Opportunity
“The hardest part of my job has always been exposing students to things they haven’t already been exposed to.”
Many students were relying on familiar influences, often limiting their thinking to careers they already knew through family or community. The school needed a way to consistently broaden student awareness and keep them engaged beyond one-off lessons, while also supporting teachers to play a more active role in careers conversations.
Careers Program Structure
Careers education at Kildare is designed to be both structured and continuous.
Each student participates in one dedicated careers lesson per term, with classes rotated across subjects to minimise disruption while ensuring consistent exposure. “Teachers are happy to do it that way because they only miss one lesson, but students still get four careers lessons a year.”
In addition, daily “Coaching” sessions provide a regular touchpoint. “It’s only about 30 minutes, but it gives us the opportunity to do careers in a really consistent way.”
Teachers are included in these sessions, building their own understanding over time. “If they’ve been in those careers lessons, when something comes up in coaching, they’ve already got that background. It becomes professional learning for them as well.”
How TCD is Used
The Careers Department is used across both structured lessons and coaching sessions, allowing for regular, low-pressure engagement.
Karen has designed activities that centre around the platform, encouraging both guided and independent exploration. “I can say to students, here’s this amazing program with all this content on it, go and explore.”
The platform also supports continuity across year levels. “Often Year 12s have done it before, so when Year 10s are doing it, they can ask older students for help. That reinforces it for everyone.”
From a teacher perspective, visibility of engagement is key. “One of the things I love is the analytics. I might run an activity during the day, and then that night I can see students logging back on again.”
Key Features Used
The Careers Department has created a noticeable shift in how students engage with career exploration.
Structured activities like “Fast Five” have been particularly powerful. Students are randomly assigned industries to explore, many of which they would not have chosen themselves. “More often than not, they say they would never have looked at that industry… but then about 90% say they’re willing to explore it further after.”
Engagement continues beyond the classroom. “You can always tell when they’ve done a ‘Fast Five’ because that night, they’re logging in again.”
Karen also notes the broader ripple effect. “Once they’re exposed to it, the program pretty much runs itself… they go home, show their parents, and start exploring more on their own.”
[Industry Exploration Content: “Look, listen, read… there’s something for everyone”]
[Custom Activities (e.g. ‘Fast Five’): Drives structured, broad exposure to industries]
[Student Analytics: “You can actually see when they’re logging in again”]
[Multi-format Content: Supports all learning styles and levels of engagement]
Impact
Feedback
Feedback across students, staff, and parents has been consistently strong.
“It’s so user-friendly, once they’re in there, they just keep going.” Students value the ability to engage in different ways, whether that’s watching, listening, or reading.
“Some students won’t read, but they’ll watch a video or listen… and then sometimes they’ll go back and read more. It just works for everyone.”
Teachers have also embraced the platform. “They’ll casually mention how engaging it is, and a lot of them end up finding things they want to show their own kids.”
Karen also highlights the responsiveness of The Careers Department. “You’re really open to feedback. If something won’t work in a school setting, you actually listen and adjust it. That’s your point of difference.”