Work-based Learning Experiences Research Articles

Analysis on Research Trend and Components of Work-based Learning Experience Programs for Adolescents and Young Adults with Disabilities

Analysis on Research Trend and Components of Work-based Learning Experience Programs for Adolescents and Young Adults with Disabilities

Learning chemistry through placements: Building on good practice and identifying new opportunities

This article presents and discusses the results of a project that focussed on identifying new work-based learning opportunities for chemistry students. Firstly, we investigated whether typical chemistry employers, who traditionally host sandwich or year-long placements, are able to offer short-term (e.g. summer) placements as an alternative work-based learning experience. Secondly, we determined to what extent non-traditional employers of chemistry graduates are also able to offer relevant and appropriate placement opportunities for chemistry students.

School-to-Work Revisited: Did Work-Based Learning Experiences Improve Prospects for Students in Career and Technical Education?

Using nationally representative data from the Education Longitudinal Study of 2002, this study examined the relationship between work-based learning experiences and outcomes related to income and educational attainment. The sample consisted of 588 participants self-identified as students in career and technical education. Work-based learning experiences were categorized as the variables: participation in skills competition, co-operative education, internships, job shadowing, and mentoring. The researchers analyzed data using ordinary least squares regression. Contextualized in the aftermath of the School-to-Work Opportunities Act of 1994, this study includes descriptive information on CTE students’ work-based learning participation and recommendations for future research.

Strategies for Creating Work-Based Learning Experiences in Schools for Secondary Students With Disabilities

Strategies for Creating Work-Based Learning Experiences in Schools for Secondary Students With Disabilities

Work-based learning experiences help students with disabilities transition to careers: A case study of University of Washington projects

This case study describes evidence-based practices employed by a collection of University of Washington projects that engage high school and postsecondary students with disabilities in work-based learning experiences such as industry and research internships, career development activities, job shadows, field trips, and mock interviews. The purpose of the article is two-fold. First, authors share best practices with others who wish to increase the participation of students with disabilities in work-based learning and thereby contribute to their academic and career success. The article discusses methods used to recruit students, employers and mentors, match students with specific opportunities, and prepare students for success. Second, authors share outcomes from studies regarding participation in these work-based learning opportunities, which include increased employment success, motivation to work toward a career, knowledge about careers and the workplace, job-related skills, ability to work with supervisors and coworkers, skills in self-advocating for accommodations, and perceived career options.

Appraising Work-Based Learning Experiences of Technical and Vocational (Teacher) Educationand Training (TVTET) Programmes In Nigeria

The skill emphasis in the implementation of technical and vocational education and training (TVET) programmes demands that conscious and concerted effort are made to put in place strategies that would guarantee hand – on learning experiences. Basically, a sure way of realizing these critical objectives is by the instrument of work – based learning (WBL) which implies the establishment of a synergistic relationship between TVET institution, business and industry as well as community – based resources inventory. This study has attempted to appraise the extent to which this synergy has worked in the Nigeria TVET system, using the seven (7) Federal Colleges of Education (Technical) in the South-Eastern geo-political zone of the country as study area. A total of 200 TVET instructors served as study sample while a structured questionnaire was used in generating data relevant to the study. Data analysis was based on the statistical tools of frequency, mean and percentage. Findings indicated among other things that, all emphasis so far is on the Student Industrial Work Experience Scheme (SIWES) leaving other avenues or strategies almost unexploited. Such other strategies identified by the study included: cooperative work experience Programme, job shadowing, clinical work experience, youth apprenticeship programme, school-based enterprises, internships, to list a few. Factors responsible for this anomalous situation were indicated to include poor policy frame-work, curricular defects, and inexperience on the part of administrators of TVET programmes. Recommended important strategies emphasized awareness creation through government-industry forum, curriculum restructuring and regular retraining of TVET instructors and teacher -trainers. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2013.v4n5p137

Making mental health practitioners workforce ready

PurposeMental health workforce development is crucial to successful mental health care reform. A postgraduate programme was developed in 2008 at Griffith University, Australia, to address this need. The programme was developed with an interprofessional focus and in an online format to ensure access for people with work or other commitments or living in rural and remote areas. This paper aims to describe the programme and outcomes of the evaluation.Design/methodology/approachThe research involved mixed methods using semi‐structured interviews, brief sturctured interviews and a survey to allow triangulation of data. Ten people (two graduates and eight external key informants) were interviewed, 21 students who had withdrawn participated in a brief telephone interview and 20 current students completed the survey.FindingsOverall the programme was viewed as providing a relevant contemporary qualification for the mental health sector. The online delivery offered flexibility, the interdisciplinary approach to learning was appreciated and the work‐based placements were highly valued. Mixed teaching‐learning modes employing a combination of online and supervised work‐based experience most effectively facilitated consolidation of knowledge in graduates. Enrolling students from a range of disciplines facilitates interdisciplinary learning, enhancing students' ability to understand other health professional's perspectives and work more effectively as a team.Originality/valueMental health tertiary programmes need to have a clear focus and understanding of the workforce needs, include work based learning experiences and address discipline specific as well as interdisciplinary learning needs to ensure students are work‐ready on graduation.

Group Work-based Learning within Higher Education: An integral ingredient for the personal and social development of students

The article puts forward a case for broadening the curriculum within Higher Education to incorporate and encourage group work-based learning (GWBL) experiences for students. Two case studies are described within two universities in terms of organising, monitoring and assessing group-based work. It is argued that being a part of a 'consultancy team' and responding to 'real clients' enables students not only to enhance their skills base but also provides them with opportunities for personal and social development both within and outside the world of work. The debate centres upon the concept that work-based learning (WBL) should be more than just 'economistic' in the way that emphasis is placed primarily on 'training for employment'. This central tenet of government policy is considered to be a necessary but not a sufficient condition for providing for group work-based learning experiences for students. The concept of 'social capital' is explained in terms of how group participation can bring about moral, cognitive and social benefits to its members and to the wider community.

Who is the learner? an examination of the learner perspectives in work-based learning

This paper seeks to explore the different perspectives held by those joining in the work-based learning experience. First it examines the concept of partnerships in work-based learning in more detail and considers the various partners who may be involved. It also discusses the types of learning that occur during these collaborative processes. Then it focuses on one particular partnership, that between the employee and the academic mentor, as the authors reflect upon their own learning from the setting up and running of a work-based learning module on the part-time degree programme run by the Institute of Continuing Education at The Queen's University of Belfast. This module has been supported by the QUB Enterprise Project with funding from the Northern Ireland Training and Employment Agency. Finally, we raise some questions around the nature of employer learning and leave these open for future debate.

Employer Participation in School-to-Work Programs

This article assesses the extent to which employers participate in school-to-work partnerships and work-based learning, using data from the National Employer Survey (NES). It opens with a brief discussion of the history of the school-to-work movement and the development of the School-to-Work Opportunities Act, which seeks to improve the preparation of college- and non-college-bound students for the workforce. The authors then present a review of the literature that focuses on incentives for employer participation in these programs and obstacles to implementing the programs on a national scale. The authors then report on previous attempts to measure the number of participating employers and compare these estimates with a recent analysis of data from the NES. They find that, while 25 percent of U.S. companies participate in a school-to-work partnership and another 40 percent provide a work-based learning experience, it is not clear how substantive such involvement and experiences are.

Work-Based Learning: Student Perspectives on Quality and Links to School

Programs that incorporate work-based learning (WBL) experiences in connection with school activities are proliferating, yet we know very little about their quality as learning experiences for young people or the costs associated with participating in them. This article examines two programs operating in the same school district, where students receive course credit for participating in WBL. One program provides unpaid internships each year of high school; the other provides paid work experience for one semester. We contrast the kinds of learning opportunities each offers to students, as measured by a student survey and a case study of program operations. We focus on two issues: the quality of students’ work experiences in these programs and the relationship between program participation and school learning, including effects on school work and social experiences. We find that students perceive the quality of their work experiences to be very similar across the programs despite differences in the type of work involved and in several structural features of the programs. We find that both programs have weaknesses in establishing connections between school and work and that the number of hours students work negatively affects some aspects of school performance, such as having time to do homework and the desire to stay in school. Our findings raise questions about the value added of WBL, given costs associated with the program design and delivery and, in some cases, with participation.