Work Based Learning: Cooperative Education
Work-Based Learning, formerly Cooperative Education, is a structured component of the Career and Technical Education (CTE) curriculum that integrates classroom instruction with productive, progressive, supervised, work-based experiences related to student’s career objectives. Content is planned for students through a cooperative arrangement between the school and the employer as a component of work-based learning. Students participating in Co-Op gain employability skills & industry experience.
Cooperative Education, known to some simply as "Co-Op," is a partnership between and among students, parents, the school, and area employers. Participating in Co-Op allows a student to earn high school credit for a part-time job or internship. How many hours a student works is only one part in determining how many credits one can earn. Students must work a minimum of 140 hours for each credit earned.
Students may earn a maximum of four credits for Co-Op per school year and must be a senior or junior to participate.
Purpose/Objective
The purpose of Cooperative Education is to provide work-based experiences in approved training stations that typically cannot be obtained in the classroom.
Students: Meet with the Coordinator one class period per week to maintain all required documentation and coursework and to accommodate student and employer needs based on individual circumstances. The student must adhere to all policies of the program and training station/agency. Students must maintain transportation to continue with work-based experience. The student must have a minimum of 140 hours of paid work experience per semester.
Parents/Guardians: Provide ongoing support to the student. They should support the goals and policies of cooperative education and assume responsibility for the conduct of the student. Parents/guardians must sign all required forms. Parents/guardians must arrange transportation for the student to and from the training station, and assume responsibility for the conduct of the student.
Employers: Employs a non-discrimination policy with regard to race, color, handicap, sex, religion, national origin, creed, or age. Provides supervision and instruction in applicable tasks to assist the student in acquiring competencies necessary for success in the career objective. They are responsible for evaluating student progress.
Weekly Wage and Hour Report: Compliance with all Federal and Alabama Child Labor and minimum wage laws is required. Students may not work in a training station that would pay a lower training wage for hours worked. Each student must keep a record of hours worked each day, and wages earned in his or her job. These records are submitted each grading period for verification of employment.
