TOOLEYBUC Central School is preparing students for the future by implementing career education within their curriculum.
The school received funding to take part in NSW’s Rural and Remote K-12 Career Education Initiative.
The program encourages schools to develop innovative and creative career education processes that aim to strengthen the transition from primary to secondary school, raise student expectations and pathways into further study, provide quality school leadership and establish strong community relationships.
Principal Louisa Frost said there would be a strong emphasis on promoting career education at all year levels, which would enable students to gain lifelong skills as they navigated their chosen career path.
As part of the program, students in Years 5 to 8 headed to Mildura on Monday, visiting SuniTAFE and gaining an insight into a range of diverse careers which included aged care, beauty, building, engineering, nursing and hospitality.
“There’s a big focus on agriculture and in particular technology in agriculture,” Ms Frost said.
“We want students to know that a career in agriculture doesn’t equate to being a farmer. We want to expose students to different types of jobs and opportunities which are available locally.”
Ms Frost said the program would help students focus on setting goals and high expectations when it came to their future careers, while providing them with a range of tools to help prepare them for the workforce.
Tara Andrews, who graduated from Tooleybuc Central School last year, is about to start university in Adelaide, where she will study a Bachelor of Inclusive and Specialised Education degree.
Ms Andrews said her various leadership roles at Tooleybuc Central School helped ease her transition.
“I’m the first female in my family to go to university out of both sides of the family,” Ms Andrews said.
“This is a totally new experience for me but I’ve found my feet and I’m looking forward to the challenge.”
