Future Quest Island - Education and Earnings Graphing Activity
Basics
- Project TitleFuture Quest Island - Education and Earnings Graphing Activity
- ThemeGraphing and data analysis; scatter diagrams; relationship between education and earnings
- Submitted ByFuture Quest Island
- OrganizationFuture Quest Island / Institute for Community Inclusion
- Materials / ResourcesThis exercise is drawn from the Skills Library Career Development Toolkit.
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Web Link: The Skills Library - Career Development Toolkit [1]
- Any modifications or extensions for particular student populations?Students can create the scatter diagram by hand or using any desired software such as Excel. The activity can be modified to provide a smaller data set and/or to provide pre-formatted data to support students as needed.
Key Questions
- Key QuestionsDoes education help people to earn more? How can students get a realistic view of the relationship between education and earnings? How can a scatter diagram communicate the idea that "real life" relationships arent perfect straight lines, but have lots of variation.
- Connections: How or why was this topic identified? Why is it meaningful?Teachers in the Future Quest Island pilot identified this topic.
- Background Research: What resources were used to find background information for this project?The Skills Library Career Development Toolkit, which presents data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. (http://skillslibrary.com/careers [1])
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Web Link: The Skills Library - Career Development Toolkit [1]
Units / Activities
- Activity: Scatter DiagramStudents draw a scatter diagram median earnings and % of workers with a bachelors degree or higher, using data about the 25 fastest growing occupations. (Data is from 2006 because this data set provides the greatest level of detail.)See activity sheet or attached worksheet
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View/Download File: Graphing Exercise: Education and Earnings [Word] [2]
View/Download File: Education and Earnings - Graphing Activity [PDF] [3]
- Discussion: Looking at the relationship between education and earnings.This graphing activity looks at the relationship between education/training and career options. The theme of the unit is that people may take a variety of routes to careers, including postsecondary education, apprenticeship, on-the-job training, and other types of investment.
You have probably heard recently about the importance of investing in education beyond high school.
How strong is the connection between education, employment and earnings? Here are some general principles:
On average, people who have higher levels of education have higher earnings.
However, there are exceptions to this rule. For example, while some highly paid occupations are accessible only through postsecondary education, others may be accessible through on-the-job training, experience or apprenticeship.
As a general rule, the more you invest in learning new skills and gaining credentials, the more you will earn.
Instructional Techniques
- Graphing and Data AnalysisStudents work with data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. By working with this data, students have the opportunity to draw graphs, look for patterns, analyze and draw their own conclusions.
Activity Sheets
- Graphing Exercise
Future Quest Island
Graphing Activity: Education and EarningsThe following chart presents data on the 25 fastest growing occupations, with the median annual earnings and the recommended level of training or education, and actual educational attainment of workers ages 25-44 currently working in the occupation. Use the data in columns B and E to create a scatter diagram.
25 Fastest Growing Occupations
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment, Training and Earnings: Postsecondary Education or Training Category Report
A
B
C
D
E
Occupation
2006 Median Annual Earnings (Dollars)
Percentage of workers
aged 25 to 44 with..
High school degree or less
Some college
Bachelor's degree or higher
Network systems and data communications analysts
$64,600
8.1%
34.8%
57.1%
Personal and home care aides
$17,770
58.5%
31.9%
9.6%
Home health aides
$19,420
55.3%
37.3%
7.4%
Computer software engineers, applications
$79,780
2.2%
13.0%
84.8%
Veterinary technologists and technicians
$26,780
27.0%
57.0%
16.0%
Personal financial advisors
$66,120
4.2%
15.2%
80.5%
Makeup artists, theatrical and performance
$31,820
59.6%
30.5%
9.9%
Medical assistants
$26,290
30.6%
58.9%
10.4%
Veterinarians
$71,990
-
-
99.9%
Substance abuse and behavioral disorder counselors
$34,040
8.9%
18.3%
72.8%
Skin care specialists
$26,170
59.6%
30.5%
9.9%
Financial analysts
$66,590
3.1%
9.6%
87.3%
Gaming surveillance officers and gaming investigators
$27,130
45.9%
41.6%
12.5%
Social and human service assistants
$25,580
15.6%
26.3%
58.1%
Physical therapist assistants
$41,360
11.7%
65.4%
22.9%
Pharmacy technicians
$25,630
27.0%
57.0%
16.0%
Forensic science technicians
$45,330
19.4%
34.9%
45.7%
Dental hygienists
$62,800
2.9%
63.8%
33.3%
Mental health counselors
$34,380
8.9%
18.3%
72.8%
Mental health and substance abuse social workers
$35,410
7.1%
15.7%
77.2%
Marriage and family therapists
$43,210
8.9%
18.3%
72.8%
Dental assistants
$30,220
33.6%
57.5%
8.9%
Computer systems analysts
$69,760
7.0%
24.6%
68.4%
Database administrators
$64,670
4.6%
23.9%
71.5%
Computer software engineers, systems software
$85,370
2.2%
13.0%
84.8%
Activity: Graphing
Draw a scatter diagram showing the relationship between the median annual earnings and the percentage of workers with a bachelor’s degree or higher. Choose 10 or 20 occupations from the list to include on this graph. What relationship do you see?
Frameworks / Skills
- CDE Benchmarks
A3-2Skills in researching and evaluating economic and societal information for career planning and career management
(CDE Benchmarks) - CDE Benchmarks
A4-1Knowledge of the benefits of education for career and life management
(CDE Benchmarks) - Mathematics
Mathematics.8.SP.1.01Construct and interpret scatter plots for bivariate measurement data to investigate patterns of association between two quantities. Describe patterns such as clustering, outliers, positive or negative association, linear association, and nonlinear associa
(Mathematics) - Mathematics
Mathematics.8.SP.1.02Know that straight lines are widely used to model relationships between two quantitative variables. For scatter plots that suggest a linear association, informally fit a straight line, and informally assess the model fit by judging the closeness of the da
(Mathematics)