MINNEAPOLIS, Minn., June 22 -- Duval County Public Schools will be several steps ahead of Gov. Jeb Bush’s A++ Plan for Education come fall, as 19 high schools in Jacksonville will implement the new Keystone Course for all incoming freshmen. The course, which relies heavily on the acclaimed Career Choices curriculum, will help students become career-focused and career-committed while learning how to make effective decisions about their futures.

 

Rebecca M. Dedmond, Ph.D, director of school counseling for The George Washington University Alexandria Center and founder of the Freshman Transition Initiative says, “Long-range thinking and planning can be taught, and the best time to do this is during the transitional year into high school, in either the 8th or 9th grade. Helping students visualize a productive adult life and write a 10-year plan for their futures is key to school retention and academic achievement. Once adolescents understand the impact a good education has on their future life satisfaction, and how their high school decisions affect the rest of their lives, educators find they have willing and enthusiastic learners.”

Dr. Dedmond has been working with school officials in Duval County to develop the year-long Keystone Course that will culminate with students developing meaningful 10-year, career-inclusive education plans that include: graduation from high school; matriculation and graduation from post-secondary education or training; and transition into the workforce with the training and skills necessary for economic self-sufficiency.

Studies show that students who enter college or post-secondary training career-focused and career-committed are far more likely to graduate and transition into productive work that matches their education and training. Duval County Public Schools hopes that students will exert the effort required to master their high school coursework when the acquisition of education becomes relevant to their future life satisfaction.

SOURCE  Academic Innovations

Web Site www.academicinnovations.com

 

Contact Kristen Lunceford

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Academic Innovations, Minneapolis Office

615 Greten Ct.

Hastings, MN  55033

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