Post High School Options Powerpoint | |
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CompleteResourcesList | |
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Post High School Options Presentation Summary
In Washington State, a student needs 19-credits to graduate. But, each school district may have their own graduation requirements on top of the state requirements so it is always important for a school counselor to be familiar with the graduation requirements of his or her district. For example, even though the state requirement is 19-credits, the Oak Harbor School district requires students to complete 23-credits for graduation. Along with credits, Washington State requires that students pass a set of standardized tests. Currently, students need to pass three tests: either algebra I or geometry end of course exam, and a high school proficiency exam on reading and writing. For the class of 2016 and beyond, they will have to pass five exams: algebra I end of course exam, geometry end of course exam, a biology end of course exam, and a high school proficiency exam for reading and writing. If students continue to fail one of the exams, they have a few options available to them, they can do a collection of evidence class where they gather samples of their work that show they are proficient in the material, they have a high enough grade point average that contradicts their exam scores, or they score high enough on an advanced placement test or SAT/ACT to offset the exam scores. Prior to graduation, students will also complete a high school and beyond plan and a culminating project that they will present at the end of their senior year.
At the elementary school level, it can be difficult to talk about careers and college with students because they have not necessarily begun to think about what it is they want to do. However, it is important to get them to begin to explore their options because then when they get to middle school and high school they begin to take courses to prepare them for their post high school options. Some fun ways to get children to explore careers and college are career days, including career days where norms may be mixed, a male nurse for example; Compass 2 Campus, where elementary students spend the day exploring a college campus; class discussions, teachers could bring in brochures on colleges and careers and have students discuss what is required with one another; guidance lessons, guidance lessons focused on exploring careers and colleges (examples of guidance lessons will be listed in the resources); fieldtrips to businesses or museums where children can get hands on experience and ask questions; and career themed dress up day, where children can come to school dressed as something they want to do when they grow up. More examples of how to educate elementary age children on preparing for what to do after high school will be provided in the resources section.
At the middle school level, students and staff should be focused on developing good habits. Students should begin to work on developing good study skills and building their ability to work in a team. Staff members should be promoting good academic excellence habits, including increasing self-awareness, individual abilities, interests, potential, values, and personal attitudes. Staff members should promote caring, healthy relationships between students and staff. Students, who do not trust staff or get discouraged easily, are more likely to drop out before even reaching high school if they do not have a close relationship with a staff member or someone who pushes them. Students should begin to explore the standardized testing process and what will be required of them, including possible courses to help prepare them for high school. Discuss college bound and other scholarship programs with students, especially those who are from low income families and may be the first in their family to go to college. Help students begin to explore the route it will take to get to where they hope to be (examples of career exploration worksheets with middle school students will be in the resources section). And an important step will be maintaining parent involvement. Studies show that parent involvement increases a student’s success in school and decreases their chances of dropping out.
In high school, preparing a student for graduation and post-high school life is extremely important. When students first get to high school, provide them with career interest surveys, this is especially beneficial for students still on the wall about what they want to do. Provide parent and student informational nights on anything going on in the school including, registration, advanced placement courses, running start, etc. Students and parents want to stay informed about the school and maintaining consistent communication will help to ensure that they stay engaged. Arrange for college and career representatives to visit the school, including during hours, on field trips, or during career and college fairs. The PowerPoint presentation on this topic provides a layout of what each student should do their 9th, 10th, 11th, and 12th grade years.
Educating families on their student’s options is an important factor in ensuring student success. Family involvement throughout school has shown to increase the likelihood that a student will graduate on time. Provide families with well-planned informational nights, with plenty of chances to ask questions, including an email or phone number to contact you at if they have more questions later on. Maintaining two-way communication is key, parents need to be able to contact you and feel that contact is reciprocal. Provide parents with emails or phone calls on student progress or newsletters on current events going on in the school so that the parent feels they are staying in the loop with their student’s school community.
Working well with diverse student populations will also be important for counselors at all school levels. Student populations can be diverse, and not all of them will view college and careers in the same light. Being familiar with ones school demographics is a good place to start. If a student’s family speaks mostly Spanish, provide communication materials in English and Spanish, or have a translator who could meet with you and the parent to show that you really do what to hear their input. Provide college workshops that are open to all students and provide testing assistance wherever and whenever needed. Have families mentor families so that they have someone who is familiar helping them through the education process or educate yourself on the cultures present at your school so that you can be familiar with expectations, customs and traditions. Walk students through the admission/application process; do not assume that they know what they are doing; especially if they are first generation college students. Most colleges have “minority student weekends,” inform parents of a weekend occurring at the closest college campus so that they can go and explore!
Similar steps need to be taken with students who have a learning disability or are at a lower cognitive level overall. They should be given testing accommodations and should be shown how to set academic goals for themselves. Help the students learn how to advocate for themselves. If they go on to college, professors won’t stop and find out which of their students need help or accommodations, the student will need to reach out on their own. Keep parents in the loop on their student is doing and provide them with a summary of the student’s performance, including student focused meetings.
Another key part of being a high school counselor is being able to write a good letter of recommendation, whether for a career or for college admission. Anymore, most colleges use a common application, which is an online application. If a student comes to you for a letter of recommendation, make sure you familiarize yourself with the student’s application deadline as well as your deadline since they do not always line up. Before starting to write a letter, make sure you have current and up to date information on the school and the student. If you are a counselor in a large school, have a student fill out a sheet that tells you a little bit about themselves, and have them bring you a copy of a resume or complete a short interview with you. Also, get questionnaires from teachers about the student, input from teachers can only help strengthen your letter of recommendation for the student.
When writing the letter, it will be important that you present the whole person. You will want to highlight and provide context for significant achievements and awards. Explain any unusual circumstances that may have hindered or strengthen the student’s experiences. Overall, you want to make the “paper student” come alive. Word choice will be a big part of this. Most colleges read each letter, however it is not an in-depth reading; it is more of a skim. So they will be looking for words to jump out to them, such as coordinated and enriched for example. And explain why the student is a good candidate for their school in particular, including how the student will benefit their school academically but through the school community as well.
More information on post-high school options for students and writing letters of recommendation can be found on the resources page. This is a general summary of what school counselors will want to keep in mind.
In Washington State, a student needs 19-credits to graduate. But, each school district may have their own graduation requirements on top of the state requirements so it is always important for a school counselor to be familiar with the graduation requirements of his or her district. For example, even though the state requirement is 19-credits, the Oak Harbor School district requires students to complete 23-credits for graduation. Along with credits, Washington State requires that students pass a set of standardized tests. Currently, students need to pass three tests: either algebra I or geometry end of course exam, and a high school proficiency exam on reading and writing. For the class of 2016 and beyond, they will have to pass five exams: algebra I end of course exam, geometry end of course exam, a biology end of course exam, and a high school proficiency exam for reading and writing. If students continue to fail one of the exams, they have a few options available to them, they can do a collection of evidence class where they gather samples of their work that show they are proficient in the material, they have a high enough grade point average that contradicts their exam scores, or they score high enough on an advanced placement test or SAT/ACT to offset the exam scores. Prior to graduation, students will also complete a high school and beyond plan and a culminating project that they will present at the end of their senior year.
At the elementary school level, it can be difficult to talk about careers and college with students because they have not necessarily begun to think about what it is they want to do. However, it is important to get them to begin to explore their options because then when they get to middle school and high school they begin to take courses to prepare them for their post high school options. Some fun ways to get children to explore careers and college are career days, including career days where norms may be mixed, a male nurse for example; Compass 2 Campus, where elementary students spend the day exploring a college campus; class discussions, teachers could bring in brochures on colleges and careers and have students discuss what is required with one another; guidance lessons, guidance lessons focused on exploring careers and colleges (examples of guidance lessons will be listed in the resources); fieldtrips to businesses or museums where children can get hands on experience and ask questions; and career themed dress up day, where children can come to school dressed as something they want to do when they grow up. More examples of how to educate elementary age children on preparing for what to do after high school will be provided in the resources section.
At the middle school level, students and staff should be focused on developing good habits. Students should begin to work on developing good study skills and building their ability to work in a team. Staff members should be promoting good academic excellence habits, including increasing self-awareness, individual abilities, interests, potential, values, and personal attitudes. Staff members should promote caring, healthy relationships between students and staff. Students, who do not trust staff or get discouraged easily, are more likely to drop out before even reaching high school if they do not have a close relationship with a staff member or someone who pushes them. Students should begin to explore the standardized testing process and what will be required of them, including possible courses to help prepare them for high school. Discuss college bound and other scholarship programs with students, especially those who are from low income families and may be the first in their family to go to college. Help students begin to explore the route it will take to get to where they hope to be (examples of career exploration worksheets with middle school students will be in the resources section). And an important step will be maintaining parent involvement. Studies show that parent involvement increases a student’s success in school and decreases their chances of dropping out.
In high school, preparing a student for graduation and post-high school life is extremely important. When students first get to high school, provide them with career interest surveys, this is especially beneficial for students still on the wall about what they want to do. Provide parent and student informational nights on anything going on in the school including, registration, advanced placement courses, running start, etc. Students and parents want to stay informed about the school and maintaining consistent communication will help to ensure that they stay engaged. Arrange for college and career representatives to visit the school, including during hours, on field trips, or during career and college fairs. The PowerPoint presentation on this topic provides a layout of what each student should do their 9th, 10th, 11th, and 12th grade years.
Educating families on their student’s options is an important factor in ensuring student success. Family involvement throughout school has shown to increase the likelihood that a student will graduate on time. Provide families with well-planned informational nights, with plenty of chances to ask questions, including an email or phone number to contact you at if they have more questions later on. Maintaining two-way communication is key, parents need to be able to contact you and feel that contact is reciprocal. Provide parents with emails or phone calls on student progress or newsletters on current events going on in the school so that the parent feels they are staying in the loop with their student’s school community.
Working well with diverse student populations will also be important for counselors at all school levels. Student populations can be diverse, and not all of them will view college and careers in the same light. Being familiar with ones school demographics is a good place to start. If a student’s family speaks mostly Spanish, provide communication materials in English and Spanish, or have a translator who could meet with you and the parent to show that you really do what to hear their input. Provide college workshops that are open to all students and provide testing assistance wherever and whenever needed. Have families mentor families so that they have someone who is familiar helping them through the education process or educate yourself on the cultures present at your school so that you can be familiar with expectations, customs and traditions. Walk students through the admission/application process; do not assume that they know what they are doing; especially if they are first generation college students. Most colleges have “minority student weekends,” inform parents of a weekend occurring at the closest college campus so that they can go and explore!
Similar steps need to be taken with students who have a learning disability or are at a lower cognitive level overall. They should be given testing accommodations and should be shown how to set academic goals for themselves. Help the students learn how to advocate for themselves. If they go on to college, professors won’t stop and find out which of their students need help or accommodations, the student will need to reach out on their own. Keep parents in the loop on their student is doing and provide them with a summary of the student’s performance, including student focused meetings.
Another key part of being a high school counselor is being able to write a good letter of recommendation, whether for a career or for college admission. Anymore, most colleges use a common application, which is an online application. If a student comes to you for a letter of recommendation, make sure you familiarize yourself with the student’s application deadline as well as your deadline since they do not always line up. Before starting to write a letter, make sure you have current and up to date information on the school and the student. If you are a counselor in a large school, have a student fill out a sheet that tells you a little bit about themselves, and have them bring you a copy of a resume or complete a short interview with you. Also, get questionnaires from teachers about the student, input from teachers can only help strengthen your letter of recommendation for the student.
When writing the letter, it will be important that you present the whole person. You will want to highlight and provide context for significant achievements and awards. Explain any unusual circumstances that may have hindered or strengthen the student’s experiences. Overall, you want to make the “paper student” come alive. Word choice will be a big part of this. Most colleges read each letter, however it is not an in-depth reading; it is more of a skim. So they will be looking for words to jump out to them, such as coordinated and enriched for example. And explain why the student is a good candidate for their school in particular, including how the student will benefit their school academically but through the school community as well.
More information on post-high school options for students and writing letters of recommendation can be found on the resources page. This is a general summary of what school counselors will want to keep in mind.