The Value of RIASEC Literacy: Shifting the Cognitive Load in Every Classroom

Over the past two weeks, our team visited classrooms across three districts, elementary through high school, to advance Career Connected Schools coaching methods. Across sites, I was particularly struck by how hard teachers were teaching. They were bringing lessons to life, dramatizing key points, scaffolding every step, pausing for effect, and doing everything possible to bring their lessons to life.

Their skill and teaching knowledge were clear. But as I watched, I couldn’t help but wonder: Who was carrying the cognitive load in the room, the teacher or the students?

John Hattie once said, “The person who is working hardest is the person who is learning the most.” That line has stuck with me. No matter how skillful the teaching, learning deepens when students are actively thinking, connecting, and making meaning. And it’s with this idea in mind that we activate the powerful role of career-connected conversations as short, intentional “brain breaks” that help shift the cognitive load from teacher to student, no matter the lesson or grade.

A Simple but Powerful Shift

One of the most effective ways we coach teachers to achieve this is through structured “career-connected conversations.” These brief moments invite students to make sense of their learning through their knowledge and literacy of the RIASEC, connecting it back to themselves and to the world around them.

When we coach teachers to use RIASEC and dialogic questions, they’re learning a new skill, introducing a career development concept by using a shared language to help students do the thinking, a process of shifting the cognitive load. It’s also what we call a relevance wrap: when students use career language to explore how what they’re learning connects to the world outside their classroom.

These moments don’t replace instruction; they support it. They’re low-drag approaches for teachers that can be embedded in other instructional strategies too, like bell ringers or exit tickets. Each one offers students a chance to reflect, connect, and communicate, and gives the teacher the opportunity to ask better and deeper questions of their students.

What RIASEC Fluency Looks Like

In one high school Spanish class, where RIASEC literacy had already been established, we modeled a career-connected brain break by inviting students to pause mid-lesson as they worked on translations for a quick turn and talk:

Class, “If you are really good at the skill of translation, who gets paid to do this in the world of work, and what RIASEC letters might they claim? Take two minutes.”

Students discussed, naming examples from across the RIASEC where translators were needed, working in law firms, design firms, and social services, and one student mentioned the translator for the local professional baseball team. Students identified RIASEC themes such as Investigative for precision and analysis, Social for communication and helping others, and Enterprising for those who use translation in business or leadership contexts.

Then came the follow-up: “What types of workers might translators partner with on the job?”

In just eight minutes, the room transformed. Students connected language learning to real-world applications, spoke with confidence, and shared ideas grounded in RIASEC vocabulary. Together with the teacher, we shifted the focus from content only to include guided discovery about the world of work.

A final question was the thumbs up or thumbs down: Would you like to do this job?

At the end of this experience, school leaders who were in attendance noted how groups of students, including several who rarely engage, were talking in their groups and processing the questions. They saw, in real time, how just a short, structured conversation could activate thinking, increase energy in the room, and shift the cognitive load back where it belongs with the learners.

Why Literacy Matters More Than Assessment

In classrooms where RIASEC language is part of daily learning, students quickly form connections and carry the cognitive load. In contrast, when we work in schools relying primarily on interest assessments, we often see low recall and limited fluency. Students might know their letters once, but we see that they rarely own the language.

Assessments can match preferences; conversations build fluency. And fluency is what unlocks agency, reflection, and communication. It’s why dialogic practices like career-connected coaching and strategies are so useful. They help students speak the language of their interests, link learning to purpose, and find meaning across subjects and experiences. These strategies allow us to walk into any classroom at any grade level and hold meaningful conversations with all students about self and the world. That is an essential part of what we train others to do. 

Teaching as Shared Cognitive Work

These visits reminded me that teaching and learning are collaborations of thought. When teachers create space for students to think, process, and connect ideas, they foster deeper learning and engagement.

Career-connected strategies using the RIASEC and dialogic questioning are healthy habits that support career readiness and strengthen instruction. They give teachers permission to step back, students the chance to step up, and everyone the opportunity to share the cognitive work of learning.

If You’re Curious

If you’re interested in how career-connected learning works as an instructional strategy, one that enhances engagement, deepens learning, and lightens the cognitive load for teachers, reach out. Our team would love to share what we’ve seen on the ground and how RIASEC fluency can transform any content area - no assessment required.