What is Cooperative Education?
Cooperative Education is a program that allows students to earn high school credits while completing a work placement in the community.
The Cooperative Education course consists of a classroom component and a placement component. The classroom component includes 15 to 20 hours of pre-placement instruction which prepares students for the workplace. Issues such as worker responsibility, health and safety, and confidentiality are addressed. As well, regular reflective sessions are held which provide opportunities for students to reflect on and reinforce their learning at the workplace.
All students in the Cooperative Education program are monitored by a Cooperative Education teacher.
Each student will be involved in co-creating a Student Cooperative Education Learning Plan (SCELP); this document allows the teacher and student to assess student progress relative to chosen curricular expectations, learning goals and success criteria.
Program Benefits to Students
Cooperative Education gives the student the opportunity to:
make connections between school and work and to "try out" a career of interest before finalizing plans for post-secondary education, training, or employment
see the relevance of their classroom learning in a work setting
develop essential skills and work habits required in the workplace and acquire a direct understanding of employer and workplace expectations and;
gain valuable work experience to help build their resume for future employment and post-secondary programs.
Cooperative Education credits may be used to meet up to two (2) of the 18 compulsory credits for the Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD). There is no limit on the number of optional credits that may be earned through Cooperative Education courses.
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