Equal Opportunity Employment

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission seeks to ensure that all have a fair shot at job and career options. What does "equal opportunity" mean?  Read the overview.

• Be ready to explain what federal laws identify as illegal discrimination under the Equal Employment Opportunity. 
• Why do you think these laws exist? 
• What recourse is there if one believes that they have been discriminated against?

Opportunities Through the US Military

There are a variety of post-secondary options available to students through the U.S. Military. Follow the links below to find out more about career options and prerequisites for the U.S. Armed Services. 

• Ten Steps to Joining the Military: Find information about how to join, compare the services, explore enlistment options, look at job choices, and more.
• ROTC and the Army: Learn more about the ROTC program and opportunities presented while in high school or college.

As you explore these websites, be thinking about the following questions: 

• What opportunities do you see presented?
• What are advantages to pursuing these post-secondary options? Potential concerns to think about?
• What surprises you as you explore these options?

Investigating Personality Types & Career Choices

The National Application Center has a great tool to explore potential career matches based on Holland's personality descriptors and other areas of interest. To use, simply identify your top 3 Holland categories and use the sort features to see what recommendations appear. As you explore this tool, be thinking about the following questions:

1) What trends do you observe in the recommendations being made?
2) What sounds interesting to you?
3) What happens as you change the ability filter? The general work activities filter? Other filters?
4) What is surprising to you?

Personality Types & Career Choices

John Holland describes six main personality types. Take a few minutes to read how he describes each of the following:

• Realistic
• Investigative
• Artistic
• Social
• Enterprising
• Conventional

Based on what you already know about careers, and based on the descriptions you've read of each, what career options do you believe would appeal to those who fall more into the realistic category? Conventional? Enterprising? Share with your classmates and be prepared to defend your answers. 

What do you think this all means for you? 

Searching for Career Options

This year you will have time during SUCCESS class to explore career options and topics that will help you as you prepare for Year 13. One great website to use as you explore various opportunities is found here:

 Click on link: JA student center.

 On the left side of the page, you'll see Career Clusters listed. Choose one that looks interesting to you, and spend some time looking at the various jobs listed there. Some questions to think about while exploring:

 **What do you notice about the variety of jobs listed in each cluster?
**What information is available about each job?
**What value do you think a resource like this has for you as you begin high school?

Multi-tasking, Driving, and Your Brain

What happens inside your brain when you're trying to multi-task and drive at the same time? Listen to what John Medina, author of Brain Rules has to say:

Text Messaging and Driving

Several research studies have found the extraordinary danger of text messaging while driving. Here are some links to further explore and understand the effects of text messaging when driving:


Try a simulation game which illustrates the impact of being distracted when driving at the New York Times

Go to the Oprah page dedicated to the dangers of driving distracted. Pay particular attention to “Putting Distracted Drivers to the Test” and “Distracted Driving: What You Don’t See”

Take the two quizzes about how your brain really works when you’re trying to use a cell phone while driving: “Your Brain on Texting Quiz” and “Teen Texting and Driving Quiz.”

Josh Waitzkin on Excellence and Learning

Part 1


Part 2


Josh Waitzkin talks about what a pursuit of excellence means to him. How does he describe it? Do you agree?

What Does it Mean to Make a Difference?

What do you think about Mark Bezos' comments? How can you make a difference in someone's life today?

Mathematics and Our Own Potential

Do you ever think that sometimes we put limits on our own capabilities and don't realize the potential of our amazing brains? Check out what Arthur Benjamin does with numbers in what he calls "Mathemagic".

The Marshmallow Experiment

What can marshmallow's teach us about success? Check it out...

Scholarships and Resources at students.gov

Check out this great resource about applying to colleges, finding scholarships, and a whole bunch of other information here

Nelson Mandela

See the BBC coverage of Nelson Mandela's release from prison in 1990.

Multi-tasking and Your Brain

Cognitive psychologists have found in their research that multi-tasking is simply not as efficient as truly focusing on one task for an amount of time. John Medina wrote in his book Brain Rules about the inefficiences of making your brain shift from one activity to another. Check out his explanation:

John Wooden on Success

Famed UCLA basketball coach John Wooden explained the lessons he learned on success throughout his life at the TED Conference. He talks about success coming not from being better than other people, but by comparing your success against your own progress.

John Wooden's Rules for his basketball players:
1) Never be late. Be on time and be neat and clean.
2) Don't use profanity.
3) Don't criticize a teammate.

Do you agree?

Watch his 17 minute talk on success and reflections on his life-

Olivia Gardner and Bullying

You've read about Olivia and her unexpected friends Emily and Sarah Buder. Now, check out the Today show's interview with Olivia and her mom about her experiences with bullying, and what got her through her dark moments. (video 7 minutes, plus an accompanying article).

This year, bullying and the tragic consequences of bullying continues to be in the news. Nine students in a Massachussets town were charged with bullying when one of their classmates, Phoebe Price, committed suicide. These nine students allegedly bullied her online and in-person relentlessly and now face criminal charges for their role in her suicide.

Bullying is not a new phenomenon, but it is serious. With the increasing connectivity of technology, bullying can happen 24/7 in a way it hasn't in the past. But you, like Olivia's many new friends, can do something about it. Here are a few resources on the subject-

Teen health website with resources to deal with bullying.

Bullying.org

Responsibility and Complacency

Nobel Peace Prize Winners

You've been reading about Mother Teresa being awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979. Did you know that just this month the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded for the 91st time in its history? This year's recipient is the Chinese political dissident Liu Xiaobo, honored for "his long and non-violent struggle for fundamental human rights in China." His wife describes her husband's work in this video at the New York Times.

Liu Xiaobo's activism dates back to the Tianamen Square Massacre of June 4, 1989. In early 1989 Chinese protestors, mainly university students and intellectuals, began to demonstrate publicly against some of the practices of the Chinese government. The protests took a devastating turn when, on June 4th, the state military entered Tianamen Square. Tanks and soldiers opened fire on unarmed protestors. The total number of casualties from that day is unknown, but estimates range from 400 to a couple thousand people killed. Liu Xiaobo, a popular university teacher, was involved in the protests of that day and while he survived the massacre, he has since been sentenced to four prison terms for his advocacy of democracy and criticisms of the Chinese government. Inside China, his name and work is censored. Even news of him receiving the Nobel Peace Prize has been blocked as much as possible by the Chinese government. International broadcasts have their screens blackened during any segments about Liu Xiaobo. It will be interesting to see what impact this recognition of Liu Xiaobo by the Nobel Prize Committee will have.

Check out other Nobel Prize recipients here. You will others recognized for their political contributions (Martin Luther King Jr, Nelson Mandela, Kofi Annan, and others). You will also see contributions in expanding medical care (Doctors Without Borders), alleviating global poverty (Muhammad Yunus), and other contributions. Who do you think has made the most interesting impact?

Choosing a Major

When you get to college, one of the first questions you'll hear is "What is your major? What are you studying?" As you get prepared for college, or wherever Year 13will find you, it is important to be thinking about what interests you have and what paths may interest you. Think about what Daniel Pink says in this clip. Do you believe that it is important, like he says, to choose the paths you are passionate in? How can you find out what your own strengths and interests are?

The Ben Carson Story