Employers are discovering increasing numbers of high school graduates who cannot do “applied” math, perform basic measurements and fill out job applications. In other words, “they are graduates who are not employable.” Fifty percent of high school graduates who go on to college must take remedial English or Math to graduate from college.
A new eBook, “Plan Your Career Now!” clearly addresses the problem facing employers and employees in the search for talent for present and future jobs. “Plan Your Career Now!” not only provides insight into the problems, it also presents many solutions to help the future workforce become “employable.”
A report, issued by America’s Promise Alliance, in 2008, found that seventeen of the nation’s 50 largest cities had high school graduation rates lower than 50 percent. Nationally, about1.2 million students drop out annually with only 70 percent of U.S. students graduating on time with a regular diploma.
For the young people who drop out of high school, college is an unlikely option. The vast majority of these individuals will also be stuck in minimum wage jobs most if not all of their lives. But even more disturbing is the current lack of preparedness of the nation’s high school graduates.
Well over half of new workforce entrants with only a high school diploma are deficiently prepared in all ten of the skills that employers rate critical. These include both basic skills such as writing, mathematics, and reading, as well as applied skills such as critical thinking, work ethic, and teamwork.
On the job, many college graduates are having difficulty writing clear concise reports. Although computer skills are generally good with the young generation of new workers, many rely on spell-check, not realizing the difference between words such as “there” and “their.” Even text messaging spelling is cropping up in both high school and college papers.
According to one study 60 percent of employers question whether a diploma means students have learned applied academic basics.” Many employers put relatively low priority on candidates’ years of schooling and grade-point average. Employers are more concerned about the applicants’ attitude and work ethic and their ability to work in an ever changing, knowledge based work environment.
Quoting Tom Vander Ark, director of education for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, “Today we have reached a crisis; we are virtually at a tipping point! Our culture and our education system are only producing a small percentage of individuals who are taking a “challenging curriculum” so they are truly prepared for the rigors of college or a knowledge-based workplace.”
At a time when we need to be preparing individuals for a “knowledge-based workplace” the average school year is 180 days or less, and little more than five hours a day of actual teacher – student classroom subject time is the norm. Compare this to the six day school week in most Asian countries. Add to this the high school drop out rate, failing test scores in core subjects, lack of “real world” career counseling and the millions of retiring baby boomers; it quickly becomes apparent the number of “employable” workers is shrinking. “We are truly becoming a Nation at Risk.”
Preparation of our young people to compete in the workplace should be major headlines, and a continual discussion point by the media, but it is treated at best, casually. In fact our failure to educate and lack of student and parent/guardian involvement should be the subject of ongoing debate by all segments of our society, seeking resolution, because it is directly tied to the future of virtually every American community.
Officials, educators and the American public need to become acutely aware of the gravity of the problem, and become involved in greatly improving policies to enhance the preparation of our present and future workforce. The future of the American workforce depends on action by all citizens.
To be well informed and learn what you can do, go to www.ingbretsen.com to obtain your copy of “Plan Your Career Now.”
