Welcome to HFA Senior Mastery Process (Practicum) Page!

The Practicum Experience at Henry Ford Academy is a supervised work-based learning experience in which students are placed with an Adult Partner. With the guidance of the Adult Partner, the Program Director, and meaningful learning activities, students will research specific questions about issues that are intriguing and challenging. Students must complete 75 hours of fieldwork over a 6 1/2  week period in order to fulfill the Senior Practicum requirements. Since the Practicum is considered an extension of classroom learning, students are not compensated during the duration of the experience. Students are responsible for their own transportation. Also, because of the fact that it is considered an extension of classroom learning, liability is not an issue.

NO HOME-BASED PLACEMENTS WILL BE AUTHORIZED.

 PRACTICUM WILL NOT COUNT FOR COMMUNITY SERVICE HOURS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The Purpose of Practicum
The primary purpose of the Senior Practicum is to provide students with an opportunity to learn through experience in an environment where they make valuable connections between learning in the classroom and learning beyond the school. The goal is to enable them to become self-initiating learners by developing their own learning plans, choosing research projects that are interesting and challenging to them, and outlining a procedure to successfully implement them. Students choose their research project based on a career interest or personal passion. This experience will assist students in developing an awareness of the skills and attitudes required to function as productive, contributing members of the community. It will enable students to be involved in real-life problem solving, in which they are regarded as valuable and unique individuals whose ideas, opinions, and suggestions are respected and considered seriously. Lastly, the Senior Practicum will expand the students’ awareness of their goals, abilities and interests, relative to their future endeavors.

SENIOR PRACTICUM GOALS:

By the end of the Practicum Experience the students will:

• Have made connections between classroom learning and real world learning.
• Have had the opportunity to learn by doing.
• Have an increased awareness of their own interests, abilities and skills to assist them in identifying and setting future career and personal goals.
• Demonstrate acceptable work habits and life skills.
• Have the opportunity to work with diverse groups of people whenever possible.
• Demonstrate organizational and communication skills.
• Demonstrate an increase in their self-confidence and social maturity.
• Have identified a research project based on their career interest or a personal passion/desire.
• Develop a desire to further pursue their dreams in an area of their interest.

Please refer to the attached Senior Practicum Package for more detailed information.

For more information, please contact Sandy Kesavan, Program Director, at 313-982-6192 or 313-505-7224, email skesavan@hfa-dearborn.org