Youth Transitions

Managed Individual Pathways - Case Studies

Oberon High School

Geelong’s Oberon High School has seen significant growth in recent years, peaking now at 1350 students and 120 staff. Much of this is due to the spread of suburban-style developments along the surf coast, where there are no secondary schools. The school’s programming decisions are now shaped in part by the limited classroom space available. There is a likelihood that a secondary school will soon be built in one of the townships along the coast, at which time enrolments at Oberon may fall.

In 2005 Oberon adopted a vertical home group structure, and the school is still working through how various processes can be integrated into the new structure. MIPs coordinator Carol May believes that the home groups are the natural location for a MIPs program that reaches all age levels, but for the moment the MIPs program is run outside the home group system.

Year 9 and 10 students choose from the same electives, and therefore most classes contain a combination of Year 9s and 10s. This causes timetabling issues for a MIPs/careers-based curriculum that has to reach 230 Year 10 students. In recent years the school has met this challenge through the establishment of full-day, pathways-planning events attended by all Year 10s. These days are well supported by staff, students and parents.

Good Practice Approach to MIPs

 

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Process to establish the goals and aspirations of students

The hardest thing about the full-day events is scheduling them in a way that minimises disruption to the Year 9 students. This year a career activity (an interview skills workshop) was held on the day of the Year 9 AIMs test. A full Year 10 day is planned to coincide with Year 9 students attending the Reach program.

Last year there were four full-day events, but the Year 10 English teachers agreed to deliver a unit of work prepared by the MIPs/careers team that includes resume and application writing and mock interviews, and this has reduced the need for the fourth day.

These mock interviews were conducted by a panel of interviewers from G-FORCE , CREATE, some teachers from the school, and a group of teachers doing the Graduate Diploma of Applied Learning at Deakin University. The panel provided verbal and written feedback (Word - 23Kb) to each student, and the students really valued the process and the feedback (which was added to each student’s MIPs folder).

The full-day events are put together by a team of about 10 staff members including the Year 12 and Year 11 coordinators, an Assistant Principal, the curriculum manager, and some younger staff members who have come to teaching from interesting career pathways. Carol does the behind-the-scenes organisation while other team members provide support and ideas, and deliver the program on the four days. Each member of the team is allocated about 20 students to work with, and they provide counselling and visit work experience placements for this group throughout the year. “They are so dedicated,” says Carol, “and we couldn’t run the program without them.” The MIPs professional learning team, made up primarily of this same group of staff, meets every month.

Day 1 of the program occurred in second term in 2006, and days 2 and 3 are scheduled for third term. The first full-day event included presentations by people in a range of careers, who had followed quite different pathways, and who often did not end up where they expected to. Some of these speakers were also employers, and were able to talk about what they are looking for in potential employees. Staff from the Careers Information Centre then discussed how to plan a career path, and students spent time working through their MIPs plan (Word - 180Kb). The whole group was introduced to planning tools like the Job Guide, myfuture and OZJAC. In the afternoon students were bussed out to a destination they chose from options including Gordon Institute of TAFE, Deakin University, and local industries and workplaces.

Day 2 was all about post-school options and starting to plan the post compulsory pathway. Again, students heard from a panel of guest speakers about university, TAFE, apprenticeships, employment and the defence forces. The structure of post compulsory options within the school was explained, including VETiS, VCE and VCAL. Students were introduced to some of the jargon (Word - 130Kb) associated with university and TAFE selection. Then students received their VCE handbooks (Word - 39Kb) and began to choose the units (Word - 32Kb) of their VCE or VCAL program. All students got a ‘showbag’ containing brochures and information about local services and education and training providers.

During terms 2 and 3, all students come to the Careers centre and complete the Career Voyage employment interest test. Their responses to a 120 personal interest questions from the interest test creates a report of suitable job possibilities. Students that do not go on camp do their Career Voyager test during that time, while others will do it during home group periods. Students take this report home to discuss with their parents, and copies are printed out and added to their MIPs folder.

Day 3 is a preparation for work experience, including occupational health and safety training. All students undertake work experience in term 3. Days are set aside during term 4 when the VCE manager, VCAL manager, Year 11 coordinator and MIPs/careers team make themselves available for interviews with parents and students. These are well-attended days.

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Pathways plans to inform curriculum needs

The school offers a lot of flexibility in terms of curriculum choices and study pathways. Students develop their own individual learning plans from the end of Year 8, putting together a program of core subjects and electives for the following two years. Year 9s and 10s are together in classes, and many Year 10 students also undertake Year 11 units. This continues with Year 11s undertaking Year 12 units. There are also two VCAL classes at Year 11 – one is a surfing industry themed VCAL - and one at Year 12. Around 30 students are undertaking SBAs, though many of these are being undertaken through their part-time jobs.

Carol finds that few students see an apprenticeship as a post-Year 10 destination. Most students want to finish Year 12 and then pursue an apprenticeship or pre-apprenticeships program. “For many of our kids, their networking skills are quite good,” says Carol. “They play sport in the community, they make connections through part-time work; by the time they leave school many have their apprenticeship lined up.”

The exception to this retention trend is VCAL students, as students are often offered apprenticeships by their work placement employer. The school encourages students in this situation to complete Year 11and 12, but sometimes it is a struggle to keep them.

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Pathways planning through VELS

The VELS reinforce the need for pathways education to be integrated into the curriculum, and to occur prior to Year 10. Carol thinks VELS implementation will add weight to the push to achieve this within the school.

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Close collaboration between the VCE, VCAL and VET coordinators and the MIPs coordinator

The MIPs/careers team is made up of Carol May, Kaye Barry, Adam Burke and Cynthia Nairn. The MIPs/careers coordinator position is normally allocated 6 periods per week, but as part of succession planning Carol and Kay are sharing the position this year – three periods per week each. The school also employs Adam (0.6) who was previously the local SBA Cluster Coordinator. Adam arranges all work placements for Year 10 work experience, as well as work placements for VCAL and VET in Schools students. Adam also case manages students at risk of early school leaving. Cynthia Nairn is a full-time SSO whose time is partly devoted (0.5) to supporting the MIPs/careers program. Cynthia is responsible for destination tracking, participating in MIPs interviews with Year 11 and 12 students, maintaining the MIPs folders and monitoring student exits. Cynthia is a long serving staff member and the students know her very well. Because the other half of Cynthia’s time is spent being VASS operator and assisting the VCE administrator, she forms an important link between MIPs/careers and the senior school.

As mentioned above, this team is supported by the staff members who help implement the MIPs/careers program. This includes the Year 11 and Year 12 coordinators, an Assistant Principal, the curriculum manager and some of the newer members of staff.

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Close collaboration between student welfare staff, integration staff, careers coordinators and the MIPs coordinator

“We have a fantastic relationship with the welfare coordinator,” says Carol. “We are able to collaborate on helping young people in crisis, or simply lacking direction and motivation.” The school also has a chaplain and an Assistant Principal – Student Welfare. “I would have no hesitation in going to any of the welfare team. We all work together to find the best options for each young person.”

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Encourages parental involvement

Carol speaks at the Year 9 (going into Year 10) parent information evening, where she explains the Year 10 MIPs program.

Before the first full day event, Year 10 parents are informed and provided with an overview (Word - 29Kb) of what will be covered. Parents approve the student’s choice of excursion destination in the afternoon. Another parent information night follows Day 2, after students have had a chance to go home and discuss their initial career choices with parents.

A Careers Newsletter is published fortnightly and distributed to Year 11s and 12s. This newsletter will soon be available on the school’s website. Special events and careers-related activities are promoted through the school newsletter.

Parents are often encouraged, through the school newsletter and parent information nights, to get in touch with the MIPs/careers team at any time. This message is first conveyed at the Open Night for Grade 6 parents and is frequently repeated thereafter. Nonetheless, Carol feels that contact with parents has decreased since the senior school grew by 100 students, and the team was forced to introduce small group interviews with Year 11 and 12 students instead of individual interviews in terms 1 and 2. Some parents still attend the individual interviews with their Year 12 children in term 3.

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Process to regularly review pathways plans

During term 2, all Year 11 students participate in a small group interview and update their MIPs plan, particularly their proposed study pathway in Year 12. This is also a chance for students to update information about part time work, work experience, sporting and other achievements in their MIPs folder. Students are encouraged to further research their career choices and set goals for the year.

Year 12s fill out a MIPs planning sheet (Word - 26Kb) (the ‘green sheet’) in the first weeks of term 1. This forms the basis of the subsequent MIPs conversations. In Year 12 there is also a parent-student workshop (PDF - 67Kb), at which the Year 12 coordinator talks about managing the year. The VCE managers talks about assessment procedures, and Carol talks about career planning. Students discuss their green sheets with their parents at the workshop, and parents are given advice about how to help with their children’s pathways planning during the year.

Year 12s have at least one small group conversation with a member of the MIPs/careers team in term 1 and students are given the opportunity to book individual interviews during term 3. Students engage really well in these interviews. “By then it is really ingrained in them.” By the end of term 3 the MIPs/careers team has followed-up anyone who did not attend.

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Process for the identification, support and monitoring of students at risk of early school leaving

There are a number of programs for younger students at the school, but these fall under the welfare umbrella rather than the MIPs program. Welfare coordinator Marg Keatley connects students to a range of programs including Under the Hood, Girls are Great, Hear our Voice, Under the Stars, Small Motors, Bikes, Boat building, Redirecting Adolescent Potential, Things of Stone and Wood, and holiday programs. Marg also works with families and young people.

The MIPs team work with Year 9 students who are referred because they are disengaging from school or lacking motivation and a sense of direction. Occasionally they will be asked to meet with a Year 8 student. The MIPs program is seen as a way of identifying student interests that can then be used to motivate them, and to encourage students to see themselves on a pathway to a post-school destination.

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Supporting early school leavers for six months

Support is always offered when students are contacted for destination tracking, and many students do return for extra support.

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Provides students with a copy of their MIPs plan when they leave school or change schools

All students receive their MIPs folder when they leave school, as part of the exit process. Year 12 students receive theirs with a package at the Valedictory Dinner. The folder contains plans, certificates of achievement, work experience reports and evaluations.

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Recognising that retention and engagement issues begin prior to Year 10

The support and alternative programs offered through the welfare department are aimed at increasing retention and engagement among younger students. The development of individual learning plans from the end of Year 8 also contributes to greater engagement among Year 9s.

Year 9 students start compiling their resume, apply for a tax file number, and receive information about work experience. They are encouraged to start looking for a Year 10 work experience placement, and Carol believes that students are more likely to have a happy experience if they arrange their own placement.

The home group structure offers the potential to develop a program that is run with the whole group, but which contains activities tailored to different year levels. Carol believes this will eventuate as VELS is fully implemented.

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How did you get here – tips for success?

  • The school has put its resources behind the MIPs/careers program. Principal Ralph Shaw has been open to ideas from Carol. The school makes a significant financial contribution in addition to the targeted MIPs funding from DoE. Overall the school’s contribution makes up 35% of the total MIPs budget.
  • The team sets aside time for planning, documents the program structure and then sticks to it. “If you don't have a planned structure and stick to it, things just don't get done.”
  • The MIPs/careers team is strong, with complementary expertise.
  • Students feel comfortable in the careers centre, they want to spend time there and they believe they get value from it.
  • The MIPs/careers team has taken the time to promote the program to staff. “You have to be diplomatic, and acknowledge the impact that the MIPs program has on other aspects of the school.” The school now sees MIPs as part of core business, and classroom teachers readily refer students to the MIPs team.
  • The school genuinely values all types of success, and student transitions of all kinds are celebrated by staff.
  • The MIPs program is built around consultation with the students.

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What next – where to with your MIPs program over the next two years?

  • Tighten up exit procedures to improve destination tracking. Make sure it is simple and concise, so that students will complete it.
  • Explore the potential for the MIPs program to be delivered through home groups, and to reach younger students.
  • Introduce a process to brief new teachers on the nature of the program, where the funding comes from, and the Department’s expectations of the program.
  • Improve the MIPs database that Adam has developed and is encouraging the rest of the team to use.
  • Review resource allocation to cater for increasing numbers of students in Years 10 to 12 over the next few years.