For this
week’s sociology blog, we were required to read chapter 8, "School-to-Work Transitions." I found this chapter very
relatable to my / our lives at the moment. Within the next year and bit, we
will all be looking for jobs as we try to make our way in to the labour force.
There were many things that stood out to me in this chapter but for the sake of
this blog I would like to highlight on three.
The first was the concept of opportunity cost. The text defines this as, referring "to the benefits that have to be forgone in order to pursue the activity of choice" (pg. 232) For example (as the text outlines) this could be choosing to pursue higher education as opposed to working straight after high school. This is in hopes that once graduated will lead to a higher paying job (due to having credentials) rather than the low-paying jobs that are available to high school diploma holders. I know for me personally, I choose the higher education route specifically for these reasons. However, in doing so I definitely fell into the "broke university student" category. Even though I am working part time, I still find myself financially stressed at times. This most likely isn't too big of a problem (in terms of simply having money as opposed to how much) for someone who started working straight after (e.g. able to save, not have to pay lump sums of money like tuition ... etc). However I do believe that the sacrifices made now will be worth it eventually.
Another thing that stood out me during this chapter was the section on new immigrants. Being closely connected to my cultural community (Tamil people) here in Winnipeg, I often hear stories of new Tamil immigrants who are not able to find work that matches to their area of study. One example that hits close to home is my mother was a nurse back in Sri Lanka however once she immigrated to Canada; she was not able to get the same job. The text would describe this as being an example of brain waste. Brain waste is defined as “the underutilization of the skills sets of new immigrants” (pg. 243).
The last thing that stood out to me in this chapter was the section on apprenticeship programs (although this was dispersed throughout the chapter). Apprenticeship programs are defined as programs that are “oriented toward training people in skills of a trade… a young person works for an employer while taught the skills of the trade on the job” (pg. 260). I definitely think it would be of more value and beneficial to society as a whole if we had a system similar to that of Germany – in which the school and employers work together to outline what is expected (pg. 259). This is in contrast to what in Canada have as the text calls it a “decoupling system” (pg. 260). In this system the employers and education system are loosely tied (260). Often we hear stories of how our schooling did not prepare us for our job (at least adequately) or vice versa how employers say that new recruits are not prepared. I think in a nutshell that by having a better system would allow for us to feel more confident / self assured, knowledgeable and prepared going into new jobs in addition this would add to our social capital (being able to make connections and networks). Rather than for example (now) not having the preparedness or confidence as well as no networks. For example, although I enjoy our educational courses I wish we had more practical lessons over theory – say in the context of strategies to address classroom management, forms that we should know how to fill out (e.g. field trips, grants for books .. etc), how to set up a classroom, how to plan lessons … etc) and interviewing skills and so forth.
The first was the concept of opportunity cost. The text defines this as, referring "to the benefits that have to be forgone in order to pursue the activity of choice" (pg. 232) For example (as the text outlines) this could be choosing to pursue higher education as opposed to working straight after high school. This is in hopes that once graduated will lead to a higher paying job (due to having credentials) rather than the low-paying jobs that are available to high school diploma holders. I know for me personally, I choose the higher education route specifically for these reasons. However, in doing so I definitely fell into the "broke university student" category. Even though I am working part time, I still find myself financially stressed at times. This most likely isn't too big of a problem (in terms of simply having money as opposed to how much) for someone who started working straight after (e.g. able to save, not have to pay lump sums of money like tuition ... etc). However I do believe that the sacrifices made now will be worth it eventually.
Another thing that stood out me during this chapter was the section on new immigrants. Being closely connected to my cultural community (Tamil people) here in Winnipeg, I often hear stories of new Tamil immigrants who are not able to find work that matches to their area of study. One example that hits close to home is my mother was a nurse back in Sri Lanka however once she immigrated to Canada; she was not able to get the same job. The text would describe this as being an example of brain waste. Brain waste is defined as “the underutilization of the skills sets of new immigrants” (pg. 243).
The last thing that stood out to me in this chapter was the section on apprenticeship programs (although this was dispersed throughout the chapter). Apprenticeship programs are defined as programs that are “oriented toward training people in skills of a trade… a young person works for an employer while taught the skills of the trade on the job” (pg. 260). I definitely think it would be of more value and beneficial to society as a whole if we had a system similar to that of Germany – in which the school and employers work together to outline what is expected (pg. 259). This is in contrast to what in Canada have as the text calls it a “decoupling system” (pg. 260). In this system the employers and education system are loosely tied (260). Often we hear stories of how our schooling did not prepare us for our job (at least adequately) or vice versa how employers say that new recruits are not prepared. I think in a nutshell that by having a better system would allow for us to feel more confident / self assured, knowledgeable and prepared going into new jobs in addition this would add to our social capital (being able to make connections and networks). Rather than for example (now) not having the preparedness or confidence as well as no networks. For example, although I enjoy our educational courses I wish we had more practical lessons over theory – say in the context of strategies to address classroom management, forms that we should know how to fill out (e.g. field trips, grants for books .. etc), how to set up a classroom, how to plan lessons … etc) and interviewing skills and so forth.
Question: Our educational system is pretty embedded as it is. However, given the chance to restructure - let’s say on a smaller level the whole BA educational program; is there anything you would change? For example, more apprenticeship like opportunities out of the school setting but still related to education, or longer apprenticeship / practicum commitment, more practical over theory courses?
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