Many parents do not know that they have a lasting influence on their children’s career development. They assume that the school or college will take care of the career development. However, in reality, schools and colleges do not. The result is that youngsters are ill-prepared for choosing a career that suits them.
There are cases where parents advocate traditional vocations and so reject anything else they consider unacceptable. This might be too restricting to the child’s career development. This is especially so when his abilities and interests lie beyond his parent’s acceptable choices.
There are several ways parents can help their children in their career planning. Firstly, they should let their children know that they are interested in their career planning and not just the intellectual development. They can spend time observing what the child id interested in doing both at home and outside. Expose him to different kinds of activities. Send him to a career camp to help him discover more about himself and the world at work. At the same time, increase his awareness by exposing him to relevant information and materials. Encourage him to read the local newspaper and get acquainted with the educational opportunities, both local and overseas.
