Contest “Support your Vocation” (Slovak Agriculture and Food Chamber)

“Support your Vocation” is an educational contest for students of secondary vocational schools with agricultural and food-related fields of studies and for primary school pupils. The contest was launched in the school year 2019/2020 as areaction to the steady decline in young people’s interest in studying at agriculture-oriented secondary vocational schools. The aim of the contest was, firstly, to introduce and promote agricultural and food processing fields of studies in an interesting way, secondly, to widen knowledge of primary school pupils about vocations in the agricultural sector, and finally, to boost creativity and sense of professional identity among students of agricultural and food-related fields of studies at secondary vocational schools. In the first part of the contest, the students at secondary vocational schools created short videos about their respective fields of studies and vocations. In the second part, the 8th and 9th graders at primary schools across Slovakia evaluated and selected the most interesting videos under supervision of their school career counsellors. The creators of the best rated videos were awarded at the final conference alongside their teachers who mentored them throughout the whole process. The most active elementary school teams coordinated by their career counsellors were also awarded during the final conference. The 8th and 9th graders found it more authentic and credible when somebody, who is around their age, is passing the information about their future career options to them. The contest is unique in that it puts creativity and initiative of young people at the forefront.