One of the purposes of education is to prepare students to become productive workers. Job skills have increased in importance as technology continues to advance. Education and other forms of training have become lifelong enterprises (Straszheim, 1997). The challenge for all levels of education is how to prepare students for a future workplace with technological requirements that may be far different from those that have been predicted. Consideration of school-to-career issues can be found at all levels of education, from elementary through undergraduate and graduate levels. Federal, state, and local governments have been actively involved in identifying and promoting the integration of occupational skills with curricula.

HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE

The Secretary's Commission on Achieving Necessary Skills (SCANS) was formed in 1990 by the U.S. secretary of labor to investigate the skills needed by young people to succeed in the world of work. Thirty representatives of from the areas education, business, labor, and state government worked for two years to arrive at a definition of workplace know-how. The commission's initial 1991 report, What Work Requires of Schools, identified three foundation areas (basic skills, thinking skills, and personal qualities) and five workplace competencies (resources, interpersonal, information, systems, and technology). Successful workers need to be able to acquire and interpret all forms of data. Rote learning is inadequate in a rapidly changing information society. An overabundance of data indicates a need for workers who can efficiently locate and analyze requisite information, determine patterns, and communicate in appropriate formats to the necessary recipients. They will be required to understand and improve social, organizational, and technological systems. Successful workers need to be able to select, apply, and maintain technology. SCANS also found that a high-performance workplace requires workers with solid literacy and computational skills. Successful workers need thinking skills to apply their knowledge as well as such personal qualities as responsibility, self-management, and integrity. The SCANS foundation skills and workplace competencies provide a basis for the development of educational programs designed to foster the development of requisite workplace skills.

Legislators have considered the issue of connecting school-based learning to work-based learning. The objectives of the School-to-Work Opportunities Act of 1994 addressed the following congressional concerns:

• High school students' lack of academic and entry-level occupational skills necessary to succeed in a changing U.S. workplace
• A substantial high school dropout rate
• High youth unemployment

Of necessity, academic standards need to be connected to occupational standards in order to meet the intent of this legislation (Packer and Kane, 1994).

Since the School-to-Work Opportunities Act of 1994 became law, state and local partnerships across the country have worked with the National School-to-Work Office to refine the eight core elements essential to creating school-to-work systems in order to provide guidance to states and local partnerships as they plan and implement school-to-work systems. The eight elements, including opportunities for all youth and a core curriculum that provides a continuum of school-to-work elements, are examined in "Eight Key School-to-Work System Building Elements,"(1997).

North Lake College, located in Irving, Texas, addressed curriculum applications of seven of the SCANS workplace skill areas under a grant from a 1994 partnership of the Texas Education Agency, the Texas Department of Commerce, and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board. One of the objectives was the application of national occupational standards to the development of technical and occupational programs. This project resulted in a model for instilling workplace skills into academic and occupational programs at the secondary, post-secondary, and apprenticeship levels. The four-phase process included occupational profiling, curriculum enhancement, faculty development, and testing and certification (The National School-To-Work Learning and Information Center, 1997).

David Douglas High School, in Portland, Oregon, has a comprehensive school-to-work system known as STARS (Students Taking Authentic Routes to Success). One of ten schools selected in 1996 to be showcased by the U.S. Department of Education as a New American High School, David Douglas is a recognized leader in Oregon. The school has worked in partnership with the Oregon Business Council to redesign its high school program to meet the expectations of the Oregon Education Act for the 21st Century.

INITIATIVES AT ALL LEVELS

In 1993 the SCANS/2000 Program at Johns Hopkins University recognized teachers in grades 4 through 8 who taught workplace know-how through innovative projects that captured the imagination of students. The winning projects reflected five categories: microsocieties (students held jobs and paid bills while participating in a fictional community); school stores (students sold goods and services for profit); media publications (students created multimedia publications, newspapers, or stories); construction and manufacturing enterprises (students designed and assembled a product while learning academic content and work skills); and workplace-based activities (students had contact with employers and the public in actual work environments).

One of these, the Parkland School District University (PSDU) project, grew out of a fifthgrade exploration of geometry and architecture. After students learned about Thomas Jefferson's role as an architect, they designed and built a model university. Students interacted with professionals in numerous fields (architecture, landscaping, real estate, banking, engineering, drafting, law, investment, entrepreneurship, and education), eventually "assuming" these roles. Their initial sketches progressed to scale drawings, blueprints, and the final product—a 400-square-foot model of the university (PSDU). Students successfully accomplished a long-term goal while performing tasks and utilizing skills valued in the work force.

Education cones, school articulation structures to foster the development of career education in grades K-12, are used to group Utah schools. The County School District initiated theschool-to-work curriculum with career awareness activities in the cone's seven elementary schools. For instance, second-grade students studying weights and measures visit local grocery stores to experience real-world applications of their learning. Junior high students examine career options and participate in shadowing and mentoring activities. High school students participate in work-based experiences, including internships and apprenticeships. These experiences are integrated with the students' school-based learning.

A growing pool of resources supports the school-to-career movement. For example, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) has dedicated a portion of the Department of Labor Educational Resources WebSite to career guidance information for elementary students http://stats.bls.gov/k12/html/edu–tch.htm. The information presented—in the format "Jobs for Kids Who Like…"—has been culled from Occupational Outlook Handbook, the bureau's publication that serves as a resource for high school juniors, seniors, and graduates.

APPRENTICESHIP

The federal government began overseeing apprenticeships after passing the National Apprenticeship Act in 1937. A Michigan program— School to Registred Apprenticeships (STRA)— connects high school students with licensed apprenticeships in skilled trades (Moorlehem, 1998). In its first year, STRA trained individuals in fifty-four schools to set up apprenticeships. The program allows students to begin working in their chosen career while still in high school. Employers pay for college courses and oversee students for four years. Local high school vocational-technical centers provide additional information on apprenticeship programs.

JUNIOR ACHIEVEMENT

Junior Achievement is a nonprofit economic education organization with K-12 programs taught by classroom volunteers from the business community. More than 2.6 million U.S. students are involved each year. Through seven curricula targeted for grades K-6, Junior Achievement programs teach basic business and economic concepts. The middle school programs build on the elementary programs, while the high school programs help students make informed decisions regarding their future ("Junior Achievement,"1998).

JOB SHADOWING

Job shadowing is a way to provide students with an understanding of career requirements and the relationship between school and careers. The Boston Private Industry Council instituted the first Groundhog JobShadow Day in 1996 as part of its school-to-work initiatives ("Groundhog Shadow Day," 1998). In 1997 it spread throughout the Southeast when sponsored by BellSouth as part of its school-to-work efforts. More than 125,000 students participated in 1998 when national participation was promoted by a coalition of America's Promise, the National School-to-Work Opportunities Office, Junior Achievement, and the American Society of Association Executives. Students have an opportunity to visit a job site, shadow an employee, and become involved in some workplace activities.

The Lehigh Valley [Pennsylvania] Business/Education Partnership (LVBEP), one of whose goals is to promote and facilitate school-to-work learning opportunities, has worked with schools and businesses to arrange hundreds of "Shadow Days" each year ("Student Shadow Program,"1999). These experiences allow students to discuss careers with practicing professionals. It is expected that increased interest in school-to-career activities in area schools will result in shadow days numbering in the thousands. The LVBEP, in collaboration with other organizations, also sponsors an annual Senior High School Leadership Conference. Workshops at the conference address issues pertaining to becoming leaders in the twenty-first century. Other programs offered by LVBEP include:

• Koalaty Kid—students learn about total quality management principles
• Teacher internship programs
• Take N.O.T.E.S.—students learn first-hand about medical careers
• Pathways—business expertise is shared with students

Hamilton and Hamilton (1997) include job shadowing as one of eight major types of workbased learning. They divided job shadowing into three categories: (1) visits to workplaces, which include field trips and actual jobshadowing; (2) work-like experiences, which include service learning, unpaid internships, and youth-run enterprises; and (3) employment, which includes youth jobs, subsidized employment training, cooperative education and paid internships, and apprenticeships. Their article. "When Is Learning Work-Based?," offers a range of options for educators to consider in developing school-to-career programs.

MENTORING

Mentoring involves an ongoing relationship between a student and an adult. Project Turn Around, developed by Progressive Learning, is an educational and mentoring program for students who do not perform well in traditional classroom situations ("Inaugural Celebration," 1999). Inaugurated in California in December 1998, this program will provide the computer technology for students in grades 7 through 12 to learn competitive jobskills under the supervision of on-line mentors recruited from across the nation.