Equitably Preparing Youth for Careers in the Changing World of Work

Session Type: Symposium

Abstract

How can educational institutions equitably prepare youth to enter the modern world of work? This symposium investigates the ways high schools and postsecondary institutions influence career knowledge, aspirations, and outcomes. Using a range of methods, we unpack the dynamics through which educational institutions both reproduce and mitigate occupational stratification along the axes of race, class, and urbanicity. We consider promising practices for youth career development in an era of rapidly changing labor markets and discuss how researchers can help discover and address obstacles to implementing these practices equitably. We will conclude with a discussion on the joint responsibility of schools and educational researchers to create structures that help all students attain rewarding careers.

Sub Unit

• SIG-Sociology of Education

Chair

• Sarah Elizabeth Cashdollar, University of Chicago

Papers

• National Patterns of Career and Technical Education Course Offerings in Comprehensive Public High Schools - Lynn Meissner, Northwestern University

• Educator Sense-Making and Implementation of Career and Technical Education in Comprehensive High Schools - Sarah Elizabeth Cashdollar, University of Chicago

• What Are Good Jobs and Who Gets Them? - James E. Rosenbaum, Northwestern University; Gorana Ilic, Northwestern University; Ashley Elizabeth Uphoff, Northwestern University

• Rural Education and Workforce Development: Moving Beyond the Mobility Imperative - Kai A. Schafft, The Pennsylvania State University

Discussant

• Katherine S. Newman, University of Massachusetts