Careers Day
A future career seems a long way off for most primary age children but at the International School of Ahafo, we believe that it’s never too early to start thinking about career choices. Every job has something genuinely unusual about it that may pique the interest of young people and we seek to ignite interest at an early age. On Friday, 25th January, 2019, we had our very first, “Careers Day” and children were given the chance to explore different careers and investigate the specific talents and strengths required for a career of their choice. To add an element of fun to the day, children came to school dressed up in the attire that their specific career choice requires: we had pilots, doctors, a journalist, an engineer, a paleontologist ,a ballet dancer, a president, a bank manager, nurses, to name a few.
The event was low-key and no invitation was extended to parents and the MKV community. Four volunteers (three members of staff and a spouse) were interviewed at a whole school assembly. They shared their stories, dream jobs, whether and when they changed their minds, how they envisioned life after college, best, worst and weird jobs among others.
All of our interviewees stressed the importance of hard work, perseverance, following your passion, setting career goals early as well as cultivating the courage and resilience to make changes when the need arises. Children were given the opportunity to ask questions and they were amazed to realize that interviewers had milked dairy cows, could fix anything, had worked in a bakery, done some carpentry while on the road to their current jobs.
There was so much to learn and aspire to on Career Day and we look forward to subsequent ones. What do you want to be when you grow up?