TUTONG

YOUNG children should diversify their hobbies to help open up their minds, and better determine their future careers, said an education officer yesterday.

The Head of the Career Education Unit at the Ministry of Education, Lina Salwana Hussin, said children these days preferred to be indoors playing with their gadgets, instead of enjoying outdoor activities.

“Children do not collect stamps, seashells or coins anymore. Now, they play (online) games. This does not help children to open their mind, and they need to change that,” she told The Brunei Times on the sidelines of a Career Education workshop.

Parents, she added, play an important role in encouraging their children to be more proactive.

Lina said with early career education, students will then have a vision of what they want to be when they grow up, leading them to be able to decide on what subjects are suitable.

She also said students who end up selecting wrong subjects in their higher studies do so because they are unaware of where their real interests lie.

They opt for subjects that potentially land them in a profession that “looks good” or is “something different”, and regret their decision in the end, she said.

“This is the problem nowadays. Students, especially when they are going to college, only realise the subjects they chose do not coincide with the profession they actually want to pursue. Sometimes, they only take these subjects because their parents tell them to do so.”

Lina said they are now taking a different step which engages students in a career test during their upper secondary school.

The career test lays out their career pathway, and allows students to have useful subject and programme choices.

“About 80 per cent of the career test is accurate. It has helped many students pursue their studies in a profession that interests them,” she said.

She added although career counselors advice students to keep their options open, they also encourage students to pursue their initial choice of profession.

The workshop was attended by 86 guidance teachers and career teachers from primary schools throughout the country, and aimed at extending assistance to students by equipping teachers with the relevant knowledge and skills.

The workshop took place at the Perpindahan Bukit Beruang primary school, and was led by two counselors, Samli Mat Noor and Hj Muhd Khairol Alaika Hj Abdul Aziz.

The Brunei Times