Blending Academics with Soft Skills

Overview

Performing the technical aspects of a job can only take an employee so far. To become a great employee or an admired leader requires a set of skills that are harder to measure but critical to success.

These are “soft skills.” They are behaviors, personality traits and work habits, such as collaboration, critical thinking, and communication, that help people prosper at work. Think of it this way: A talented graphic designer might wow people with her creations, but if she constantly misses deadlines or doesn’t listen to feedback—leading to costly project delays or upset clients—her career might stall or she may fail to get hired for new projects.

SOFT_SKILLS_OVERVIEW

89% of job recruiters say when a hire doesn’t work out, it usually comes down to a lack of soft skills.

My mission is to make sure all students graduate with mastery of soft skills.

Soft Skills | V.Jirik

To the right you will find an abbreviated slideshow I put together for a presentation to district leaders and industry professionals about my project linked to soft skills and employability standards.

Story of Project

How did I get here? How did we get here? Where are we going?

Artifacts

Documentation that outlines the action research, materials, and lessons.

Student Products

Reflections and arts projects from the students working on their soft skills.

Creating Career Experiences

As a part of our soft skills development - and correlation to the CTE curriculum - career exploration and experiences are routinely a part of our classroom work. Please click here to learn more about what we're making happen for students each and every day.

SEL and Student Well-Being

As a happy side-effect of this soft skills work - students mentioned marked improvements in their confidence, mental health, and overall well-being related to academics and the future. During the second year of this implementation, I plan to do further development and research into how these skills can positively affect our students' well-being.

This year students mentioned that they thought these skills we went over contributed to their well-being: adaptability, communication, interpersonal skills, cultural competency, flexibility, agency, and emotional intelligence.

Vanessa Jirik, EdS | 12 Years Teaching Experience

Lafayette High School | CTE & Visual. Arts | Grades 9-12 | Media Arts & Interactive Design (Film & Animation)

Want a more detailed look at who I am as a professional and individual? Head over to my full website by clicking here.

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