Abstract
Jurgen WilkeSchnaufer The workplace increasingly is being used as a learning place for youth and adults in occupational training and education programs. However, the design of quality work-based learning activities for students must accommodate the often competing demands of education and production, consider contextual and experiential strategies for learning, and use instructional approaches that differ from familiar classroom-based methods. This article looks at action learning and situated learning theories as appropriate conceptual frameworks for work-based teaching and learning, and examines the contribution of job task analysis models and apprentice training for the design of work-based vocational curriculum materials. Based on these concepts, a listing of characteristics of quality work-based learning is proposed. These characteristics are illustrated through a case study of the development of work-based learning materials for use in small businesses in Germany with limited resources for training on site and with ongoing production needs. The model described in this pilot project has potential for application in industrial work settings where schools and colleges are placing students to learn skills in authentic workplace environments. Work-based learning is becoming an increasingly essential part of occupational education, whether in the form of internships, apprenticeships, cooperative education, school-supervised work experiences, practicums, or clinicals (Office of Technology Assessment, 1995). One of the three core components of the federal School to Work Opportunities Act of 1994, work-based learning is defined in that legislation as job training and work experiences aimed at developing pre-employment and employment skills, attitudes, and knowledge. Business and industry, national government, and public educators seem to agree that strong partnerships and a larger role for employers need to be part of the reform of education, both vocational-technical and academic (Bailey, 1995). Learning in context at workplace settings is seen as a means of making education relevant to job requirements and enhancing the transition from school to work. Work-based learning initiatives are being used increasingly by schools and community colleges in preparing students for work (Bragg, Hamm, & Trinkle, 1995; Goldberger, Kazis, & O’Flanagan, 1994; U.S. Department of Education, 1991). Work-Based Learning in Occupational Education and Training
Highlights
Dr Harnish is Coordinator of the Occupational Research Group in the College of Education at the University of Georgia, Athens
Conceptual frameworks to guide this effort can be found in situated cognition and action learning theories, and in the task analysis models for curriculum development
Learning strategies developed in apprenticeship training programs can contribute to an understanding of how learning occurs in the workplace. These conceptual theories, models, and research on contextual, work-site learning can be helpful in addressing the following questions: What do we know about how learning occurs in work settings? What does this tell us about how to design learning activities and materials for work-based learning? What are the characteristics of quality work-based learning? How does education need to be structured in the workplace to provide students with a quality learning experience?
Summary
Dr Harnish is Coordinator of the Occupational Research Group in the College of Education at the University of Georgia, Athens. She is a member-at-large of Epsilon Pi Tau. Mr Wilke-Schnaufer is a certified psychologist and a scientist with the Fraunhofer Institute for Industrial Engineering in Stuttgart, Germany. How can work-based learning on site in production-oriented settings be structured to ensure meaningful, high-quality learning experiences for students?. Learning strategies developed in apprenticeship training programs can contribute to an understanding of how learning occurs in the workplace. These conceptual theories, models, and research on contextual, work-site learning can be helpful in addressing the following questions: What do we know about how learning occurs in work settings? These conceptual theories, models, and research on contextual, work-site learning can be helpful in addressing the following questions: What do we know about how learning occurs in work settings? What does this tell us about how to design learning activities and materials for work-based learning? What are the characteristics of quality work-based learning? How does education need to be structured in the workplace to provide students with a quality learning experience?
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