Sheryl Ferguson, School-to-Work Coordinator
The first words out of Tim’s mouth when I picked him up were, "I got to paint today!" Tim is a freshman at the Kirksville Alternative School and is completing a job-shadowing assignment at Buck’s Auto Body in Kirksville.
Every Wednesday afternoon, the students spend two hours job shadowing in a business they requested. The students will job shadow at two places of business, spending nine afternoons in each one. Job shadowing allows students to learn more about careers and the business world; it also helps students relate what they learn in class to the "real world."
Many schools offer job shadowing activities in different forms. For instance, over 60 Milan C-2 sophomores participated in National Ground Hog Job Shadow Day on February 2 and Knox County R-1 careers class participates in job-shadowing activities each semester. Students are excited to job shadow, and business people feel job shadowing is a worthwhile activity.
By experiencing careers through job shadowing, students are better able to make long-term decisions about their futures. If you want to make a difference in students’ lives, get involved in job shadowing!!
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Nancy Flood, floodn@missouri.edu Consumer & Family Economics Specialist Putnam County University Outreach and Extension Center Last Update: May 23, 2001 |