'Wheel of Careers' Mackenzie Game Show Launched to Help Undecided Gr.12s

Students create a new game show to help reluctant Gr. 12s choose a career path. Also local media gets involved.
By: Indi Sysive

TORONTO, ON — As the end of the year steadily approaches, one student group at Mackenzie has brought upon a creative way for grade 12s uncertain of what career path to follow to make their choice.

Introducing… the ‘Wheel of Careers’ game show at Mackenzie! The student group proposed and has for two weeks now been running this weekly school-based game show in the caf at lunch, with its goals of both assisting grade 12s in planning their future, as well as providing the student body with some fresh entertainment.

The show features a new 12th grade participant each week, and consists of a series of audience-engaging and dramatic events. This includes a lottery ball machine containing ‘career cluster balls’, beach ball-throwing among the crowd to see who gets to pick the participant’s to-be sub-field of focus, and of course the fateful spin of the famous Wheel of Careers. Through all of this, the game show guarantees each participant their randomly-selected destiny.

The student group organizing the event hopes the game show will prove more helpful than the ‘generic’ career quizzes often given to students, as well as make the decision-making process more entertaining for everyone.

“We hope this takes the pressure off of such an important decision - by doing it at random!” says the group leader, Icant Chuze.

Some students have indeed found ‘Wheel of Careers’ to be a positive addition to Mackenzie. While some are there just for the entertainment, others have attributed their finding of their career path in life to the game show.

One enthusiastic participant attests to this. “Before ‘Wheel of Careers’, I had no idea what direction I’d be heading in career-wise - the only thing I really knew for certain about myself was that I hate all insects and creepy crawlies! Thanks to the show, I’ve now learned from the Wheel that my destined career is an entomologist - a professional insect researcher!”

Not everyone’s as ecstatic about the concept of the show though - or even just the logistics of it.

“Such a vital decision should in no way be put to random chance,” protests one guidance counsellor, “I for one strongly disapprove.”

“Honestly, I don’t care what the show’s about, but why do they have to hog the caf once a week? That bugs me the most,” complains a student.

In any case, ‘Wheel of Careers’ has certainly already enjoyed some success, entertaining roughly 200 kids each week in the caf, and of course assigning a career path to a previously undecided student as well. The full-production 45-minute show has even garnered local media attention. What’s more, Sac is happy to report that student spirit is at an all-time high, with students dressing up for each week’s show theme in record numbers - and it’s certainly a sight to see so many students dressed as the likes of professional scuba divers or world-famous circus performers.

Clearly, whether you like it or not, Mackenzie’s newest game show is here to stay for a while. And who knows, maybe it’ll help decide your future career too!