Cooperative education complements career education and provides an opportunity to practice employability skills; allows for experimentation with nontraditional occupations; exposes employers to emerging workforce diversity; expands student contacts, networks, and references; provides knowledge about work organization, structure, communication, management styles, and personnel roles; and provides an opportunity for students to acquire transferable skills and increase self-esteem. The current cooperative education system works reasonably well at the post-secondary level. At the secondary level, however, it is not structured enough, nor is it appropriately integrated into the curriculum. Canada cannot afford to wait any longer to develop an accessible cooperative education system for all high-school students. This would be a waste of human potential. Developing the new system proposed in this report requires commitment from education institutions, employers, and communities.
We believe that educators must find ways to make the school experience relevant for all youth and adults -- not only those who are academically oriented -- and parents, teachers, counsellors, employers, and workers must convey the message that education improves access to meaningful employment.
Key recommendations