STUDENT GLOBAL APTITUDE INDEX
COVER PAGE
What is Aptitude?
A combination of characteristics, whether native or
acquired, that are indicative of an individual’s ability to
learn or to develop proficiency in some particular area if
appropriate education or training is provided.
Source:
http://www.pearsonassessments.com/pai/ai/research/resources/Glossary.htm
What is Aptitude Testing?
Aptitude testing is a student-friendly,
universally accepted mode of rating
capabilities for a particular activity. Aptitude
tests are known to be reliable predictors of
future scholastic achievement.
CBSE SGAI: THE TOOL
o CBSE SGAI has been designed by a group comprising of
o
o
o
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psychiatrists, psychologists, experts in Psychometrics and
practicing counsellors.
CBSE SGAI is designed to explore a child’s aptitude along with
personality and interest.
It is a simple Paper and Pencil test, which can be easily
attempted by a student.
It is approximately of one and a half hour duration.
There are no right or wrong answers, negative marking,
pass/fail.
No syllabus and special preparation is required.
It contains simple statements/ Yes or No statements (approx.
100).
CBSE SGAI components of assessment
 Performance of the student in each subject. (9
SA1 + SA2 ; 12)
 Time spent on each subject in a day.
 Getting help through coaching
 Career aspiration .
 Performance.
 Personality consideration.
 Aptitude in a subject.
Scoring and Interpretation
 The assessment and interpretation of scores is done
internally by the board under the supervision of experts.
 Weighted scores are aligned with the different subject offered
by the board at +2 level.
 Two subject based choices are indicated on the basis of
weighted score obtained by the students.
 Individual score cards are issued after expert analysis.
CBSE SGAI and its purpose
 It is an optional assessment that can be taken by any class X students to know
preference for subjects on the basis of assessment.
 Secondary class coincides with the span of adolescence and beginning of career
concepts and planning. Although, not in the concrete form.
 The test will help the larger population including parents, teachers and
students to initiate an ongoing dialogue on subject choices and climate
building through workshops/discussions that lead to effective career planning
by making them informed about subject choices in class XI.
 However, CBSE SGAI should be taken only as indicator or facilitator.
 Mental preparedness and sincere response are the prerequisites for this test.
SGAI test scores may depend upon child’s environmental stimulus and
motivational level.
How SGAI is different from other
Aptitude tests
 Its major focus is on the School students choice of
subject.
 It links students interest, aptitude and career rather
than just providing a career direction.
 It’s a comprehensive structure orientation to aid further
career mapping in life of a student rather than just
facilitating career decisions.
 It has been customized to suit the Indian context and
variety of student population in CBSE affiliated Private,
Government and Aided Schools
Information for schools participating in CBSE
SGAI : 2013
 All schools which have registered with CBSE for SGAI 2013 will receive
Question Booklets by 10th January 2013 (latest).
 The Question Booklets should be stored safely till the date of Assessment
i.e. 20th January, 2013.
 SGAI will be conducted in the respective schools as per the guidelines
provided by CBSE via e-mail, prior to the date.
 The schools will have to send the copies for assessment along with
attendance sheet, along with the list of absentees latest by 07th February,
2013 to,
Rama Sharma,
PRO & Project in charge,
Central Board of Secondary Education,
Shiksha Kendra, 2, Community Centre,Preet Vihar, Delhi-92
Questions children often ask….
What am I going to do in life?
How can I achieve my goal?
How do I choose my career?
Which career will make me happy, I don’t know?
If I don’t make it do I have any other option? Where?
When?
Are my subjects appropriate?
ANSWER TO FOLLOWING
QUESTIONS WOULD
INVOLVE...........
Understanding oneself
 Discovering Ones APTITUDE
 Identifying Ones INTEREST
 Developing Ones LIFE SKILLS
 Recognizing Ones PERSONALITY
Career planning is a choice,
not a discovery
 It is the bridge between our aspirations and
the reality of our future
Providing Career Guidance
Why Career Guidance ?
Faulty planning or no planning by the students.
• Follow the crowd.
• Choose under influence of others.
• Parent’s force their decision .
• Get tempted by current trends.
• Influenced by media.
• Select a career in dejection.
• Jump into any career.
• Are totally away from realities.
• Lack or avoid Counseling facilities.
• Live in Fantasy World.
• Lack Motivation.
• Fail to “Discover their Lives”
16
Choosing a career is a big decision
 Planning
for the future is not something you do once.
 It's an ongoing process.
 Career planning has three steps that the child will go
through and repeat throughout his or her working life.
 The Career planning encourages individuals to explore
and gather information which enables them to
synthesize, gain competencies, make decisions, set
goals and take actions.
INFLUENCES IN CAREER
DECISION MAKING
 Individual variables : Self – concept, Health, Values, Gender,
Interests, Skills, Age, Beliefs, Aptitudes, Physical attributes,
World of work, Knowledge.
 Social variables: Political scenario, Educational institutions,
Geographical location, Employment market, Workplace
Globalization cultural trends
 Environmental variables: Family, Peers, Community groups,
Media Socio-economic status
 Other Time perspective (past, present and future) Change
over time.
Factors Affecting Career Choices
 Interests
 Skills
 Aptitudes
 People skills
 Experience
 Family
traditions
 Personality
 Life goals
and work
values
Developing Career Maturity
Indicates..
 Students need help understanding the importance
of narrowing career interests as a basis for
secondary career planning.
 Class 10 students should ideally have identified
one or more career interests AFTER an objective
evaluation of their likes and dislikes, aptitudes and
market projections.
 By the end of 12th grade, students should have
ideally engaged in activities related to these
choices and developed a post high school plan.
Developing career maturity does NOT mean
making a decisions at age 18 about the “one best”
career for oneself.
It’s a good idea to have several careers in mind rather
than just one .
Approximately 60% of students change their major
at some point during their college career.
It also pays to develop a wide variety of general skills,
particularly those related to communication.
STEPS TO CAREER PLANNING
 Self introspection involves evaluating one’s interest,
abilities ,skills and values .To identify what you are
expecting from a career as well as the attitude one is
preparing for the world of work.
 Career exploration allows one to search careers to
determine those which require the skills and interest
one has and what one wants out of work.
 Matching one’s interests, abilities and skills with the
demands of the occupation one is considering.
The Career Planning Process
Plans provide a structured way
for students to gather, analyze,
synthesize and organize self,
educational and occupational
information.
Norm Gysbers, 2004
Academic Potential
It is an assessment of one’s academic worth. The high and the
lows, consistencies and incidental spurts or plunges give one
an insight of one chances for success in an academically
demanding stream/subject.
Personality
It is a concept by which we understand and view ourselves.
Though it is normally explained as external appearance and
behavior ,it is made up of the characteristic patterns of
thoughts, feelings and behaviors that make a person unique.
Interests
Interest is defined as one's passion to different streams or
occupations, and helps to decide how to choose streams and
evaluate opportunities.
Components for Career
Decision-making
 KNOWELDGE ABOUT ONESELF
 KNOWLEDGE ABOUT WORLD OF WORK
 HELPING HAND FOR CAREER GUIDANCE
KNOWLEDGE ABOUT ONESELF
The one of the most important step
in choosing career is to be armed
with an understanding of one’s
STRENGTHS and WEAKNESSES
and an awareness of what you truly
value.
APTITUDE
SELFAWARENESS
FACILITATES
DECISIONMAKING
INFLUENCE
SUBJECT CHOICE
FUTURE CAREER
ORIENTATION
INTEREST
WORLD OF WORK
 Keeps me busy and helps fill in the time
 Let’s me try out new ideas.
 Gives me opportunity to use my abilities, skills and
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knowledge.
Allows me to meet many people
Gives me power to influence over others
Provides an opportunity to make friends
Lets me control time
Lets me help people
Lets me be creative
Allows me to be known and liked by people.
Provides money
Provides physical activity for me
Lets me make decision for myself
Gives me feeling of achievement
Gives me feeling of security
Sources available to Students
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Career Fairs
Talk to alumni/current students
Visit! Visit! Visit!
College fairs/open houses
Seek information from
 Family
 Friends
 Counselor/teachers
 Internet
 Career resource library at school
 Job Shadowing
Strategies for Exploring the World
of Work
1.Informational Interviewing
One of the best sources for gathering information about
what’s happening in an occupation or an industry is to
talk to people working in the field. This process is called
Informational Interviewing.
2. Occupational Family Tree
Families play a major role in shaping their children’s
educational and career decisions. An Occupational
family Tree helps explore family values, traditions and
expectations
3.Network
 Checking with people to know about career
information.
 Networking can lead to meeting someone
who may be able to answer your questions
about a specific career or company.
 It is an effective way to learn about the
type of training necessary for a particular
position, what it took to get into the field,
and the positive and negative aspects of
the work.
 More and more professionals are active on
online networks such as LinkedIn.com and
Doostang.com. Some professionals even
use Facebook to get in touch with others in
their field…as well as research potential
candidates.
Implementation of a Career Guidance
Programme
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10.
Consultation
Classroom Instruction
Assessment
Career Information
Counseling
Placement
Referral
Outreach
Follow-up
Work Experience
Career Development Process In Schools
 Building
Connections for Students Between
Academic Skills and the Future
 Introducing Students to "Real Life" Jobs.
 Helping Students to see themselves as Part of
Future Job Force.
 Labor Market Trends
 Current Recession
 Training Requirements
 Aging Workforce
 Job vs. Career Security
LIFE SKILLS
 Life skills have been defined by WHO as “abilities for adaptive
and positive behavior that enable individuals to deal effectively
with the demands and challenges of everyday life”.
 They represent the psycho-social skills that determine valued
behavior and include reflective skills such as problem-solving
and critical thinking, to personal skills such as self-awareness,
and to interpersonal skills.
 Practicing life skills leads to qualities such as self esteem,
sociability and tolerance, to action competencies to take action
and generate change, and to capabilities to have the freedom to
decide what to do and who to be.
 Selecting a career is also crucial challenge for children and
parents.
Life Skills for Career Development
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Patient and convincing listening ability- Communication Skill.
Comprehending ability – Critical Thinking.
Patience – Interpersonal Skill.
Knowing others – Empathy.
Integrity – Interpersonal Skill.
Emotional Maturity – coping with emotion.
Convincing presentation- Communication Skill.
Specific Knowledge & assessment – Self awareness.
Critical Thinking.
Areas in which guidance is to be provided – Decision Making.
Career Awareness
Self-Awareness
Appreciation and Attitudes
Economic Awareness
Skill Awareness and Beginning Competence
Employability Skills
Educational Awareness
TO REMEMBER
I”
(PACKED WITH
TALENT, SKILL
AND ABILITY
AQUIRE
CONFIDENCE
SELF
AWARENESS
PERSONAL
TRAITS/
PERSONALITY
WHO AM I?
POTENTIAL/
CAPABILITIES
WHAT I WANT
TO DO?
KNOWLEDGE/
ACADEMICS
WHERE I WANT
TO GO?
FOCUS
ON
LIFESKILLS
SELF ESTEEM
EMPATHY
COMMUNICATION
PATTERN
What am I really going to do? Can I really get there?
How? Am I sure of the route? What are the risks? If I
don't make it do I have any other option? Where?
When? Are my subjects appropriate?
Most students come face to face with such questions
at some time or another. Why not then begin the
process of career decision making in a rational manner
to eliminate any chances for regret
Activities Manual : Page 2
 The process of career planning stretches through the
secondary and senior secondary years at school.
 It essentially requires an adequate understanding of
oneself in terms of ACADEMIC POTENTIALS,
ATTRIBUTES, TALENTS, INTERESTS, PERSONALITY,
VALUES, EXPECTATIONS AND RESOURCES.
Activities Manual : Page 2 - 3
 When planned routes to a career are
chalked out during school years, keeping in
mind all attributes, preparation to enter a
course and career are adequately motivated
and effective.
 This motivation stirs the young through
preparation, study, competition and selfconfidence.
Activities Manual : Page 2 - 3
 Good career planning envisages a match between
requirements for a job, aptitude, interest, personality
and expectations.
 Awareness of “true” motivation, aspiration, strengths,
dislikes, limitations and weaknesses are essential.
 This awareness must be as specific as possible. It
must be backed by actual achievements and
behaviour if required, supplemented by objective test
results.
Activities Manual : Page 2 - 3
WHAT COULD GO
WRONG ?
Some People Perpetually
Complaining About Work
 Essentially because they take up jobs without taking
themselves into consideration i.e. without assessing their
aptitudes, interests and personality
 They may take up courses and career for only some superfluous
reasons, e.g. under their friends influence, or to suit their
parents desires or take the easiest available opportunity.
 When the reasons are not at all related to self knowledge and
personal needs, choices tend to be distorted.
Activities Manual : Page 3- 4
A CAREER BASKET SHOULD INCLUDE...
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ACADEMIC POTENTIALS
EXPLORING WHO AM I
UNDERSTANDING ONESELF
PERSONALITY
THE WORLD OF WORK
Analysing what you haven't got as well as what you have
is a necessary ingredient of a career.
- Orison Swett Marden
Activities Manual : Page 3 - 4
CAREER ACTION PLAN
 A career action plan is a blueprint for success. The
foundation on which one can build one’s vision- a picture
of the success one hopes for. To identify one’s aptitudes
and skills, one need to know the major areas of interest.
 This helps to develop a personal career plan, so that one
can map the route to one’s career goal.
Activities Manual : Page 10
EFFECTIVE CAREER PLANNING
 It involves an understanding of the following: The importance of a career plan
 The various factors affecting a career choice
Activities Manual : Page 12 - 13
 Activities are simple and regular things which happen to us yet we
plan them carefully and well in advance.
 So planning is essential for everything in life, from cooking for the
day to planning a festival or any event in life, significant or
insignificant. So, you have to plan all the activities. Like wise when
one starts thinking about one's career ….One needs to
 Plan seriously about it. Career selection is a very important even in
one's life which requires a great deal of thinking and
 Planning. Please emphasise on the fact that decision should be
made after a lot of thinking and careful planning.
Activities Manual : Page 12 - 18
Key Messages:
 Some students do not begin to explore ‘real’ career possibilities
until after high school.
 Some students do not seriously consider many alternative choices
in career selection.
 If career planning were done in an efficient manner, students
would at the very least be following a career plan of informed
decision-making, rather than one of happenstance.
 The cultural and social context of family and community were
found to be instrumental in how youth learn about careers and
influential in the choice process.
 Strategies that target parents and community to increase their
involvement in youth career selection can promote sound career
decisions.
CAREER DECISION-MAKING
 Selection of a suitable career needs Meticulous care,
Thought and Proper Planning, Keeping in mind one's
goals, and Expectations from that career.
 Before deciding on the choice of a career, one should
have a clear notion of ones INTEREST, APTITUDE,
AMBITION, SCOPE AND QUALIFICATIONS.
Activities Manual : Page 19
 To find a career to which you are adapted by nature, and
then to work hard at it, is about as near to a formula for
success and happiness as the world provides.
Activities Manual : Page 19 - 21
Activities to Enhance Decision Making Skills
Decision Making is when one has choice
and must choose the best one or when one
is trying to make up his/her mind on what
one wants and what is best.
Activities Manual : Page 23 - 25
There are Many Ways to Solve a Problem
• Think about the options/choices and the good and bad
consequences that may follow as a result of each.
• It is important to be able to think of as many options as
possible-even if they may not be very practical.
• Making the “right choice” is what is important!
• It is important to analyze the information before taking a
decision.
• Environmental factors such as Peer Pressure often influence our
decision.
• It is important to evaluate the consequences for each of the
options and only then take the decision.
• If there is a problem in obtaining right information regarding a
decision, you should take the help of a trusted adult.
Activities Manual : Page 23 - 25
Activity 2: How to make well informed
decisions
Activities Manual : Page 23 - 25
Key Messages:
 It is important to analyze the information before taking a decision.
 It is important to evaluate the consequences for each of the options
and only then take the decision.
 If there is a problem in obtaining right information regarding a
decision, you should take help of a trusted adult.
 Decision-making is strongly influenced by our self-esteem.
 With a positive self-esteem on is able to think independently and
make wise decisions.
 Factors which influence our decision making process are peers,
family, society, culture, education, attitudes, traditions, experiences,
knowledge, religion, government and social conflicts.
PARENTAL CONCERNS
 Why there is a difference between career choices of parents
and adolescents? How parents can communicate effectively
with adolescents on their career concerns?
 Activity to track parental concerns
Difference between
adolescents.
career
choices
of
 Case study analysis, Group Discussion.
 Effective Communication skills for parents.
parents
and
Parent Concerns for their Children
Happy
Healthy
Safe
Successful
Self Supporting
Key Message:
 Talk to the adolescents about their likes/dislikes.
 Don’t reject, allow them to express themselves.
 Through indirect questioning find out what he/she actually knows about
the Career-path, Qualifications required, Salary, Prospective employers,
etc.
 Encourage him/her to meet people in that field and genuinely support
him/her in that process.
 Parents should also get information about the Careers.
 Open Dialogue between parents & children about careers would help
your child.
 Parents and child, together need to explore available options.
Career Plan Definition
A comprehensive, formalized written plan (that
learners use alone and with the help of others) that
relates learning to career goals. The plan is based on
both formal and informal assessments and should
include areas in which a learner needs to increase
knowledge and skills in order to reach documented
goals.
How Parents can help
 Accept children as individuals and recognize that they are
entitled to make their choice.
 Accept that their choice can be different from yours
 Help them to analyze their strengths and weaknesses
 Genuinely help them to explore the different career options
 Be an empathetic patient listener. Practice active listening.
 Look for more information on the career option chosen by
them to make your self comfortable with his/her choice.
Activity - Teacher as an Effective Career
Counselors
Certain skills/traits that could be helpful in teachers
for effective guidance could be:
1. Listening ability.
2. Comprehending ability.
3. Patience.
4. Empathy.
5. Emotional Maturity.
6. Specific Knowledge & assessment of areas in
which guidance is to be provided.
Activities Manual : Page 21
A Final Note on Career Planning
“Remember, the conversation that
you have with a student may impact
their future economic potential.”
-Trish Hatch, 2007
.
a) Listen
 Ask everyone to listen to and respect each person's point of
view before responding. It is important not only to
 understand what a person is trying to say, but also to allow
her/him an opportunity to express herself/himself.
 Recognize that there are many views on one topic. No one view
or opinion is correct. The whole purpose of discussion is to
share ideas/information – it is not about one person gaining
points or winning a discussion.
b) Ask open-ended questions
 This is a good way to start and continue a discussion. Openended questions start with. How, why and what
 (“How does this affect us?” Why is it an issue?” What can we do
to change this situation?”)
 c. Non-verbal facilitation skills
Activities Manual : Page 21 - 22
Make eye contact with everyone in the group. Focus your attention
on all the adolescent's, don't favor some over other.
• Move around the room as you speak in a slow, calm way.
• React to what they say by nodding, smiling and generally showing
you are listening.
D Verbal Facilitation Skills
• Formulate your questions to encourage open discussion.
• Use open-ended questions such as: “What do you think about…?
Why…?, How….?”
• After one of the students makes a statement, ask the others if they
agree/ disagree.
• Encourage the students to talk. They should talk more than you and
other adult trainers
Activities Manual : Page 36 - 38
Encourage the students to answer each other's
questions. In that way, everyone can learn to listen and
to show respect for each other.
• Ask the students to paraphrase or repeat something in
their own words to check if they understand it.
Frequently paraphrase important points made by the
students to reinforce them.
• Regularly summarize the discussion. Ask the students
if they disagree with anything and help them to draw
conclusions.
• Share personal experiences to reinforce the student's
views or opinions
Activities Manual : Page 36 - 38
EXPERIMENTAL LEARNING
• Involves adolescents in activities that help
them reflect on and analyze their experiences.
• Motivates adolescents to change old behaviors
and adopt new behaviors.
• Promotes participation in the learning
process, and Is based on relationships of
respect between the facilitator and
participants.
Activities Manual : Page 39 - 40
SETTING UP A CAREER CORNER
• A place where children and teacher's
confidentiality could be maintained.
• Staff Availability.
• Budget.
• Materials – information related books.
• Equipment – computer to browse through
websites for information
Activities Manual : Page 39 - 40
The Career Understanding
“Most people consider their career
to be a series of progressive and
related jobs or occupations, but a
career is what we do to make a life,
not just earn a living.”
-LeeAnn
NCCC
Bernier-Clarke, MEd, NCC,
GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS FOR
TEACHERS OR SCHOOL COUNSELORS
They should provide mental preparedness in students,
this would include :
a) Making student understand the importance of test
b) Synthesizing them towards the fact that there are no
right or wrong answers
c) Should encourage sincere and honest answers
d) Test should be conducted in a relaxed atmosphere
e) Test results should be used to facilitate further decisionmaking
 The school Name and Complete address to be in capitals
along with the students name.
 Information about the performance- to be submitted by
the school
1.
Talents are common, everyone
has them - but rare is the courage
to follow our talents where they
lead.”
“
-Anon
“Think not of yourself as the
architect of your career but as
the sculptor. Expect to have to
do a lot of hard hammering and
chiselling and scraping and
polishing.”
-B.C. Forbes