COOPERATIVE EDUCATION

Cooperative Education is a unique program for students, integrating academic study with practical experience in business and industry. This learning experience helps students make informed decisions about future work, careers and education. Students develop the work habits, attitudes and job skills necessary for a successful transition from school to the workplace or other post-secondary destinations.

 What is Cooperative Education?

• Cooperative Education is a program that allows students to earn secondary school credits while completing a work placement in the community.

• A student’s co-op program consists of the cooperative education course, which is monitored by a cooperative education teacher, and the related curriculum course (that is, a course in any discipline, such as business studies, mathematics, or technological education). Every student in a co-op program must have a Student Cooperative Education Learning Plan (SCELP), which shows how the student’s related curriculum course is being applied at his or her co-op placement.

• The cooperative education course consists of a classroom component and a placement component. The classroom component includes pre-placement instruction, which prepares students for the workplace and includes instruction in areas of key importance such as health and safety, and classroom sessions held at various times during and after the placement, which provide opportunities for students to reflect on and reinforce their learning in the workplace.

• Cooperative education allows students to participate in valuable learning experiences that help prepare them for the next stage of their lives, whether in apprenticeship training, college, community living, university, or the workplace.

• Co-op placements are arranged for students by their school and must follow Ministry of Education policy and guidelines.

How Does Cooperative Education Work?

A company agrees to provide a placement for a student and designates an employee to supervise the learning. A scheduled interview determines the student’s acceptance. Work schedules vary: (half, full, consecutive, alternate days, or summer). Learning opportunities at the placement are linked with a student’s academic studies, education plan, and personal goals and abilities through a Student Cooperative Education Learning Plan. The teacher, the student and the placement supervisor work together to design the learning plan. The teacher monitors regularly to assess student progress, with supervisor’s input and to promote successful student learning. Credit(s) are awarded upon successful completion of program expectations.

Central Cooperative Education placements in the Toronto Catholic District School Board 

Students may apply and interview for placement opportunities with:

• Hospitals

• Emergency Medical Services

• Police Services

• Toronto Fire Services

• Army Reserve

• TCDSB Facilities Department

• Continuous In-Take Cooperative Education

How does Cooperative Education benefit students?

Cooperative Education gives students the opportunity to:

• Make connections between school and work and to “try out” a career of interest before finalizing plans for postsecondary education, training, or employment;

• See the relevance of their classroom learning in a work setting;

• Develop the essential skills and work habits required in the workplace and acquire a direct understanding of employer and workplace expectations;

• Gain valuable work experience to help build their resume for postsecondary programs and future employment;

• Experience authentic and purposeful learning outside a traditional classroom setting.

• Earn up to 2 credits to count towards the 18 compulsory credits plus additional elective credits for their diploma

• Providing a focus for exploring career choices

• Increase awareness of workplace opportunities and realities

• Develop essential transferable skills

• Build a network for future employment

• Enhance the possibility of acceptance into specialized apprenticeship, college and university programs

• Make a smooth transition to life after high school

How does Cooperative Education help students meet Diploma requirements?

Cooperative Education credits may be used to meet up to two of the 18 compulsory credit requirements for the Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD).

Students must also earn 12 optional credits for the OSSD. There is no limit on the number of optional credits that may be earned through cooperative education courses.

Under the ministry-approved framework for the new Specialist High Skills Major (SHSM) designation within the OSSD, students must earn a minimum of two cooperative education credits as one of the five required components of a SHSM. Cooperative education credits are also a required component of other specialized programs, such as school-to-work and school-to-apprenticeship (OYAP) programs.