Research on the effectiveness of career exploration as viewed by 1100 senior high school students involved in Experience-Based Career Education (EBCE) projects in 16 states is reviewed. Results suggest that the learning potential of community experience can be improved in the following six ways: (1) offering challenging work; (2) selecting…

A conference is reported in which experiential education practitioners addressed the utility and acceptability of the policy guidelines for work oriented experiential education developed by a national advisory panel of management, labor, education, and community representatives. The first part of the report contains the full text of the five…

A comparative case study of education and work programs was conducted from an anthropological frame of reference to determine how each sets up a program culture for learners to achieve program goals. Three variables structured into the original research design of the project were (1) the length of the program; (2) the type of community served, and…

In the face of chronic youth unemployment, decision makers in many countries are questioning the role and effectiveness of alternance between school-based vocational training and in-company work experience. This notion applies to three very different realities: training courses offered as an alternative to traditional school-based training for…

The case can be made that school-to-work programs can be a college preparatory strategy because they can teach academic skills as well as and possibly even better than more traditional approaches. The skepticism about its potential as a means of preparing students for college is based on misconceptions about its characteristics. Its three basic…

A study adopted a sociocultural perspective to examine work-based learning (WBL) in different types of programs in Los Angeles that served similar populations of mostly minority students. The programs were a transportation career academy, a medical magnet high school, and a school-based enterprise. To understand workplaces as learning…

Work-based learning (WBL) differs from work experiences gained in regular youth jobs because WBL is intentionally structured to promote learning by linking work with school. Five main purposes of WBL have been identified: enhancing students' motivation and academic achievement; increasing personal and social competence related to work in general;…

This document contains the proceedings of a two-day symposium conducted to analyze four different perspectives (psychological, economic, anthropological, and sociological) on evaluating experiential education programs. The perspectives are represented in papers by Samuel H. Osipow, Psychology, Ohio State University; Nicholas M. Kiefer, Economics,…

Employers have played an important role in the education reform movements of the 1980s and 1990s; they have been vocal about the education deficiencies of the people they interview. They have focused on what the schools can do to improve education, but there are things that employers can do. The first thing is to make achievement matter by taking…

This issue focuses on contextual learning (CL), in which students master rigorous academic content in real-world or work-based learning experiences. "Emerging Trends in CL Show Positive Results for Students" discusses CL as an important strategy for improving student achievement. It describes: how CL raises the bar for all students,…

Designed to assist local education agency representatives and prime sponsors of the Comprehensive Employment and Training Act (CETA) programs in initiating and implementing awarding of academic credit for work experience, this report reviews the issues evolving from the Youth Employment and Demonstration Projects Act of 1977. Three major sections…

This report is a composite of the evaluation methods and findings derived from national evaluations of experiential education programs. Section I, an overview of assessing experiential education, has two chapters: an introduction which discusses the origins and current trends of experiential education and identifies the purpose of the study; and…

This primer provides resources for individuals seeking exemplary programs and effective policy in the field of experiential education. The first of three parts presents a descriptive overview of programs catalogued under the rubric of experiential learning. These include cooperative vocational education; employment, training, and education…

This anthology of 58 pieces originally published in the "Journal of Experiential Education" focuses on the value of experiential learning and the need to incorporate direct experience in formal education. Chapter 1 summarizes and reviews the findings of "A Nation at Risk" and other major national reports on education. Chapter 2…

This business education journal contains two articles and three class activities related to teaching business skills relevant to today's economy. The first article, "Skills for a Changing Economy," provides an overview of the skills needed in today's business environment. According to the article, as many as half of recent high school graduates…