Study of School-to-Work Transition Education Reform

With funding from the U.S. Department of Education‚ the National Institute for Work and Learning (NIWL) undertook a four-year Study of School-to-Work Transition Education Reform. The study focused on the planning‚ design‚ implementation‚ and impact of school-to-work transition reform initiatives. By documenting the design and integrity of exemplary programs and by assessing program experiences and impacts‚ the study offered critical lessons for those interested in adapting or adopting programs that effectively linked schools with the business community to improve the transition from school to work. Activities undertaken to carry out the study included: a comprehensive review and synthesis of the state of the art on school-to-work transition; the commissioning of a series of papers on critical issues; the convening of a national conference; fourteen case studies of exemplary school-to-work transition reform initiatives; a cross-case comparison of the fourteen case studies; and the dissemination of diverse products to the research‚ policy‚ and education communities.

The primary goal of the study was to obtain firsthand information about exemplary instances of school-to-work transition reform. To accomplish this‚ NIWL conducted case studies in fourteen communities across the United States. The research team sought to learn about the contexts in which reform occurred‚ its planning‚ design‚ implementation‚ and impact‚ especially on students. More specifically‚ the study focused on the following: contexts of reform‚ planning and design‚ structure of reform‚ implementation‚ collaboration‚ student competencies‚ curriculum‚ resources‚ impacts and outcomes.