ALL ASPECTS OF INDUSTRY

The School-to-Work Opportunities Act defines all aspects of the industry as—

"…all aspects of the industry or industry sector a student is preparing to enter, including planning, management, finances, technical and production skills, the underlying principles of technology, labor and community issues, health and safety issues, and environmental issues related to such industry or industry sector."

All aspects also includes the array of occupations and careers that comprise an industry, from the most basic to the most advance.

APPRENTICESHIP (REGISTERED)

Registered apprenticeship describes those programs that meet specific federally approved standards designed to safeguard the welfare of apprentices. The programs are registered with the Bureau of Apprenticeship and Training (BAT), US Department of Labor, or one of 27 State Apprenticeship Agencies or Councils approved by BAT. Apprenticeships are relationships between an employer and employee during which the worker, or apprentice, learns an occupation in a structured program sponsored jointly by employers and labor unions or operated by employers and employee associations.

CAREER ACADEMY

A career academy is typically a school within-a-school that offers students academic programs organized broad career themes. Often integrating classroom instruction with work-based learning, academics try to equip students with necessary skills for both workforce entry and postsecondary admissions. Curricula are planned with the assistance of business partners, who suggest program structure, classroom speakers, host field trips, and provide mentors for individual students. Students may be placed in jobs related to their field of study in the summer, and may spend some part of their senior year participating in a work experience program.

CAREER AWARENESS

Career awareness activities generally take place at the elementary level. They are designed to make students aware of the broad range of careers and/or occupations in the world of work, including options that may not be traditional for their gender, race or ethnicity. Career awareness activities range from limited exposure to the world of work, through occasional field trips and classroom speakers, to a comprehensive curriculum that is aligned and integrated with a middle school program.

CAREER DAYS/CAREER FAIRS

Career day activities are designed to help students think about their interest and abilities in relation to potential careers, and meet people who can assist them in getting the necessary skills and experience for workforce success. Special events are typically held to allow students to meet with postsecondary educators, employers, employees, or human resources professionals to learn about education and work opportunities.

CAREER DEVELOPMENT

Career development is the process through which an individual comes to understand his or her place in the world of work. Students develop and identify their careers through a continuum of career awareness, career exploration, and work exposure activities that helps them to discern their own career path. Career development encompasses an individual’s education and career-related choices, and the outcomes of those choices.

CAREER EXPLORATION

Career exploration generally takes place at the middle school level and is designed to provide some in-depth exposure to career options for students. Activities may include the study of career opportunities in particular fields to identify potential careers, writing individual learning plans that dovetail with career majors offered at the high school level, or review of local labor market information.

CAREER EXPOSURE

Career exposure can be defined as activities at the high school level that provide actual work experience connecting classroom learning to work.

CAREER GUIDANCE & COUNSELING

Career guidance and counseling mean programs that assist individuals in making and implementing informed educational and occupational choices and that help students develop career options.

CAREER MAJOR/PATHWAY

A coherent sequence of courses or field of study that prepares a student for a first job and that—

(A) integrates academic and occupational learning, integrates school-based and work-based learning, and establishes linkages between secondary schools and postsecondary institutions;

(B) prepares the student for employment in a broad occupational cluster or industry sector;

(C) typically includes at least 2 years of secondary education and at least I or 2 years of postsecondary education;

(D) provides the students, to the extent practical, with strong experience in and understanding of all aspects of the industry the students are planning to enter;

(E) results in the award of a high school diploma or its equivalent; a certificate or diploma recognizing successful completion of 1or 2 years of postsecondary education and a skill certificate; and

(F) may lead to further education and training, such as entry into a registered apprenticeship program, or admission to a 2- or 4- year college or university.

COOPERATIVE EDUCATION

Cooperative education is a structured method of instruction whereby students alternate or coordinate their high school or postsecondary studies with a job in a field related to their academic or occupational objectives. Students and participating businesses develop written training and evaluation plans to guide instruction, and students receive course credit for both their classroom and work experiences. Credit hours and intensity of placements often vary with the course of study.

INTERNSHIPS – STUDENT & TEACHER

1) Student internships are situations where students work for an employer for a specified period of time to learn about a particular industry or occupation. Students’ workplace activities may include special projects, a sample of tasks from different jobs, or tasks form a single occupation. These may or may not include financial compensation.

2) Teacher internships are work-site experiences of at least two weeks in duration for teachers. During this time, teachers may work at a particular job at the firm to learn specific skills, or rotate throughout the firm to learn all aspects of the industry in which they are experiencing. This may or may not include financial compensation.

JOB SHADOWING

Job shadowing is typically a part of career exploration activities in late middle and early high school. A student follows an employee at a firm for one or more days to learn about a particular occupation or industry. Job shadowing can help students explore a range of career objectives and select a career major for the latter part of high school.

MENTORS – SCHOOL SITE & WORKPLACE

1) A school site mentor is a "professional employed at a school who is designated as the advocate for a particular student, and who works in consultation with classroom teachers, counselors, related service personnel, and the employer of the student to design and monitor the progress of the school-to-work activities of the student."

2) A workplace mentor is "an employee or other individual, approved by the employer at the workplace, who possesses the skills and knowledge to be mastered by a student, and who instructs the student, critiques the performance of the student, challenges the student to perform well, and works in consultation with the school site mentor, classroom teachers, and the employer of the student."

NATIONAL SCHOOL-TO-WORK OFFICE

Headquartered in Washington, DC, the National School-To-Work Office monitors the various school-to-work activities undertaken in each state. Although these activities can vary from state to state, the National School-To-Work Office has emphasized that each state develop a system that provides every students with: (1) relevant education that allows students to explore different careers, (2) skill development obtained from structured and work-based learning experiences, and (3) establishing industry-standard benchmarks to ensure that proper education is received for each career.

OCCUPATIONAL CLUSTER

An occupational cluster is a grouping of occupations from one or more industries that share common skill requirements. Occupational clusters form the basis for developing national skill standards, organizing instruction in all aspects of an industry, establishing career academies, and creating career pathways or majors.

SCHOOL-SPONSORED ENTERPRISES

A school-sponsored enterprise is an enterprise in which goods or services are produced by students as part of their school program. School-sponsored enterprises typically involve students in the management of a project that may involve the sale of goods for use by others. Enterprises may be undertaken on or off the school site but are always part of the school’s program.

SCHOOL-TO-WORK OPPORTUNITES ACT OF 1994

As defined in the 1994 School-to-Work Opportunities Act, the opportunities include:

1) integrated school-based and work-based learning that integrates academic and occupational learning and links between secondary and postsecondary education,

2) the opportunity for participating students to complete a career major,

3) the provision of a strong experience in and understanding of all aspects of the industry a student is preparing to enter, and

4) equal access for students to a full range of program components and related activities, such as recruitment, enrollment and placement activities. However, these services are not offered as entitlement.

SKILL CERTIFICATE

A skill certificate is a portable, industry-recognized credential that certifies the holder has demonstrated competency on a core set of content and performance standards related to an occupational cluster area. Skill Certificates are based on industry established and benchmarked skill standards.

SKILL STANDARDS

A skill standard specifies the knowledge and competencies required performing successfully in the workplace. Standards are being developed along a skill continuum ranging from (1) general work readiness skills, and (2) core skills or knowledge for an industry, to (3) skills common to an occupational cluster, and (4) specific occupational skills. Standards may cover basic and advanced academic competencies, employability competencies, and technical competencies.

SKILLS FOR TOMORROW PROJECT

The Skills for Tomorrow project represents a joint collaboration between the International Brotherhood of Teamsters and the Minnesota Teamsters Service Bureau funded through a grant from the U.S. Departments of Labor and Education. The major goal of the Skills for Tomorrow Project is to identify and share information on replicable school-to-work learning opportunities for young people. Specifically, the IBT is particularly interested in expanding the role of Teamster locals to demonstrate the important role that organized labor can play in school-to-work efforts across the country. Key components of this project include the development of a dedicated school-to-work website, a "roadmap" to provide step-by-step procedures for establishing connections with youth and schools, a "tool-kit," or package of resources containing strategies for community involvement in school-to-work activities, and a technical assistance component to provide affiliates with support in the replication of effective school-to-work models.

YOUTH APPRENTICESHIP

Youth apprenticeship is typically a multi-year program that combines school and work-based learning in a specific occupational area or occupational cluster and is designed to lead directly into either a related postsecondary program, entry-level job, or registered apprenticeship program. Youth apprenticeships may or may not include financial compensation.