Page 35 - Creating Pathways to Success

5.2.1 Extracurricular Activities and Leadership Opportunities
Elementary and secondary schools offer a wide range of extracurricular activities and leadership opportunities that allow students to develop, refine, and apply knowledge and skills in their areas of interest and strength, while making a con- tribution to their school and the larger community. Such activities give students
a chance to learn more about themselves and the world around them. Students should be encouraged to reflect on these experiences and to capture their insights in their “All About Me” portfolio or Individual Pathways Plan. Schools are encouraged to raise student and parent awareness of the education and career/life planning benefits that students can derive from participating in the school’s extracurricular program and taking on leadership roles in the school or the broader community.
5.3 Education and Career/Life Planning through Activities in the Community
Students’ activities in the community offer abundant opportunities for education and career/life planning. Students of all ages are involved in activities outside school that contribute to their development as learners. Students and their parents should be encouraged to reflect on the importance of these activities
to the students’ development of knowledge and skills in education and career/life planning, and students should be encouraged to capture their learning in their “All About Me” portfolio or Individual Pathways Plan.
5.3.1 Community Involvement
The diploma requirement of forty hours of community involvement is intended to help students develop an awareness and understanding of civic responsibility and of the role they can have in supporting and strengthening their communities. Volunteering activities undertaken to meet this requirement can also be effective learning opportunities in education and career/life planning. Students should be encouraged to reflect on their community involvement experiences to enhance their knowledge of their skills, strengths, and interests, and to take advantage of the opportunity to gather information for their IPPs about different fields of work and different occupations that appeal to them, as well as various education and training opportunities.
5.3.2 Volunteering
Volunteering in the school and the broader community has the potential to be an effective learning activity with respect to education and career/life planning. Students of all ages should be encouraged to participate in volunteer activities,
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