What is work-based learning, and how does it help my student?
Work-based learning is not just one type of activity, it is a range of experiences that begin for students in the classroom learning about different types of careers, and finish with individual students spending time in the workplace, either paid or unpaid, to gain real-world skills.
The full continuum of work-based learning experiences is shown below:
Not all students will experience all of these types of work-based learning experiences, but in order for your student to gain knowledge of the world of work, and skills that can be used in their careers, they should be actively participating in these opportunities during high school whenever possible.
What are the benefits of work-based learning for my student?
Connecting classroom work to students’ career interests engages and motivates them
Work-based learning reinforces and improves academic learning
Learning new modes of thought (e.g., higher-order critical thinking and problem-solving)
Developing their career/technical skills as a means to learning
Advancing their social and emotional development toward adulthood, including their identity formation and their sense of self-efficacy
Expanding their social networks and access to opportunities
Enhancing their general workplace competencies, such as communication, teamwork and project planning
Enabling career exploration through breadth of exposure at the worksite
Allows informed college major/ post-secondary training choices, saving time and money
In order for your student's high school work experience to be meaningful and valuable, it should:
Relate to your student's interests
Help your student see what working life is like
Help your student discover his or her likes and dislikes
Help your student find his or her strengths and weaknesses
Help your student recognize the value of his or her academic learning
Work Experience Helps Students Make Informed Career Choices
High school work experience provides answers to the questions, "Why do I have to learn this?" and "Would I want to make this job a career?" It helps your student select a career and college/ post-secondary training option wisely and prepare realistically for the world of work. It also helps your student develop the skills, attitudes, and habits required to be successful on the job. By learning from and working beside experienced professionals from the workplace, your student will learn what it takes to enter and be successful in his or her field of interest.
Work-based learning definitions
Career Fairs: Many business people come to one location to provide information about their jobs. Your student may have the opportunity to listen to several people talk about their careers.
Guest Speakers: Your student's teacher, counselor or career specialist may arrange for guest speakers to come and talk to a group of students. Have your child watch for these opportunities at his or her school.
Informational Interviews: Can be by phone or in-person, and provide opportunity to have a brief, targeted conversation with a professional about their industry trends and opportunities; find out about best colleges for particular fields of study; start building a network of support.
Field Trips: Your student may be able to participate in a field trip to a business where they would see and hear about workers performing their day to day tasks. He or she would also learn about the many different types of workers required to operate a business.
Job Shadow: Your student observes an employee for part of a day or for several days, at the employee's job site. The job shadowing experience is a short, unpaid exposure to the workplace in an occupational area of interest to your child. Your student will witness firsthand the work environment, employability and occupational skills required of the job.
Service-Learning: Your student provides a service to the community and completes a school-based project that applies academic learning to the community service project.
Industry supported projects: Designed by industry for class based activities that may be mentored by, and ultimately assessed by, industry professionals. These are often multi-school challenges.
Mentorship: Mentoring is a long-term relationship between your student and a professional in the same career field of interest. The mentor offers support, guidance, motivation and assistance as your child enters new areas of career exploration.
Internships: Provide structured, on-the-job work activities that complement classroom learning. Your student may earn school credit for participating in an internship. Internships are usually for a specified period of time. Some internships are available over the summer months. There are both paid and non-paid internships.
Cooperative Education: Job-related classroom instruction in combination with on-the-job instruction. Your student would receive part-time employment and in-school classroom instruction relating specifically and generally to his or her job and the world of work. Students receive school credit for both work-related classroom instruction and for his or her work experience in a real work setting.
Pre-apprenticeship: Program or set of services designed to prepare students to enter and succeed in a registered apprenticeship program.
Apprenticeship: Combines on-the-job training with classroom instruction. An apprenticeship program lasts from two to five years, with only one or two years of the apprenticeship taking place while your child is in high school. Your child would be paid for on-the-job training portion of the apprenticeship.