Schoolwide Focus (Charter/Non-Charter)

Career Development and Technical Education

Career Pathways/Academies

Culminating Projects

Partnerships

Project-Based Learning

Service Learning

Work-Based Learning

Association for Career and Technical Education

The Association for Career and Technical Education is the largest national education association dedicated to the advancement of education that prepares youth and adults for careers. Users may access many publications through the the online ACTE Store. Other online information is limited to the group's members.

National Career Development Association

The National Career Development Association (NCDA), a division of the American Counseling Association (ACA), promotes the career development of all people over the life span. NCDA provides service to the public and professionals involved with or interested in career development, including professional development activities, publications, research, public information, professional standards, advocacy, and recognition for achievement and service. Career Development resources are available through the online Career Resource Store. Some information is limited to members.

Skills USA - VICA

SkillsUSA-VICA is a national organization serving students and professionals enrolled in technical, skilled, and service occupations, including health occupations. VICA offers support to students, teachers, alumni, and business, and holds competitions through its local chapters nationwide. This Web site provides access to the organization's products and services.

The National Dissemination Center for Career and Technical Education

This Web site is dedicated to research-based information in the field of career and technical education. It features discussion groups, exemplary and promising programs, professional development resources, project profiles, publications, and many more resources for those in the career and technical education field. This site is sponsored by a consortium of five universities working under the U.S. Department of Education.

Wisconsin Careers: Web site and Catalog of Products and Services

Wisconsin Careers provides career development materials, technical support, and training for schools, postsecondary institutions, and adult workforce development agencies in the state of Wisconsin. Click the link above to take a guest tour of the Wisconsin Careers Web site.

The Wisconsin Careers catalog features products such as: Career Visions, a multimedia career information CD for all age levels; and How to…on CD, a compendium of more than 500 classroom activities designed to infuse career development into the regular curriculum.

Career Academy Support Network

This organization, housed within the Graduate School or Education at University of California at Berkeley, fosters the growth of Career Academies through research and publication. The group's Web site includes many publications and links for Career Academies.

National Academy Foundation

The National Academy Foundation (NAF) sustains a national network of career academies. These academies are business/school partnerships designed to prepare young people for future careers through a combination of school-based curricula and work-based experiences. The Web site contains information about NAF's services, publications, and national conferences.

FAMS

Developed by Ford Motor Company, FAMS is a school-business partnership program that provides students with opportunities to learn about science, math, technology, and communications in real-world contexts. Designed as a career academy model, FAMS consists of application-based courses and modules taken in grades 10 through 12. While the curriculum is based on manufacturing themes, the skills and knowledge that students acquire are applicable to any career.

A three-semester program for high school juniors and seniors. Integrated units include: (1) a personal development, career exploration, and skill-building seminar; (2) a senior practicum involving 75 hours of supervised fieldwork in a researched career area; and (3) a workshop to support the creation of a final assessment product, writing of a substantive reflection paper, and preparation for the Defense of the research findings. This process was originally developed by Henry Ford Academy and is available for replication.

A comprehensive, experiential learning program for high school seniors. Individually designed projects include internships with local community agencies or businesses, intensive research, or cultural, artistic, performance-based projects. Students maintain written daily journals, discuss their topics with one another and meet with project mentors. Each student submits a journal for evaluation and gives an oral presentation before a panel of students, teachers and community members. WISE Services tailors each WISE program to meet local needs.

Senior Projects Institute

The Senior Projects Institute is for educational leaders interested in adopting Senior Projects as a culminating experience for high school seniors. The institutes were developed by the Center on Education and Work (CEW) along with national leaders in senior project design and management.

This manual provides step by step guidelines for the initial formation of a collaboration. It discusses how collaborations may maintain momentum and involve youth and businesses. Available from the The National Assembly of National Voluntary Health and Social Welfare Organizations, 1991. Call: (202) 347-2080.

A complete guide to putting together a collaboration: how to get a collaboration started, defining anticipated results, determining roles, creating an action plan, and evaluating results. Includes a case study, worksheets, and special sidebars with helpful tips such as what to do at your first meeting. Available from the Amherst H. Wilder Foundation. Call: Call toll-free: 1-800-274-6024

The Virtual Schoolhouse

The Virtual Schoolhouse is a compendium of project-based learning practices from across the country. The Web site, a joint project of the U.S. Departments of Education and Labor, also explores concepts commonly associated with project-based learning.

The Massachusetts Career Majors Initiative

The Massachusetts Career Majors Initiative provides additional information about project-based learning, including a chart that compares the features of traditional instruction with those of project-based learning.

The Buck Institute: Project-Based Learning

This site provides a specific project-based learning model that draws on successful teachers' strategies as well as research on student learning. The full text of PBL: An Overview of Project Based Learning is accessible online, and Project Based Learning Handbook can be ordered through the Institute.

Jobs for the Future

Jobs for the Future (JFF) is a nonprofit research, consulting, and advocacy organization. The Web site's Knowledge Center provides free access to all JFF publications and products. Use a keyword search on project-based learning to find related resources.

Meridian

This online journal provides a Web-based copy of Getting a Grip on Project-Based Learning: Theory, Cases and Recommendations by Michael M. Grant. This article examines the theoretical foundatons of project-based learning.

Project-Based Science

An initiative of the University of Michigan School of Education, Project-Based Science (PBS) seeks to improve the way science classes are taught by involving students in finding solutions to authentic questions through extended inquiry, collaboration and use of technology. The Web site outlines the essential features of PBS and offers related links.

Among other services, this organization offers specialized content in project-based learning.

Guajome Park Academy's Web site offers a comprehensive overview of project-based learning and sample guides/rubrics and projects for educators. The site also offers links to other project-based learning resources.

Learning in Deed is a national initiative to engage young people in service to others as part of their academic life. This site is a tool for becoming more informed about and involved in service learning.

The Clearinghouse supports the service learning community by providing general information and referrals as well as practical materials. This Web site also maintains a library collection, which includes online documents. The Clearinghouse is a project of ETR Associates and is funded by the Corporation for National and Community Service.

American Youthworks Charter School of Austin, Texas, provides this free guide to service learning and community partnerships. The CD-Rom offers practical tools for forming partnerships that bring real-world opportunities to students and provide for community engagement. Write: 216 E. 4th Street, Austin, TX 78701. Phone: (800) 472-8220. Email: moreinfo@ail.org.

This organization, managed by the National Association of Business, advocates and supports school-to-careers initiatives combining classroom courses and real-life learning. This Web site includes resources, publications, and an employer model for involvement in education.

The Education Development Center, Inc. (EDC) is a nonprofit organization with 350 projects. One of their subdivisions, Integrating Work & Learning, offers information on work-based learning, including content tours of initiatives with partner organizations and links to all EDC projects related to school-to-career programs.