Getting my 12 year old son to think of what job/career he want to do when he is older

paulineb_2

geek84 wrote: »

Good Morning

Whenever I have a chat with my son about what he wants to do when is older, he always says he wants to be a PE teacher. I know where he is coming from - he sees teachers going home at 4pm and having all these long holidays. However, you and I know that is not really the case.

How can I get my son to broaden his horizons and get to think of what other job/career paths to consider other than from being a teacher. Are there any helpful websites that you can suggest?

By the way, I have nothing against being a teacher. I admire the work they do and the pressure they are put under these days.

Thanks in advance for your responses.

Id be encouraging him when hes 16 to do a qualification in gym instructing to see if its for him, if its not, then PE teaching might not be either.

What I wanted to do when I was 14 wasnt what I ended up studying and Ive changed career again.

A relative of mine is a teacher and has been for over 40 years. Shes in school well before 9am every morning doing preparation. She has at least one meeting a week until 5pm or longer. She also has to meet and do forward planning, shes also had parents nights that have run long into the evening after school, like 9pm on 3 consecutive nights. And then there's the job itself, sometimes teaching classes of up to 30 pupils at a time, mixed ability classes. I think theres this common perception that because the holidays are long and the contact hours are short, that it's an easy job.
I think if your son does go down this path its worth him finding out how much work would go into the job over and above the contact teaching time.

I considered going into teaching, all my family were teachers, I changed my mind, wasn't for me.

It may be a phase and he may change his mind very soon, but for now, encourage him, steering him down another path he doesn't want to take might cause friction in the longer term.

DigForVictory

I think it's pretty clear we support the young gentleman in his wish to be a constructive member of society.

How can we *help* his loving & anxious parent? Who may well feel that teaching is just fine but has a family of neuroscientists, multilinguists & assorted overachievers. Or a Mother-in-Law-From-Hell. Or just really bad flashbacks to "so what do you want to be" interrogations.

What can we say - that can be repeated in public (!) - to people who doubt teaching as a vocation? Who dismiss it?

We're all ready to help & support Little Geek - but how can we help his own geek84?

pollypenny

Many boys of that age, sport-loving ones anyway, want to be PE teachers. Just be grateful he doesn't want to be a professional footballer!

However, I imagine he'll want to do a number of things before he settles.

Gavin83

geek84 wrote: »

By the way, I have nothing against being a teacher. I admire the work they do and the pressure they are put under these days.

Obviously you do have a problem with teaching as a career choice otherwise you wouldn't be trying to put your son off. I'm sure if he said he wanted to be a doctor you wouldn't have posted this.

I wanted to work in IT from around the age of 12 and even though I've done other jobs inbetween I do now work in IT, so I think you can know what you want at that age.

chelseablue wrote: »

He just thinks they earn lots of money :rotfl:

Do they? I too had the impression that bank managers earned a lot as a child but I can't really see how, it's bascially a glorified retail manager job.

It's probably the connection with money but I doubt they earn that much, the counter staff in banks certainly don't.

POPPYOSCAR

12- and you are concerned about his career - really?

balletshoes

borkid wrote: »

Think positively, if he wants to be a teacher he will need good GCSEs and A levels and a degree to aim for so even if he changes his mind he will have the basic educational qualifications for other careers. It would be far worse if he were aspiring to a career will low entry qualifications and changed his mind only to find he then didn't have the right qualifications for his 'new' career.

I agree completely with this - he'll need GCSEs, A levels and a degree if he wants to be any kind of teacher, so encourage him .
My DD is aged 12, year 8, and their year has just chosen their GSCE options (which they can change in year 9 if they've got it all wrong). She thinks she wants to go into publishing - so again, good academic results will be required, and whether or not she ends up in publishing at all, I'll encourage her to work for it through school.

PlymouthMaid

Cripes - haven't read whole thread but whatever children say at 12 hardly ever happens. My girls both went through a phase of wanting to be hairdressers possibly because the hairdresser was one of the female role models they came into a lot of contact with and it all looked like fun. One is now a graphic designer (and didnt get into that until she was around 19) and the other is turning into a scientist. As people have probably already said just expose to him to loads of ideas, encourage lots of different interests and talk to him in general terms about various jobs people do. At 12 I would be almost worried about a child even thinking about future careers ion any serious way.

chiefpossession

I teach in a secondary school. Students who have some ambition for their future are so much more motivated - and the fact that he is thinking about a career that requires 'A' levels and a degree is brilliant. If he changes his mind, so what? Qualifications mean choice.

Have a look at this video - the statistics about how fast the world is changing are mind-blowing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YmwwrGV_aiE

balletshoes

pollypenny wrote: »

Many boys of that age, sport-loving ones anyway, want to be PE teachers. Just be grateful he doesn't want to be a professional footballer!

However, I imagine he'll want to of a number of things before he settles.

too right - my nephew has come up through a football academy all through his secondary school years, academic subjects have come second to his training commitments, he sits his GSCEs this year, and his parents are having a hard time getting him to stick with it to see him through his results (he starts his football apprenticeship on 1st July).

Since he signed on the dotted line with the football club, he feels that he won't need anything to fall back on further down the line, but his mum and dad are trying to get him focused on passing his exams and not wasting the last 11 years of his school life.

OP you have it good if your son wants to be a teacher I say .

lkmc01

I don't know what I want to be and I'm 29!!