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What is
PACTS?
Parents play a very important role in assisting their child or
children through the transition from school to further education,
training or employment. Career Connections work with schools,
parents and other community organisation to assist with this
process.
Parent As Careers Transitions Support (PACTS) is a resource
combined with series of workshops developed to assist parents and
carers with career and transitions support. The
programme enables partents and carers to support their
teenager(s) while they are making decisions surrounding their
future.
The PACTS programme is held over a period of
three weeks; however, Career Connections can tailor the programme
to suit the school’s, parents, carers and community groups with
specific needs, such as parents of children with Disabilities and
Culturally diverse backgrounds as well as Indigenous peoples.
Why was
PACTS developed?
PACTS was developed by the Brotherhood of St Laurence,
who conducted research with parents and children. That research
showed that:
- 85% of parents have specific concerns about their child’s
transition and 20% feel they have enough knowledge about
choices
- two thirds of students want more information about career
transition
- around 80% say they would like help from their parents, and
around 90% have specific ideas about what they want
- discussing their ideas with parents was ranked significantly
higher than other options
Key Features
of a PACTS programme
- Focus of workshops is pointing out to parents career pathways
options available
- Each workshop is limited to approximately two hours
- Maximum of 15 parents in each session
- Participants a given a simple, easy to understand workbook
- Workshops are held at the school or community meeting place
- Networking and relationship building with other parents at the
school
What is in
the PACTS Workshops?
Outlined below is the content of each PACTS
workshop.
Workshop One – Beginning to
Explore
- Finding a place to start
- Occupational categories
- How to use the Job Guide
- Making the connection between activity and skills
Workshop Two & Three
- Talking with young people about careers
- Learning Pathways Plans
- Career services at school
- Training and further education options
- Apprenticeships and traineeships
- Group Training Organisations
- Stages of Job Hunting
- Young people and telephones
- Centrelink, Job Network and other programmes
- Interview skills
- The first job
Facilitating
PACTS
Career Connections will provide a “Train the trainer”
sessions in order to provide professional development for teachers
or community leaders to facilitate the programme, using the
materials developed by the Brotherhood of St Laurence.
PACTS
is offered |