The Career Education Standard (3-18) contributes to professional learning for practitioners at all levels working with children and young people aged from 3 to 18. 

They are structured to both inform and to support reflection on existing strengths and areas of development around career education. These introductory resources are brief in nature and can be used by individuals as professional learning opportunity as well as in group discussion or staff CPD.

Explore this resource

Learning resource 1: Introduction to the Career Education Standard (3-18)

Introduction to Career Education Standard (PDF) introduces you to the standard, its context, purpose and expectations in a logical and manageable format. The materials include a self-evaluation tool and contain references to How good is our school? (4th Edition). Engaging with this professional learning resource will help you build on your existing practice. It provides the basis on which all other resources are built.

The Introduction to Career Education Standard (PowerPoint) supports teachers and practitioners in the developing approaches to the profiling of skills and wider achievement in the context of 'Developing the Young Workforce'.

Learning resource 2: Introduction to labour market information

The Introduction to Labour Market Information (PDF) and Introduction to Labour Market Information stimulus (PowerPoint) offers introductory level learning on labour market information and how it can be accessed and used in the wider context of career education.

Learning resource 3: Introduction to Career Management Skills

The Introduction to Career Management Skills (PDF) outlines the context of career management skills in education and its relevance for learners as they develop their career pathways from early years to senior phase and beyond.

Learning resource 4: Introduction to My World of Work

The Introduction to My World of Work (PDF) gives practitioners an introduction to Skills Development Scotland’s careers web service - My World of Work. It can be used to help learners to make informed choices about their future careers.

Learning resource 5: Introduction to Creativity Skills

The Introduction to Creativity Skills (PDF) allows practitioners to make the connection between creativity as cross-cutting theme of CfE and its importance in the context of employability and the world of work.

Learner resource 6: Profiling skills and achievements in the context of DYW/career education

Profiling skills and achievements in the context of DYW/career education (PDF) supports the use of profiling in the context of career education and the development of skills for learning, life and work.

Learning resource 7: Ensuring equality of opportunities

Ensuring equality of opportunities (PDF) ensures that practitioners and school leads take equality issues into account when planning for the delivery of Developing the Young Workforce.

Learning resource 8: Personal Learning and Achievement 

Personal Learning and Achievement (PDF) provides support to develop practice in the area of personal learning and achievement, also sometimes referred to as ‘wider achievement’.

Outcomes of this resource

As a result of engaging with the learning resources you will have:

• an understanding of the purpose and aim of the Career Education Standard (3-18) (CES)
• an understanding of the part you are expected to play, along with partners, in the implementation of the CES
• an understanding of the entitlements for children and young people
• developed, through self-evaluation, your understanding of the CES expectations in relation to your current practice
• explored key themes relevant to career education such as Labour Market Information, Career Management Skills etc
• identified the relevancy for your area of work and how this supports the implementation of the CES
• a plan to take forward manageable changes to your practice

Reflective questions

The learning resources aim to generate discussion around a number of reflective questions.

• To what extent do I work with a range of partners to design and deliver an appropriate, personalised curriculum that takes account of the individual needs of children and young people and genuinely equips them for learning life and work in all settings?
• To what extent do I engage children and young people in meaningful discussions about their skills development and assist them in profiling to support their career journeys?
• To what extent do I relate relevant learning experiences and skills development to labour market and employment opportunities including entrepreneurship and self-employment?
• To what extent do I facilitate young people’s learning and their ability to engage with a rapidly developing landscape of work/career and learning opportunities?

Supporting documents

Career Education Standard and the self-evaluation and reflection CES Learning Resource (PDF)