What do young people feel about the future?

A new international survey is being launched today looking at what 14-18 year olds think about the future.

The findings will be published in a report entitled “Facing the Future” with the OECD during the World Economic Forum in late January 2020 in Davos.

The international survey asks 14-18 year olds about the issues that most to them, their career aspirations and concerns about the future. The on-line survey  called “Your Voice” comprises mainly of tick boxes and three questions where students can provide written answers. In addition, they can indicate if they want to record a short video or write a letter. It will take them about 5 minutes to answer the questions, but you can flick through the survey in less than a minute. It gives them the chance to highlight issues that matter to them and to get their voices heard on an international platform.

To take part in the survey please click here .

If you have any questions about the survey, please get in touch with Martin Rogers, Senior Researcher, Education and Employers, Martin.Rogers@educationandemployers.org, telephone 0207 566 4894

Many thanks for taking part.

Nick Chambers

CEO

Drawing the Future

The survey of 14-18 year olds follows on from a survey of 7- 11 year olds who were asked to draw a picture of the job they want to do when they grow up. The biggest survey of its kind sought to determine the factors influencing career choices, if the children personally knew anyone who did the job, and if not, how they knew about the job, as well as their favourite subject. Over 20,000 entries were received from Albania, Austria, Australia, Bangladesh, Belarus, China, Columbia, Iceland, Indonesia, Mexico, Pakistan, Philippines, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Switzerland, Uganda, UK and Zambia.

Produced in partnership with the NAHT, OECD Education and Skill, TES Global, UCL Institute of Education (IOE) and Education and Employers the key findings were:

• The patterns of jobs chosen by seven-year-olds mirror those selected by 17-year olds
• Gender stereotyping about jobs is set from a young age
• Family, TV, radio and film have the biggest influence on children’s choices
• There is a need for greater access to career role models from a young age
• Children’s career aspirations have little in common with projected workforce needs, which could have serious implications for the UK’s economy
• Children in some developing countries often aspire to more professional jobs than those in some affluent countries.

The report which can be read here. was presented to economic and business leaders from around the world at Davos on the 25 January 2018. Media coverage included