Developing career and employability skills: a US case study

As a result of education and business partnerships, there is general consensus that career and employability skills should be taught in high schools, since many students leave education without the requisite skills to succeed in the adult work world. This leads to the question of whether teachers are competent to provide instruction on employability skills, and whether teacher training programs are preparing teachers to do so. As an example of how to rectify this situation, one US university has developed and implemented a new course on teaching career and employability skills for its technical teacher preparation program. The case describes how the course was developed and how it is being delivered, as well as the content and process skills students are learning. The potential impact of the new course is discussed in terms of the extent to which new teachers are using the skills, the capability of their students, and ultimately, how local organizations view the graduates.