The notion of employability has become a focal point of higher education in many countries' strategies to prepare students for employment. Responses to this notion can differ largely from country to country and from university to university, based on their historical, political, and economic contexts. However, very little has been researched in…

English independent schools are not required to follow government statutory guidance in a number of aspects including career education and guidance, and yet many are actively engaged in careers work and this has caught the attention of policymakers. State schools are subject to statutory guidance but, according to Ofsted and other authorities, the…

Many students in today's high schools choose courses and work experiences in an unplanned, aimless manner that often results in limited career options and undeveloped potential. Innovative educators across the nation have responded by restructuring schools around career pathways, which are integrated, multiyear sequences of career guidance,…

This guide is a tool to assist educators in the development of high-quality work-based learning sites in New Hampshire as part of the state's school-to-work program. The guide is divided into two sections. The first section, Common Elements of Work-Based Learning, provides information and guidelines for addressing program design issues for all…

This paper discusses the central problems and issues of the transition from school to worklife in the United States. Developed from a framework which outlines the structure of the education system and the place of vocational-technical education within it, the paper addresses measures the United States has taken to facilitate the transition from…

This guide is a compendium of activities for use with students in grades K-12 and adults that clearly depict how school-to-work concepts (including applied learning, career education, and work-based experiences) translate into classroom practice to support the New York State Learning Standards. The guide begins with an introduction that explains…

Resulting in part from a project designed to identify and describe comprehensive programs of excellence in career education, this curriculum guide is the fourth in a series describing current, successful career education practices. Intended for high school teachers, this monograph is a guide to the career education concept and the process for…

Concerns about the isolation of youth and the decline of available social capital have given rise to a new wave of workplace mentoring programs focused on youth in poverty. Most such programs have targeted youth in school and community settings; however, youth mentoring efforts in workplace settings are becoming increasingly prevalent for several…

Prepared for the National Advisory Council for Career Education, this report of a study on the current state of career education at the postsecondary level provides an overview of how American colleges and universities perceive and practice career education, together with a set of recommendations for action to encourage and facilitate the adoption…

This guide is a tool to assist educators in the development of high-quality work-based learning sites and other school-employer connections in New Hampshire as part of the state's school-to-work program. The guide provides implementation ideas for seven strategies for work-based learning experiences (industry tours, job shadowing, service…

Project Forward, conducted at Cape Cod Community College (Massachusetts) since 1988, provides campus-based, vocational skills instruction along with work-based experience for students with disabilities. Forty-five students aged 18-40 are currently being served by the project. The majority of the students have specific learning disabilities,…

This study examined the educational practices of eight secondary schools in Victoria, Australia, that contributed to improved student retention rates and achievement levels. Schools were selected based on identification of graduates of La Trobe University who had completed their studies in a minimum amount of time. Interviews were conducted with…

Work-based learning may occur in the following forms: contracted instruction; cooperative education; school-to-apprenticeship; registered apprenticeship; career exploration; service learning; career internships; career academies; school-based enterprises; and clinical experience programs. The following are key components of work-based learning…

This document profiles recent successful examples of students studying and working abroad as part of the European Commission's Leonardo da Vinci program, which is designed to give students across the European Union the opportunity to experience vocational training in a foreign country. The following examples are presented: (1) 3 Finnish students…

According to the school-to-work (STW) program philosophy, STW efforts should be comprehensive and begin as early as preschool. At the elementary school level, the developmental process of career education begins with career awareness designed to broaden student knowledge about careers and connect academic learning to the workplace. Developing…