The future of career education in New Zealand secondary schools: A review of the literature

The policy environment

Two major policy announcements during 2016 signalled the increasing importance of career education in New Zealand schools. In July, the opposition Labour Party announced a $30 million plan to transform career advice in secondary schools and integrate career education with learning so every student has a personalised career plan (New Zealand Labour Party, 2016). Party leader, Andrew Little, stated that under a Labour government ‘every school will have highly trained, skilled career advice staff’ (Moir, 2016). The emphasis on improving career education was in response to high numbers of young people not in employment nor involved in further education or training. The announcement was supported by the teachers’ union, the Post-Primary Teachers’ Association, with the proviso that career advisors are trained teachers who have the experience and skills to work with young people (Moir, 2016).

Furthermore, the Education (Update) Amendment Bill (2016) (Ministry of Education, 2016) included a proposal to improve the provision of career services. The Bill looks to create a new career service within the Tertiary Education Commission, to increase collaboration across schools for career services, and to transfer resources from the disbanded Careers New Zealand to schools in order to provide career education. Intended resourcing will include professional development for teachers. The Education Council of Aotearoa New Zealand (2016) indicated support for this proposal providing there is no reduction in the current level of service and that professional development would be made available.

Career education is fundamental

Everyone needs effective career education and for this reason career education has been underpinned by social justice values where career education helps all individuals reach their full potential (McMahon, Arthur & Collins, 2008). A social justice stance implies an inclusive approach to career education, which responds positively to the needs of a diverse population. Effective career education practitioners can act as change agents and help achieve socially just outcomes for individuals (McMahon et al., 2008). Irving (2010) further argues for a social justice stance stating that if career education is to assist people shape their lives in an increasingly fragmented world, ‘an inclusive framework that is developed from precepts of critical social justice will be required’ (p. 51).

Career education begins at an early age where young children become aware of occupations and the world of work. At secondary school students develop self-awareness, various life-skills such as communication and team work skills and make choices about which school subjects to continue (Furbish, 2016). It could be argued that decisions made, and skills developed, at this stage in life are crucial, highlighting the importance of effective career education for all secondary students.

However, there are current gaps in career education in New Zealand schools. Furbish (2016) argues that ‘large segments of secondary school students are not being exposed to systematic and comprehensive career guidance’ (p. 15). Furthermore, the quality of the career education received could be poor and/or delivered by teachers with no training in career education (Irving, 2011). Thomas and O’Reilly (2015) add that New Zealand schools operate a ‘just-in-time’ approach to career education and that the fragmented approach is a barrier to youth employment.

The current policy interest, the increasing importance of career education and the current inadequate model of career education in New Zealand schools compel an examination of the literature in an attempt to recommend a framework for the future delivery of effective and inclusive career education in secondary schools.

The increasing importance of career education

The increasing importance of career education was unanimous across the literature. Vaughan and Spiller (2012) stated young people face a world where more than one occupation is the norm due to ‘occupational flexibility, geographical mobility, rapid technological change, and unpredictability in the labour market’ (p. 1). Today’s students need effective career education that will not only provide information and guidance at school, but also give them the opportunity to develop and hone their capabilities for their transition from school to their adult life.

Internationally, emphasis also fell upon equipping students with skills to support them throughout life. Schloss (2011) identified the Australian Senior Education and Training plans all Queensland Year 10 students can develop as a ‘critical stage for young people, providing a sound basis for future lifelong learning, goal setting and career development’ (p. 8). Researchers in Canada viewed career education as increasingly important in that it should be ‘more about developing lifelong learning skills that can be reused to adapt to the changing world of work’ (Welde et al., 2015, p. 81).

Furthermore, ethical and economic imperatives exist that support the increasing importance of career education for young people because the more students are engaged in school, the better their academic outcomes. Kenny et al. (2006) in their quantitative study noted ‘modest, but significant’ (p. 276) impact of career education on student engagement and that their results provide ‘support for the educational and motivational value of career development’ (p. 277). Rose et al. (2012) who reported on an American career education intervention, CareerStart, concurred that career education could ‘promote student engagement and school success’ (p. 309). In their Canadian study, Welde et al. (2015) also found that career education can foster student engagement as student participants showed emotional, behavioural and cognitive engagement with career education projects. Students were excited about their possible futures, participated more fully and showed improved motivation. Recognising the relevance of their academic learning to the world of work enhanced their engagement.

Integrated whole-school approach

Historically, career education delivery has been based on a 20th century model catering mainly to European male students and a society concerned with industrial expansion. Vaughan (2011) stated that the overall career education framework for many schools is not fit-for-purpose in today’s world and is based on assumptions about the world of work that no longer exist, such as a stable labour market. Vaughan argued that teaching of long-term career management strategies and skills is required for the reality of today’s world but ‘is rarely part of current practice’ (p. 30).

An integrated whole-school approach, whereby career advisors work alongside subject teachers to provide relevant career education, is advocated by Vaughan and Spiller (2012). They considered the Career Management Competencies introduced by the Ministry of Education in 2009 as a useful framework for career education that ‘better serves young people as lifelong learners and participants in society’ (p. vi). The Career Management Competencies integrate and overlap with the New Zealand Curriculum’s Key Competencies, which makes them accessible and relevant to all subject teachers.

Concurring with Vaughan and Spiller (2012), the integration of career education within subject teaching was viewed by Rose et al. (2012) as an opportunity to enact sustainable teaching reform strategies. They argued integrated career education can ‘blend in well with a teacher’s normal workload and can easily be implemented’ (p. 309). Further agreement on the benefits of integrating career education can be found with Furbish and Reid (2013), who identified a whole-school approach as a distinguishing theme of exemplary practice. Furbish and Reid carried out a study of 20 schools that had been involved in the Careers New Zealand initiative Creating Pathways and Building Lives (CPaBL) that took place between 2007 and 2008. A key feature of CPaBL was to involve subject teachers in career education through their teaching and classroom activities with the career advisor providing resources and support. The evaluation concluded that integrated whole-school approaches were considered the most effective because introducing career topics into classroom teaching created ‘natural progressions of academic content’ (p. 19).

Although generally agreeing with this view, Mittendorff et al. (2011) found an integrated whole-school approach was not easy to implement. Studying secondary school students’ perceptions of career education in the Netherlands, Mittendorff et al. reported that students thought their subject teachers tended to talk about things they were experienced and comfortable dealing with. Rather than career issues, teachers talked about school subjects, progress and making action plans. This suggests that successful implementation of an integrated is dependent on professional development support for teachers.

Teacher perspectives on career education in American middle schools were studied by Akos et al. (2011) and highlighted the potential of an integrated approach or what they called ‘infusion into the core curriculum’ (p. 1). Akos et al. recognised integrating career education was highly beneficial, but there was little existing research on the perspectives of subject teachers who were expected to play a major role in its delivery. Their study revealed middle school teachers were positive about integrating career education and confirmed its relevance to the education of their students. Career education integration applied to all students, not just those deemed ‘at-risk’, which Akos et al. argued resolved issues of equitable access to career education. Furthermore, Akos et al. noted that integrated career education increased the engagement and the relevance of school for students.

Role of the career advisor

Unsurprisingly, given the aforementioned issues in contemporary career education, the role of the career advisor in New Zealand secondary schools is changing. Furbish and Reid’s (2013) study into best career education practices identified the ‘enthusiasm and dedication of the career advisor’ (p. 18) as a constant. Desirable characteristics for exemplary career advisor practice included experience, a sense of ownership of career education programmes, formal career development qualifications, the ability to network and maintain relationships both inside and outside of their school, marketing skills to promote the merits of career education and advocacy on behalf of career education itself and on the behalf of students. Schloss (2011) likewise identified career advisors as being enthusiastic and committed to their roles and ‘extremely adept networkers who develop contacts with a wide range of people and organisations to benefit their students’ (p. 7).

Schaefer and Rivera’s (2014) study, which involved both authors working with school staff within a new American high school to build and implement a career education programme, found that a strong advocate in the school was essential to drive the programme and to maintain the relationships required to ensure its success. They stated career education needed a leader and an advocate to ensure that programmes maintain relevance to the school and its students. Strong advocacy and being proactive were also recognised by Walker et al. (2006) as important characteristics of effective career advisors. In order to be an effective advocate Furbish and Reid (2013) argued that the career advisor should be included on the school management team to ensure support for career education from the school’s leadership.

As far back as 2000, Elkin and Sutton identified the challenging nature of the career advisor role and increasing pressures redefining the role. Reporting on a study of 14 Otago-based career advisors, an emergent theme was their changing role. The participants attributed this to a number of factors such as students staying at school longer and needing specific advice and guidance. Information overload was recognised as a challenge and career advisors should be going beyond giving just information and advice to developing the skills young people require to make lifelong choices. Vaughan and Spiller (2012) also suggested that as information is easily accessible, resources are no longer the sole domain of the career advisor and proposed that instead of sending students to the career advisor (which is current practice in many New Zealand schools), teachers work alongside the career advisor to ‘think about the needs of particular students and how they could be addressed through class activities’ (p. 39). They recognised an opportunity for career advisors to co-ordinate teachers and to facilitate and resource cross-curricula rich learning contexts for students.

Seeking to capture Australian student voices and perspectives on career education, Walker et al. (2006) identified effective career advisors as being student-centred, having a wide range of problem-solving skills, being accessible and flexible, and having well-developed counselling skills. The students felt comfortable enough to share their ‘dreams and aspirations’ (p. 40) and appreciated the opportunity to engage in classroom-based career education with the career advisor. The role of career advisor is clearly presented in the literature as multi-faceted requiring the individual in that role to be many things to many people.

Varying practice and opinions have created uncertainty and obfuscation regarding what career advisors should, therefore, be doing. Vaughan and Spiller concurred with Hodgetts (2009) that clearly the demands of career education have moved ‘beyond the capacity of the one career advisor. It requires significant knowledge of curriculum design and development’ (p. 41). Vaughan and Spiller further noted that career advisors, as qualified teachers, were well placed to collaborate with subject teachers. However, they questioned if subject teachers are ready and willing to engage with career advisors in this way because teachers may not necessarily recognise the importance of career education and that they should be part of its delivery. They also queried if career advisors, themselves, were able to critically rethink traditional career education activities, such as career guidance only being offered on a one-to-one basis, or through formal career activities.

Attitudes to career education

Many researchers highlighted a need for school personnel to move beyond conventionally held attitudes towards career education in relation to the expectation that career education can be carried out by one, possibly part-time career advisor.

The status of career advisors in schools has been challenged with Vaughan (2011, 2012) rating the low status of career education and career advisors as a major flaw in career education, considering it marginalisation. Vaughan argued that career education is held in low status because of its association with vocational rather than academic pathways. She saw the physical location of the career office as another contributing factor, because they are often in a remote space and rarely visited by students, some of whom may not know where it is until a teacher sends them there. Vaughan believed marginalisation was also experienced by career staff, who tended to be older, experienced teachers rewarded with the role of part-time career advisor but holding few, if any, formal career qualifications. Irving (2011) found, similarly to Vaughan, that the career advisors in his study were chosen (rather than applying) by the principal for the role due to their personal qualities rather than having experience and qualifications in the field.

Teachers, too, hold negative attitudes towards career education with Vaughan and Spiller (2012) arguing that teachers may resist involvement in career education due to lacking recognition of its importance. This was also noted by Elkin and Sutton (2000) who reported that career education and the role of the career advisor were poorly understood and under appreciated by the wider school. Resistant attitudes were also found by Schloss (2011) where teachers viewed career education ‘as just another mandatory administrative task to be completed’ and was largely seen as an ‘impost on their teaching duties’ (p. 8). Schaefer and Rivera (2014) agreed that without a person advocating for, and driving, career education in the school, teachers saw it as ‘something we have to do’ (p. 63). A change in attitude enabling subject teachers to value career education and to understand how they play an integral role in its provision is clearly necessary.

Of course, career advisors themselves are not exempt from the call to change attitudes. Vaughan and Spiller (2012) suggested change to an integrated whole-school approach may be threatening for career advisors who were used to a model based on their being the sole keepers of information and resources. With a wider focus and emphasis on building students’ lifelong career capabilities, career advisors can no longer hold on tight and claim the domain of career education as their own in a school. They are required to rethink how they operate and how they interact with colleagues and students to ensure career education is seen as core business.

Resourcing time and professional development

Delivering career education on a part-time basis was identified as a common problem by career advisors who were concerned about ‘the lack of time to do things well and of money for resources’ (Elkin & Sutton, 2000, p. 10). Walker et al. (2006) in their discussions with students recognised time as an important issue. They found students were desirous of a personalised service but recognised the time demands on one career advisor who was often part-time and who also had to undertake teaching, pastoral care and administrative tasks. Staff involved in career education agreed that there was not enough time to explore students’ senior education and training plans (Schloss, 2011), and similarly, Vaughan (2011) agreed that career staff were often part-time and struggled to find enough time for the job.

Students, too, require time to carry out career education with Welde et al. (2015) showing that Canadian senior high school students wanted more time to complete career education activities. Welde et al. advocated that schools ‘provide sufficient time for students to complete interventions’ (p. 91) as a practical suggestion for delivering integrated career education that had meaning and depth.

Very little professional development is provided for career advisors yet according to the New Zealand literature career advisors lack relevant qualifications and rely on their life experience to carry out the role (Elkin & Sutton, 2000; Irving, 2011; Vaughan & Spiller, 2012). Vaughan and Spiller go on to say this situation is exacerbated by a lack of role clarity and professional identity for the career advisor. They reported on an initiative (Creating Pathways and Building Lives) which intended to provide professional development for career advisors but the initiative only ran for two years and involved less than one third of New Zealand secondary schools and they questioned its sustainability.

In Australia, Schloss (2011) reported a similar issue and claimed that experienced teachers willing to sacrifice a portion of their holidays in pursuit of a career development qualification in itself indicated the strong need, and desire for, professional development. She questioned what training is available for teachers to equip them for delivering career education and was unable to locate reference to career education in Queensland teacher training programmes. Schloss considered that it was not only an unfair expectation to deliver career education without further professional development but also a considerable disservice to students.

In Canada, Welde et al. (2015) found that training in career education in initial teacher education (ITE) was a worthwhile endeavour as it enabled the student teachers to successfully ‘integrate career education strategies into their curriculum planning and delivery’ (p. 88). The results of their study showed hope and ‘promise for the effects of in-service training or experienced teachers’ (p. 89). Providing time and professional development to those expected to deliver quality career education is paramount for successful career education.

Discussion and recommendations

The Ministry of Education (2009) considers career education essential that it is an ‘inherent element of every school’s provision of a rich and balanced education’ (p. 5) and clearly is not just another add-on in New Zealand secondary schools. The demands of contemporary life have exacerbated the need for students to experience quality career education before they embark on their future life beyond school (Vaughan & Spiller, 2012). Career education has an impact not just on students’ occupations or further education, but more importantly, on the kind of society we want to live in and the happiness and well-being of citizens within that society. Future focussed, individualised career education ‘has immediate and long-term benefits for individuals and for New Zealand’ (Ministry of Education, 2009, p. 1). Preparing students for life beyond school is education’s core business and all teachers should be consciously responsible for providing students with the skills to manage their work, learning and life.

The current model of career education in New Zealand schools is inadequate and it is clear that effective delivery is beyond the realms of a single, possibly unqualified career advisor. An integrated whole-school approach is undoubtedly the preferred option for effective career education, because it not only enhances student engagement with learning, but also ensures that access to career education is provided for all (Ministry of Education, 2009; Vaughan & Spiller, 2012). The Careers and Transition Educators Association (CATE), which represents career advisors in New Zealand schools, are very much in favour of integrated whole-school career education and one of their purposes is to promote this approach (CATE, 2011). Classroom teachers are ideally placed to deliver career education, because they are experienced in instructional methods, they know their students and often have trusting relationships that can be used to support career education (Welde et al., 2015). Career education provision by teachers for all students would better meet social justice goals and aligns with the vision of the New Zealand curriculum (NZC).

The NZC currently has expectations that teachers will incorporate a range of career skills into their classroom curriculum through teaching students the key competencies of thinking, using language and symbols, managing self, relating to others and participating and contributing (Ministry of Education, 2007). However, the NZC is not a prescriptive document but rather provides a ‘set of principles on which to base curriculum decision making’ (Ministry of Education, 2007, p. 4), and with the emphasis in the senior secondary school to pass national qualifications (National Certificate of Educational Achievement – NCEA), there is no guarantee that teachers will include career skills. To the contrary, teachers in the senior secondary school tend to place sole emphasis on passing NCEA rather than supporting holistic career development (Furbish, 2016).

As with any change in secondary schools the principal, senior management team and the Board of Trustees must offer recognition and effective support. According to Furbish and Reid (2013), career education in schools must be supported and endorsed by the principal and the Board of Trustees as they control resources and the budget, and the principal can direct classroom teachers to develop and deliver career education. Yet Irving’s (2011) work suggests a lack of knowledge and/or respect by principals for career education and the position of career advisor. Garnering principal and Board of Trustee support could be difficult as school management have many priorities to meet and those that are specifically measurable, such as NCEA results, are likely to take precedence.

To ensure teachers, principals and Boards of Trustees are aware of the imperative to include career education it is obvious professional development in, and greater advocacy for, career education is needed. If teachers are expected to deliver career education, there is an imperative that they themselves are educated on how to implement it and given full support in the way of time, professional development and an opportunity for ownership (Elkin & Sutton, 2000; Schloss, 2011; Vaughan & Spiller, 2012). Adequate resourcing of professional development is essential for career education but is perhaps one of the greatest challenges to overcome, considering the high workloads in schools, competing interests of other education initiatives and the demands of national qualifications in the senior secondary school.

A starting point for professional development could be promoting an increased awareness of the Career Development Benchmarks: Secondary, first published by Careers New Zealand in 2011 and updated late 2016 (Careers New Zealand, 2016). The Career Development Benchmarks are a voluntary self-review tool designed to assess and improve the quality of career development in New Zealand secondary schools, but questions remain on schools use and knowledge of these. In 2013, ERO evaluated 74 secondary schools on their preparation of students for further education and future employment, and concluded that most were not showing the levels of innovation required to ensure that all learners have suitable pathways to future education, employment or training. ERO (2013) recommended that schools use more robust self-review in this regard and the Career Development Benchmarks provide a tool for such use. The provision of professional development on their use and a level of compulsion to use these (or another self-review tool) may improve schools' provision of career education. ERO (2015) has provided some guidance and practical examples of how effective career education should be carried out and part of its role is to evaluate the quality of education provided in New Zealand schools: this should include evaluating the provision of career education. This would signal the need to provide effective career education to all Boards of Trustees, principals and teachers.

A further consideration in implementing an integrated whole-school approach is the role of the career advisor. For many years, the career advisor has been an almost stand-alone position in a secondary school, which allowed teachers to be uninvolved in career education. As recommended by Furbish and Reid (2013), a team approach among classroom teachers and career advisors is desirable, with the career advisor working with classroom teachers to integrate career topics into ongoing classroom instruction. In addition, career advisors need a higher profile and increased status in schools (Furbish & Reid, 2013) as the current low status diminishes the importance of career education. Furbish and Reid argued the importance of leadership and the benefits of the career advisor being part of a school’s senior management saying this would improve their ability to advocate for career education and influence decisions for positive student outcomes. This is a stance with which we agree and strongly promote. While individual career advisors can provide leadership and enthusiasm, it is very difficult to bring about change without an official mandate from the school. Recognition of career advisors with a senior management position would signal the importance of the role and the function of career education. McMahon et al. (2008) provide examples of career education practitioners acting as agents of change within organisations and giving the career advisor increased status in schools could act as a catalyst to changing attitudes of those who consider career education as subordinate. As with many roles within the education system, colleagues do not see what others do and therefore may have a low appreciation for what goes into a role such as career advisor. A senior management position would signal to all that career education has status and is valued in a school. Furthermore, making the career advisor role full-time, rather than part-time, would support the rise in status for career education. Along with a change in status, a change in title could also be considered as career advisor and career advice suggest an information and positivistic approach, whereas current views on career education are much more holistic. The terms career guidance, education or counselling would be more appropriate.

Undertaking a professional qualification should be integral to the role of career advisor. Schloss (2011) claimed that ‘education systems have yet to realise that career development is a specialised field requiring professionally trained personnel’ (p. 8) and evidence from New Zealand shows that many in the role do not hold formal qualifications (Furbish, 2016; Irving, 2011; Vaughan & Gardiner, 2007). Irving (2011) and Furbish (2016) call for all New Zealand career advisors to have a formal qualification with Irving claiming that enhancing the academic credentials of career advisors would increase their professional status and ‘raise the awareness and complexity of the role’ (p. 118). A further consideration would be a change to the current ad hoc way career advisors are appointed in schools. Career advisors should be appointed through a professional process rather than by patronage. These requirements would be important steps in raising the status of not only the career advisor but also career education.

Career education for student teachers should also be instigated. If an integrated approach is implemented, then all newly qualified teachers will need the skills and knowledge to provide effective career education within their subjects. Student teacher participants in Welde et al. (2015) found training in career education a worthwhile endeavour and an absence of literature regarding career education for student teachers in New Zealand suggests it currently does not occur. Universities, therefore, who provide virtually all ITE, should include career education in their curriculum. This would be a positive step towards an integrated whole-school approach becoming the norm. However, as with schools, universities may require a level of compulsion from the Education Council of Aotearoa New Zealand (the body which governs ITE) to incorporate change into their curriculum.

These recommendations require changes for a number of key players: career advisors, teachers, principals, Boards of Trustees, ERO and universities; and a national coordinated approach would seem appropriate. The CATE stipulates in its constitution that one of its purposes is to engage in discussion with government departments and other relevant bodies in relation to career education (CATE, 2011). Therefore, it would be appropriate for CATE to lobby for a national approach to career education in schools and for its members to have some kind of professional qualification similar to that expected by Career Development Association of New Zealand (CDANZ). Furthermore, Furbish (2016) identified a lack of national policy for career development in New Zealand and calls for this to be developed. The changes required to implement an integrated whole-school approach indicate leadership at a national level, which could be prompted by a national policy. For example, the recommendations that career advisors hold (or be working towards) a qualification and that ERO evaluate career education would need to be mandated by the Ministry of Education. While we support the call for a national policy and that the policy should include effective career education for schools, it is also important for flexibility in the delivery of career education to remain so each school can accommodate their own unique character and community. For this reason, any organisation, such as CDANZ who wishes to take the lead in developing such a policy (Furbish, 2016), needs to work closely with those who represent career education in schools.

Recommendations for future research

The literature in the field of school-based career education is relatively limited and very little emanates from New Zealand. In addition, only three studies, none of which were from New Zealand, were found that looked at the students’ experience of career education. This is an obvious area for future research, as students are the receivers of career education, their perspective on what they need would be invaluable. It is also neither clear from the literature nor from other documentation how career education is delivered in all New Zealand schools – a stocktake of current practice would provide a platform from which to move forward.