This is the year career planning gets real. Students map out a path after high school, whether that points toward college, a trade, the military, or work, and they line up the classes and skills to match. They practice the habits employers expect: showing up on time, working on a team, communicating clearly, and using technology well. By spring, students can explain their plan after graduation and point to the steps they are taking now to get there.
Students look at their interests, strengths, and goals and start thinking about life after high school. They practice showing up on time, taking responsibility, and acting like the kind of person an employer or college would want.
Students practice writing emails, speaking in meetings, and presenting ideas to different audiences. They work in groups with people who think differently than they do and learn to share credit and handle disagreements.
Students take on real problems and break them into smaller steps. They look up information from solid sources, compare what they find, and build an answer they can defend instead of guessing or copying.
Students use everyday work tools to get things done and pick up new ones quickly. They come up with original ideas, weigh how their choices affect other people and the environment, and act with honesty when no one is watching.
Students pull it all together by mapping out a path after graduation, whether that means college, a trade, the military, or a job. They also build habits around health, money, and decisions that hold up over a lifetime.
Students map out the next steps after high school, connecting their actual interests and strengths to realistic education or job options. The plan bridges where students are now to where they want to go.
Students learn to choose the right digital tools for the job, use them well, and pick up new ones as workplaces change.
Working in a team means more than dividing tasks. Students learn to work alongside people from different backgrounds and cultures, listening well, adjusting how they communicate, and getting real work done together.
Students take ownership of their choices at school, at work, and in the community. That means following through on commitments, owning mistakes, and showing up as a reliable member of whatever group they're part of.
Students use skills from class, such as math, writing, or hands-on technical work, to solve problems they would actually face on a job.
Students make decisions that protect their health and money now and over time, weighing trade-offs like skipping sleep to work extra hours or spending today versus saving for later.
Students practice adjusting how they write, speak, and post online based on who they're talking to and why. A job application calls for different words than a text to a friend.
Before making a plan or solving a problem, students think through how a decision might affect the environment, other people, and money. They use that thinking to guide what they do next.
Students come up with original ideas and find new ways to use familiar tools to solve problems at work or in a project.
Students find trustworthy sources, check whether the information holds up, and pull what matters into a clear summary. This is how workplace research actually works, not just typing a question into a search bar.
When a task at school or work feels stuck, students break it into smaller steps and try different approaches until something works. They don't give up when the first answer fails.
Students practice honest decision-making and responsible leadership in school projects, jobs, and community settings. They learn to manage people and situations with fairness, even when the right choice is harder than the easy one.
| Standard | Definition | Code |
|---|---|---|
| Plan an education and career path aligned to personal goals, interests High School | Students map out the next steps after high school, connecting their actual interests and strengths to realistic education or job options. The plan bridges where students are now to where they want to go. | OH-CDOS.CRP10.9-12 |
| Use technology to enhance productivity, communication High School | Students learn to choose the right digital tools for the job, use them well, and pick up new ones as workplaces change. | OH-CDOS.CRP11.9-12 |
| Work productively in teams while using cultural and global competence to… High School | Working in a team means more than dividing tasks. Students learn to work alongside people from different backgrounds and cultures, listening well, adjusting how they communicate, and getting real work done together. | OH-CDOS.CRP12.9-12 |
| Act as a responsible and contributing citizen and employee, taking personal… High School | Students take ownership of their choices at school, at work, and in the community. That means following through on commitments, owning mistakes, and showing up as a reliable member of whatever group they're part of. | OH-CDOS.CRP1.9-12 |
| Apply appropriate academic and technical skills learned through career and… High School | Students use skills from class, such as math, writing, or hands-on technical work, to solve problems they would actually face on a job. | OH-CDOS.CRP2.9-12 |
| Attend to personal health and financial well-being and make decisions that… High School | Students make decisions that protect their health and money now and over time, weighing trade-offs like skipping sleep to work extra hours or spending today versus saving for later. | OH-CDOS.CRP3.9-12 |
| Communicate clearly, effectively High School | Students practice adjusting how they write, speak, and post online based on who they're talking to and why. A job application calls for different words than a text to a friend. | OH-CDOS.CRP4.9-12 |
| Consider the environmental, social High School | Before making a plan or solving a problem, students think through how a decision might affect the environment, other people, and money. They use that thinking to guide what they do next. | OH-CDOS.CRP5.9-12 |
| Demonstrate creativity and innovation by generating new ideas and approaches… High School | Students come up with original ideas and find new ways to use familiar tools to solve problems at work or in a project. | OH-CDOS.CRP6.9-12 |
| Employ valid and reliable research strategies to gather, evaluate High School | Students find trustworthy sources, check whether the information holds up, and pull what matters into a clear summary. This is how workplace research actually works, not just typing a question into a search bar. | OH-CDOS.CRP7.9-12 |
| Use critical thinking to make sense of problems and persevere in solving them… High School | When a task at school or work feels stuck, students break it into smaller steps and try different approaches until something works. They don't give up when the first answer fails. | OH-CDOS.CRP8.9-12 |
| Model integrity, ethical leadership High School | Students practice honest decision-making and responsible leadership in school projects, jobs, and community settings. They learn to manage people and situations with fairness, even when the right choice is harder than the easy one. | OH-CDOS.CRP9.9-12 |
It teaches the habits students need to succeed in a job or in further schooling after high school. That includes planning a career path, working on a team, communicating clearly, managing money, and thinking through hard problems instead of giving up.
Ask what subjects or activities they actually enjoy, then look up two or three jobs that connect to those interests. Talk about what training those jobs require: a degree, a certificate, an apprenticeship, or on-the-job learning. Short conversations over dinner work better than one big planning session.
Students can describe a realistic plan for after high school, work productively on a team without being micromanaged, and stick with a problem long enough to try a second approach. They can also write a clear email, find trustworthy information online, and explain a decision using evidence.
Some kind of real work helps a lot, but it does not have to be a paid job. Volunteering, a part-time shift, a family business task, or shadowing someone for a day all build the same habits around responsibility and showing up on time.
Start with personal responsibility, communication, and teamwork in the first quarter so the classroom culture supports everything else. Move into research, critical thinking, and ethical decision-making in the middle of the year. Save career planning and the bigger postsecondary decisions for the second semester when students have more self-knowledge to work with.
Hand over a real task and let students finish it: book the family appointment, compare two phone plans, or write the email to the coach. Then talk through how they made the call. Small decisions like these build the same skills the class is grading for.
Evaluating sources and persevering through a problem are the two that consistently need more time. Students often grab the first search result or quit at the first wrong answer. Build in short, repeated practice with messy problems and unfamiliar sources rather than one big unit.
Look for a student who can hold a real conversation with an adult, manage a calendar without reminders, handle money for a week, and bounce back from a setback without shutting down. A diploma matters, but those habits are what predict the first year going well.
Use short, specific observations tied to real tasks rather than a personality rating. Note whether a student met a deadline, gave credit to a teammate, or owned a mistake. A simple rubric with three or four observable behaviors gives students something concrete to work on.