The use of ICT in career guidance : a proposal for an online tool for secondary school students in Malta

Abstract

The provision of educational and vocational guidance for students in the education system and for young people outside education and employment is given high priority in many countries like Denmark, India, Australia and the UK, through the use of information portals (Inge, 2004). Working as a trainee career advisor has made me even more aware of how confusing researching online can be for students. Career related websites have been on the increase over the past ten years, attempting to provide students with the necessary information on furthering their education as well as promoting career awareness. The majority of the few available websites which are oriented at Maltese students are websites hosted by sixth form institutions displaying information about available courses and the information about the particular institution which they represent. There is no link between one and the other and very little information about the particular careers which the courses lead to. At present, Malta does not yet have an official comprehensive career guidance portal for Maltese students, covering crucial areas such as education about different career paths, information on different occupations available, online career guidance, labour market information, ability/inventory tests and personalised access and guided development throughout one's lifetime. Such a career portal would be an essential tool to support digital literacy skills from an early age and provide information and access to lifelong career guidance.