Parental involvement in career awareness begins at an early age. Before children enter school, opportunities abound for career awareness activities to occur. Parents and extended family members enhance and influence children's knowledge and awareness of careers in a variety of ways. Children identify with family careers early in life. Career awareness is the first step in the career decision-making process, and it begins in the home and community.
Most development theorists view the elementary school age period as vital in beginning career awareness. Good career choices are a result of four main elements: self-knowledge, readiness, fit, and support (Ball Foundation, 2000). According to Super, self-concept and knowledge during this stage is developed and supported through identification with key persons in the family and school. Other theorists have characterized the elementary years as a developmental stage of career awareness. Hummel and McDaniels (1982) believe that children do the things they like to do and transform needs and desires into occupational preferences. Roe (1956) hypothesized that interaction and dynamics within the family had an impact on children's occupational preferences and choices. Other studies by Roe focused on the relationship between family background and career development (Herring, 2000).
Educators are on the front lines with regard to career awareness, but parents have an enormous impact. It is well known that parents are a child's first teachers. This is true with career awareness as well. Parents may possibly be encouraging a child's interest in a future career simply by supporting involvement in hobbies and community activities. With a little direction from educators, parents can complement the career awareness process in a number of ways. Checking homework gives parents a tremendous opportunity to link the world of work with skills being taught in school. Parents can provide time for their children to work cooperatively on a family project, sharing observations about the skills needed, the responsibilities of each person, and the need to work cooperatively to complete a task. Children delight in hearing about their parents' jobs. How parents chose a career pathway could create a discussion about how our interests relate to our careers. It is especially helpful for parents to talk about how careers are no longer gender specific as they once were. It is important for children to hear parents talk about the reasons they work, including personal fulfillment.
Elementary school counselors and educators should seek to become familiar with the home and family situations of the children they counsel and teach. Concurrently, school counselors and parents should not push children to make early occupational decisions (Herring, 1998). Most elementary children have not made enduring career plans; and therefore the verbalizations of career goals should be emphasized rather than commitments to career choices.
Counselors and teachers enhance the career awareness process by involving parents in school related career activities. Another significant task of the counselor is to educate parents about the career awareness and decision-making process so they may more effectively participate in this life-long process that begins at the elementary level. Beginning in early in the elementary years, it is critical to educate the parents to be good consumer advocates for their students' career guidance K-12. Schools need to insure that they explain to all parents:
- What career guidance is (and is not.)
- Their district's plan to deliver K-12 career guidance.
- The parents' role to monitor progress.
- How K-5 career awareness provides a foundation for the 6-12 career guidance years.
Parents must be made aware of the guidance standards and what to expect at each grade level as well as of workplace issues that will affect the job market their children will be entering. As a result of the collaboration with schools, parents will be knowledgeable participants in guiding their children from Kindergarten through twelfth grade and to post-secondary endeavors. The Career Guidance Model Website provides numerous links to resources that can assist counselors to involve parents in career guidance. The Partnership for Academic and Career Education (PACE) Tech Prep Consortium has created an interactive website on Parental Involvement that includes information for counselors, interactive exercises for parents to use with their student, and links to other valuable websites.
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