Academic and Career Planning
April Newsletter - Employability Skills
What are Employability Skills
Employability skills are those that apply across a variety of jobs and life contexts. They are also known as key skills, core skills, workplace skills, essential skills, key competencies, necessary skills, and transferrable skills. Regardless of what they are called, essentially employability skills are those basic skills necessary for getting, keeping, and doing well on a job. They are generic in nature and cut across jobs, industry types, and occupational levels.
Examples include:
- Communication - be able to communicate effectively with others
- Teamwork - be able to collaborate with others and to develop positive relationships
- Problem solving - perform quality work independently
- Initiative - demonstrate integrity and show initiative and self direction
- Planning and organization - adapts to change
- Decision making - setting personal goals for improvement
- Self Management -performs quality work
SEL is defined as "the process through which children and adults acquire and effectively apply the know, attitudes, and skills necessary to understand and manage emotions; set and achieve positive goals; feel and show empathy for others; establish and maintain positive relationships, and make responsible decisions".
SEL programs benefit the economy and can pay for themselves many times over.
Opportunities at Cambria-Friesland School District
Elementary school activities set a foundation for success in work and relationships to adults. Core competencies of self awareness, self management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision making are addressed.
Throughout middle school unique lessons and activities help students to succeed in school, work and civic life. Middle school is where children begin articulating skills and habits; their beliefs and values; experiment with new interests and expand there social relationships.
In high school real world experiences link classroom learning to career pathways. Participating in real world/work based learning activities can improve students' attitudes, relationships, mental health, and academic performance. When students have strong social-emotional skills, they are more likely to achieve academic goals and thrive in the classroom.
High school students have the opportunity to participate in the state-certified employability skills program which recognizes a student's mastery of employability skills valued by employers in a variety of worksite settings while helping students explore career interests. These are paid positions, usually outside of the school building. They also can participate in the employability skills certificate program, part of work-based learning. This is a "learning by doing" opportunity. Students can work within the school as student assistants or in the community with mentors to strengthen skills. Students can also participate in the youth apprenticeship program. The YA program combines industry-directed, competency-based, paid learning with related classroom instruction for high school juniors and seniors. It is a program that can present employers with an additional pipeline of workers to meet their future skill needs.