STUDENT ENGAGEMENT:

While the students will be focusing on Indiana’s three Graduation Pathway requirements, it’s easier and more easily digested by dividing these into their different parts. The first Graduation Pathway is earning a high school diploma and the students have already had an opportunity to dig deep on that. Today, students will be focusing on the “Employability Skills” requirement, but will be looking specifically at the options as different types of experiences.

 

To get students thinking about the relationship between experience and learning, play a classroom game of “Never Have I Ever” with the students. The game works like this: Ahead of each round, ask all students to raise their hands. Once the question is asked, only the students who have had that experience should put their hands down. For example, once all of the students have their hands up you say, “Never have I ever fallen backward in my chair.” Then, five students put their hands down, because they have fallen back in their chair. At this point, take a moment to speak to one or more of these students about their experience, focusing on “What did you learn from that experience?”

 

While there are endless questions that you can use for this game, here is a list of ten:
 

1. …dropped my phone and cracked the screen

2. …pretended to be sick

3. …shared a secret that wasn’t mine

4. …accidentally drank from someone else’s cup

5. …broken a bone

6. …turned off the alarm and woke up late

7. …been caught singing or dancing to a song

8. …accidentally worn two different shoes

9. …fallen out of bed

10. …broken a window

One fun variation you can do with this game is write a few down on cards for students to read aloud and allow for students to either choose a card or come up with their own question.

DIGGING IN:

The students have already had the opportunity to explore the classroom experiences that the State of Indiana requires for students to graduate from high school. But a diploma is just one part of what is required. In addition to earning a diploma, students in Indiana are also required to complete two other components that make up Indiana’s Graduation Pathways to graduate from high school.

 

You can share this infographic with students to help visualize the pathways: intoolkit.com/gradpathways 

 

In addition to earning a diploma, students must complete an experience that demonstrates Employability Skills and demonstrate “Post-secondary Competencies.” Today, students will be looking in-depth at the three types of experiences that students can choose from to fulfill the Employability Skills requirement. These can be either a Project-Based Experience, A Service-Based Experience, or a Work-Based Experience.

 

Project-Based Experience

A project-based experience lets students take an extended period of time to investigate, learn and develop skills while working to address a specific problem or challenge. Student projects are self-selected and built upon a meaningful problem to solve or question to answer. Students are expected to dig deep into the problem, engage with outside resources and experts to learn more and inform the project. After the project is complete, students are expected to make their work public in some way.

 

As an example, a student or class may decide to address the problem of local food insecurity by researching, planning, promoting and partnering to put on a benefit concert for a local food bank.

 

Service-Based Experience

A service-based experience is all about meaningful service to the community, but also an experience where students can apply what they learn in the classroom and learn more about their responsibilities to the community they live in. Some students complete these experiences on their own, while others are able to complete an experience through a club or organization that they are involved with (for example, Student Council, National Honor Society or, in some cases, athletics).

 

Work-Based Experience

A work-based experience happens on-site, in a workplace with an employer assigning the student meaningful tasks. The goal of these experiences is to give students an opportunity to apply concepts, skills and knowledge that they’ve learned in the classroom in real-world situations. These experiences can be paid or unpaid.  These can also be experiences planned in conjunction with jobs a student is already working.

 

INTO ACTION:

While students will only select a single experience to fulfill the Employability Skills requirement, it’s a good idea to have an understanding of all three. Pass out the “Graduation Pathways: Employability Skills” sheet to the students. Ask them to give thought to their own personal preferences for each of these three options. While the questions all differ, each of the three options ask students to consider what they hope to learn from each experience.

 

Allow students time to complete their sheet and ask one or more students to share the option that they feel most interested in and the details of the experience they would like to have.