The traditional high school model isn鈥檛 working for many of today鈥檚 teenagers. Coursework often fails to inspire, as evidenced by high rates of student disengagement and absenteeism. And a disconnect between the classroom and real-world learning leaves countless students unprepared to make informed decisions about post-graduation plans.
Experts, from policy analysts to state lawmakers to 糖心动漫vlog themselves, have begun to call for change. Some states, including Delaware and Indiana, have emerged as trailblazers in the quest to redesign the high school experience.
Indiana鈥檚 diploma redesign plan, which aims to give students the received final approval from state education officials a year ago, after a . Educators had pushed back against they felt leaned too far into work experiences and away from college readiness, but the final model was supported by all of Indiana鈥檚 public colleges and universities. Meanwhile, the Delaware Pathways initiative, a collaborative effort between education, business, and community leaders, centers on a .
Earlier this month, Education Week hosted a webinar on how best to prepare high school students for college and career, featuring district leaders in both those states.
Kate Marvel oversees career and technical education at the Smyrna school district in Delaware. At the district鈥檚 single high school, every student selects at least one of 20 鈥攆rom education to culinary and hospitality management to finance鈥攁nd completes three sequential levels of related coursework alongside their traditional academic classes.
Each pathway also offers students the option to participate in a work-based experience, like an on- or off-campus internship. This year, an estimated 43% of the school鈥檚 seniors embraced that opportunity鈥攎ore than double the percentage in 2021 and closer than ever to the district鈥檚 goal of 100% participation by Smyrna seniors.
Mark Peterson, the director of internships at Chesterton High School in Indiana, oversees the school鈥檚 program, which involves developing relationships with local businesses and preparing and placing seniors in internship placements that align with their career interests.
Marvel and Peterson shared six strategies that have allowed the high school students in their districts to experience, first-hand, real-world learning that can shape their future career and college choices.
1. Proactively build relationships with local businesses.
Strong partnerships with local businesses have been key to the success of Chesterton High School鈥檚 Career Exploration program, Peterson said. But building those partnerships required significant work upfront.
While the benefits to students of real-world learning experiences may be obvious, businesses might not see the advantage of overseeing an (unpaid) internship for a 17-year-old鈥攏ot initially, anyway.
To get the word out, Peterson partnered with the local business chamber, which became a strong advocate for the program. As more and more local businesses became open to the idea of hosting student interns, Peterson invited them to share their success stories with other community organizations to expand the program鈥檚 reach.
2. Get creative about fitting experiential learning into students鈥� schedules.
Finding time in students鈥� course schedules can sometimes be the sticking point to accessing internships, Peterson said.
Students鈥� academic schedules do tend to become more open in their senior year, however, as they complete general requirements and can choose from a number of electives, Peterson said. In these instances, administrators at Chesterton High decided to allow students to substitute an elective with a vetted internship.
In most cases, allowing that adjustment has proved worthwhile.
鈥淚t鈥檚 really neat when the kids come back, and we hear them speak the language and describe the experiences they鈥檝e had that help them understand what they might want to go into after graduation,鈥� Peterson said.
3. Consider what career pathways students want to pursue.
Delaware has been active in developing career pathways that align with the state鈥檚 labor market needs, said Marvel. But the pathways don鈥檛 always include options that capture students鈥� interest, she added.
For instance, legal studies used to be part of the state鈥檚 career pathways. Student interest in the program waned, statewide labor market data didn鈥檛 show much of a need for it, and the program was eventually dropped, Marvel said. But recently, Smyrna students began expressing a renewed interest in legal studies.
鈥淥ur students started asking, 鈥業f I want to be a lawyer, or if I want to be a police officer, which pathway do I choose?鈥欌�� Marvel said. 鈥淚t was our responsibility to adjust to what our community and our students wanted.鈥�
Ultimately, the district decided to re-establish a local legal studies pathway that was approved by the state. The program will be broad enough not to pigeonhole students into, say, a career in law or correctional services, Marvel said. But it鈥檚 more specific than the pre-existing business pathway that students likely would have been steered toward if they hadn鈥檛 launched a legal studies option.
4. Ensure that staff can advise students on career pathway options.
With some schools offering upwards of 20 career pathways, students need advice and support to choose the right one. At Smyrna, school counselors are expected to be able to provide that support, Marvel said.
鈥淚t is critical that our counselors know the difference between the Academy of Finance and the Academy of Accounting,鈥� she said.
To that end, the school provides professional development to educate school counselors on the different pathways and encourages strong communication between counselors and teachers who teach the courses.
鈥淲e need to make sure counselors can point students in the right direction,鈥� Marvel said.
5. Establish expectations for business partners and students.
Overseeing student interns can be a new experience for some business professionals. To help, Peterson said the Chesterton district developed a contract that its business partners must sign. The contract acts as an explanation and agreement regarding what business partners can expect from students, such as timeliness, and, in turn, what students can expect to gain from the experience, such as mentorship and opportunities to learn about the business.
For most high school students, too, an internship experience is new territory. Marvel said that, within the career pathway coursework at Smyrna, students practice skills that apply to every aspect of the professional experience: creating a resume, interview tips, business etiquette and expectations, and more.
6. Inform students and parents that career pathways broaden, not limit, future options.
Historically, CTE and career pathways have been considered narrow avenues toward skilled trades rather than an opportunity to learn about possible future professions. And in some cases, that continues to be true.
But a growing number of districts are working to establish career pathway programs that provide all students with a stronger knowledge base of possible career options鈥攂oth those that require higher education and those that don鈥檛.
Part of Marvel鈥檚 job involves getting parents and students to understand that CTE doesn鈥檛 have to lock them into a particular post-graduation pathway.
鈥淲e have just as many career and technical areas that would promote you to go to college as going straight into industry or into the military,鈥� she said. 鈥淲hat I think we鈥檙e doing is giving students a broad idea of all the possibilities, so that students are aware.鈥�
