Conclusion

Canadian youth need to have access to school-to-work transition programs to reduce high unemployment rates and the time it takes them to transition into full-time, meaningful work. The OECD in their review of 14 countries’ approach to school-to-work transitions concluded that there is neither a single answer to effective transition nor is there a single problem to be addressed (2000). This makes it difficult for countries to move forward with a singular plan for improving youth transitions to the labour market. Nevertheless, a strategic multi-pronged framework is needed. Canada continues to have no national policy on school-to-work transitions despite the continued length in time it takes youth to make this transition and the number of highly qualified youth in low-skilled jobs. The research indicated a number of issues for further action:

• Governments at all levels need to have greater commitment and leadership to improve school-to-work transitions;
• The decentralized approach in Canada is not resulting in more equitable access for youth. A strategic framework and co-operation from all levels of government is needed in order to respond to local need but to also meet broader goals at a national level for improving school-to-work transitions;
• For VET to become a viable option, governments need to be more actively involved; Articulation and partnerships are needed between high school and PSE institutions so that there is mobility and bridges to support career changes and career advancement for youth; Educators need to understand the world of work and how it relates to youth transitions to the labour market;
• Work experience is vital to school-to-work transitioning and needs to be made available at the high school level;
• An evidence-base is needed to articulate how to better support student transitions. To make this happen, more funding and more attention needs to be paid to evaluating programs, policies and practices;
• Using this evidence-base, build programs, practices and policies which will be sustainable and viable for long-term application and use by all youth;
• Review measures to ensure equitable access;
• Consistent and sustained career education and career development services are needed to support youth prior to and during this transition;
• Employers and labour need to be involved at the policy and program level. The case for their involvement needs to be made in order to engage them;
• A social marketing approach is needed to address the social and cultural attitudes of parents, teachers, employers and students about the various school-to-work pathways.

The WLKC inventory is a small representation of the number of measures available in Canada to address school-to-work transitions. Research points to the need for a more consolidated and collective school-to-work strategy endorsed at all levels of government. The entries in WLKC’s school-to-work inventory exemplify the ad hoc nature of school-to-work measures available in Canada, but these initiatives also highlight many innovative, effective and promising policies, programs and practices which can serve as reference for building a more unified strategy.