsibility for those choices. • develop action plannningto optimise learning, work and life choices. • implement, review and adapt these action plans. • access relevant and timely information and establish networks.