By the spring of 2003, I completed my thesis titled The Relationship Between Career Maturity and Career Aspirations of Learning Disabled Students. The purpose of the study was to determine if the career decision-making process is unclear to learning disabled students in comparison to regular education students and to see if the differences in career maturity contribute to their choice of low prestigious careers.
The study found no significant differences between career maturity scores and the level of prestige and no significant differences between the learning disabled and regular education students and their level of career maturity level. The study found significant differences between the learning disabled and regular education students and their level of prestige. The regular education students indicated higher prestige levels then learning disabled students. The study found no significant differences between male and female and their career maturity level. Also, the study found significant differences between male and female students and their prestigious level. The female students choose higher prestigious careers when compared to male students.
The most important finding of this particular study was that there was not a significant difference between students and career maturity level. Indicating a need for educators to focus on the high school population, as a whole, and to implement career counseling as a course to prepare students for making mature career choices. Another important finding was the prestige level and career choice patterns of adolescents with disabilities differed from regular education students in this study. Adolescents with learning disabilities were more likely than non-disabled adolescents to aspire to low-prestige careers while less likely to aspire to high-prestige careers.
My thesis continues to be inspirational to me eleven and a half years later when my daughter was born. I decided that I would expose her to different careers by having her be the main character in the different occupation photos, which represent each month of her life. I will continue exploring different careers as long as she is willing to participate. I envision using the photos to facilitate conversations with her regarding different career options ensuring she understands the years each occupation requires of higher education, job prospects, and salary data. I hope you enjoy my photos as much as I have creating them.
Kind Regards,
Deana Kay Lowinski
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Excellant idea for monthly photos. I love that you have linked it to an educational purpose for her future.
I love them all! The pictures really bring the importance of the thesis statement forward. They are inspirational and I love the creativity and variety in career choices.
MORE: My eldest son, (Aspie/Genius/Severe Learning Disabilities) aspired to marine biology, and we supported that. he loved science from an early age. Developed language late, reading very late, and repeated failed school until we found a Special Ed Unit (Australia). Similar scenario - because he was so locked on, no-one really queried the options, and when his schooling finally collapsed (a highly incompetent person was running his SEU), all his dreams collapsed too. Sad. ... Hey & BTW; cute photos. Good messages in general. Keeping all the options open, even SAHP. Will be good to see were she chooses to journey.
Ged Maybury, thank you for the response. I find the uniqueness of one's career choice fascinating. I most definitely will check out your posts on bored panda.
Load More Replies...[word limit defied!] ... If someone seems locked on, don't sit back and think - "That was an easy one". Query it. as about other interests and abilities. Backtrack! I had an extraordinary ability to design and fold complex 3-D shapes out of a single flat sheet of cardboard - that could have been a career. Also art. (see my stuff here on B.P.) I was a natural engineer. I had Chemistry nailed, also Physics (was invited to do a Masters degree later on) ... and so on. Crucially: query the family dynamics,and whether an early career choice is solely to satisfy something entirely different to what that student *really* wants to pursue. A little bit of gentle digging might send another genius into a worthwhile life. unlike mine. [I ended up as a children's sci-fi writer, BTW] .. MORE COMING!
Excellent idea for monthly photos. I love that you have linked it to an educational purpose for her future.
Wow, what an incredible article and the pictures are amazing!! You're so creative and it is so cute to see your daughter grow up each month. Wow. ♥
I love the idea of occupational photos while capturing monthly milestones of your daughter! I wish i had thought of that!
Hmmm... Interesting findings there. A few observations from my own life: I was not learning impaired, unless you call high-functioning autism (Asperger's) a disability. The worst thing during my school life was a teacher's decision that I was 'r******d' and I was treated as such, repeating (the equivalent of) Grade 1. That was in 1958, BTW). Sure, I was odd, I was learning to my own pathway, but I ended high school as Dux in Math & Science. Regarding my career choice, I aspired, form the age of 12, to be an architect. It was a very bad call, and I dropped out after 3 years of Uni with *nothing*. By why did I choose that, and what went wrong? I chose it because it shut people up. In my working class family - it awed them all. I rode on that. Felt in control. The pressure was off, & my ego was boosted. But it was wrong for me and the final collapse kind of ruined me and my life for an long time thereafter. SUGGESTION TO YOUR PROFESSION: If someone seems locked on.. [word limit]
MORE: My eldest son, (Aspie/Genius/Severe Learning Disabilities) aspired to marine biology, and we supported that. he loved science from an early age. Developed language late, reading very late, and repeated failed school until we found a Special Ed Unit (Australia). Similar scenario - because he was so locked on, no-one really queried the options, and when his schooling finally collapsed (a highly incompetent person was running his SEU), all his dreams collapsed too. Sad. ... Hey & BTW; cute photos. Good messages in general. Keeping all the options open, even SAHP. Will be good to see were she chooses to journey.
Ged Maybury, thank you for the response. I find the uniqueness of one's career choice fascinating. I most definitely will check out your posts on bored panda.
Load More Replies...[word limit defied!] ... If someone seems locked on, don't sit back and think - "That was an easy one". Query it. as about other interests and abilities. Backtrack! I had an extraordinary ability to design and fold complex 3-D shapes out of a single flat sheet of cardboard - that could have been a career. Also art. (see my stuff here on B.P.) I was a natural engineer. I had Chemistry nailed, also Physics (was invited to do a Masters degree later on) ... and so on. Crucially: query the family dynamics,and whether an early career choice is solely to satisfy something entirely different to what that student *really* wants to pursue. A little bit of gentle digging might send another genius into a worthwhile life. unlike mine. [I ended up as a children's sci-fi writer, BTW] .. MORE COMING!
Excellent idea for monthly photos. I love that you have linked it to an educational purpose for her future.
Wow, what an incredible article and the pictures are amazing!! You're so creative and it is so cute to see your daughter grow up each month. Wow. ♥
I love the idea of occupational photos while capturing monthly milestones of your daughter! I wish i had thought of that!
Hmmm... Interesting findings there. A few observations from my own life: I was not learning impaired, unless you call high-functioning autism (Asperger's) a disability. The worst thing during my school life was a teacher's decision that I was 'r******d' and I was treated as such, repeating (the equivalent of) Grade 1. That was in 1958, BTW). Sure, I was odd, I was learning to my own pathway, but I ended high school as Dux in Math & Science. Regarding my career choice, I aspired, form the age of 12, to be an architect. It was a very bad call, and I dropped out after 3 years of Uni with *nothing*. By why did I choose that, and what went wrong? I chose it because it shut people up. In my working class family - it awed them all. I rode on that. Felt in control. The pressure was off, & my ego was boosted. But it was wrong for me and the final collapse kind of ruined me and my life for an long time thereafter. SUGGESTION TO YOUR PROFESSION: If someone seems locked on.. [word limit]