Young people, especially those from marginalized communities often take jobs they are not passionate about, jobs that have lower wages and weak career trajectories. This occurs because they learned very few career skills in school and are therefore limited in their capacity when they start working.
Our DEEDS Framework changes this by enabling schools and out of school programs to create core instruction that enables young people to “try on” a variety of career skills. The framework asks learners to identify a community challenge, create a solution, implement it, and assess the extent to which it worked.
The life of a RevX Learner: DEEDS in action might look something like this! After realizing how land development was destroying natural habitats for animals in their community, one group of learners posed the question: How can I use 3D modeling to preserve native bee habitats? They worked with a 3d modeling expert to build & implement their 3D printed habitats in hopes of increasing the bee population and strengthening their pollination efforts. Learners evaluated the success of their innovation and received feedback from their career mentor. The result? Learners who explored 3D modeling (a growing billion dollar industry) and working in the environmental industry thereby giving them more ideas about who they want to become when they get older and tangible experience they could add to a portfolio of skills.
