Know yourself. Know your dream.

Landrum and KIPP Courage students engaged with professionals representing careers that align with SBISD's T-2-4 goals at a recent campus career day. The day's experience served to raise awareness about career options and spark critical dialogue between visiting career professionals and students.

For more information about Spring Branch T-2-4 or district goals, visit the SBISD Strategic Planning website.

How do we expect young people to dream if they don’t know what they can dream about? 

Why is career exploration a critical exercise for middle-schoolers?  Opportunities for career exploration give young people broader exposure to the working world they will one day enter. It helps them “connect the dots” between school and career in ways that keep them motivated to graduate with the skills they will need for the future.

• Career exploration experiences and opportunities can improve academic performance. They also increase the likelihood that these students will complete high school and pursue post-secondary education. 
• Career exploration opportunities improve the attitudes of young people about their career possibilities, motivating them to persevere. 
• Career exploration improves students’ knowledge of career options, encouraging them to develop and work toward goals during the critical years when they are also beginning to venture beyond the orbit of their parents. 

With a better understanding of the working world, young people can more easily envision how they fit successfully into that world. Knowing the preparation they will need for specific careers, participants also become better able to set realistic goals for themselves and pursue them.

Students who are involved in career exploration are more likely to plan their high school courses of study carefully to gain the skills they will need. Students participating in career exploration programs as middle-schoolers are more likely to enroll in higher level math courses in high school and have higher self esteem.