Lessons

Query a Career Profile

Timothy Burkhart

Timothy Burkhart (Used with permission)

Timothy Burkhart

Timothy Burkhart (Used with permission)

Biology,  Chemistry,  Environmental Science,  Guidance & Careers,  Physics,  Science
Let's Talk Science

How does this align with my curriculum?

Share on:

Students will explore career profiles and relate them to what they are learning in science class.

Summary

  • Students will make connections between the content that they are studying in class and related careers
  • Students will make inferences about the skills required for a specific career based on their exploration of a career profile
  • Students will create questions and ask their peers about a variety of different careers related to the topics they are studying in science class
  • Students will reflect on how their career interests and goals relate to the career profiles they explored
Specific Expectations for Ontario

SNC1D, SNC1P, SNC2D, SNC2P:

A1.7 select, organize, and record relevant information on research topics from various sources, including electronic, print, and/or human sources (e.g., Statistics Canada publications, NASA or EnerGuide websites, personal interviews), using recommended formats and an accepted form of academic documentation

A2.1 identify and describe a variety of careers related to the fields of science under study (e.g., astrophysicist, geophysicist, conservation officer, park warden, fire protection engineer, hydrologist, electrician) and the education and training necessary for these careers

Setting the Stage

Throughout high school science courses, students explore a variety of topics that are relevant for many careers. Gaining exposure to careers that relate to the content they are learning in science class is an excellent way for students to realize the importance of science skills beyond the classroom. Additionally, reading profiles of specific people rather than just general career descriptions allows students to make connections and relate to people working in STEM careers. Students are able to further imagine what it feels like to work in one of these careers by pretending to be their profiled person in peer interviews. Learning about the different paths that people take in STEM careers can help students connect science class to their future goals and life path. 

In this lesson, students read a profile of a person working in a STEM-related career. Students then share what they learned about their profiled person through peer interviews. Finally, students reflect on what they’ve learned about careers that connect to the content they are studying in science class. 

This is lesson 4 of 4 in a set that can be used sequentially or as standalone lessons. The suggested sequence for completing these lessons is:

  1. Exploring Career Sectors and Skills
  2. How Does STEM Support Non-STEM Careers?
  3. STEM Skills and Self-Exploration
  4. Query a Career Profile

Materials & Preparation

  • Career Profile Query Template Reproducible [Google doc] [Word doc] [PDF] - provide as a paper or e-copy, 1 per student.
  • Peer Interview Template Reproducible [Google doc] [Word doc] [PDF] - provide as a paper or e-copy, 1-3 per student based on the number of interviews conducted.

With Internet Access: 

Without Internet Access

  • Choose several profiles from the Career Profile List by Topic that are relevant to your current topic of study. Provide students with print or PDF copies of these profiles. 

What To Do

Part 1: Query a Career Profile

  • Teachers could explain that students will be learning about a STEM career by exploring career profiles. Students will choose a career profile from the Let’s Talk Science Career Profile resource site that is related to what they are learning in science class. 
  • Teachers could provide students with the Career Profile List reproducible that corresponds to the content they are currently working on. If students cannot access the website online, teachers could provide print copies of the profiles. Each student could choose one of these profiles to explore in more depth. 
  • Students could read their career profile and answer the guiding questions on the template.
    • Optional: Students could supplement the information obtained from the profiles by accessing the Government of Canada’s Career Planning Job Profiles search. 
  • Once complete, students could review the information they collected from their profile, as they will be asked to share with classmates in an interview format.

Part 2: Peer Interviews

  • Students could pair up with another student who read a different profile in Part 1. 
  • Students could take a few minutes to record questions that they would like to ask about their peer’s career profile on the Peer Interview Template reproducible. Students should choose their questions keeping in mind the scope of the information included in Let’s Talk Science Career Profiles. 
  • Each student could conduct a brief interview of their partner, who will answer as if they are the profiled person they just learned about. Students could record their findings on the Peer Interview Template reproducible. 
  • Optional: Teachers could repeat this process so that students participate in several peer interviews. 

Part 3: Reflection

  • Teachers could lead a reflection discussion about what students have learned from their interviews. Teachers could ask students to write down some thoughts about one of the following questions before participating in a group discussion. Teachers could use the following questions to guide a group discussion. 
    • What skills were required for the careers you learned about? What skills were common? What skills were specific to the career?
    • Which career did you find most interesting? Why?
    • How did the careers you explored connect to the unit that we are studying? What specific content/ information do they use?
    • Describe something that surprised you about the careers you explored. This might be something about the skills needed, the pathway they took to get their or something about the actual job. 
    • What questions do you still have about the careers that you explored?
    • Reflect on your personal skills and knowledge. Could you see yourself pursuing any of these career paths? Why or why not?
    • What steps do you need to take to develop the skills and knowledge that will help you land your dream job?

Details

  • Teachers could assess students' ability to comprehend and make inferences from a text based on their response to the Career Profile Query Template reproducible. 
  • Teachers could assess students’ communication skills based on observations during their peer interviews and responses on the Peer Interview Template reproducible. 
  • Teachers could assess students’ engagement with this activity based on their participation during the whole group discussion. 

The curated lists of STEM careers may also be used in this variation of a related activity.

Teachers could use this lesson to introduce students to the idea of employability skills and career sectors. 

Teachers could help students understand the importance of STEM skills for non-STEM careers with this lesson. 

Teachers could help students reflect on their own employability skills and careers of interest with this lesson. 

Assessment

  • Teachers could assess students' ability to comprehend and make inferences from a text based on their response to the Career Profile Query Template reproducible. 
  • Teachers could assess students’ communication skills based on observations during their peer interviews and responses on the Peer Interview Template reproducible. 
  • Teachers could assess students’ engagement with this activity based on their participation during the whole group discussion. 

Extensions

The curated lists of STEM careers may also be used in this variation of a related activity.

Teachers could use this lesson to introduce students to the idea of employability skills and career sectors. 

Teachers could help students understand the importance of STEM skills for non-STEM careers with this lesson. 

Teachers could help students reflect on their own employability skills and careers of interest with this lesson. 

Downloads

Related Topics

Biodiversity
Career Exploration
Career Options
Career Types
Careers 10
Careers 9
Chemical Elements
Climate Change
Compounds
Electrical Technologies
Employability Skills
Personal Profile
Reproductive System
Solar System
Transferable Skills