The Big Picture of Work: teacher key

Jobs and Careers, grade 8 edition, written for 8th grade. Counting jobs, tracking who is employed and projecting which jobs will grow shows how the whole economy of work changes over time.

Read the book. Print this page for the key.

Questions and answers

1. How many people does the Current Population Survey reach each month?
   • About 60,000
   • About 110,000 (answer)
   • About 5.9 million
2. Why can a fast-growing job add few jobs?
   • It started with few workers (answer)
   • It always declines soon after
   • It needs a special license
3. Where do many openings come from in a shrinking job?
   • Workers who leave or retire (answer)
   • New laws about hiring
   • A shorter work week
4. In January 2026, how long had the median worker been with their current employer?
   • 3.9 years
   • 4.1 years (answer)
   • 12.9 years
5. What does employed mean in the survey?
   • Worked for pay or profit that week (answer)
   • Held a full-time job only
   • Held a college degree for years

Words

• employed: doing paid work
• survey: set of questions
• median: middle value
• residency: hospital training
• replacement: filling vacated jobs