ERIC Number: ED480364
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 1997
Pages: 10
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Work-Based Learning: Good News, Bad News and Hope. Research Brief.
Bottoms, Gene; Presson, Alice
The effects of work-based learning on student achievement were examined by analyzing data from the 1996 High Schools That Work (HSTW) assessment. The comparison focused on the experiences of 12th-graders in structured work-based learning programs and 12th-graders with after-school jobs. A larger percentage of students earning school credit for work reported having higher- quality worksite learning experiences, including rotating through several jobs within a company, working frequently with a worksite mentor, and learning new technical skills in the work setting. More students in structured programs used work experiences to make the transition to a full-time job. The bad news was that students in work-based learning had lower academic achievement than those who only had jobs. The following were among the recommendations presented: (1) set high expectations and get students to meet them; (2) offer intellectually challenging vocational studies; (3) increase access to academic studies that teach high-level content; (4) require students to complete a challenging program of study; (5) integrate school-based and work-based learning; (6) engage students actively in the learning process; (7) involve students and parents in planning programs of study; (8) provide extra help; (9) ask students to share their work-based learning experiences with other students; and (10) arrange for working students to participate in seminars conducted by their academic and vocational teachers at the worksite. (MN)
Descriptors: Academic Achievement, Comparative Analysis, Cooperative Education, Education Work Relationship, Educational Change, Females, High School Students, High Schools, Males, Mathematics Achievement, National Surveys, Outcomes of Education, Reading Achievement, School Business Relationship, Science Achievement, Student Employment, Student Evaluation, Teacher Expectations of Students, Teacher Role, Vocational Education
For full text: http://www.sreb.org/programs/hstw/publications/briefs/97brief7.as p.
Publication Type: Guides - Non-Classroom; Information Analyses
Education Level: N/A
Audience: Practitioners; Teachers
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: Southern Regional Education Board, Atlanta, GA.
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A