New strategy to support students’ career pathways
A new statewide career education and pathway strategy has been launched today to strengthen career options for young people ahead of the AUKUS project.
The $19 million investment is the first-time primary schools have been included in career education as the State Government tackles the skills shortage crisis.
The Career Education and Pathways Strategy was announced at Elizabeth Downs Primary School as the school has a strong focus on STEM with Reception to Year 2 students engaging in a range of different coding and robotics programs.
“Our school of 380 students has an exciting STEM program in place and we encourage the exploration of a broad range of career pathways and opportunities available to them in their future," said Elizabeth Downs Primary School Principal Sally Summers.
“We also work closely with students to examine their next steps as they move through their primary school journey towards high school and beyond. There are so many exciting pathways ahead for them and we take pride in establishing the foundation for students to feel empowered to pursue the wide range of opportunities.
“Connecting with employers is an important way to inspire primary school students for the future and make them aware of the vocational options available.”
The strategy aims to provide information to parents and students to help them see the growing employment potential for the next generation as well as promoting diverse opportunities to children at an earlier age.
The strategy will look to inspire students and give them the opportunity to learn about job opportunities, what work is like and what it takes to be successful in the workforce by:
It is important students are aware of the options available to them, and that particularly vocational education is an attractive option, alongside higher education and university, which can also lead to a rewarding career.
Technical Colleges, Flexible Industry Programs and the introduction of a new Jobs Skills program will also be driving more opportunities for students to get a head start into their career.
A key focus is for primary schools, high schools, technical colleges, TAFE, training providers, universities and industry to work together to address workforce shortages, now and into the future. It’s only through this seamless collaboration will we be able to address workforce shortages in engineering, renewable energy and submarine manufacturing, to name just a few.
This comes after the State Government yesterday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Australian defence giant BAE Systems Australia to develop the state’s defence workforce and skills, following the signing of at the Osborne Naval Shipyard.
The opportunities for jobs and skills have never been better in South Australia and its critical to ensure our young people have everything necessary to take advantage of these opportunities.
The career strategy will also feature strengthened support for Aboriginal students, students with a disability and regional students to create more equitable access to career opportunities and transitions into employment – as well as online career education through the development of the MyCareerPortal website.
