When the school bell rings

Incredibly, school is now back in session.

The transition from the lazy, hazy days of summer to the classroom has begun. Some parents watched their little ones go on a bus for the first time while some dropped their sons and daughters off at college.

There were probably a lot of tears and hugs between parents and children when the good-byes happened, combined with the wish that the child learns, matures, and continues on their journey of life-long learning.

Though many schools have made significant strides in the curriculum, there are still significant concerns by employers that graduates are not prepared for the working world and real life.

Here are a few thoughts for teachers, school administrators and parents to consider for this upcoming year:

• Communication skills — It is critical that students coming out of any school system can read, write and publicly present their ideas.

These skill sets are essential for most jobs. Yet, employers are sharing with us, that too many high school and college graduates are sorely lacking in all three of these areas.

With this in mind, students should be concentrating on reading as much as they can outside of social media, working on their writing skills and developing some level of confidence relative to public presentations.

Allowing students at some Northeast Ohio school systems to play games on their mobile devices in study halls and during downtime after tests is probably not adding much to their education. Where this exists, we would encourage these school systems to re-think this approach and have students read real books or write essays during idle times during the school day.

As much as students might complain, teachers will be doing them the favor of a lifetime.

• Interviewing 101 — Some of the stories we are hearing from employers relative to interviews conducted with recent graduates are incredible — from applicants texting during interviews, to little or no eye contact in a conversation, to grammatical errors on resumes.

Corporate recruiters are in disbelief that applicants are coming so ill-prepared for such an important part of the job search process. The message is clear from employers — students should be taking a course on how to interview and encouraging them to practice what they learn.

“Practicing” interviewing with prospective employers is not the ideal scenario.

• It’s called work — In addition to employers, teachers provide us feedback that too many students are just not willing to work hard at their studies or are not goal-oriented.

Ask any successful person and they will tell you that there is no substitute for hard work. They will also tell you that as an employee you need to show up every day — sometimes early, and occasionally work late.

The bottom line is that employers expect you to put in a full day and be incredibly productive. You slack off, you lose. Period.

• What’s news? — Employers are sharing with us that recent graduates have very little knowledge about world events, the economy, and local news.

This is a concern as employers expect employees to understand the external issues outside of the workplace that affects business. While social media has become a primary news source for the younger generations, it is essential to have well-rounded knowledge.

• Experience counts — Employers love seeing that students applying for jobs have experience working. And for college graduates, employers appreciate work experiences through previous internships, preferably in job-related industries.

Past employer references are also impressive to employers. Decent grades alone are no longer the pathway to a great job. Real work experience, plus excellent grades and community service rank high with many employers these days.

The new school year brings with it the prospects of a fresh start, new teachers, renewed friendships, and new experiences. Recognizing that local employers do have some wonderful opportunities for recent graduates, consider approaching this year with an extra focus on the skills being requested by those who create and sustain jobs.

Pat Perry