Analysis of Career Guidance - Essay Example

 Career Guidance Theories of Learning and Vocational Skills Development: Career guidance is a broad term which encompasses all the various services intended to assist individuals, regardless of age, to make either occupational or educational choices and to empower them with the ability of appropriately managing their careers. Through career guidance it becomes possible for the individuals to reflect on their ambitions, interests and qualifications. (SWEET et al 2004). Career guidance is governed by a set of theoretical frameworks of universal validity which also encompass culture -specific models. These culture specific models help in mediating career development at local levels. (ATHANASOU et al 2008). The core conceptual propositions of two of the most famous theories of learning and vocational skills development have been evaluated as follows: The Theory of Work Adjustment or person-environment correspondence theory is a theory which focuses on the difference of vocational behavior amongst individuals. In accordance with the theory, career choice and its subsequent development is viewed as a continuous process of adjustment and accommodation. This theory implies that an individual chooses a job only if its environment is in accordance with his “requirements”, while on the other hand, the environment opts for that individual which qualifies on the “requirements” of the organization. The major plus point of TWA is the fact that it develops a battery of measures to measure the various variables associated with the theory such as satisfaction, needs, abilities, satisfactoriness and indexes of correspondence. However, the results of various studies conducted to evaluate the accuracy of the theory yielded mixed results. The study of Tziner, Meir, and Segal (2002) found that higher levels of performance had a strong correlation with extroverted personality style and congruence which was in accordance with the predictions of TWA. However, general ability failed to be an accurate predictor of performance ratings which was contrary to the postulates of the theory. In accordance with another study, it was found that the difference between individuals experiencing congruency and individuals experiencing incongruency in changing their jobs had no significant difference which was not in accordance with the expectations of TWA. (ATHANASOU et al 2008). The Holland’s Theory of Vocational Personalities in Work Environment provides a typology framework on career interest and environment which is simple and easy to understand and is used both in career counseling and guidance. In accordance with the theory, vocational interest is perceived as an expression of an individual’s personality. Holland postulated the concept of vocational interest by six typologies, which are Realistic, Investigative, Artistic, Social, Enterprising and Conventional. A study conducted by Tak (2004) revealed that the arrangement of interest was not clearly hexagonal therefore, contrary to the postulations of Holland. The general findings of another study conducted by Sverko and Babarovic (2006) revealed consistency with Holland’s circular model. The general findings from other international studies suggested that in accordance with cultural context the six interest levels tend to occupy clusters mirroring the idiosyncratic cultural values and occupational perceptions. The most suggested arrangement was Realistic-Investigative, Artistic-Social, and Social-Enterprising-Conventional. Such an arrangement is contrary to the hexagonal arrangement postulated by Holland. (ATHANASOU et al 2008). Continuous Professional Development: Continuous Professional Development is composed of diverse dimensions which are different for different institutions and professional individuals. Continuous Professional Development (CPD) is defined as: “The systematic maintenance, improvement and broadening of knowledge and skill, and the development of personal qualities necessary for the execution of professional and technical duties throughout the practitioner’s working life” (LORRIMAN 2003, pg 2). In simple terms CDP or Continuous Professional Education refers to the means of maintaining and propagating professional knowledge and skills in an effort to stay abreast with the competent modern professional world. The essence of CPE lies in the fact that learning should never cease in order to enhance professional competency. The goal of CPE is to promote the development of personal skills and superior performance which inevitably promotes career progression. The rapid change in modern professional world coupled with the need of maintaining high standards has raised the need for continuing professional education. In today’s industrialized and technologically advanced world, the need for competent professionals is greater then ever before. Therefore, since the past few years, professional development has attracted increasing attention. Until the mid 1900s, only ambitious individuals opted for CPD but recently the scenario has drastically changed. The present climate of the professional world has made it absolutely necessary for professionals to learn and develop skills throughout their careers. Continuous acquisition of knowledge and the development of additional personal qualities have become essential for surviving in present competitive professional world. (LORRIMAN 2003). CPD programs are designed specially to focus on encouraging the learners to develop skills which enable them to appropriately execute their professional and executive duties. Convenient yet competent CPD programs have been developed in order to provide high quality professional education at the convenience of the learners. CPD can be acquired by employing various methods to achieve its goal i.e. molding the professional personnel in accordance with latest educational techniques in an effort of empowering them with the ability of withstanding modern day professional challenges. Some of the various methods include: i. Research based studies ii. Acquiring convenient education by utilizing distance learning materials iii. Benefiting from on the-job coaching, mentoring and tutoring iv. Employing ways of enhancing personal reflection and collaborative learning process v. Using Information technology mediated learning method (LORRIMAN 2003). The significance of CPD in professional competency is reflected by the fact that most organizations in industrialized countries are required by the government to have a policy on devising ways to promote Continuous Professional Development of their employees. Professional personnel can continue their professional development at their own convenience by using distance learning materials and utilizing on job coaching and mentoring. Continuous Professional Development is only successful if it continuous and evaluative which implies that the professionals should always be eager to learn and search ways of improving their competency. Therefore, CPD can only be attained if learners take and maintain the initiative to empower themselves with the skills needed to withstand professional challenges and stay competent in today’s competitive professional world. (LORRIMAN 2003). References: LORRIMAN, J. (1997). Continuing professional development: A practical approach. Stevenage, Herts, Institution of Electrical Engineers. SWEET, R. N., & WATTS, A. G. (2004). Career guidance and public policy: bridging the gap. Paris, France, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. ATHANASOU, J. A., & ESBROECK, R. V. (2008). International Handbook of Career Guidance. Dordrecht, Springer. http://public.eblib.com/EBLPublic/PublicView.do?ptiID=364130. Read More