Work-based learning (WBL), an important part of the 1990s "School to Work" movement, is a core component of the Linked Learning strategy which is now shaping efforts to improve secondary education in California and around the nation in cities such as Detroit, New York, and Philadelphia. WBL can include not only classic internships and…

Estimates a high school diploma's effect on success in the labor market, aside from the effects of prior characteristics (race, gender, socioeconomic background, and academic achievement). Differences in unemployment and wages between teenagers with and without high school diplomas are mainly not attributable to differences in measured prior…

Previous research shows that secondary students with moderate working hours perform better academically than those with no work or longer hours. Essays by working students reveal that many value both school and work as preparation for the future. These attitudes may explain why working does not detract from their school performance. (Contains 22…

A new longitudinal study reveals that the negative association between hours worked and grade point average is weaker for high schoolers in cooperative education (co-op) than in "outside" jobs. High school co-op leads to higher wages soon after graduation. However, students who curtail their education to pursue full-time employment could…

Work-Based Learning (WBL) has been at the heart of school-to-work initiatives in the 1990s. Local partnerships funded by the 1994 School-to-Work Opportunities Act are placing high priority on developing WBL opportunities for students. However, there is still controversy about whether work really contributes to students' education, and results of…

School-based enterprise (SBE) can be defined as any school-sponsored activity that engages a group of students in producing goods or services for sale to or use by people other than the students involved. The advantages of SBEs include the following: deeper understanding of academic subject matter through application in a practical context,…

The question of how some high school students succeed in reconciling school and work was examined through a review of research on the topic. Special attention was paid to the comments made by students responding to the National Center for Research in Vocational Education's longitudinal study that followed approximately 1,500 students in high…

Reviews studies on the demand for learning at work, trends on currently working students, and the effects of both school-supervised and not-school-supervised work experiences. Concludes that labor market demands and the number of students currently working present an opportunity to use work as a deliberate learning experience. (FMW)

Work-based learning is essential to career-related education models. Committed to developing work-related programs for all interested students, teachers in California health career academies have created a curriculum sequence meeting all University of California admission requirements while stressing practical work skills. They are also developing…

Examines the effects of school-supervised work experiences on the work attitudes of high school students. Finds that students who report less conflict between their jobs and their academic achievement express more motivation and less cynicism. (FMW)

In countries where young people have been relatively successful in both achieving high academic standards and making smooth transitions to employment, employers have taken major responsibility for their training. Now the emergence of a more "learning-intensive" economy poses new challenges. In response to the perceived insufficiency of traditional…

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;…

After their 1969 inception as an electrical academy in a Philadelphia high school, the number of career academies grew steadily for two decades; since 1990, their growth has accelerated. Until the mid-1990s, they existed only as smaller units within high schools, but numerous high schools have since converted themselves entirely into career…

This digest briefly reviews the ways that working affects students, and describes ways that schools can partner with businesses to increase the educational benefits of working. The economic payoff for students who work in high school is well-established, including a positive association between the amount of high school work experience and…

The emergence of a more learning-intensive economy has begun to change the relationship between education and work. As employers try to promote just-in-time learning and workers move more frequently from one job to another, continual learning at work becomes increasingly important. Four main elements characterize an education system that is likely…