Guidance

INFUSING EQUITY BY GENDER INTO THE CLASSROOM:
A Handbook of Classroom Practices

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Day One
Days Two and Three
How to Evaluate an Occupation Handout
Survey Regarding Nontraditional Careers

 STANDARD:

1. All students will be able to identify career areas which are nontraditional for their gender.
2. All students will be able to identify women (or men if they are underrepresented) who are leaders and achievers in the particular core content curriculum area.

GRADE LEVEL: 9 to 12, Guidance

OBJECTIVE(S):

0. Students will be able to understand the advantages to investigating non-traditional occupations before going into the field.
1. Students will be able to research the proper information regarding career choices.
2. Students will be able to obtain resources regarding nontraditional occupations.

TIME: Three class periods.

MATERIALS: Guide to Evaluating Occupations; Jobs For The Future from the U.S. Department of Labor; survey regarding nontraditional careers; a list of guest speakers who are in non-traditional careers.

DAY ONE

PROCEDURES:

1. Following a lesson on gender equity, distribute to the students the guide to evaluating occupations to use as a reference for information gathering on occupations, especially non-traditional occupations.

1. Provide the students with suggestions on where they might find this information on non-traditional occupations, such as;
2. Suggest to the students about using computer technology to gather information.

2. Having the students do personal interviews with people in a particular occupation also might be beneficial.
3. Summarize the lesson prior to the students doing their research. This summary should include a rubric for the outcomes of the research, as well as how the information should be/could be presented.

HINTS: The activity may be expanded to have students interview more than one person.

VARIATIONS: You might want to turn this lesson into a class discussion after they have done their research.

REFERENCE: Dennis, Shirley M., Director & Brock, William E., Secretary (1987) Jobs For The Future, U.S. Department of Labor.

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Day One
Days Two and Three
How to Evaluate an Occupation Handout
Survey Regarding Nontraditional Careers

PROCEDURES:

0. Contact people who are in nontraditional careers to speak to the class. Some examples of female careers could be: female dentist, engineer, police woman, and computer specialist, Some examples of male careers could be: nurse, secretary, flight attendant, and hair stylist.
1. After you have confirmed a few guest speakers from each gender, you may want to give them specific instructions as to what you would like to have them address to the class. You probably would like them top focus on explaining what it is like being in a profession that is nontraditional for their gender.
2. Following a brief introduction lesson on gender equity, allow students time to fill out the survey in class and then take the remainder of the class period to discuss their answers as a group.
3. Summarize the discussion in class.
4. Have your guest speakers attend your third class for the full period.
5. Have the students prepare questions ahead of time that they might want to ask of the speakers.
6. After the speakers have finished their presentations, assign the students for homework, to write a reaction paper about their personal views of what was discussed during the presentation.

HINTS: When the guest speakers attend, observe how the students react to people of the opposite gender in nontraditional careers.

VARIATIONS: You may want to have the students do the survey for homework and just have the lesson for a discussion period. You may also want to have a nontraditional career for the entire day.

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Day One
Days Two and Three
How to Evaluate an Occupation Handout
Survey Regarding Nontraditional Careers

 The information needed to evaluate an occupation is categorized into three segments.

1. Cost and Benefits

1. Skills needed/Personality traits desired
2. Training requirements
3. Availability of training
4. Training cost
5. Salary range
6. Career mobility

2. Job Availability

1. Number of women and men employed
2. Projected growth
3. Industry concentration
4. occupational interest groups

3. Working Conditions

1. Traditional/pathbreaking
2. Work schedules
3. Degree of supervision received
4. Contact with Public and Coworkers
5. Health and Safety Considerations

REFERENCE: Dennis, Shirley M. Director & Brock, William E., Secretary (1987) Jobs For the Future, U.S. Department of Labor

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Day One
Days Two and Three
How to Evaluate an Occupation Handout
Survey Regarding Nontraditional Careers

 SURVEY REGARDING NONTRADITIONAL CAREERS

1. How do you feel about people who pursue a career that is nontraditional?

 

 

 

2. Do you think that you would feel comfortable choosing a career that is traditional? Please explain your answer.

 

 

 

3. How do you think society views people who are in traditional careers?

 

 

 

4. How do you think you would handle peer pressure if you chose a nontraditional career?

 

 

 

5. Do your parents encourage you to pursue a career that is traditional for your gender?

 

 

 

6. If your parents try to discourage you from a nontraditional career, what argument would you use to change their minds and support your decision?

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Day One
Days Two and Three
How to Evaluate an Occupation Handout
Survey Regarding Nontraditional Careers

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