It was reported in the press recently that most students find careers advice pretty useless. “The Association of Colleges found that 55 per cent of students believe teachers steer them towards courses which the school does best, rather than what is right for the student…” and “The ICM poll of more than 1,000 university students found that 66 per cent wished they had received better careers advice.” (TES,  06/10/06) So, what can we do about it?   

An idea that takes student created media, adds careers advice, and generates a resource for schools to use. The Real Course Choice “ Post-compulsory students on A-level, GNVQ, or BTEC courses are encouraged to produce a 5-10 minute short film on what it is really like to study on one of their college/6^th-form courses. These are posted on a C4 site. To post students also have to vote for the best short about another course, and they are prevented from voting for shorts from their own study centre. The producers of the top short for each course is then given the opportunity to visit C4 and sees their work broadcast on TV. The whole collection can then be collated and sold as a careers DVD for schools as a resource.

Should programming be tailored to the curriculum? Should every exam board topic have its showing on the box? With the help of C4, could a few more pass rate targets be met? Would tips to pass exams be every teachers dream show?

Last week I asked one of my classes what they would like to see in terms of educational programming on TV. The first response was swift and direct, Anything, as long as it has good looking celebrities on it. The response probably wont surprise anyone. Educational TV is not in the heaviest demand among teenagers.