1-Pager
9th Grade  Project 6 weeks

Vermont Career Quest for 9th Graders

Pedro C
Updated
HS-ETS1-1
HS-ETS1-2
Systems can be designed to do specific tasks.
HS-ETS1-3
D2.Civ.8.9-12
+ 15 more
1-pager

The Challenge

In rural communities, you often face a mismatch between local job opportunities and clear information about the skills, training pathways, transportation, and supports needed to access them. This gap limits workforce participation, weakens local industries such as agriculture, health care, trades, and outdoor recreation, and increases social and economic barriers for communities.

Challenge Question

How might we address Workforce in Motion’s challenge of showing rural Vermont teens how their abilities connect to nearby jobs so that 9th grade students can explore realistic local career pathways through engaging hands-on expo stations?

Standards

  • [Vermont] HS-ETS1-1 - Analyze a major global challenge to specify qualitative and quantitative criteria and constraints for solutions that account for societal needs and wants.
  • [Vermont] HS-ETS1-2 - Design a solution to a complex real-world problem by breaking it down into smaller, more manageable problems that can be solved through engineering.
  • [Vermont] dc05e99b-5b16-4d2a-ad6c-34e6c23da22d - Systems can be designed to do specific tasks.
  • [Vermont] HS-ETS1-3 - Evaluate a solution to a complex real-world problem based on prioritized criteria and trade-offs that account for a range of constraints, including cost, safety, reliability, and aesthetics as well as possible social, cultural, and environmental impacts.
  • [Vermont] D2.Civ.8.9-12 - Individually and with others, students… Evaluate social and political systems in different contexts, times, and places, that promote civic virtues and enact democratic principles.
  • [Vermont] cc7ee9fa-8ce3-4230-9707-8a46f90a570a - Ask questions that arise from careful observation of phenomena, or unexpected results, to clarify and/or seek additional information.
  • [Vermont] f858babd-ddf8-4c9e-8522-b2602360bdec - Analyze complex real-world problems by specifying criteria and constraints for successful solutions.
  • [Vermont] D4.3.9-12 - Individually and with others, students use writing, visualizing, and speaking to… Present adaptations of arguments and explanations that feature evocative ideas and perspectives on issues and topics to reach a range of audiences and venues outside the classroom using print and oral technologies (e.g., posters, essays, letters, debates, speeches, reports, and maps) and digital technologies (e.g., Internet, social media, and digital documentary).
  • [Vermont] bc5a4321-f3b1-409e-9d21-c431dee684c0 - Design, evaluate, and/or refine a solution to a complex real-world problem, based on scientific knowledge, student-generated sources of evidence, prioritized criteria, and tradeoff considerations.
  • [Vermont] D2.Civ.7.9-12 - Individually and with others, students… Apply civic virtues and democratic principles when working with others.

Competencies

  • Pursuing Goals - Planning for postsecondary (LL.SM.2.d)
  • Sharing Ideas - Seeking feedback (OT.Creat.2.a)
  • Problem Seeking - Responsible engagement (OT.PS.1.c)
  • Creative Process - Asking questions (OT.Creat.1.a)
  • Productive Collaboration - Navigating roles (GC.IS.4.b)
  • Building Empathy - Understanding others' viewpoints (GC.IS.3.a)
  • Community Mobilization - Building relationships (GC.SAg.2.c)
  • Productive Collaboration - Valuing others (GC.IS.4.a)
  • Community Mobilization - Removing barriers (GC.SAg.2.b)
  • Productive Collaboration - Reflecting on our work (GC.IS.4.c)

Learning Partners and Clients

Workforce in Motion can serve as the primary client, asking students to create a career expo plan that helps local teens see how their interests, skills, transportation options, and access barriers connect to nearby pathways. Local employers such as a dairy farm, regional hospital, construction company, and state park office can act as learning partners by hosting brief site visits, sending guest speakers, and sharing the real tasks, constraints, and hiring needs students should reflect in their station designs. These partners can also review student-built expo station prototypes, give feedback on accuracy and usefulness, and help select revised stations for public use.

Phase Overview

Phase Key Experiences
Discover
I can step into the role of a career and technical education counselor by exploring a pop-up challenge launch with local job artifacts, transit maps, and employer stories, then identify how skills, transportation, and access create barriers and opportunities for teens in rural Vermont.
Examine
I can investigate local careers in agriculture, health care, trades, and outdoor recreation by asking questions during short site visits or speaker sessions so I can understand what workers do and what skills they need. I can analyze transportation, schedule, training, and cost barriers using maps, interviews, and local data so I can explain why some pathways are easier to access than others. I can compare different employer needs and community opportunities so I can identify criteria and constraints for a career expo station that is accurate, useful, and realistic for teens. I can work with my team to gather feedback from Workforce in Motion and local partners so I can refine my understanding of what makes a pathway experience engaging and informative.
Engineer
I can develop a hands-on career expo station prototype for a local employer by breaking the problem into manageable parts such as audience, activity, materials, script, accessibility, and logistics so the station clearly connects nearby opportunities to students’ abilities, supports, and goals.
Do
I can run my expo station with classmates and community partners, collect feedback and engagement data on clarity, usefulness, and interest, and use the results to judge how well it helps teens understand local career pathways under real-world conditions.
Share
I can share my team’s career expo station and learning journey at a community event with Workforce in Motion, local employers, families, and school staff by leading visitors through the experience, explaining how our ideas changed through feedback, and reflecting on what I learned about my own interests, strengths, and future pathways.