How Important is Career Choice?

Lesson Content

• Lesson Plan Template:

  CTE Lesson Plan

• CTE Course Info and Benchmark Notes

  
  

  Program Title (as applicable): N/A

  Course Title: Personal Financial Literacy

  Course Number: 8500120

  Career Cluster: Finance

  CIP Number: 09200104PA

  Course Type: Non-Career Preparatory

  CTE Standard(s) or benchmarks:

  Focus:

  • • 03.04 – Relate personal income goals and financial goals to life events

  Supporting:

  • • 03.02 – Analyze how career choice affects income
    • 03.03 – Analyze how education and technical skills affect income

• Unit Outline

  
  

  This lesson is the 4th in a series of lessons focused on investigating strategies for managing personal and family income. The unit will start by identifying sources of income and then expand on that knowledge to explore how career choices, education, and skills affect income, consider tradeoffs when making financial decisions, and investigate how purchasing power changes over time due to inflation. In totality, the lessons addressing this standard will support students’ understanding of how income, personal goals, and economic factors are things to consider when making short and long-term financial decisions.

• Career Connection

  
  

  Students will apply the career ready practice of attending to personal health and financial well-being, in this lesson plan. By creating a tentative financial plan and considering how career choice is influenced by their goals, students will use resource management skills which can be applied to multiple situations and life events to help them achieve their goals.

• Learning Objectives

  
  

  Students will be able to:

  • Identify personal income and financial goals
  • Create a timeline that can be used to achieve their goals
  • Consider how their career choice can help them achieve their goals
  • Consider multiple sources of income needed to achieve their goals
  • Explain the purpose of financial planning

• Prior Knowledge

  
  

  Students should be able to:

  • Identify different sources of income
  • Identify 1 career of interest and the median income
  • Use technology to conduct informal research

• Guiding Questions

  
  
  • What is the difference between a personal income goal and a financial goal?
  • How could various sources of income help you achieve these goals?
  • What education, if any, do you need to achieve this goal?
  • What skills, if any, do you need to achieve this goal?
  • Why do you think this goal is reasonable?
  • How does career choice affect the cost associated with your goals?
  • How can a financial plan be beneficial to you or someone else planning for the future?

• Procedure

  
  

  1. To introduce the lesson, ask students to compare and contrast personal income goals and financial goals. The Venn Diagram handout (see attachment) can be used to support students in organizing and comparing information.

  • This can be completed as a think-pair-share activity, students can work in small groups, or the class can discuss these two types of goals as a whole group.
  • While students are working, the teacher can use questioning to probe and deepen students’ understanding. Possible questions to ask during this time include: How would you define a personal income goal? How would you define a financial goal? Are the same resources needed to reach each type of goal? Why or why not? Is one goal more difficult to reach than the other? Explain your reasoning. What are the differences between each type of skill?

  2. Pass out a Financial Plan template (see attachment) to each student.

  • Explain to students that they should use the template to explore and identify specific personal income goals and financial goals. Further explain how to complete the table and remind students that they should include at least 2 personal income goals and at least 2 financial goals.
  • While students are working, use the guiding questions to facilitate discussion, assess student understanding, and deepen student’s understanding.

  3. Group students into career clusters based on their career choice.

  • Allow students to share and compare their plans. Consider using the following questions to facilitate discussion: How are your plans alike and different? Are you surprised by the differences or similarities? Why or why not?

  4. Regroup students into random groups making sure each group is diverse based on career choice.

  • Allow students to share and compare their plans. Consider using the following questions to facilitate discussion: How are your plans alike and different? Are you surprised by the differences or similarities? Why or why not?

  5. To bring the lesson to a close, have students reflect on the details of their financial plan and how their career choice influences their personal income goals and financial goals.

  • Journal Prompt 1: What is your biggest takeaway from completing your financial plan and comparing it to your peers’ plans?
  • Journal Prompt 2: Based on comparisons made between your financial plan and your peers’ plans, summarize how personal income goals and financial goals are influenced, and sometimes restricted, by career choice.
  • Journal Prompt 3: Explain the importance of thoroughly understanding your career choice and how it affects personal income goals and financial goals.

• Teacher Notes

  
  
  • Consider allowing students to have access to computers with internet access in case they need to conduct research to help them complete their financial plan.
  • If necessary, the teacher can use the following definitions and examples to explain the difference between personal income goals and financial goals:
    • Personal Income Goal: A monetary goal or target that involves earning income form a specific source (i.e. earning $100,000 a year from a job)
    • Financial Goal: A monetary goal or target that involves managing income earned from various sources (i.e. have $10,000 saved in checking account)

• Optional

  
  

  Formative Assessment Ideas:

  • Students’ responses to the journal prompt can be used to assess students’ ability to synthesize information and reflect on the financial implications of their potential career choice.

  Extension Ideas:

  • Students can interview a person currently working in their chosen career. The interview can include the interviewee sharing and discussing their personal income goals and financial goals to give students a better idea of how reasonable their own goals are.