Careers Review
Careers Review
Careers Review
July 2016
Furthermore, this review aims to identify which interventions might be most appropriate to
implement in the UK context to better support careers education, and in turn improve
educational, economic, or social outcomes for young people.
Methods used in the review
Our literature review highlighted 73 studies focused on careers education as defined above.
All studies included were required to adhere to quasi-experimental or experimental
approaches undertaken within Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development
(OECD) countries since 1996. The findings focus on evidence from studies where outcomes
could be compared with a control group, though the robustness of the methodologies used
inevitably varies. We also identified 23 studies exploring the impact of part-time employment.
The types of interventions included in the examined studies included careers provision,
career guidance, enterprise, ICT and careers, job shadowing, mentoring, transformational
leadership, volunteering, work experience, and work-related learning. These were defined
as:
Careers provision: 1 a process of learning, individually or in groups, designed to help
young people to develop the knowledge, confidence, and skills they need to make
1
This may also include: career dialogue—a conversation in which a professional helps an individual
discover and articulate meaning regarding life or work experiences, and career guidance—a
process, delivered individually or in groups, that helps individuals to gain a clearer understanding of
their career development needs and potential through the successful understanding and application of
their career management skills. It includes the use of techniques and tools that focus on personal
challenge and growth and career information—the provision and use of a range of resources to
enable users to develop a better understanding of occupations, employment types, sectors and
employing/learning organisations, current and future employment, and training and educational
opportunities.
2. While the experimental literature on careers education is weak, it can be seen in the
context of stronger related literature. Longitudinal studies suggest that the way in
which teenagers think about their futures in education and employment has a
significant impact on what becomes of them as working adults. Teenagers who have
effectively underestimated the education required for their desired profession, for
example, are statistically more likely to end up NEET. In addition, young people from
poorer backgrounds are more likely to have career aspirations that are misaligned
with their educational ambitions.
5. This literature review shows a shortage of impact studies in all areas, particularly
(both in the UK and further afield) on the development of young people’s career
management skills within careers education in schools and colleges. Also, empirical
2
UKCES (2015) The Death of the Saturday Job (London: UK Commission for Employment and
Skills).
3
Watson, M. and McMahon, M. (2005) ‘Children’s Career Development: A research review from a
learning perspective’, Journal of Vocational Behavior, 67, 119–132.
Regarding this latter point, the Department for Education has recently introduced important
changes in post-16 education to coincide with the raising of the participation age to 17 and
18 in England. Work experience now forms an integral part of 16–19 study programmes and
as such schools and colleges are expected to offer their students high quality and
meaningful work experience as part of each study programme. The intention is for students
to gain valuable experience of the work environment and to develop career adaptability and
4
OECD (2010). Learning for Jobs. Paris: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
5
European Lifelong Guidance Policy Network (2010) define this as ‘a range of competences which
provide structured ways for individuals (and groups) to gather, analyse, synthesise and organise self,
educational and occupational information, as well as the skills to make and implement decisions and
transitions;. See: http://www.elgpn.eu/publications/browse-by-
language/english/Gravina_and_Lovsin_cms_concept_note_web.pdf/.
6
Whiston, S. C. and Brecheisen, B. K. (2002) ‘Practice and Research in Career Counseling and
Development – 2001’, The Career Development Quarterly, 51, 98–154.
7
Creager, M. (2011) ‘Practice and research in career counseling and development-2010’, The Career
Development Quarterly, 59, 482–527.
8
ASPIRES2 is the second phase of a ten-year long longitudinal research project exploring the
science and careers aspirations of young people.
9
UKCES (2015) The Death of the Saturday Job, London: UK Commission for Employment and
Skills.
10
Bimrose, J., Barnes, S-A. and Hughes, D. (2008) ‘Adult career progression and advancement: A
five year study of the effectiveness of guidance’, Coventry: Institute for Employment Research,
University of Warwick.
11
Hearne, L. (2005) ‘Opening a Door', Evaluating the Benefits of Guidance for the Adult Client: A
Report’, Waterford: REGSA, WIT.
2.6. TERMINOLOGY
A note on terminology is warranted. Terms such as ‘careers education’, ‘career guidance’,
‘career counselling’ and ‘career development’ are often used interchangeably in the
literature. Phrases like ‘mentoring’ and ‘enterprise education’ are also commonly used to
describe some very different educational experiences. Terms such as ‘experience of work’
or ‘work experiences’ are sometimes used interchangeably. In an effort to standardise the
career education language, our focus is primarily on curriculum-based interventions, pastoral
interventions, and those activities designed to provide direction and support to improve
individual outcomes, including episodes of employer engagement. Definitions of key terms
are outlined below in section 3.
Careers education varies depending on the individual’s circumstances, but the literature
shows that career development is optimally facilitated when interventions begin in primary
school 16 and continue through adulthood. Research shows children begin to eliminate their
least favoured career options between the ages of 9 and 13. By this time, it is argued, they
12
Hooley, T., Devins, D., Watts, A.G., Hutchinson, J., Marriott, J. and Walton, F. (2012) ‘Tackling
unemployment, supporting business and developing careers’, London: UK Commission for
Employment and Skills.
13
Perdrix, S., Stauffer, S., Masdonati, J., Massoudi, K. and Rossier, J. (2012) ‘Effectiveness of career
counseling: A one-year follow-up’, Journal of Vocational Behavior 80(2), 565–578.
14
Mayston, D. (2002) ‘Assessing the Benefits of Careers Guidance’ (CeGS Occasional Paper),
Derby: Centre for Guidance Studies, University of Derby.
15
See http://www.elgpn.eu/publications/browse-by-language/english/elgpn-tools-no-3.-the-evidence-
base-on-lifelong-guidance/
16
Watson, M. and McMahon, M. (2005) ‘Children’s Career Development: A research review from a
learning perspective’, Journal of Vocational Behavior 67 (2005) 119–132.
17
Gottfredson, L. S. (2002) ‘Gottfredson’s theory of circumscription, compromise, and self creation’ in
D. Brown (ed.), Career Choice and Development (4th edn., pp. 85–148), San Francisco: Jossey‐Bass.
In order to optimise chances of identifying relevant and reliable research within a literature
characterised by the use of varying terminology and diffused across a very wide range of
disciplines and academic and public reports, the research team used wide-ranging evidence
databases via the University of Warwick Library (such as EBSCO and Scopus which allow
sophisticated searching across a wide range of thematic databases) plus rare personal
resource libraries. In addition, key informants were contacted across OECD countries (see
Appendix 1) to invite submission of copies of studies considered as robust causal evidence
on careers education impact assessment. Finally, the review team considered literature
previously identified by the Department for Education and in works commissioned by the
EEF and the Careers and Enterprise Company in England.
Appendix 2 identifies the keyword search terms that were used as a result of this search
strategy. Note that each row represents an ‘OR’ function where, for example, the terms
‘young people’ OR ‘adolescent’ OR ‘pupil’ OR ‘education’ OR ‘school’ were used in
conjunction with the other terms. We also used the ‘NOT’ facility in searching databases to
exclude the terms ‘opinion studies’ OR ‘no counterfactuals’ OR ‘weak counterfactuals’.
18
Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Chile, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France,
Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Korea, Luxembourg, Mexico,
We only included studies from the year 1996 because it was felt that 20 years’ worth of
research would uncover the main themes in terms of which interventions have been
developed and implemented across the member states of the Organisation for Economic
Co-operation and Development (OECD). We were also mindful of an extensive body of
evidence highlighting rapid changes within the youth labour market and in the educational
expectations of young people. 19 Technological change and the forces of globalisation have
changed the nature of jobs available and the skills required by employers. The numbers of
people working part-time or for themselves has increased rapidly since the 1980s. 20 The era
of the job for life for many people is well and truly gone—the typical twenty-first century
Briton can expect to work in a dozen or more different jobs across a number of different
career areas. 21 Twelve years ago, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn did not exist. Seventeen
years before that, we did not have the worldwide-web. Technology, moreover, has
irreversibly changed the way that young people are schooled both within and outside of the
classroom. The last generation has seen, moreover, a clear shift in expectations in that
young people are overwhelmingly expected to stay in education after the age of 16 with high
proportions going on to higher education.
Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland,
Sweden, Turkey, United Kingdom, and the United States of America.
19
Mann, A. and Huddleston, P. eds. (2015) ‘How should our schools respond to the demands of the
twenty first century labour market. Eight perspectives’, London: Education and Employers.
20
International Labour Organisation (2010) ‘KILM Part-Time Workers’, Paris: ILO. Retrieved from:
http://kilm.ilo.org/manuscript/kilm06.asp.
21
Today, the average person changes jobs ten to fifteen times (with an average of 11 job changes)
during his or her career, which means a good amount of time is spent changing employment.
Retrieved from: http://jobsearch.about.com/od/employmentinformation/f/change-jobs.htm.
As illustrated in Figure 1 above, many of the original 359 studies identified from our search
were excluded once the abstracts (or titles) were cross-referenced against the inclusion and
Australia 1 1% 1
Canada 5 7% 3 1 1
England 8 11% 2 1 4 1
Finland 1 1% 1
Netherlands 3 4% 1 1 1
UK 10 14% 3 4 1 2
USA 46 63% 14 9 4 19
Note: The total number of documents reviewed is 73, but this table totals to 74. This reflects that one
study was undertaken in both the UK and USA.
Country Studies
The studies in the in-depth review reflect research on different age groups (and
consequently levels of education). Table 3, below, illustrates that the majority of studies (n =
59) were carried out in secondary schools, with only three studies specifically related to
research into special education needs (SEN) within mainstream schooling. 22 Only two
studies solely considered primary education. A few studies focused on interventions in
primary and secondary school education, typically relating to US Middle School provision (n
= 9).
22
Upon completion of the literature review, the researchers identified two additional references highly
relevant in this regard. These are not included in the overall analysis but have potential to be
included: Phelps. I. A. and Hanley-Maxwell, C. (1997) ‘School-to-work transitions for youth with
disabilities: a review of outcomes and practices’, Review of Educational Research 67(2), 197–222,
and Wagner, M. W. and Blackorby, J. (1996) ‘Transitions from High School to Work or College: How
Special Education Students Fare’, The Future of Children 6(1), 103–120.
Table 4: Documents reviewed with specialist focus and broad outcome measure
Broad outcome measure
Specialist Number of
focus documents Combination
Education Economic Social
of measures
Gender 15 4 3 3 4
Class 26 9 6 6 5
Ethnicity 14 3 4 3 5
SEN
3 1 1 1
(disability)
Table 4, above, illustrates the number of studies in the in-depth review pertaining specifically
to:
• gender (n = 15);
• disability/special educational needs (SEN) (n = 3);
• ethnicity (n = 14); and
• class/disadvantage/poverty (n = 26).
Within each of the educational, economic and social outcomes, relevant studies are
considered from the above-mentioned keyword searches. The dominant research discourse
in this field of careers education study focuses on class/disadvantage/poverty. Studies that
focus on gender tend to highlight the disparity between male and female participation in
education and, in particular, actual and perceived wage earnings and employment
opportunities linked to economic outcomes. Much of the literature reflects on ethnicity from a
US perspective. In the UK literature, emphasis is placed on enterprise activities for young
people from ethnic minority backgrounds. As mentioned above, the literature on careers
education for those with disabilities or SEN is underdeveloped in the identified literature.
Given the opaque quality of this literature, it is recommended that a further narrowly focused
review is undertaken.
23
See note 1, page 1.
These outcomes were considered to determine whether there were any specific discernible
patterns corresponding to the aspects of careers education investigated. It was also noted
that some studies would not simply fall into a single category—that overlapping findings
were likely to emerge—as discussed in each section.
Table 5: Overview of types of outcomes and outcome combinations
Total number of Percentage of
Overview
documents documents
It became apparent in the in-depth review of 96 studies that that some research findings
offered particularly content-rich and strong insight as to which interventions and approaches
have an impact on young people’s outcomes, particularly for disadvantaged young people.
As a result, not all studies are discussed in-depth but they all feature in the main references
section (see Appendix 3).
The weaknesses in the literature are discussed more fully later on in the report.
Note: The total number of documents reviewed is 23, but this table totals to 24. This reflects
that one study was undertaken in England and Wales.
Of the UK research studies, it is notable that five of the seven studies were the direct result
of government-funded activity—either by the precursors to the Department for Education or
the National Audit Office—and the remainder represents evaluations of programmes funded
by third sector organisations. The reviewers of this study have found no evidence of UK
academia engaging in a serious fashion without such funded encouragement in the question
of whether young people’s educational outcomes can be related to school-mediated careers-
focused education.
The literature is strongly focused on secondary education with 44 of the 45 studies providing
comment on careers education received by pupils between the ages of 12 and 19. Ten
studies (22%) did have something meaningful to say about the impact of provision received
by pupils between the ages of 5 and 11. Such studies mainly related to US Middle School
provision.
Studies often describe either programmes of activity which involve more than one
intervention or, on occasion, look systematically at the impacts of different interventions in
isolation. Within the 45 studies, it is possible to identify 67 discrete de facto studies providing
assessments of the impact of different interventions on the educational outcomes of pupils.
Of the research studies, 27 (60%) provided largely positive findings, evidencing
improvements in educational outcomes linked to pupil participation in careers education; 17
(38%) presented mixed findings, whereby outcomes were either both positive and negative
in broadly even distribution, depending on variables such as pupil demographic, or wherein
no meaningful changes in educational outcomes could be detected, whether positive or
negative. Just one of the research studies (2%) showed that pupil participation in careers
education could be unambiguously linked to negative educational outcomes for pupils.
As set out in Table 8, such studies focused specifically on educational interventions
categorised as work-related learning (n = 24), mentoring (n = 13), careers provision (n = 10),
It is worth noting that some studies assessed multiple interventions separately and so the
number of interventions (n = 67) is greater than the number of studies (n = 45) reported
here. Of the 67 individual assessments of interventions within the literature relating to
education outcomes, 41 (61%) were found to have generally positive outcomes.
Enterprise 3 3 (100%)
Note: Some studies in the above table have more than one intervention.
Work experience
Volunteering
Job shadowing
Enterprise
By consequence, a simple table will do no justice to what is a complex set of indicators that
offer little by way of easy comparison. To this end, reviewers focused on data related to
educational outcomes in one jurisdiction, at one pupil age, related to one set of
qualifications—the GCSE results of 16-year-old pupils in English schools. As set out in Table
9, below, in three of five of the studies adjudged to find evidence of positive educational
outcomes, the average impact on attainment is modest. It should be recognised, of course,
that averages will disguise outcomes that may well be very different by pupil characteristic or
by delivery mode.
Hooley et DfE data, student The study considers the performance of 820 schools
al., 2014 performance—schools with that have successfully validated the quality of their
Quality Award for careers vs careers provision with an external party leading to a
comparable schools (matched Quality Award. Compared to matched schools,
by pupil/teacher ratio, SEN, possession of an Award is associated with a statistically
FSM, EAL proportion, prior significant 1.83% increase in the number of students
pupil performance, attaining at least five good GCSEs and a 1.80%
neighbourhood deprivation); increase in the number of students achieving Maths and
proportion of students English GCSEs.
completing five good GCSEs
(defined as 5 A*–C grades
including English and Maths).
Miller, 176 students split between Miller examines a mentoring programme designed to
1999 mentored control group) from support Year 11 pupils identified as being on the
seven schools took the Year borderline of achieving 5 GCSEs A*–C. 46 mentored
Eleven Learning Information girls scored an average 2.26 GCSE points above
System (YELLIS) test devised YELLIS prediction compared to 1.87 GCSE points for
by the University of Durham. the 43 control group girls. The difference between these
GCSE results were matched scores gives a measure of the value added by
against the YELLIS mentoring of 0.39.
predictions using the standard
The 44 mentored boys had an average score of –1.72
scoring system (i.e. A* = 8
GCSE points below YELLIS compared to –2.13 for the
points to G = 1 point) (1996/7
49 control group boys (mentoring value added = 0.41).
school year).
NAO, Surveys of 1,274 pupils The NAO report reviews a range of different initiatives
2010 (2008). aimed at increasing pupil participation, and
Analysis with the National achievement, in science and mathematical subjects.
Pupil Database and ONS Interventions include STEM Ambassadors—a
population estimates (linear programme that recruits volunteers with working
regressions). experience of STEM subjects to act as positive role
models to young people and so improve their perception
of science. Pupil engagement with STEM Ambassadors
is associated with statistically significant increase of
0.525 in the number of pupils achieving grades A*–C in
GCSE sciences.
Career guidance that complements careers education programmes can therefore help
individuals to set achievable goals and identify the practical steps that can be taken towards
these goals. This in turn provides ‘meaning making’ and motivation, leading to greater
academic engagement and attainment. Empirical studies of career guidance (career
counselling) and its direct impact on education outcomes, particularly in relation to online
provision and tracking career trajectories, are largely absent from the literature. In many
OECD countries this topic has been identified by researchers and impact-assessment
specialists as an area that requires greater attention by both policymakers and the research
community.
The literature reviewed here has little to say about why interventions related to careers
education have, on average, positive impacts on the attainment of young people. However,
what it does have to say is in broad support of the hypothesis offered by Killeen and
colleagues (1999).
A review of the assessments given in Table 9 above is illustrative. Miller (1999), for example,
draws on interviews with teaching staff to make sense of the improvements in attainment
observed, suggesting perhaps an indirect causal link between improved GCSE performance
and heightened pupil senses of self-worth and motivation while noting mentor support for
pupils in the management and completion of course work and development of study skills
(pp. 75–76).
Harrison and colleagues (2012) acknowledge that their study can ‘draw no firm conclusions
about the mechanisms’ by which the qualification they assess may impact upon GCSE
outcomes, but point readers towards reported boosts to pupil ‘confidence, self-esteem,
motivation and attendance’ linked to participation in the evaluated programme of study.
From a firmer basis, using a database of information surrounding the attitudes, behaviour
and achievements of 1,800 pupils, Golden and colleagues (2005) find ‘evidence that
students’ attitudes and behaviour could influence their outcomes at key stage 4’ (p. 30). The
authors, in particular, note correlations between positive pupil perspectives on the value of
24
See http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.543.4468&rep=rep1&type=pdf
25
Killeen, J., Sammons, S. and Watts, A.G. (1999) ‘The effects of careers education and guidance on
attainment and associated behaviour’, Cambridge: NICEC/University of Hertfordshire/ ULIE.
However, caution must be applied—the literature is simply too sparse to provide a reliable
response to the question of which intervention can be expected to be most effective.
A number of studies do, however, include internal comparisons that provide insight into
patterns of more effective delivery. Bayer’s (2015) analysis of mentoring relationships in the
US finds that closeness of the match, as defined by students, drives better academic
performance rather than the duration of the relationship. In contrast, Linehan (2001), within
this review, finds that duration (in excess of half an academic year) of mentoring relationship
has a significant, greater positive effect on academic outcomes. Elsewhere, however, he has
identified mentor ‘credibility’ as the key factor in pupil perceptions on the utility of such a
relationship.
Literature does provide some evidence to support the view that careers-focused education
can act, in some complex ways, to compensate for preceding lack of resource suggesting
that it will be more effective when targeted. Schwartz and colleagues (2011) show that
young people with very strong relationships, or with very weak relationships with adults prior
to entering a mentoring relationship, benefit much less in academic terms than young people
enjoying moderately strong relationships at base line. The literature within the scope of this
review often fails, however, to explore in any significant depth how outcomes relate, by way
of direct comparison, to pupils from differing social backgrounds.
More so than educational outcomes, careers-focused mediated provision has been primarily
concerned with the individual and ‘meaning making’ in the context of economic (and social)
outcomes. It is these benefits that justify public investment in the careers education field,
most importantly, for investments made by individuals themselves. We examined literature
on economic outcomes to understand the range and depth of evidence currently available.
Volunteering 0 0 0 0
Leadership 0 0 0 0
UK studies (economic
outcomes only and Generally Generally
No. of
combination of positive Mixed results negative
studies
outcomes with outcome outcome
economic)
Work-related learning 0 0 0 0
Volunteering 0 0 0 0
Leadership 0 0 0 0
Mentoring 2 2 (100%) 0 0
Enterprise 2 2 (100%) 0 0
Table 10 illustrates the limited character of modern research literature. There were no UK
studies identified focusing on volunteering, leadership, and ICT within careers education
testing for improvements in economic outcomes. The literature on ICT and careers
education is negligible, particularly in relation to young people as well as schools and
colleges’ use of labour market information or intelligence (LMI). Research findings on how
26
Bimrose J., Barnes S. A., Atwell G. (2010) An investigation into the skills needed by Connexions
Personal Advisers to develop internet-based guidance. Reading: CfBT Education Trust.
27
Howieson, C. and Semple, S. (2013) The Impact of Career Websites: what the evidence, British
Journal of Guidance and Counselling, 41(3), 287–301.
The scale of the wage premiums detected is considerable. As Kemple and Wilner note:
‘the magnitude of the impact of Career Academies on annual earnings during the
eighth year after high school for young men—a 16 percent increase over the non-
Academy group’s earnings—is larger than the earnings premium that other
researchers have calculated for two full-time-equivalent years of enrolment in a
community college’ (p. 20).
Mann and Percy (2013) find wage premiums of up to 18% for young adults related to their
participation in school-mediated employer engagement activities and speculate that wage
boosts may be still higher for activities other than the four specifically explored in their study.
Jobs for the Future, MacAllum and Bozick (2001), and Arum and Way (2004) find evidence
of wage premiums of between 10% and 33% related to careers-focused interventions.
Perhaps most striking is the analysis of Kashefpakdel and Percy (2016), which finds adult
premiums at age 26 of up to 1.6% related to each occasion an individual participated as a
teenager in a careers talk with someone from outside of the school. The identification of
such premiums related to interventions that vary considerably by character (intensity or
extensiveness) has challenged scholars to make sense of findings.
28
Powell, W. (1990) ‘Neither market nor hierarchy: network forms of organization’, Research in
Organizational Behavior, 12, 304.
29
Granovetter, M. (1973) ‘The strength of weak ties’, American Journal of Sociology, 78, 1,360–80.
30
Orr and colleagues also use statistical testing to identify distinctive elements within the US
Careers Academies experience finding graduates of the programme to have experienced significantly
greater levels of employer engagement and careers provision. See: Orr, M. T., Bailey, T., Hughes, K.
L., Kienzl, G. S. and Karp, M. M. (2007) ‘The National Academy Foundation’s Career Academies:
Shaping Secondary Transitions’, in Neumark D. (ed.) Improving School-to-Work Transitions, New
York: Russell Sage Foundation (pp. 169–209).
31
For example: researching career goals, obtaining work experience, exploring further training or
higher education, or preparation for entrance exams.
A theme of the wider literature is the extent to which careers education can be best situated
within a broader conception of the lived experience of a young person. Where providing a
young person with access to trusted useful information and experiences relevant to ultimate
career progression, experiences will build on and interact with preceding family-based
access to such resource. 32 The analysis suggests both that young people at greatest
distance from the labour market of their aspirations within their home lives can be expected
to gain greatest value from careers education and that schools can use careers education as
a strategic resource to democratise access to resources of significant value in career
progression. As articulated by Erickson and colleagues (2009), such interventions can serve
to compensate for lack of resource, but also can serve to attenuate inequalities. 33
32
Stanley, J. and Mann, A. (2014) ‘A Theoretical Framework for Employer Engagement’, in Mann, A.,
Stanley, J. and Archer, L. (eds.) Understanding Employer Engagement in Education: Theories and
Evidence, London: Routledge ; Jones, S., Mann, A. and Morris, K. (2015) ‘The “Employer
Engagement Cycle” in Secondary Education: examining the testimonies of young British Adults’,
Journal of Education and Work. DOI: 10.1080/13639080.2015.1074665.
33
Erickson, D., McDonald, S. and Elder, G.H. (2009) ‘Informal Mentors and Education:
Complementary or Compensatory Resources?’, Sociology of Education, 82, 344–67.
34
Rodrigues, R.A. and Guest, D. (2010) ‘Have careers become boundaryless?’, Human Relations,
63(8), 1,157–75.
35
Giddens, A. (1991) Modernity and Self Identity: self and society in late modernity, Stanford
University Press.
36
Raffo, C. (2000) ‘Youth Transitions and Social Exclusion: Developments in Social Capital Theory’,
Journal of Youth Studies, V3 (2).
Of those studies focusing on ‘social outcomes only’, 13 studies related to the US, eight were
from the UK, two from The Netherlands, one from Australia, and one from Canada.
As set out in Table 12 below, literature identified focused on all social outcome studies by
interventions categorised as careers provision (n = 13), work-related learning (n = 5),
mentoring (n = 6), enterprise (n = 5), ICT in careers (n = 3), leadership (n = 1), work
experience (n = 1), and job shadowing (n = 1).
Leadership 2 2 (100%)
Mentoring 6 3 (50%) 3 (50%)
Job shadowing 1 1 (100%)
ICT in careers
education 3 2 (66.7%) 1 (33.3%)
Leadership
Mentoring
Job shadowing
ICT in careers
education 1 1 (100%)
Enterprise 2 2 (100%)
Beyond this, there is a substantial body of literature on ‘career adaptability’ (Savickas et al.,
2009; Savickas, 2011) 37 part of which features career resilience (Lyons, Schweitzer, and Ng,
2015). 38 In the context of our literature review, resilience is defined as ‘the process of
bending and rebounding to overcome adversity’ (Hunter, 2001, p. 172) 39 as noted by
Lengelle and colleagues (2016). 40 This is a multi-dimensional phenomenon that varies
according to contexts, internal variables, and external changes (Chiaburu, Baker, and
Pitariu, 2006). Resilience is often viewed as a positive outcome ‘which is defined by the
presence of positive mental health (such as positive self-concept and self-esteem, academic
achievement, success at age-appropriate developmental tasks, etc.) and the absence of
psychopathology, despite exposure to risk’ (Metzl and Morrell, 2008). 41 This concept is also
interpreted as a dynamic learning process dependent upon interactions between individual
and contextual variables that evolve over time. In this sense, resilience refers to the
capability to ‘bounce back’ from negative emotional experiences associated with adversity,
37
Savickas, M. L., Nota, L., Rossier, J., Dauwalder, J. P., Duarte, M. E., Guichard, J. and Van Vianen,
A. E. (2009) ‘Life designing: A paradigm for career construction in the 21st century’, Journal of
vocational behavior, 75(3), 239–250; and Savickas, M. L. (2011) ‘Career Counseling’, Washington
DC: American Psychological Association.
38
Lyons, S. T., Schweitzer, L. and Ng, E. S. W. (2015) ‘Resilience in the modern career’, Career
Development International, 20(4), 363–383.
39
Hunter, A. J. (2001). A cross-cultural comparison of resilience in adolescents. Journal of Pediatric
Nursing, 16, 172-179.
40
Lengelle, R., Van der Heijden, B and Meijers, F. (In Press) The Foundations of Career Resilience,
Springer Books.
41
Metzl, E. S. and Morrell, M. A. (2008). ‘The role of creativity in models of resilience: Theoretical
exploration and practical applications’, Journal of Creativity in Mental Health, 3(3), 303–318.
The literature on careers education highlights a requirement for some form of effective
‘dialogue’ and ‘action’ in which personal meaning is attached to concrete experiences of
learning and work. See for example Buckler and colleagues (2015); Currie and colleagues
(2007); and Morris (2004). Kuijpers and colleagues (2011) strongly argue the learning
environment has to be both practice-based and dialogical. To achieve a dialogue, the
thoughts and feelings of young people with respect to their views and experience of work (or
lack of it) must be given a central place in the schooling conversation. This is highly relevant
in the context of young people being the seekers and recipients of a range of differing types,
and a variation in quality, of careers information and LMI both online and offline. However,
there is scant literature available on ICT and careers education that includes the use of
learning and labour market information and intelligence (LMI). The use of technologies
(UKCES, 2014), 43 combined with other factors such as changes in consumer behaviours and
the availability of more ‘open source’ data, has resulted in profound shifts in how individuals
utilise services in a rapidly changing world. Alongside this, centralised versus localised
policy shifts also raise new questions concerning the adaptation of available careers
education for young people, particularly amongst the most vulnerable groups.
Positive outcomes
The majority of studies provided evidence of improvements in self-efficacy, self-confidence,
career maturity, decision-making skills, career competencies, or career identity. As
discussed in the education and economic outcomes sections, leadership in careers
education is crucial to the achievement of positive outcomes for young people.
Measurements of social outcomes vary considerably across the literature and include:
• the use of measurement or inventory tools—such as the Crites Career Maturity
Inventory (measuring attitude and competency levels); the Coopersmith Self-Esteem
Inventory and grades (Legum and Hoare, 2004); the Career Decision Self-Efficacy
Scale (McComb-Beverage, 2012); Career Identity and Learning Motivation tools
(Kuijpers and Meijers, 2009); Enterprise Potential (Athayde, 2009, 2012); ‘Explore
Your Horizons’ and ‘Learning Accounts’ within the Future to Discover (FTD)
Canadian approach (Currie et al., 2007); 44 and the Inventory of Parent and Peer
Attachment (IPPA)—a 23-item scale containing questions related to a child’s or
adolescent's relationship with his or her primary care-giver linked to Big Brothers Big
Sisters programmes in the US (Rhodes et al., 2000);
42
Tugate, M. M., and Fredrickson, B. L. (2004). Resilient individuals use positive emotions to bounce
back from negative emotional experiences. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 86, 320–
333.
43
UKCES (2014). The Future of Work, Jobs and Skills in 2030, Evidence Report 84. Sheffield, Wath-
Upon-Dearne.
44
See also, a more recent Canadian quasi-experimental study ‘Career Motions’ –
http://www.srdc.org/media/8355/careermotion_final_report_en.pdf.
Impact can be seen in the context of different strategic intentions that inform and support
careers education in relation to young people’s social outcomes. These can broadly be set
out in a typology of prevention, integration and/or recovery. Prevention measures are aimed
at keeping young people ‘switched on’ to learning, encouraging them not to close down
opportunities too early, broadening horizons and challenging inaccurate assumptions, for
example using alumni (Buckler et al., 2015), enterprise measures (Peter and Kennedy,
2003; Athayde, 2006 and 2012), or self efficacy approaches (McCombe-Beverage, 2012).
This may also include preventing young people from ‘switching off’ or becoming disaffected
45
Hossain and Dan Bloom (2015) ‘Toward a Better Future: Evidence on Improving Employment
Outcomes for Disadvantaged Youth in the United States’, MDRC.
46
MacDonald, S., Lin, N. and Ao, D. (2009) ‘Networks of opportunity: gender, race and job leads’,
Social Problems, 56 (3) 385–402.
47
Bimrose, J., McMahon, M. and Watson, M. (eds.) (2015) Women's career development through the
lifespan: An international perspective, London: Routledge, pp 1–9 (Introduction).
48
Schoon, I., Martin, P. and Ross, A. (2007) ‘Career transitions in times of social change. His and her
story’, Journal of Vocational Behavior, 70(1), 78–96.
Kuipers and Meijers, 2009 Randomised field experiment Results showed that career
with regression analyses competencies positively
The effects of career education
applied. contributed to learning
and guidance among students
motivation, as well as to quality
(ages 12–19) enrolled in Career identity was measured
of study choice, fit of choice
prevocational and secondary with an instrument, consisting of
with learning tasks, and fit of
vocational education in the 88 items (Cronbach’s a = 0.81),
internship. Career identity
Netherlands. that was based on studies by
positively contributed to career
Meijers (1995) and Meijers and
A total of 3,499 students and outcomes, and career dialogue
Wardekker (2002).
166 teachers from 198 classes contributed more than
in 35 schools participated in the All multi-item scales had an traditional interventions have
study. adequate Cronbach's alpha with respect to career
(i.e., N0.70), with the exception outcomes. The amount of
of the three-item Locus of variance due to differences
Control Scale which only had an between schools and between
49
Furlong, A. and Cartmel, F. (2007), Young People and Social Change: New Perspectives, Series:
Sociology and social change, McGraw-Hill/Open University Press.
50
Op. cit.
51
Raffo, C. and Reeves, M. (2000). Youth transitions and social exclusion: Developments in
social capital theory. Journal of Youth Studies, 3(2), 147-166.
52
Whiston, S.C., Sexton, T.L. and Lasoff, D.L. (1998). Career intervention outcome: a replication and
extension of Oliver and Spokane (1988). Journal of Counseling Psychology, 45(2), 150-165.
Peterman and Kennedy, 2003 A pre-test post-test control After completing the enterprise
group research design. programme, participants
Enterprise Education:
reported significantly higher
Influencing Students’ Changes in the perceptions of a
perceptions of both desirability
Perceptions of sample of secondary school
and feasibility. The degree of
Entrepreneurship students enrolled in the Young
change in perceptions is related
Achievement Australia (YAA)
to the positiveness of prior
enterprise programme are
experience and to the
analysed.
positiveness of the experience
This research examines the in the enterprise education
effect of participation in an programme. Self-efficacy theory
enterprise education is used to explain the impact of
programme on perceptions of the programme. Overall, the
the desirability and feasibility of study provides empirical
starting a business. evidence to support including
exposure to entrepreneurship
education as an additional
exposure variable in
entrepreneurial intentions
models.
54
Currie et al., 2007 Surveys with participants who Results from a cost–benefit
were randomly assigned to study, a summary of the
The impact of a guidance
receive one of two career implementation results, and
intervention involving some
education interventions: Explore includes results from the
5,000 students in New
Your Horizons (a programme National Longitudinal Panel (a
Brunswick and Manitoba.
enabling young people to qualitative study of a sub-
Preference given to high
access information about sample of participants’ decision-
schools with a greater share of
academic and careers options making, intended to gain insight
lower-income families in their
delivered online and in person), on the mechanisms underlying
catchment areas.
or Learning Accounts (during the pattern of programme
The demographic and the early years of high school, impacts).
socioeconomic characteristics promises up to $8,000 of non-
The offer of Learning Accounts
of the 5,429 students as repayable financial aid to
raised post-secondary
reported in a baseline survey students from lower-income
enrolment in the Francophone
were those expected for a families should they go on to
sector in New Brunswick by
sample of grade 9 students pursue post-secondary
over ten percentage points. The
from the participating provinces. education). Participants’
increase was highly
sampled both interventions or
concentrated in college
none. The survey data was
53
Note: the additional variance is due to the total effect of all learning environment variables, in
addition to student and school variables (varies from 7% to 11% for career reflection, career forming
and career networking). The corresponding effect sizes are characterized as small to moderate.
54
For more a recent randomised controlled trial see: Career Motions
http://www.srdc.org/media/8355/careermotion_final_report_en.pdf
Most literature on careers education and its effectiveness is focused on influencing students’
knowledge, attitudes, and decision-making skills, while students’ behaviours often are not
examined. Research should focus more on exploring the relationships between career
guidance interventions and positive students’ behavioural outcomes. Within the literature,
studies looking for evidence of positive career behaviour change—such as teaching career
competencies linked to concrete experience (Kuijpers and Meijers, 2009)—offer promising
practice for the UK
The literature highlights the following types of practical activities in schools or colleges as
having a positive impact on social outcomes:
• Career reflection: making concrete the thinking about one’s own motivation and
aptitudes, self-regulation, self-determination, and resilience to cope with unforeseen
setbacks (for example, McComb-Beverage, 2012; Peterman 2003; Legum and
Hoare, 2004; and Kuijpers and Meijers, 2009).
• Career exploration: giving shape to one’s own career path by exploring the options
for study and work (Athayde, 2009 and 2012; Furstenberg and Neumark, 2005; and
Kuijpers and Meijers, 2009).
• Career action: opportunities to make sense of and act upon the learning gained from
differing types of interventions (Orthner, et al., 2013; and Kuijpers and Meijers,
2009).
• Networking: building and maintaining a network of key contacts (Bernstein et al.,
2009; Rhodes and Resch, 2000; and Kuijpers and Meijers, 2009).
• Learning environment: stimulating real-life experiences with work and a dialogue
about these experiences (Morris, 2004; Gutman et al., 2014; and Kuijpers and
Meijers, 2009).
• Career dialogue: young people having meaningful conversations with teachers,
parents/carers, employers/employees, alumni, or trained and qualified career
development professionals (Buckler et al., 2015; Powers et al., 2012; Schwartz et al.,
2011; Hughes et al., 2004; and Hooley et al., 2014).
• Career conversations students have in the workplace: gaining exposure to, and
experience of, work in simulated and real-life situations (Hillage et al., 2011; and
Kuijpers and Meijers, 2009).
Results show that different aspects of the learning environment explain the variance
between career outcome scores, in particular career dialogue at school and in the workplace
(the work placement). Without this dialogue, careers education methods and instruments
55
Career Motions, see: http://www.srdc.org/media/8355/careermotion_final_report_en.pdf
56
For a survey of some 400 teenagers reflecting on their comparative experiences of part-time
employment and work experience placements - see: Fullarton, S. (1999) Work experience and work
placements in secondary school education. LSAY Research reports. Longitudinal surveys of
Australian youth research report. The survey suggests very similar (self-declared) outcomes for young
people in terms of employability skill development, but that work experience placements serve to
much greater extent to support career planning.
57
Evidence from South Korea and New Zealand is also worthy of mention. This does not feature in
this report as it does not fully meet the inclusion criteria, but it certainly merits attention. See, for
example, comparative work in schools undertaken by the Korean Research Institute for Vocational
Education and Training (KRIVET).
In explaining causality, the literature points more towards issues of social and cultural capital
accumulation than human capital accumulation: that higher levels of supported, authentic
exposure to the labour market, in its very different forms, can challenge young people to
think afresh about their aspirations and their engagement with education and pathways
through it. Changing attitudes and assumptions are commonly important within the studies
reviewed. However, US literature does also suggest that occupationally specific skills
developed in high school can be successfully linked to better labour market outcomes.
It is unsurprising that such careers education is associated with positive outcomes for young
people as a range of high quality studies have shown that what young people think about
careers (particularly whether they are uncertain or confused/misaligned) influences later
academic and employment outcomes. Our small-scale systematic review of the high quality
literature relevance to part-time employment alongside full-time secondary education shows
that it too is related to adult outcomes for the better in terms of economic outcomes, but for
the worse in terms of educational outcomes.
The literature shows the extensive use of differing forms of intermediaries for personalised
support to deliver active and experiential learning activities, including career guidance within
and beyond schooling. However, the literature findings suggest more could be done to
understand better the relationship between certain types of interventions delivered by
differing forms of personalised support both online and offline, particularly (though not
exclusively) for disadvantaged young people.
The frequent difficulty identified from the literature lies in verifying the relationship between
quality outcomes and the specific careers education interventions. Often the measures of
such outcomes are crudely measured and the precise interventions are not adequately
isolated or the ‘treatment’ fully described. In many cases, the research considers only one
system of influence at a time in isolation of other impeding factors. Some outcome studies of
careers interventions have shown that the models or theories supposedly guiding the
interventions were not fully implemented (Miller and Brown, 2005). 58
58
Miller, M. J. and Brown, S. D. (2005) ‘Counseling for career choice: Implications for improving
interventions and for working with diverse populations’, in Brown, S. D. and Lent, R. W. (eds.) Career
development and counseling: Putting theory and research to work, New York: Wiley, (pp. 441–465).
Education outcomes
(n = 45)
Bae, S. H., Gray, K., and Yeager, G. (2007) ‘A Retrospective Cohort Comparison of Career
and Technical Education Participants and Non-Participants on a State-Mandated
Proficiency Test’, Career and Technical Education Research, 32 (1), 9–22.
Bayer, A., Grossman, J. B. and DuBois, D. L. (2015) ‘Using volunteer mentors to improve the
academic outcomes of underserved students: the role of relationships’, Journal of
Community Psychology, 43 (4), 408–429.
Bernstein, L., Rappaport, C. D., Olsho, L., Hunt, D. and Levin, M. (2009) ‘Impact Evaluation of
the U.S. Department of Education's Student Mentoring Program. Final Report (NCEE
2009-4047)’, Washington, DC: National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional
Assistance, Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education.
Bishop, J. H. and Mane, F. (2004) ‘The impacts of career-technical education on high school
labor market success’, Economics of Education Review, 23 (4), 381–402.
Bragg, D. D., Loeb, J. W., Gong, Y., Deng, C.-P., Yoo, J.-s. and Hill, J. L. (2002) ‘Transition
from High School to College and Work for Tech Prep Participants in Eight Selected
Consortia’, St. Paul, Minnesota: National Research Center for Career and Technical
Education, University of Minnesota.
Castellano, M., Sundell, K., Overman, L. T. and Aliaga, O. A. (2012) ‘Do Career and Technical
Education Programs of Study Improve Student Achievement? Preliminary Analyses
from a Rigorous Longitudinal Study’, International Journal of Educational Reform, 21
(2), 98–118.
Dalton, B., Lauff, E., Henke, R., Alt, M. and Li, X. (2013) ‘From Track to Field: Trends in
Career and Technical Education across Three Decades: Prepared for the National
Assessment of Career and Technical Education (NACTE)’, U.S. Department of
Education, Policy and Program Studies Service.
Fletcher, E. C. Jr. and Zirkle, C. (2009) ‘The Relationship of High School Curriculum Tracks to
Degree Attainment and Occupational Earnings’, Career and Technical Education
Research, 34 (2), 81–102.
Ford, R., Frenette, M., Nicholson, C., Kwakye, I., Hui, T. S.-w., Hutchison, J. et al. (2012)
‘Future to Discover: [Post-secondary Impacts Report]’, Ottawa, Ontario: The Social
Research and Demonstration Corporation (SRDC).
Ford, R., Grekou, D., Kwakye, I. and Nicholson, C. (2014) ‘Future to Discover: Fourth Year
Post-secondary Impacts Report’, Ottawa, Ontario: The Social Research and
Demonstration Corporation (SRDC).
Fruiht, V. M. and Wray-Lake, L. (2013) ‘The Role of Mentor Type and Timing in Predicting
Educational Attainment’, Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 42 (9), 1,459–1,472.
Furstenberg, F. F. Jr. and Neumark, D. (2005) ‘School-to-Career and Post-Secondary
Education: Evidence from the Philadelphia Educational Longitudinal Study’, St. Louis:
Federal Reserve Bank of St Louis.
Golden, S., Golden, S., O’Donnell, L., Benton, T. and Rudd, P. (2005) ‘Evaluation of Increased
Flexibility for 14 to 16 Year Olds Programme; Outcomes for the First Cohort (Research
Report No. 668)’, London: Department for Education and Skills.
Social outcomes
(n = 25)
Athayde, R. (2009) ‘Measuring Enterprise Potential in Young People’, Entrepreneurship
Theory and Practice, 33 (2), 481–500.
Athayde, R. (2012) ‘The impact of enterprise education on attitudes to enterprise in young
Percy, C. (2010). The impact of formal work experience and term-time paid employment using
longitudinal data from England (2003-2007). London, Education and Employers
Taskforce.
Percy, C. (2010). NEET status during sixth form years vs. part-time paid work in years 9, 10
and 11 - an initial statistical analysis using the LSYPE. UK Education and Employers
Taskforce Research Conference.
Robinson, L. (1999). The Effects of Part-Time Work on School Students. Longitudinal Surveys
of Australian Youth (LSAY Research Report). Victoria, Australia, Australian Council for
Educational Research.
Scott, M. A. and A. Bernhardt (1999). Pathways to Educational Attainment and Their Effect on
Early Career Development. Berkeley, CA., National Center for Research in Vocational
Education.
Singh, K. (1998). "Part-time employment in high school and its effect on academic
achievement." Journal of Educational Research 91: 131-139.
Singh, K. and M. Ozturk (2000). "Effect of part-time work on high school mathematics and
science course taking." Journal of Educational Research 94(2): 67-74.
Vickers, M., et al. (2003). Student Workers in High School and Beyond: The Effects of Part-
Time Employment on Participation in Education, Training and Work. Victoria, Australia,
Australian Council for Educational Research.
Vuolo, M., et al. (2014). "Adolescent Precursors of Pathways From School to Work." Journal
of Research on Adolescence 24(1): 145-162.
Applied Research Unit. (2001). Post-secondary employment and college enrolment among
Montgomery County Public School Graduates: the role of career-focused programs.
Rockville, Maryland: Montgomery County Public Schools.
Abstract: Over the years, many have speculated about the post-secondary school and
employment activities of Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) graduates.
Knowledge of what our graduates do after high school graduation, in particular, how
well they perform in college and in the workplace, is unarguably of paramount
importance. Knowing which aspects of students’ high school education are associated
with successful transitions to college and to the workplace has implications for
maintaining, redesigning, expanding, or developing programs to better meet the needs
of our graduates in tomorrow’s workplace. Despite the clear demand for this knowledge
and its undeniable importance to understanding and preparing our youth for their
futures, there have been few, if any, systematic, large-scale studies examining
graduates’ post-secondary school and employment activities. Consequently, recurrent
questions about our graduates remain unanswered; questions, such as:
• To what extent do graduates follow through with their post-secondary school and
career plans? What do MCPS graduates do after high school graduation?
• How well do MCPS graduates perform in college? What are their first-year grade
point averages? How many complete their degrees? How long do graduates take
to complete college degrees?
• How well do MCPS graduates perform in the workplace? How many graduates are
employed? In what industries are they employed? What are graduates’ earnings?
• What effect does high school career and technology education have on graduates’
post-secondary school and employment activities?
Arum, R., and Way, S. (2004). School-community relationships and the early labour market
outcomes of sub-baccalaureate students. In K. Albright and D. Conley (Eds.), After the
Bell: Family Background, Public Policy and Educational Success (pp. 257-289).
London and New York: Routledge.
Abstract: This book chapter examines how a U.S. school-assisted job placement,
via a non-curricula mechanism, can boost occupational outcomes for young people,
specifically those most likely to be vulnerable to labour market failure. Data from the
High School and Beyond (HSB) survey, a longitudinal study of 1,222 high schools.
The sample of individuals selected for analysis is 3,571 young people who possess
a high school diploma or less and who report no post-secondary schooling in the
four years after high school. Findings suggest that when schools foster relationships
Bae, S. H., Gray, K., and Yeager, G. (2007). A Retrospective Cohort Comparison of Career
and Technical Education Participants and Non-Participants on a State-Mandated
Proficiency Test. Career and Technical Education Research, 32(1), 9-22.
Abstract: The sometimes poor performance of Career and Technical Education (CTE)
Bayer, A., Grossman, J. B., and DuBois, D. L. (2015). Using volunteer mentors to improve the
academic outcomes of underserved students: the role of relationships. Journal of
Community Psychology, 43(4), 408-429.
Abstract: Schools can benefit from understanding how to use community volunteers to
achieve academic goals. A randomized control evaluation, involving 1,139 students
from 71 schools, of the school-based mentoring program of Big Brothers Big Sisters of
America found modest but statistically significant improvements in the teacher-rated
academic performance and self-reported scholastic efficacy of mentored students. The
present study explores the causal mechanism behind these effects. We find that a
close relationship between mentor and protégé appears key to better academic
outcomes. Because relationship closeness is not randomly assigned, we use two-stage
least squares and other methods to control for potential selection bias. The role of
emotional closeness as a mediator of program effects is evident across mentoring
relationships of various lengths and statuses. Students were more likely to feel close to
their mentors in programs that included weekly meetings and opportunities for mentor–
protégé pairs to interact outside of a large-group setting.
Bernstein, L., Rappaport, C. D., Olsho, L., Hunt, D., and Levin, M. (2009). Impact Evaluation of
the U.S. Department of Education's Student Mentoring Program. Final Report (NCEE
2009-4047). Washington, DC: National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional
Assistance, Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education.
Abstract: This report summarizes the findings from a national evaluation of mentoring
programs funded under the U.S. Department of Education’s (ED) Student Mentoring
Program. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) requested that the Institute of
Education Sciences (IES) within ED oversee an independent evaluation of the Student
Mentoring Program. In 2005, ED contracted with Abt Associates and its team of
subcontractors, Branch Associates, Moore and Associates, and the Center for
Resource Management, to conduct the Impact Evaluation of Student Mentoring
Programs. The impact evaluation used an experimental design in which students were
randomly assigned to a treatment or control group. Thirty-two purposively selected
School Mentoring Programs and 2,573 students took part in the evaluation, which
estimated the impact of the programs over one school year on a range of student
outcomes. The evaluation also describes the characteristics of the program and the
mentors, and provides information about program delivery.
Bishop, J. H., and Mane, F. (2004). The impacts of career-technical education on high school
labor market success. Economics of Education Review, 23(4), 381-402.
Abstract: The paper assesses the effects of offering upper-secondary students the
opportunity to pursue vocational education in high school on completion rates and
Bragg, D. D., Loeb, J. W., Gong, Y., Deng, C.-P., Yoo, J.-s., and Hill, J. L. (2002). Transition
from High School to College and Work for Tech Prep Participants in Eight Selected
Consortia. St. Paul, Minnesota National Research Center for Career and Technical
Education, University of Minnesota.
Abstract: The transition from high school to college and work for tech prep participants
was examined in a 4-year longitudinal study of local tech prep consortia in eight
regions of the United States. The study methodology drew heavily on transcript
analysis and two surveys with tech prep participants and nonparticipants. The tech
prep participants and nonparticipants did not differ substantially in race/ethnicity,
income, and parental education. The wide variations in secondary education and tech
prep participation from consortium to consortium made it difficult to formulate definitive
conclusions about particular models or approaches. The study findings did, however,
support the notion that school and consortium requirements influence student
participation in core academic courses relative to tech prep programs of study. The
findings also suggested that it is incumbent upon school personnel to link tech prep
core curricula to high school graduation requirements that go beyond the basic
minimum requirements and prepare students for college entrance.
Brown, S., Oritiz-Nunez, A., and Taylor, K. (2011). What Will I Be When I Grow Up? An
analysis of childhood expectations and career outcomes. Economic of Education
Review, 30(3), 493-506.
Abstract: In this paper, we utilise the British National Child Development Study to
explore the determinants of career expectations formed at the age of 16. We analyse
the influence of careers advice and resources at school on career expectations as well
as the influence of education. In addition, we explore the accuracy of occupational
expectations as compared to the occupation that the respondents subsequently
become employed in. Throughout our findings, human capital and gender play a pivotal
role in explaining career expectations as well as explaining the accuracy of the
occupational forecast. Interestingly, the level of school resources available for careers
guidance in terms of the number of teachers who are qualified to give careers advice
and the amount of specific careers guidance training received by these teachers both
have relatively small effects upon career expectations.
Buckler, N., Coles-Jordan, D., Crisp, P., and Silvera, S. (2015). Future First's alumni
programme: Evaluation report Coventry: Centre for the Use of Research and Evidence
in Education (CUREE).
Abstract: During the academic year 2013-14, Future First partnered with J.P. Morgan
to run an alumni programme for a target group of 25 schools in the areas of greatest
need (based on the proportion of students eligible for free school meals). An alumni
programme involves bringing former students back to their schools to talk to learners
about careers. This particular programme included Future First running six alumni
events in each of the schools. These sessions were largely targeted at the students
who were currently studying for their GCSEs. Session foci ranged from reflecting on
Buscha, F., Maurel, A., Page, L., and Speckesser, S. (2012). The Effect of Employment while
in High School on Educational Attainment: A Conditional Difference-in-Differences
Approach*. Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics, 74(3), 380-396.
Abstract: Using American panel data from the National Education Longitudinal Study of
1988, this article investigates the effect of working during grade 12 on attainment. We
employ, for the first time in the related literature, a semiparametric propensity score
matching approach combined with difference-in-differences. We address selection on
both observables and unobservables associated with part-time work decisions, without
the need for instrumental variable. Once such factors are controlled for, little to no
effects on reading and math scores are found. Overall, our results therefore suggest a
negligible academic cost from part-time working by the end of high school.
Castellano, M., Sundell, K., Overman, L. T., and Aliaga, O. A. (2012). Do Career and
Technical Education Programs of Study Improve Student Achievement? Preliminary
Analyses from a Rigorous Longitudinal Study. International Journal of Educational
Reform, 21(2), 98-118.
Abstract: This longitudinal study examines the impact of programs of study on high
school academic and technical achievement. Two districts are participating in
experimental and quasi-experimental strands of the study. This article describes the
sample selection, baseline characteristics, study design, career and technical
education and academic achievement results of 9th and 10th graders, and qualitative
findings from site visits. Few differences existed across groups in 9th grade, but by the
end of 10th grade, students' test scores, academic grade point averages, and progress
to graduation tended to be better for the students in programs of study (i.e., treatment
students) than for control/comparison students. Qualitative results suggest that
treatment schools have created school cultures around programs of study that appear
to explain improved engagement and achievement. (Contains 9 tables and 2 notes.)
Crawford, C., Duckworth, K., Vignoles, A., and Wyness, G. (2011). Young people's education
and labour market choices aged 16/17 to 18/19 (Research Report DFE-RR182).
London: Department for Education.
Abstract: In the context of a difficult 2011 labour market, this report examines the early
educational and labour market transitions made by young people, age 16 to 17 through
to age 18 to 19. The the research looked to obtain empirical evidence on the transitions
made by young people which can then inform policies to improve transitions into the
labour market for young people. The primary focus is on comparing the outcomes of
those who initially take jobs without training with those who initially take jobs with
Currie, S., Hutchinson, J., Ford, R., Kurakye, I., and Tattrie, D. (2007). Future to Discover Pilot
Project: [Early Implementation Report]. Ottawa, Ontario: The Social Research and
Demonstration Corporation.
Abstract: The Future to Discover (FTD) Pilot Project was established to determine what
approaches work best to increase participation in post-secondary education. Although
the pilot project is intended to help high school students in general, it also includes a
focus on those students who are commonly identified as under-represented in
postsecondary education: students from lower-income families whose parents have
little or no post-secondary experience. Future to Discover is testing two interventions,
which are called Explore Your Horizons and Learning Accounts. The pilot project is
designed to determine the impact of these two interventions on access to post-
secondary education, measured as participants’ completion of the first year of their
chosen post-secondary program.
Dalton, B., Lauff, E., Henke, R., Alt, M., and Li, X. (2013). From Track to Field: Trends in
Career and Technical Education across Three Decades: Prepared for the National
Assessment of Career and Technical Education (NACTE). U.S.A: U.S. Department of
Education, Policy and Program Studies Service.
Abstract: This report examines change and stability across two decades in the
sociodemographic characteristics, educational experiences, and postsecondary
outcomes of high school graduates with different occupational coursetaking patterns.
Occupational coursetaking is part of the broader field of career and technical education
(CTE), which also includes general labor market preparation and family and consumer
sciences education courses. Historically, CTE and occupational studies provided low-
achieving or academically disengaged students with courses that prepared them for
immediate entry into the labor market. However, the expansion of new types of career
education within magnet schools, career academies, and traditional high schools, and
the increasingly accepted perspective that all students can benefit from training that
improves their workplace skills, suggests that the older dichotomies between college-
bound academic education and work-oriented occupational preparation are less
salient. To examine whether this is the case, this report analyzes three high school
cohorts—the graduating classes of 1982, 1992, and 2004—and compares their
involvement in CTE and occupational courses, their academic coursetaking and
achievement outcomes, and their initial postsecondary school and work experiences.
We find that CTE, as measured by occupational coursetaking, has moved from being a
clearly delineated vocational track for graduates headed to jobs immediately after high
school to an exploratory program for an increasing proportion of both academic and
general curriculum graduates. This shift from “track to field” involves smaller groups of
graduates intensively studying an occupational area and larger groups of graduates
earning a few occupational credits. It also coincides with shifts toward more academic
coursetaking, improved academic achievement in math, and more involvement in
postsecondary education for those with more involvement in occupational preparation.
Before describing these findings further, the definitions and methodology for the report
are explained.
Duckworth, K., and Schoon, I. (2012). Beating the odds: exploring the impact of social risk on
young people's school-to-work transitions during recession in the UK. National Institute
Economic Review, 222(1), R38-R51.
Abstract: Drawing on nationally representative data collected for two age cohorts in the
UK, this paper a) assesses the effect of multiple independent socioeconomic risk
factors in shaping the transition from school to work; and b) identifies potential
protective factors enabling young people to beat the odds. By comparing experiences
Dustmann, C., and Van Soest, A. (2007). Part-time work, school success and school leaving.
Empirical Economics, 32, 277-299.
Abstract: In this paper, we analyse part-time employment of teenagers still in full-time
education, their academic performance, and their school leaving decisions. Our
estimation strategy takes account of the possible interdependencies of these events
and distinguishes between two alternative states to full time education: entering the
labour force full time and going on to further training. We model this decision in a
flexible way. Our analysis is based on data from the UK National Child Development
Study, which has an unusually rich set of variables on school and parental
characteristics. Our main finding is that working part time while in full-time education
has only small adverse effects on exam performance for females, and no effects for
males. The effect of part-time work on the decision to stay on at school is also
negative, but small, and marginally significant for males, but not for females. Other
important determinants of exam success as well as the continuation decision are
parental ambitions about the child’s future academic career.
Fletcher, E. C., Jr., and Zirkle, C. (2009). The Relationship of High School Curriculum Tracks
to Degree Attainment and Occupational Earnings. Career and Technical Education
Research, 34(2), 81-102.
Abstract: The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between high
school curriculum tracks and student achievement outcomes through the consideration
of degree attainment and occupational earnings. Data pertaining to graduates were
analyzed through the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY) 1997 dataset. This
study investigated the linkage between participation in high school curriculum tracks,
degree attainment, and occupational earnings. Findings of this research study
indicated that the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Applied Technology Education Act of
1990 may not be meeting its objectives in terms of CTE students earning
postsecondary degrees. However, this study found that CTE students were
outperforming the general, dual, and college preparatory tracks in terms of
occupational earnings. In addition, the dual track was more likely to earn associates'
degrees than their general track counterparts. The college preparatory track
outperformed all tracks in terms of degree attainment, particularly in earning bachelors'
degrees.
Ford, R., Frenette, M., Nicholson, C., Kwakye, I., Hui, T. S.-w., Hutchison, J., et al. (2012).
Future to Discover: [Post-secondary Impacts Report]. Ottawa, Ontario: Social
Research and Demonstration Corporation.
Abstract: Future to Discover (FTD) is a pilot project testing the effectiveness of two
interventions designed to help students overcome certain barriers to post-secondary
education, namely lack of career clarity, misinformation about post-secondary
education, and lack of financial resources. This report presents post-secondary
impacts of the project, which has involved 5,429 students at 51 high schools in
Manitoba and New Brunswick since 2004.
Ford, R., Grekou, D., Kwakye, I., and Nicholson, C. (2014). Future to Discover: Fourth Year
Post-secondary Impacts Report. Ottawa, Ontario: The Social Research and
Demonstration Corporation (SRDC).
Abstract: This report presents the latest results from the Future to Discover project. It is
Fruiht, V. M., and Wray-Lake, L. (2013). The Role of Mentor Type and Timing in Predicting
Educational Attainment. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 42(9), 1459-1472.
Abstract: Having an adult mentor during adolescence has been found to predict
academic success. Building on previous work, the present study examined interactions
between the type of mentor (i.e., kin, teacher, friend, or community), the time that
mentor became important (i.e., before, during, or after high school), and the ethnicity of
the protégé in predicting educational attainment in young adulthood. Analyses used
Waves III and IV of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (N = 2,409).
Participants’ ages ranged from 18 to 27 (M = 21.75, SD = 1.79). The sample was 56.7
% female and nationally representative of ethnic diversity. Analyses showed that
having a teacher-mentor was more predictive of educational attainment than having
other types of mentors and that overall, having a mentor after high school predicts the
most educational attainment. Kin- and community-mentors appeared to be more
important to educational attainment during and before high school, respectively.
Findings were consistent across ethnic groups. Overall, results highlight the value of
teacher-mentors throughout childhood, adolescence, and early adulthood and our
study further suggests that different types of mentors may be particularly useful at
specific points in development.
Golden, S., Golden, S., O’Donnell, L., Benton, T., and Rudd, P. (2005). Evaluation of
Increased Flexibility for 14 to 16 Year Olds Programme : Outcomes for the First Cohort
(Research Report No. 668). London: Department for Education and Skills.
Abstract: The Increased Flexibility for 14-16 year olds Programme (IFP) was
introduced in 2002 by the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) to provide
vocational learning opportunities at key stage 4 for those young people who would
benefit most. The programme, which entailed FE colleges and training providers
working in partnership with schools to offer GCSEs in vocational subjects, NVQs, other
vocational qualifications and GNVQs to students, was subsequently extended to three
Golden, S., O'Donnell, L., Benton, T., and Rudd, P. (2006). Evaluation of Increased Flexibility
for 14 to 16 Year Olds Programme : Outcomes for the Second Cohort (Research
Report No. 786). London: Department for Education and Skills.
Abstract: The Increased Flexibility Programme for 14 to 16 year olds (IFP) was
introduced in 2002. The aim of the programme was to 'create enhanced vocational and
work-related learning opportunities for 14 to 16 year olds of all abilities who can benefit
most' - this included supporting provision of the GCSEs in vocational subjects. The first
cohort of Year 10 students embarked on their programme in 2002 and this was
followed by a second cohort in 2003 and subsequent cohorts in the following years.
This summary focuses on the outcomes for participants who participated in the
programme between 2003 and 2005 (cohort 2) during a time of change in 14 to 19
policy. It should be stressed that this summary reflects the outcomes for only the
second cohort of young people to participate in this new and developing approach to
delivering a more flexible and vocational curriculum through institutions working in
partnership.
Gong, X., Cassells, R., and Duncan, A. (2012). Does Part-Time Work at School Impact on
Going to University? (No. 978-1-9220-5629-0). Victoria, Australia: National Centre for
Vocational Education Research (NCVER).
Abstract: Combining school study with part-time or casual work is an increasing trend
for Australian high school students. For some, it is a way of earning some extra cash
and having a bit of freedom from their parents, or it is an opportunity to get some
experience in an occupation they are interested in. This paper looks at the impact that
working while studying has on students' intentions to go to university as well as their
actual enrolments. The authors use data from the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian
Youth (LSAY) 1998 cohort to observe the work and study patterns of young people
over a period of time. The paper confirms the findings of other research: that students
are more likely to combine study and work as they progress through their school years,
with over half of students working in Year 12. The study also found that girls are more
inclined to combine study and work, but boys tend to work more intensively than girls.
Combining some work with study does not change the likelihood of enrolling in
university, but working intensively--more than 15 hours per week--does reduce the
chances of going to university, especially for girls. This paper adds new detail to what
is emerging quite clearly: that some part-time work for full-time students is fine, but
long hours do impact on academic progress.
Gutman, L. M., Sabates, R., and Schoon, I. (2014). Uncertainty in educational and career
aspirations: gender differences in young people. In I. Schoon and J. S. Eccles (Eds.),
Gender Differences in Aspirations and Attainment: A Life Course Perspective (pp. 161-
181). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Abstract: Drawing upon data from two British age cohorts born in 1970 and 1990,
this chapter examines gender and socio-historical differences regarding uncertainty
in the educational and career aspirations of young people. Despite differences in
the age of assessment and measurement, findings suggest that similar background
characteristics are associated with uncertain aspirations in the two age cohorts.
Males were more uncertain of their educational aspirations than were females.
Uncertainty was also associated with growing up in a relatively disadvantaged
family, with parents who did not expect their children to continue in education, as
Harrison, N., James, D., and Last, K. (2012). The impact of the pursuit of ASDAN’s Certificate
of Personal Effectiveness (CoPE) on GCSE attainment. Bristol: University of West of
England and ASDAN education.
Abstract: Analysis is based upon the National Pupil Database (NPD) data, of 500,000
pupils who completed Key Stage 4 (KS4) in 2010, alongside qualitative data from
four schools offering ASDAN’s Certificate of Personal Effectiveness (CoPE) in the
UK. Results find that students undertaking CoPE within ‘wide usage’ schools
(between 25-100% of the cohort) have a 10% increased likelihood of obtaining GCSE
English graded A* to C and a 5% increased likelihood of obtaining five GCSEs at A*
to C including English and Maths, compared to similar individuals. The impact is
specifically pronounced for young people with low KS3 attainment in English, special
educational needs (SEN), those eligible for free school meals, and those from black
and minority ethnic (BME) communities. Academic attainment for young people in
‘thin usage’ schools (lower than 25% of the cohort) is lower than similar individuals
who are not taking the CoPE qualification.
Hillage, J., Kodz, J., and Pike, G. (2011). Pre-16 work experience practice in England: an
evaluation. London: Department for Education and Employment.
Abstract: Commissioned by the Department for Education and Employment, this study
assesses current work experience policy and practice in England. In particular, it
evaluates the impacts of policy changes implemented since the last major evaluation in
1996, and informs the development of policies to further enhance the quality of work
experience. This report is based on national surveys of school and area work
experience co-ordinators, and qualitative interviews and surveys of students, school
staff, employers and intermediaries in five case study areas.
Hossain, F., and Bloom, D. (2015). Toward a better future: evidence on improving employment
outcomes for disadvantaged youth in the United States. New York City: MDRC.
Abstract: In the aftermath of the Great Recession of 2007-2009, youth unemployment
in the United States reached its highest level since the Second World War. Only about
half of young people ages 16 to 24 held jobs in 2013, and recent estimates suggest
that about one in five people in this age range — 6.7 million people — were neither
working nor in school. The recession has taken an unprecedented toll on the economic
prospects of young people, and recovery for them has been the slowest. According to
one estimate, persistent high unemployment among young people has resulted in up to
$25 billion a year in uncollected taxes and, to a lesser extent, higher expenses on
safety net pro-grams. Increased investment in strategies to improve the employment
prospects of youth, especially those who are economically disadvantaged, is
necessary to confront this growing problem and to ensure a better future for the next
generation.
To date, most efforts to improve labor market outcomes for young people have focused
on supply-side strategies to build human capital and have included some combination
of education, training, work experience, and developmental activities to produce a
better supply of skilled, employable youth. But relatively little attention has been paid to
the demand side of the labor market equation — the private employers who account for
the lion’s share of jobs in the US economy. Many programs that prepare youth for work
by providing education, training and employment services are often not backed by an
appropriate demand for particular skills in the local labor market. These programs have
also historically lacked strong employer partnerships to create job opportunities for the
Hotz, V. J. (2002). Are There Returns to the Wages of Young Men from Working While in
School. Review of Economics and Statistics, 84(2), 221-236.
Abstract: This paper examines the effects of work experience acquired while youth
were in high school (and college) on young men's wage rates. Previous studies have
found sizeable and persistent rates of return to working while enrolled in school,
especially high school, on subsequent wage growth. We evaluate the extent to which
these estimates represent causal effects by assessing the robustness of prior findings
to controls for unobserved heterogeneity and sample selectivity. We explore more-
general econometric methods for dealing with the dynamic of selection and apply them
to data on young men from the 1979 National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY79).
We find that the estimated returns to working while in high school or college are
dramatically diminished in magnitude and are not statistically significant when one
applies dynamic selection methods.
Huber, L., Sloof, R., and Van Praag, M. (2012). The effect of early entrepreneurship education:
Evidence from a randomized field experiment. European Economic Review, 72, 76-97.
Abstract: The aim of this study is to analyze the effectiveness of early entrepreneurship
education. To this end, we conduct a randomized field experiment to evaluate a
leading entrepreneurship education program that is taught worldwide in the final grade
of primary school. We focus on pupils' development of relevant skill sets for
entrepreneurial activity, both cognitive and non-cognitive. The results indicate that
cognitive entrepreneurial skills are unaffected by the program. However, the program
has a robust positive effect on non-cognitive entrepreneurial skills. This is surprising
since previous evaluations found zero or negative effects. Because these earlier
studies all pertain to education for adolescents, our result tentatively suggests that non-
cognitive entrepreneurial skills are best developed at an early age.
Huber, L.R., Sloof, R., and Van Praag, M. (2014). The effect of early entrepreneurship
education: Evidence from a field experiment. European Economic Review, 72, 76-97.
The aim of this study is to analyze the effectiveness of early entrepreneurship
education. To this end, we conduct a randomized field experiment to evaluate a
leading entrepreneurship education program that is taught worldwide in the final
grade of primary school. We focus on pupils' development of entrepreneurship
knowledge and a set of non-cognitive skills relevant for entrepreneurial activity. The
results indicate that knowledge is unaffected by the program. However, the program
has a robust positive effect on non-cognitive entrepreneurial skills. This is surprising
since previous evaluations found zero or negative effects. Because these earlier
studies all pertain to entrepreneurship education for adolescents, our result
tentatively suggests that non-cognitive entrepreneurial skills are best developed at an
early age. As the entrepreneurship program has various features besides its
entrepreneurship content, we must leave it to future research to determine which
Jobs for the Future. (1998). School-to-career initiative demonstrates significant impact on
young people. Boston, MA: Jobs for the Future.
Abstract: Research on Boston Public School graduates provides evidence that linking
high schools with employers and other community allies can have a strong, lasting
influence on students. The study was among the first to collect information on college
enrollment and postsecondary employment and earnings over several years.
Kashefpakdel, E. T., and Percy, C. (2016, forthcoming). Career education that works: An
economic analysis using the British Cohort Study. Journal of Education and Work.
Abstract: There is significant policy interest in the issue of young people’s fractured
transitions into the labour market. Many scholars and policy-makers believe that
changes in the education system and labour market over recent decades have created
a complex world for young people; and that this can partly be addressed by enhanced
career education while individuals are at school. However, the literature lacks in-depth
quantitative analysis making use of longitudinal data. This paper draws on the British
Cohort Study 1970 to investigate the link between career talks by external speakers
and employment outcomes, and finds some evidence that young people who
participated in more career talks at age 14-16 enjoyed a wage premium 10 years later
at age 26. The correlation is statistically significant on average across all students who
receive talks at age 14-15; but remains the case for 15-16-year-olds only if they also
described the talks as very helpful.
Kemple, J. J., and Willner, C. J. (2008). Career academies: long-term impacts on labor market
outcomes, educational attainment, and transitions to adulthood (Report). New York:
MDRC publications.
Abstract: Established more than 30 years ago, Career Academies have become a
widely used high school reform initiative that aims to keep students engaged in school
and prepare them for successful transitions to postsecondary education and
Koivisto, P., Vuori, J., and Vinokur, A. D. (2010). Transition to work: Effects of preparedness
and goal construction on employment and depressive symptoms. Journal of Research
on Adolescence, 20(4), 869-892.
Abstract: This study examines the mediating role of employment preparedness in
improving employment, mental health, and construction of work-life goals among
young vocational school graduates who participated in the School-to-Work
effectiveness trial. The trial included a 1-week intervention program that focused on
enhancing employment preparedness. In this trial, 416 graduates of secondary
vocational institutes were randomized into a control and experimental group. All the
study participants were assessed at baseline, immediately after the intervention, and
10 months later. The results showed that the School-to-Work intervention increased
employment preparedness, which in turn increased employment at the 10-month
follow-up. Furthermore, employment predicted work-life-related personal goals and
lower financial strain, which in turn was associated with lower depressive symptoms.
The implications for theory and practice are discussed.
Kuijpers, M., and Meijers, F. (2009). Learning environment for career learning: A study of the
relations between the learning environment and career competencies in students in
pre-vocational and secondary vocational education. Pedagogische Studien, 83(3), 93-
109.
Abstract: This article focuses on which aspects of the learning environment, aimed at
fostering career learning, correspond with the development of career competencies
among students (aged 12–19 years) enrolled in prevocational and secondary
vocational education in The Netherlands. Aspects of the learning environment that are
taken into account here are the following: career orientation and guidance methods
used, instruments implemented, and the degree to which the curriculum is practice-
based and dialogical. In the study, three career competencies are identified: career
reflection (reflective behaviour), career forming (proactive behaviour), and networking
(interactive behaviour). To research the relationship between the learning environment
and the presence of career competencies, a study was done among 3499 students and
166 teachers in 226 classes in 34 schools. The results show that career guidance in
school, in which a dialogue takes place with the student about concrete experiences
and which is focused on the future, contributes most to the presence of career
competencies among students. Without this dialogue, career guidance methods and
instruments barely contribute to the acquisition of career competencies.
Legum, H. L., and Hoare, C. H. (2004). Impact of a Career Intervention on At-Risk Middle
School Students' Career Maturity Levels, Academic Achievement, and Self-Esteem.
Light, A. (2001). In‐school work experience and the returns to schooling. Journal of Labor
Economics, 19(1), 65-93.
Abstract: Students often accumulate substantial work experience before leaving
school. Because conventional earnings functions do not control for in-school work
experience, their estimates of the return to schooling include the benefit of work
experience gained along the way. Using data from the National Longitudinal Survey of
Youth, I estimate wage models with and without controls for in-school work experience.
The estimated schooling coefficients are 25%–44% higher (depending on how I control
for ability bias) when in-school work experience is omitted than when it is included.
These findings indicate that conventional models significantly overstate the wage
effects of “school only.”
MacAllum, K., and Bozick, R. (2001). What Happens after They Graduate? Results from a
Longitudinal Study of STC Graduates, 75th Annual Conference of the Association for
Career and Technical Educations New Orleans.
Abstract: The Lansing Area Manufacturing Partnership (LAMP) is an academically
rigorous, business/labor-driven school-to-career (STC) program in Lansing, Michigan,
that includes business, union, school, and parent partners. The effects of participation
in LAMP on transitions from school to higher education and work were examined in a
longitudinal study of 48 LAMP participants and 46 students who did not participate in
LAMP. Both groups were similar from the standpoints of gender, race, age, grade-point
average (GPA), and school attended. Data were collected from both groups 6, 12, and
MacAllum, K., Worgs, D., Bozick, R., and McDonald, D. (2001). Transitioning to College and
Career: Interim Findings of the LAMP Longitudinal Study. Washington D.C.: Academy
for Educational Development, National Institute for Work Learning.
Abstract: The Lansing Area Manufacturing Partnership (LAMP) is an academically
rigorous, business/labor-driven school-to-career program in Lansing, Michigan, that
includes business, union, school, and parent partners. The effects of participation in
LAMP on transitions from school to higher education and work were examined in a
longitudinal study that compared the progress of LAMP students and non-LAMP
participants from the classes of 1998, 1999, and 2000 at more than 20 high schools.
Changes in educational and employment status were tracked through mailed surveys
administered every June and December. The LAMP students pursued postsecondary
education at higher rates than the comparison groups did. As a group, the LAMP
students were maintaining good grades and a significant majority were working and
attending school at the same time. Compared to the non-LAMP participants, the LAMP
students participated in more career development activities during their senior year in
high school and appeared to have been better prepared for the transition from high
school to college and employment. Many LAMP graduates were initially dissatisfied
with their jobs, particularly with their opportunities for training and advancement, and
they have changed jobs at higher rates than the comparison group. However, many
LAMP graduates considered their job changes positive steps toward their career goals.
Mann, A., and Percy, C. (2013). Employer engagement in British secondary education: wage
earning outcomes experienced by young adults. Journal of Education and Work, 27(5),
496-523.
Abstract: Since 2004, the devolved education systems of England, Scotland and Wales
have introduced initiatives to increase contact between employers and young people,
particularly aged 14-19, as a supplementary, co-curricular activity within mainstream
education. The initiatives are motivated partly to increase wage-earning potential but
studies to date have not explicitly tested this hypothesis. Robust evaluations from the
US suggest a potential wage uplift of 6.5%-25% but these evaluations do not directly
comment on the UK approach, as they focus on highly-specialised forms of education
with closely integrated employer involvement. A new 2011 survey associates wage
returns and school-mediated employer contacts for 169 full-time 19-24 year old
workers on annual salaries within the UK environment – and suggests a link of 4.5%
between each additional school-mediated employer contact, such that four employer
contacts would produce results in line with the US studies. Contrasting the US and UK
studies suggests that any causal link from school-mediated employer contact to wage
outcomes is likely to be driven more by increased social capital as witnessed in
improved access to non-redundant, trustworthy information and social network
development than by the development of either technical or ’employability’ skills.
Marks, G. (2008). The occupations and earnings of young Australians: the role of education
and training (LSAY Research Reports No 55). Victoria, Australia: Australian Council for
Educational Research.
Maxwell, N. L., and Rubin, V. (1997). The Relative Impact of a Career Academy on Post-
Secondary Work and Education Skills in Urban, Public High Schools. HIRE (Discussion
Paper Number 97-2). Hayward, CA: The Human Investment Research and Education
Center.
Abstract: The relative impact of career academies on postsecondary educational
attainment and knowledge and skills acquired in urban public high schools was
examined through an analysis of single-district and national databases. The national
data were obtained from the first and third follow-up surveys of the National Education
Longitudinal Study. Compared with the students in the national sample, students in the
single-district sample were less likely to be white (less than 10% versus 44.7%), more
likely to receive free lunches (40% versus 28%), and more likely to have limited English
proficiency (more than 25% versus 14%). Of the 10,102 students in the single-district
sample, 1,257 attended career academies. The data analyses established that,
although career academies have the potential for increasing aggregate educational
attainment with an impact equal to that of the academic track, career academies may
not be equally effective for all students. It was therefore recommended that an array of
high school programs be offered to meet the needs of diverse student bodies.
Maxwell, N. L., and Rubin, V. (2000). High School Career Academies: A Pathway to
Educational Reform in Urban School Districts? Kalamazoo, MI: Upjohn Institute for
Employment Research.
Abstract: This book examines the capacity of the career academy--one of the initiatives
spawned by the school-to-work movement--to address academic reform in terms of
increased education and workplace skills. Qualitative data collected as part of a 7-year
local evaluation of career academies and a data set that contains transcript data on a
population of three cohorts of public high school students with a survey of the students'
plans for after high school were used to conduct the analysis. Chapter 1 discusses the
historical trends and social conditions that led to the emergence of school-to-work
educational reforms. Chapter 2 outlines the methods used to answer the questions
about the ability of career academies to meet educational reform needs. Chapter 3
shows how the economic and education-related problems in one city led to adopting
the career academy model as the primary focus of high school reform. The next two
chapters present multivariate findings from the quantitative analysis, including (Chapter
4) the overall impact of career academies on postsecondary education and labor
market outcomes and (Chapter 5) the impact of the career academy as it unfolds in
various school environments. Chapter 6 contains a summary and policy implications of
the research, concluding that career academies can be quite effective at facilitating
postsecondary educational success for their students, with two cautions: (1) the career
McVicar, D., and McKee, B. (2002). Part–Time Work During Post–Compulsory Education And
Examination Performance: Help Or Hindrance? Scottish journal of political economy,
49(4), 393-406.
Abstract: This paper examines the effects on examination performance of having a
part-time job whilst in full-time post-sixteen education, using new data on young people
in Northern Ireland. Around 35% engaged in part time employment during their
education spell, compared to over 60% found by recent GB studies. This may be
related to Northern Ireland’s comparatively slack youth labour market and might reflect
part-time employment levels in other peripheral regions. Our estimations suggest
working part-time per se is not detrimental to examination performance, although
working long hours is. Policy makers might improve educational performance by
reducing incentives to work long hours.
Miller, A. (1999). Business mentoring in schools: does it raise attainment? Education and
Training, 41(2), 73-78.
Abstract: The article describes research into the impact of business and community
mentoring in schools on students’ attainment. The research, which was conducted in
seven schools during the 1996/97 academic year, was funded by the Department for
Education and Employment and three Training and Enterprise Councils. An overview
of mentoring schemes and models is followed by analysis of objectives for mentoring
from various perspectives. Value ‐added anal
mentoring on a sample of mentored students, compared with a similar group of non ‐
mentored students acting as a control group. The research found a mixed picture in the
seven schools involved with girls out ‐perform ing
but positive, impact on the attainment of mentored students. Finally, the researchers
offer some recommendations to schools and scheme organisers on how to increase
the impact of mentoring upon GCSE attainment.
Morris, M. (2004). The Case for Careers Education and Guidance for 14-19 year olds. Slough:
National Foundation for Educational Research.
Abstract: The recent interim report by the Working Group on 14-19 Reform (DfES,
Nagengast, B., Marsh, H. W., Chiorri, C., and Hau, K.-T. (2014). Character Building or
Subversive Consequences of Employment during High School: Causal Effects Based
on Propensity Score Models for Categorical Treatments. Journal of Educational
Psychology, 106(2), 584-603.
Abstract: The present study revisited the unresolved issue of the long-term effects of
part-time working intensity during high school on students' achievement, participation in
postsecondary education, time allocation, and work-related values and expectations.
Using data from the Educational Longitudinal Study of 2002 (N = 14,654), the effects of
part-time working in Year 12 on outcomes assessed at graduation from high school
and 2 years later were studied with propensity score methods for categorical
treatments. Three theoretical perspectives on the effects of part-time working intensity
(subversion of academic goals, character building, threshold model) were contrasted.
Substantively, there were negative linear effects of working intensity on achievement
outcomes. Results for higher education participation partly supported a threshold
model. Heterogeneous effects for self-reported time use and work-related values
suggested that the negative effects on achievement outcomes were not due to a
simple zero-sum game. Ironically, working with high intensity led students to value
having a good job more strongly but might undermine their chances of achieving this
goal. However, these effects were only recognized 2 years after high school
graduation, when occupational expectations were negatively affected by working
intensity in Year 12.
National Audit Office. (2010). Educating the next generation of scientists. London: The
Stationery Office.
Abstract: This report aims to evaluate the factors that implicate the uptake of maths
and science before the age of 18. Analysis is drawn from a mixed-method approach
combining, surveys of 1,274 pupils in the ‘STEM pipeline’ in the UK, focus groups and
interviews, literature review, analysis of the National Pupil Database, ONS population
estimates and examination data. Findings reveal the following factors to be critical in
determining the amount of young people taking maths and science: careers information
and guidance, quality and quantity of school and science facilities, quality and quantity
of science teachers, image and interest, and the availability of separate GCSE
sciences (‘triple science’). Based upon such factors, the report explores the
effectiveness of a selected number of programmes aiming to improve up-take. The
authors recommend all factors need to be combined to effectively increase the number
of students engaging with maths and science, perhaps through an overarching
programme based upon the evidence provided.
Neumark, D., and Rothstein, D. (2005). Do School-to-Work Programs Help the "Forgotten
Half"? St. Louis: Federal Reserve Bank of St Louis.
Abstract: This paper tests whether school-to-work (STW) programs are particularly
beneficial for those less likely to go to college in their absence - often termed the
"forgotten half" in the STW literature. The empirical analysis is based on the NLSY97,
which allows us to study six types of STW programs, including job shadowing,
mentoring, coop, school enterprises, tech prep, and internships/apprenticeships. For
men there is quite a bit of evidence that STW program participation is particularly
advantageous for those in the forgotten half. For these men, specifically, mentoring
and coop programs increase post-secondary education, and coop, school enterprise,
and internship/apprenticeship programs boost employment and decrease idleness after
leaving high school. There is less evidence that STW programs are particularly
beneficial for women in the forgotten half, although internship/apprenticeship programs
do lead to positive earnings effects concentrated among these women.
Neumark, D., and Rothstein, D. (2006). School-to-career programs and transitions to
employment and higher education. Economics of education review, 25(4), 374-393.
Abstract: The 1994 federal School-to-Work Opportunities Act (STWOA) provided more
than $1.5 billion over 5 years to support increased career preparation activities in the
country's public schools. A new longitudinal data source with rich information on
school-to-career (STC) programs—the 1997 National Longitudinal Survey of Youth
(NLSY97)—provides previously unparalleled opportunities to study the effectiveness of
STC programs. This paper uses the NLSY97 to assess the effects of STC programs on
transitions to employment and higher education among youths leaving high school,
with a focus on attempting to estimate the causal effects of this participation given
possible non-random selection of youths into STC programs.
Orthner, D. K., Jones-Sanpei, H., Akos, P., and Rose, R. A. (2013). Improving Middle School
Student Engagement Through Career-Relevant Instruction in the Core Curriculum.
Journal of Educational Research, 106(1), 27-38.
Abstract: The authors assessed the effect of career-relevant instruction on school
Pearson, D., Sawyer, J., Park, T., Santamaria, L., van der Mandele, E., Keene, B., et al.
(2010). Capitalizing on Context: Curriculum Integration in Career and Technical
Education. A Joint Report of the NRCCTE Curriculum Integration Workgroup. U.S.A:
National Research Center for Career and Technical Education.
Abstract: The National Research Center for Career and Technical Education
(NRCCTE) has undertaken three scientifically based research studies in an effort to
determine whether the integration of career and technical education (CTE) courses
with academic content can increase student achievement. These include the Math-in-
CTE study, completed in 2005 (also known as "Building Academic Skills in Context";
Stone, Alfeld, Pearson, Lewis, and Jensen, 2006); the Authentic Literacy Applications
in CTE pilot study, completed in 2009, with a full-year study launched in 2010; and the
Percy, C. (2010). NEET status during sixth form years vs. part-time paid work in years 9, 10
and 11 - an initial statistical analysis using the LSYPE, UK Education and Employers
Taskforce Research Conference.
Abstract: This paper identifies a compelling and beneficial correlation between part-
time paid employment in years 9, 10 and 11 and being NEET during the sixth form
years. The raw relationship shows, across 10,017 young people in England, that the
average time spent NEET in a 21 month period is around two weeks for those who
worked part-time in each of those three school years, but nearer five weeks for those
who did not work at all. This relationship remains statistically significant, if roughly half
the effect size, after controlling for KS4 attainment. However, the data reveal significant
variations in this relationship across many characteristics of interest, including ethnicity,
social background and local area deprivation. The driver of this change in NEET-status
is individuals entering employment rather than remaining in education. The data do not
allow comment on causality in these relationships, and it seems likely that the attitudes
and behaviours are mutually reinforcing, rather than easily reduced to directional
conclusions.
Percy, C. (2010). The impact of formal work experience and term-time paid employment using
longitudinal data from England (2003-2007). London: Education and Employers
Taskforce.
Abstract: This paper marks an introductory exploration of a pre-existing longitudinal
dataset on the impact of two types of activity: formal work experience placements and
part-time paid employment during term-time. It exploits the Longitudinal Study of
Young People in England (LSYPE), a government-funded survey tracking the opinions,
activities and outcomes of initially around 15,500 of the same young people each year,
all of whom turned 14 during academic year 2003/04. At the time of writing data is
available over five years, until the young people were 18 or 19, providing a rich data
source on their short-term outcomes. The key findings are that young people who work
intensively part-time, over 10 hours per week, are more likely to see the benefit of
education in terms of earning a job in the future. Young people working fewer than 10
hours per week were more likely to be critical of the value of the education they were
receiving. Importantly, working part-time during school years tends to reduce the time
spent not in education, employment or training (NEET) after compulsory education,
even after controlling for prior attainment.
Percy, C., and Mann, A. (2014). School-mediated employer engagement and labour market
outcomes for young adults: Wage premia, NEET outcomes and career confidence. In
Understanding Employer Engagement in Education: Theories and Evidence (pp. 205-
220). London: Education and Employers Taskforce.
Abstract: This book explores employer engagement in education, how it is delivered
and the differentiated impact it has on young people in their progression through
schooling and higher education into the labour market. Rather than narrowly focusing
on vocational or technical education or work-related learning, it investigates how
employer engagement (work experience, internships, careers education, workplace
visits, mentoring, enterprise education etc.) infl uences the experiences and outcomes
Powers, L. E., Geenen, S., Powers, J., Pommier-Satya, S., Turner, A., Dalton, L. D., et al.
(2012). My Life: Effects of a longitudinal, randomized study of self-determination
enhancement on the transition outcomes of youth in foster care and special education.
Children and Youth Services Review, 34(11), 2179-2187.
Abstract: Youth in foster care disproportionately receive special education services and
those in foster care and special education are at compounded disadvantage as they
attempt to transition from high school to adult life. Given enhanced self-determination
has been associated with improved transition outcomes for youth in special education,
the purpose of this longitudinal, randomized trial was to evaluate the efficacy of the
TAKE CHARGE self-determination intervention for improving the transition outcomes
of those highly at-risk youth who are in both foster care and special education. The
intervention included coaching for youth in the application of self-determination skills to
achieve youth-identified goals, and youth participation in mentoring workshops with
near peer foster care alumni. Sixty-nine youth, ages 16.5 to 17.5, were randomly
assigned to TAKE CHARGE or to the foster care independent living program.
Assessment at baseline, post-intervention and at one year follow-up revealed
moderate to large effect sizes at post-intervention and one year follow-up for the
differences between groups in self-determination, quality of life, and utilization of
community transition services. Youth in the intervention group also completed high
school, were employed, and carried out independent living activities at notably higher
rates than the comparison group. Self-determination was confirmed as a partial
Radcliffe, R. A., and Bos, B. (2013). Strategies to Prepare Middle School and High School
Students for College and Career Readiness. Clearing House: A Journal of Educational
Strategies, Issues and Ideas, 86(4), 136-141.
Abstract: Trends among adolescents continue to be discouraging in terms of career
and college readiness based on National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP)
achievement reports and high school graduation rate data. In response, this article
presents five goals and eight strategies we have engaged in during a seven-year
research study focused on building college and career readiness among adolescents.
During our final year of helping students build college and career readiness, we found
associated improvements in their academic-related perceptions, beliefs, and strategies;
positive personal achievement and goal orientation; rising perceptions of college;
improving trends in academic performance; and stronger perseverance in high school
when compared to a control group. Because the students in this study have not
completed their high school senior year, we do not have data that predict their college
acceptance or career readiness.
Rhodes, J. E., Grossman, J. B., and Resch, N. L. (2000). Agents of Change: Pathways
Through Which Mentoring Relationships Influence Adolescents' Academic Adjustment.
Child Development, 71(6), 1662-1671.
Abstract: A conceptual model was tested in which the effects of mentoring relationships
on adolescents' academic outcomes were hypothesized to be mediated partially
through improvements in parental relationships. The parameters of the model were
compared with those of an alternative, in which improved parental relationships were
treated as an outcome variable rather than a mediator. The study included 959 young
adolescents (M age = 12.25 years), all of whom applied to Big Brothers Big Sisters
programs. The adolescents were randomly assigned to either the treatment or control
group and administered questions at baseline and 18 months later. The hypothesized
model provided a significantly better explanation of the data than the alternative. In
addition to improvements in parental relationships, mentoring led to reductions in
unexcused absences and improvements in perceived scholastic competence. Direct
effects of mentoring on global self-worth, school value, and grades were not detected
but were instead mediated through improved parental relationships and scholastic
competence. Implications of the findings for theory and research are discussed.
Robinson, L. (1999). The Effects of Part-Time Work on School Students. Longitudinal Surveys
of Australian Youth (LSAY Research Report). Victoria, Australia: Australian Council for
Educational Research.
Schwartz, S. E. O., Rhodes, J. E., Chan, C. S., and Herrera, C. (2011). The impact of school-
based mentoring on youths with different relational profiles. Developmental
Psychology, 47(2), 450-462.
Abstract: Associations between youths' relationship profiles and mentoring outcomes
were explored in the context of a national, randomized study of 1,139 youths (54%
female) in geographically diverse Big Brothers Big Sisters school-based mentoring
programs. The sample included youths in Grades 4–9 from diverse racial and ethnic
backgrounds, the majority of whom were receiving free or reduced-price lunch. Latent
profile analysis, a person-oriented approach, was used to identify 3 distinct relational
profiles. Mentoring was found to have differential effects depending on youths' pre-
intervention approach to relationships. In particular, youths who, at baseline, had
satisfactory, but not particularly strong, relationships benefited more from mentoring
Schwartz, S. E. O., Rhodes, J. E., and Herrera, C. (2012). The influence of meeting time on
academic outcomes in school-based mentoring. Children and Youth Services Review,
34(12), 2319-2326.
Abstract: This study explores the role of mentor–youth meeting time on academic
performance within school-based mentoring. Participants in the study (N = 1139) were
part of a national evaluation of the Big Brothers Big Sisters school-based mentoring
programs, approximately half of whom had been randomly assigned to receive
mentoring at their schools. Within the treatment group, 44% were in programs in which
matches met after school, 25% were in programs in which matches met during the
school day excluding lunch, 6% were in programs in which matches met during lunch,
and 26% were in programs in which matches met at various times during and after
school. Among academically at‐risk youth, the impact of school-based mentoring on
academic outcomes was moderated by the time during which matches met.
Specifically, academically vulnerable youth derived significant academic benefits from
mentoring in programs that met after school or during lunch. In programs that met
during school as a pullout program, there was no evidence of benefits and some
evidence of negative effects on academic outcomes. Implications of the findings for
research and intervention are discussed.
Scott, M. A., and Bernhardt, A. (1999). Pathways to Educational Attainment and Their Effect
on Early Career Development. Berkeley, CA.: National Center for Research in
Vocational Education.
Abstract: A study identified different educational and working paths that workers take,
asked which paid off for long-term wage growth and career development, and tested
whether educational pathways helped explain more of the variability in wage outcomes.
It compared long-term wage growth for two cohorts of young white men: the original
cohort that entered the labor force in the late 1960s at the end of the post-World War II
economic boom and the recent cohort that entered in the early 1980s after the onset of
economic restructuring. Long-term wage growth between the ages 16-36 declined and
became significantly more unequal for the recent cohort. The rising demand for
education and skill in the new labor market apparently benefitted only those with four-
year college degrees. Rising inequality in wage growth was found in all education
groups. Working while enrolled and interrupting and returning to school were the
dominant pathways to educational attainment. A second set of analyses focused on the
recent cohort. Multiple regressions showed educational pathways had a strong effect
on long-term wage growth: working while enrolled had a positive impact and
interrupted schooling had a negative one. Career choices about industry and
occupation mattered. Taking an academic track in high school paid off for workers who
get some college credit or enter occupations requiring cognitive skill. Applied and
practical fields of study offered the most long-term wage growth to college graduates.
Shandra, C. L., and Hogan, D. P. (2008). School-to-work program participation and the post-
high school employment of young adults with disabilities. Journal of Vocational
Rehabilitation, 29(2), 117-130.
Abstract: Previous research on the education-to-employment transition for students
with disabilities has suggested that participation in school-to-work programs is
positively associated with post-high school success. This article utilizes data from the
National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 (NLSY97) to extend these findings in
several ways. First, we assess the efficacy of specific types of school-based and work-
based initiatives, including job shadowing, mentoring, cooperative education, school-
sponsored enterprise, technical preparation, internships, and career major. Next, we
Singh, K. (1998). Part-time employment in high school and its effect on academic
achievement. Journal of Educational Research, 91, 131-139.
Abstract: Part-time employment during high school has grown dramatically. High
school students are twice as likely to be working part-time as they were in 1950.
Despite the fact that many adolescents work between the ages of 12 and 17, little
empirical evidence exists about the impact of part-time employment on academic
performance. In the present research, the nationally representative sample of 10th
graders, the First Follow-Up of the National Educational Longitudinal Study of 1988
(NELS-88), was used to examine the effects of part-time work during the school year
on academic achievement, as measured by the standardized achievement scores and
high school grades earned in 4 subject areas: English, mathematics, science, and
social studies. The findings of the study point to a small negative effect of employment
on both measures of achievement when socioeconomic status, gender, and previous
achievement were controlled. The study helps to illuminate an important question and
has implications for parents, educators, and counselors.
Singh, K., and Ozturk, M. (2000). Effect of part-time work on high school mathematics and
science course taking. Journal of Educational Research, 94(2), 67-74.
Abstract: The effect of part-time work intensity on high school course work completed
in mathematics and science and its indirect effect on 12th-grade achievement was
explored. Longitudinal data from a nationally representative sample were used to test
the models through path analysis. Socioeconomic status and previous achievement
were included as exogenous variables for control purposes, and part-time work
intensity was hypothesized to negatively affect course work completed in the 2
subjects, as well as 12th-grade achievement through course work during high school.
Results suggest that, controlling for the background variables, there was a significant
negative effect of part-time work intensity on course work and that its indirect effect on
12th-grade achievement through course work was larger than its direct effect.
Staff, J., Harris, A., Sabates, R., and Briddell, L. (2010). Uncertainty in Early Occupational
Aspirations: Role Exploration or Aimlessness? Social Forces, 89(2), 659-683.
Abstract: Many youth in the United States lack clear occupational aspirations. This
uncertainty in achievement ambitions may benefit socio-economic attainment if it
signifies “role exploration,” characterized by career development, continued education
and enduring partnerships. By contrast, uncertainty may diminish attainment if it
instead leads to “aimlessness,” involving prolonged education without the acquisition of
a degree, residential dependence and frequent job changes. We use nationally
representative data from the National Education Longitudinal Study to examine how
uncertainty in occupational aspirations in adolescence (age 16) affects wage
attainments in young adulthood (age 26). Results suggest that youth with undecided
career ambitions earn significantly lower hourly wages in young adulthood than youth
with more certain aspirations, supporting the view that uncertainty heightens the risk of
labor-market problems.
Stone, J. R., III, Alfeld, C., and Pearson, D. (2008). Rigor "and" Relevance: Enhancing High
School Students' Math Skills through Career and Technical Education. American
Educational Research Journal, 45(3), 767-795.
Abstract: Numerous high school students, including many who are enrolled in career
and technical education (CTE) courses, do not have the math skills necessary for
today's high-skill workplace or college entrance requirements. This study tests a model
for enhancing mathematics instruction in five high school CTE programs (agriculture,
auto technology, business and marketing, health, and information technology). The
model includes a pedagogy and intense teacher professional development. Volunteer
CTE teachers were randomly assigned to an experimental (n = 59) or control (n = 78)
group. The experimental teachers worked with math teachers to develop CTE
instructional activities that integrated more mathematics into the occupational
curriculum. After 1 year of the math-enhanced CTE lessons, students in the
experimental classrooms performed equally on technical skills and significantly better
than control students on two standardized tests of math ability
Stone, J. R., III, Alfeld, C., Pearson, D., Lewis, M. V., and Jensen, S. (2006). Building
Academic Skills in Context: Testing the Value of Enhanced Math Learning in CTE. St
Paul, M.N.: National Research Center for Career and Technical Education.
Abstract: An experimental study tested a model for enhancing mathematics instruction
in five high school career and technical education (CTE) programs (agriculture, auto
technology, business/marketing, health, and information technology). The model
consisted of a pedagogy and intense teacher professional development. Volunteer
CTE teachers were randomly assigned to an experimental (n = 57) or control (n = 74)
group. The experimental teachers worked with math teachers in communities of
practice to develop CTE instructional activities that integrated more mathematics into
the occupational curriculum. After 1 year of the math-enhanced CTE lessons averaging
10% of class time, students in the experimental classrooms performed significantly
better on 2 tests of math ability-the TerraNova and ACCUPLACER[R]-without any
negative impact on measures of occupational/technical knowledge.
Thiessen, V., and Looker, E. D. (1999). Investing in Youth: The Nova Scotia School-to-Work
Transition Project (No. 0-662-27883-6). Canada: Human Resource Development
Canada, Ottawa (Ontario) and Nova Scotia Dept. of Education and Culture, Halifax.
Abstract: Economic, technological, and social changes occurring around the world
have produced incredible challenges for youth, symbolized by persistently high youth
unemployment rates despite increasing educational attainments and a shrinking youth
population. Chapter 1 of this book provides an overview of the initiatives undertaken by
Canada and the province of Nova Scotia to address these challenges, and focuses on
the Nova Scotia School-to-Work Transition (NSSWT) program. This program had a
common set of parameters and objectives, but allowed site-specific variations in
implementation. Chapter 2 highlights successful proposals and the similarities and the
differences among the 6 actual implementations. Generally, the programs included an
in-school component of 20-60 hours per year in grades 11 and 12 devoted to career
exploration, career guidance, and job skills, and a work experience component of 125-
200 hours per year in the 2 grades. Chapter 3 describes the backgrounds,
Vickers, M., Lamb, S., and Hinkley, J. (2003). Student Workers in High School and Beyond:
The Effects of Part-Time Employment on Participation in Education, Training and
Work. Victoria, Australia: Australian Council for Educational Research.
Abstract: Data on the Y95 cohort (first interviewed in 1995 when in Year 9) of the
Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth were analyzed to identify the effects of
student employment on participation and attrition in secondary school and tertiary
study and on young people's activities after secondary school. Working between 1 and
5 hours during Year 9 of secondary school had no impact on the likelihood of
completion of Year 12. Participation in more than 5 hours of employment each week
was associated with an increased likelihood of dropping out before the end of Year 12,
especially for males. The more hours per week students worked, the more likely they
were to drop out. Compared with their male counterparts, females who worked part-
time during Year 9 were much more likely than to complete Year 12. Students who
worked part-time during high school were 65% more likely to gain an apprenticeship or
traineeship and 46% more likely to be in full-time employment rather than be
unemployed after high school. Field of study has a major impact on dropping out. An
inverse relationship between contact hours and dropping out was discovered.
Participating in part-time work did not increase the odds of dropping out of tertiary
study.
Vuolo, M., Mortimer, J. T., and Staff, J. (2014). Adolescent Precursors of Pathways From
School to Work. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 24(1), 145-162.
Abstract: Longitudinal data from the Youth Development Study are used to examine (1)
how young people establish work with self-identified career potential and how these
patterns are linked to educational attainments; and (2) how adolescent achievement
orientations, experiences in school and work, and sociodemographic background
distinguish youth who establish themselves in careers and those who flounder during
this transition. Multilevel latent class models reveal four school-to-work pathways from
ages 18–31: two groups that attain careers through postsecondary education (via
bachelor's or associate's–vocational degrees) and two groups that do not
(distinguished by attempting college). Multinomial logistic regression models
demonstrate that academic orientations, socioeconomic background, and steady paid
work during high school help adolescents avoid subsequent floundering during the
school-to-work transition.
Woolley, M., Woolley, M. E., Rose, R. A., Orthner, D. K., Akos, P. T., and Jones Sanpei, H.
(2013). Advancing Academic Achievement Through Career Relevance in the Middle
Grades: A Longitudinal Evaluation of CareerStart. American Educational Research
Journal, 50(6), 1309-1335.
Abstract: Research and theory suggest that students learn more effectively when they
perceive course content as relevant to their futures. The current research assessed the
impact of CareerStart, a middle grades instructional strategy designed to advance the
occupational relevance of what students are being taught in the core subjects—math,
science, language arts, and social studies. CareerStart was introduced randomly in 7
of 14 middle schools in a diverse district with 3,295 students followed for 3 years. The
analyses examined impact on end-of-grade test scores on math and reading exams.
Findings confirm a significant treatment effect for math performance but no effect for
reading performance.
59
See note 1, page 1.