Abstract
M.Ed.
In order to meet the needs of a changing global economy, the collaboration and extension of existing traditional career theories has resulted in career intervention strategies that are contextually and individually relevant. Traditional career counselling interventions in South Africa tend to serve individuals from stable and predictable contexts, where socio-economic, psychological, cultural and racial differences are not considered as significant. Street children have unconventional life experiences, with many more challenges than the average child. Such individuals, whose context does not include traditional schooling with stable home backgrounds and predictable life stages, may not benefit optimally from traditional career intervention strategies. They may not be able to identify with psychometric testing, where self information is integrated with work information and the client is advised on how he can fit into the world of work. Developments in Career Counselling theories in the 21st century have more potential relevance and benefits for children coming from non-traditional backgrounds. Constructivist Narrative Career Counselling is one of the alternative approaches in which the client and counsellor collaborate to review and create career stories in order to inform career decisions and actions.
This study explores how a constructivist career counselling intervention can assist a late adolescent in sheltered care to re-author his life story. The life experiences of the former street child is reviewed, so as to highlight themes that will allow the client and researcher-counsellor to collaboratively create career stories in order to inform career decisions and actions for the participant who comes from a non traditional background.
The individual case study was conducted using a constructivist lens to do qualitative research. Data was collected from career intervention activities as recommended by Narrative Career Counselling Theory. These included an intake interview, a lifeline and genogram activity, collages, career mapping, card sorting, a semi structured exit interview and the reflective journal of the researcher. Detailed transcripts of each activity and interaction were done by the researcher herself. Themes were identified
from the transcripts of this narrative career intervention, in terms of the meaning they held for making career decisions and then deciding on the actions to follow.