Transforming California’s High Schools: The case for Linked Learning
Masaru Ibuka Auditorium at the International Conference Center of Waseda University
August 22, 2019
Keynote Address
Dr. Corinne Martinez
California State University Lon Beach【解説】
以下は 2019 年 8 月 22 日に実施された日本キャリア教育学会国際交流委員会主催「国際交流セミナー」にて行われた、コリーン・マルチネズ博士（カリフォルニア州立大学ロングビーチ校准教授）による基調講演の手持ち原稿である。ご本人の承諾を得て掲載させていただく。本講演の当日の同時通訳原稿（日本語）については、キャリア教
育研究第 38 巻第 2 号（2020 年 3 月発行）の 51 頁から 60 頁に掲載がある。また、以下に示されているスライド 1 からスライド 27 までは、同キャリア教育研究 61 頁から74 頁に掲載されている。なお、本原稿は、コリーン・マルチネズ博士の手持ち原稿であり、基調講演当日の時間的な制約などの理由で必ずしも同時通訳原稿（日本語）と一
致はしていないことをお断りしておく。（日本キャリア教育学会国際交流委員会）【基調講演原稿】
INTRODUCTION[SLIDE 1]

Hello everyone, I am honored to be here today. I travelled a long way to be here with you and I
am thankful to my colleague Professor Takao Mimura and the Japanese Society for the Study ofCareer Education, Waseda University and the Waseda Association for Career Education for
inviting me to share with you the work of high school transformation in California. I am very
excited that today’s seminar focuses on the role of career technical education in providing
young people with the academic, technical, and employability skills and knowledge topursue postsecondary training or higher education.

My talk today, recognizes the importance of preparing all students for the 21st century alongwith meeting both national and state accountability measures and introduces the Linked Learning1

approach as a promising school reform model that answers these objectives. I will share with you
aspects of the Linked Learning approach that are conducive to molding student success both in
the U.S and Japanese education system.
Before I begin with my remarks, let’s learn a bit more about who is in the room today. Raise
your hand if you work in a . . .
An Elementary School
Junior High School
High school
District Central Office
Post-Secondary Institution
State Agency
Employer/Business
Other Type of organization[SLIDE 2 - AGENDA]
My presentation today will begin with a discussion of growing concerns over America’s
educational system – concerns that may be well-displayed within modern Japanese education, as
well. I will then describe how secondary education in California has been redesigned to addressthese concerns, within the context of one reform model, Linked Learning. I will share an
overview of Linked Learning, including key aspects that are relevant to elementary schools,
middle schools, and high schools. We will view a short video of what it looks like in practice. I
will share with you the impact Linked Learning is having on student outcomes. And review
factors that researchers believe contribute to the success of Linked Learning and then end withcomments about the future of Linked Learning. We will have time for questions toward the endof the presentation.
[SLIDE 3 – CONCERNS]GROWING CONCERNS OVER EDUCATION IN THE UNITED STATES
Today, there is growing concern in the United States that the taught curriculum needs to bereconsidered and redesigned. Decisions about ‘what’s in’ and ‘what’s out’ change from time to2

time depending on political needs, workforce demands and national aspirations. In the 1970’s theUnited States ranked among the world’s top educational systems, in terms of attainment, in termsof achievement. The most recent data from international math and science assessments indicatethat U.S. students continue to rank around the middle, and behind many other advanced
industrial nations on international assessments, such as the Programme for International Student
Assessment (PISA) (D. Desilver, 2017).

Equally important, however, is the achievement gap between white, black and Latino students
as well as between students from affluent and impoverished families. For decades, researchers
have documented racial and ethnic achievement gaps. Results from the 2017 National
Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP). Often referred to as “the Nation’s Report Card,”
provides a bi-annual barometer on how states and the country as a whole are performing in theclassroom. A few patterns are evident in this latest report card.
[SLIDE 4 – NAEP DATA]
For example,
1. White-black and white-Hispanic achievement gaps have, in general, narrowed
substantially since the 1970s in all grades and in both math and reading.
2. As of 2012, the white-black and white-Hispanic achievement gaps were 30-40% smaller
than they were in the 1970s.
3. In 2017, race based gaps ranged from 0.5 to 0.7 standard deviations. (Stanford CEPA,2019)
In spite of the positive trends on race-based gaps in the 2017 NAEP assessment, there is still awide gap between different groups of students. And, these gaps have become a focal point ofreformers’ and policymakers’ efforts to address educational inequities.
[SLIDE 5 – CHANGES IN THE US ECONOMY]
Additionally, the U.S. like Japan has seen fundamental changes in the economy, jobs, andbusinesses that have reshaped workplaces and the nature of work.

Over the last several decades, the industrial economy based on manufacturing has shifted to aservice economy driven by information, knowledge, innovation and creativity. Today, more than3

80 percent of jobs are in the service sector, which includes high-growth, high-wage and highskilled occupations in new and emerging industries. In this new, globally interconnectedeconomy, companies have changed how they are organized and the way they do business.
Technology has supported these changes, which include decentralized decision making,information sharing and the use of task teams, cross-organizational networking, and flexible
work arrangements.

Now more than ever, individuals must be able to perform non-routine, creative tasks if they areto succeed. While skills like creativity, critical thinking, and innovation may not be new to the
21st century, they are newly relevant in school systems where we tend to reward basic skills androte memorization. Whether a high school graduate plans to enter the workforce directly, or
attend a vocational school, community college, or university, it is a requirement to be able
to think critically, solve problems, communicate, collaborate, and use technology effectively(Partnership for 21st Century Skills 2010).
[SLIDE 6 – QUESTION]As the economy has changed, as social needs have changed and the structure of society haschanged, political and business leaders find that what the US needs is an aligned, connected
system that creates the opportunity for all students to receive an education that enables them tocontinue their learning beyond high school. So one of the questions that education leaders
have grappled with, is how do we improve America’s schools in ways that help closeachievement gaps between the lowest and highest-performing students, and between thepoorest and most affluent while at the same time preparing students to compete for 21st
century jobs?
Ten years ago, the Obama administration announced a new kind incentive program “Race to thetop” and allocated 4.35 billion dollars, to schools nation-wide. The program rewarded states andschool districts for encouraging certain targeted goals such as better teacher training, developing
curriculum standards and data systems to measure student success, and improving the lowest
achieving schools. The RTTT has since been extended as a new initiative known as theCommon Core State Standards or CCSS. In theory, the Common Core standards insure that all4students, no matter where they live, are prepared for success in post-secondary education and/orin the workforce. The standards are intended to provide greater clarity in what is expected of all
students, and establish a kind of staircase to college and career readiness.
[SLIDE 7 – POLICIES, STANDARDS. . .]Today, under the current version of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA),
virtually every state in the U.S. has developed initiatives for college and career readiness andsuccess. Federal legislation including: the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), theStrengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century Act or better known as
Perkins V, and the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) call for states todevelop a coherent approach to ensuring that all students are prepared for tomorrow’s careers
and workforce demands (Cushing, English, Therriault, and Lavinson, R. (2019).

ESSA, for example, provides funding for public education from kindergarten to 12th grade, andrequires that all students be taught to challenging academic content standards that prepare themto succeed in college and careers.

Perkins V funds states to improve both secondary and postsecondary career and technicaleducation (CTE) programs that prepare students for the real world.

WIOA funds the public workforce development system for education, training, and support
services for youth and adults looking for meaningful employment, with additional funding for
adult education and literacy activities for out-of-school youth and adults who lack a high school
diploma or proficiency in English.

These policies and standards cannot, by themselves, raise student achievement, close theachievement gap, nor insure that all students, no matter where they live, are prepared forsuccess in post-secondary education and/or in the workforce. Likewise, the standards can't
make all students learn. Reformers argue that the impact of common standards and related
legislation will be only as good as the states and school districts defining the new curriculum andthe classroom teachers who implement the new standards in their classrooms.

5Across the U.S., individual states are creating and launching college and career readiness goals
and adding college and career readiness standards and assessments to drive curriculum andinstruction. This is certainly the case in California, - the most populous state in the nation,
the home of Silicon Valley's technology, some of the country’s best universities, including
my alma mater, UCLA. The Golden State has one of the largest economies in the world, is
one of the country's wealthiest, most culturally diverse and politically influential states thathas embarked on a movement to transform its middle school and high schools in ruralcommunities, suburbs and urban centers.

In California, the movement to ensure that more students are ready for college and have what it
takes to enter the world of work and pursue a career pathway is multifaceted and includes
systemic change at the classroom, school, district, and regional levels. Strategic investmentsfrom foundations and the State Department Education, (which has committed more than $2
billion) to help schools and regions establish and expand college and career pathways has
resulted in exponential growth in the number of school districts across California that are
offering or planning to offer readiness opportunities to students.
[SLIDE 8 – LINKED LEARNING IN CA IS TRANSFORMING EDUCATION]
State-funded career academies include California Partnership Academies, academies sponsoredby the National Academy Foundation and Linked Learning pathways. At its technical core,
Linked Learning joins together rigorous college-prep academics, a challenging career or
profession themed curriculum that meets industry standards, and an opportunity for students toapply classroom learning through work-based experiences or other real-world experiences intheir communities. Beyond this defining core, however, Linked Learning encapsulates abroader and clearly transformative vision for the American high school. Linked Learning
began in 9 California school districts and is currently implemented in more than 75 districts,
hundreds of high schools, and several middle schools with more 50,000 students in pathways.
[SLIDE 9 – THE LINKED LEARNING APPROACH]

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As framed by the California Department of Education (CDE) in a report to the California
Legislature, the Linked Learning approach is understood as aiming to “fundamentally change theorientation of the high school experience… [wherein] the school must work with the community
to support students and families… [and where] business, industry, and labor must be engaged in
more integral roles within high schools to help ensure the relevance and applicability of curricula”(California Department of Education, 2010, p. 197).
[SLIDE 10 – VIDEO EXPLANATION]
In the short video featured earlier this afternoon, Gary Hoachlander, the President of the
California Center for College and Education or ConnectEd describes the essential features of the
Linked Learning approach, noting that the transformative power of pathways rest in merging
academic course content with an industry theme. You heard from business leaders and employers
investing in the future of their work force by providing students in Linked Learning pathways
with opportunities such as job shadows, internships and apprenticeships. You saw students likeDavid and Eric reflect on how the fieldtrips, anatomy courses and interning at the local hospitalprovided first-hand experience in the field of health sciences. Teachers commented that knowing
your students, integrating their interests into the curriculum and connecting it to the real world
has empowered them to improve their pedagogy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0mCw2S5hC4E
In the Linked Learning approach, industry-themed pathways (tied to one of California’s fifteen
CTE industry sectors) are created to provide a focus and context for students’ learning. Students
take a specific course of study for their pathway that includes academic courses (e.g., English,social studies, math, and science) and a series of CTE elective courses. The resulting careerthemed pathways infuse CTE curricula within college preparatory education (Saunders,
Hamilton, Fanelli, & Moya, 2013; CSBA, 2014).
[SLIDE 11 – LL CORE COMPONENTS]

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These pathways combine rigorous academics, technical skills, work-based learning, and student
supports (CSBA, 2014; Linked Learning Alliance, n.d.a.; Saunders, Hamilton, Fanelli, & Moya,
2013; Rustique & Stam, 2013; Guha et al., 2014).

Rigorous academics. The challenging academic core is comprised of rigorous courses (a-gcourses) that satisfy requirements for admissions eligibility into the California State University
and University of California systems (Saunders et al., 2013; Rustique & Stam, 2013; Guha et al.,2014). Inquiry based, interdisciplinary units and projects are a critical aspect of Linked
Learning’s rigorous academic core (The Education Trust West, 2015). Specifically, Projectbased Learning (PBL) has become a core instructional delivery model applied within many
Linked Learning pathways (Saunders, 2013).

In the Linked Learning context, PBL supports student learning by integrating curriculum acrossdisciplines and maintaining rigor while students produce real, meaningful projects that preparestthem for 21 century college and careers (Buck Institute for Education, 2011).

Other aspects of Linked Learning include work-based learning opportunities, technical skills
development and integrated student supports.

Work-based Learning. School districts are developing, and scaling, a system of work-basedlearning to ensure its students are prepared for the 21st century economy. The core component ofwork-based learning offers opportunities for students to learn through real-world experiencessuch as internships, apprenticeships, and school-based enterprises (Saunders et al., 2013;
Rustique & Stam, 2013; Guha et al., 2014). A focus on 1 of California’s 15 high employing
industry sectors helps students meet the demands of the twenty-first-century workplace; helps
students make a smooth transition into colleges and universities; and prepares graduates tosuccessfully compete in the global community.
Technical Skills. The technical skills component emphasizes the practical application of realworld skills to prepare students for high-skill, high-wage employment (Saunders et al., 2013;
Rustique & Stam, 2013; Guha et al., 2014). Students learn technical skills such as creativity,8

communication, collaboration, and critical thinking, which represent “the knowledge, skills, andexpertise students should master to succeed in work and life in the 21st century” (p. 2). In theirCTE elective courses and through cross-curricular projects and work-based learning experiences
students reinforce these real-world skills.
Support Services. To ensure students the greatest chance of success in a rigorous pathway,
Linked Learning teachers, counselors and support staff provide comprehensive and integrated
student supports. This personalized attention may include academic and career counseling andadditional instruction or tutoring in reading, writing, and mathematics (Guha et al., 2014).
So, what does Linked Learning look like in practice?
Although my focus here today is on the implementation of Linked Learning at the high school level,
it is important to note that access to college and career readiness opportunities are critical at theelementary and middle school level as well. At the elementary level, for example, K through 5th gradestudents engage in interactive, and informative career experiences. Through activity stations and handson exhibits that are set up in a library or multipurpose room students are able to personally explore
how different interests and skills can link to a future career. Under the direction of the classroom teacher,
students, participate in career exploration activities through lessons and home-based activities presented
in class and available for students to take home with them. As students enter middle school, career
exploration becomes much more critical, because it is at this point that students begin to develop
educational and career aspirations. Furthermore, the ages 10-14 have been found to be a critical time
when students begin to engage or disengage from learning (Camblin, 2003). Given these factors, it isimportant to provide a comprehensive middle school Linked Learning program that focuses on
exploration of postsecondary options, participating in career and college readiness activities, andinformed decision making about future coursework. In order to ensure later success in high school
Linked Learning pathways, school counselors focus on strategies to increase student’s career and college
readiness and strengthening outcomes related to student’s preparedness for high school pathway selection
and college and career readiness knowledge and skills.

At the high school level, the focus is on academic rigor or engaged learning, relevance, andmeaningful use of technology. Each Linked Learning pathway is organized around a career
sector, such as engineering and architecture, biomedical & health sciences, and digital media arts,

9so that students learn through real world experiences and are able to see how what they'relearning in school gets applied beyond the classroom walls.
[SLIDE 12 – ANA’S STORY]At Kearny High School in San Diego, California, for example, students have the option ofenrolling in one of four career pathways. In this short video, Ana describes her high school
experience in the Construction Technology Academy and how it impacted her future. Before
entering a Linked Learning pathway at Construction Tech Academy, Ana dropped out of highschool, twice. She lacked motivation, and had very little interest in attending school. On theverge of dropping out, she enrolled at the Construction Technology Academy at Kearny HighSchool. At Kearny HS, the teachers, staff and counselors work to prepare students for college
and for life after high school. Ana describes how teachers at Kearny integrate architecture andengineering with the academic courses. She recalls her experiences in an advisory course where
she had the opportunity to job shadow a woman who worked as a project manager for the local
school district. She comments on the importance of the skills she developed through groupprojects, presentations and decision-making opportunities. All skills that she uses regularly inher college courses. Today, she is proudly working as an engineer – a career she never thought
she could pursue. She also spends her time mentoring young women who are interested inpursuing careers in construction, engineering and architecture. In all, Ana describes how her
experience in the Construction Tech Academy taught her to be responsible, to show
accountability for her actions and decisions, and to give back to her community by motivating
young women to pursue a career in construction.
As you watch the video, reflect on the following question: How did Ana's high school
experience impact her future postsecondary choices and career path?
https://youtu.be/JgXT-Vxziyg

The Linked Learning approach makes learning exciting and challenging, by connecting strong
academics with real-world experience in a wide range of fields, and helping students prepare forsuccess in college, career, and civic life.

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Students in a traditional high school may spend Periods 1-6 in different classrooms, studying
subjects that have no connection to one another. They may often ask, “Why do I need to know
this?” or “What does it matter?” Students are right to ask these questions, and they deserve better
answers.
For students enrolled in a Linked Learning Engineering pathway, for example, students not
only learn trigonometry and calculus but also how they are applied in designing seismicallysound buildings and bridges. Under the guidance of a professional engineer, they may make amodel of a bridge to evaluate the tensile strength of different materials, and write up their results
and analysis. Additionally, they intern in an architectural or engineering firm interacting withworking adults around real problems.

[SLIDE 13 - PROGRAM OF STUDY]
Here is an example of typical course of study in an Engineering Pathway:

This joining together of rigorous academics, a profession-themed curriculum, and an
opportunity for students to apply classroom learning through work-based experiences
makes learning more like the real world of work, and helps students answer the question,“Why do I need to learn this?” When students love what they’re learning, they work harder,
dream bigger, and learn more.
[SLIDE 14 – WORK BASED LEARNING CONTINUUM]
Work-based learning adds depth and meaning to students’ education, as classroom learning
becomes more meaningful and relevant to students when paired with opportunities to experience
the subject matter firsthand. The primary purposes of work-based learning are to expose students
to future options and provide opportunities for skill development and mastery over time. These
learning experiences are intentionally designed to help students extend and deepen classroom
work and to make progress toward learning outcomes that are difficult to achieve throughclassroom learning alone. A continuum of work-based learning experiences can extend

11classroom learning into professional settings and helps students gain real-world experience in theprocess. The continuum outlines some of the many activities, both in and outside the classroom,
which enable students to connect academic and technical content to its ‘real world’ application,and to build 21st century career readiness skills and competencies. The stages of work-basedlearning can be described as:•

Career Awareness and Exploration: Learning ABOUT work.

•

Career Preparation: Learning THROUGH work.

•

Career Training: Learning FOR work.

Source: The Linked Learning Alliance (nda). Retrieved fromhttps://www.linkedlearning.org/about/work-based-learning/

12So, let’s look at the difference that Linked Learning is making for high school students. A
longitudinal analysis of Linked Learning conducted by the Center for Education Policy at SRIInternational finds the following positive outcomes associated with district participation in
Linked Learning (Warner, M. et al., 2016).
[SLIDE 15 – ACADEMIC SUCCESS]
1. On average, Linked Learning–certified pathway students are less likely to drop out ofschool and more likely to graduate than their peers in traditional high schools.
2. Linked Learning students are earning more credits than similar peers in traditional highschools, which is critical for on-time graduation.

3. Students who entered certified Linked Learning pathways with low prior achievement
were more likely to graduate from high school and enroll in a four-year institution thantheir peers in traditional high school programs.
[SLIDE 16 – IMPROVING EQUITY]
1. Among African Americans who enrolled in a postsecondary institution, students whocompleted a certified Linked Learning pathway were more likely to enroll in a four-yearcollege than their peers.
2. On average, English learner students in certified pathways earned more credits—equivalent to more than two additional courses—and completed one more college prep
requirement than similar peers in traditional high school programs.
3. Latino students in certified pathways were less likely to drop out and more likely tograduate than similar peers.
[SLIDE 17 – THE LINKED LEARNING ADVANTAGE]
1. Compared to peers, Linked Learning students were more likely to report a counselor orother adult encouraging them to pursue postsecondary education opportunities.

2. Linked Learning students reported higher job quality (i.e., employment with paidvacation and sick time and health insurance) than their traditional high school peers.

13Beyond the traditional indicators of success, such as graduation rates, and college going there isevidence that Linked Learning is addressing non-cognitive factors such as motivation,
persistence, tenacity and attitude – all important determinants of success in college and careers.
Students participating in certified pathways describe themselves as more engaged and successful
in school. In addition, students report that they are learning skills they will need to succeed incollege and in the workforce. Lastly, Linked learning students report greater confidence thantheir peers in life and career skills integral to the Common Core State Standards.

[SLIDE 18 – STEM ACADEMY OF HOLLYWOOD][2-minute video - https://youtu.be/lox3vsc2Nko ]Among Linked Learning schools, STEM Academy in the Hollywood area of Los Angeles,
stands out in performance. All of STEM Academy’s students are placed in one of two career
pathways — biomedicine or engineering. Students take a mix of college-preparatory andAdvanced Placement courses on top of career-focused classes. In the aerospace engineering
elective, which is geared for juniors and seniors, most of the students are also in pre-calculus or
calculus and have taken physics.
In this short video, the principal Paul Hirch, teachers and students share how STEM Academy’s
Linked Learning biomedical and engineering pathways come to life. Mr. Hirsch begins by
describing the importance of adopting a distributive leadership model in which teachers, parents,
students, and community members all take part in making important decisions regarding
curriculum, instruction, and the allocation of funds. Ms. Chavez, a science teacher values theopportunity to collaborate with colleagues on the development of integrated projects. And Ryan,
explains how projects help students develop skills necessary in the field of medicine or any otherfield. At STEM Academy of Hollywood, students regularly stay after school for tutoring, projectwork, and to carry out experiments. Integrated projects, are central to the curriculum and a coreteaching strategy through which concepts, content and standards are taught. For example, in an14

algebra class, biomedical and engineering students work on projects together, incorporating
elements from both fields to analyze how blood pressure and blood glucose impacts the body inorder to anticipate the needs of a person with diabetes. Engineering students may focus on how
an insulin pump would be designed based on the needs of individuals, while the biomedical
students may determine the algorithm needed to control the pump to automatically increase or
decrease insulin delivery. Through a partnership with a local hospital, Kaiser Permanente, close
to 100 students volunteer or participate in internship programs, working in labs, assisting withpatients and observing first-hand what it takes to be doctor, nurse, and technician. Students
collaborate, think critically about a real-world issue, and apply their knowledge in othersubjects to solve a problem. This is deeper learning at work!

[SLIDE 19 – A GUIDE TO MAKING SCHOOLS WORK]
It is great time for Linked Learning in California. We have had tremendous scale, a lot ofgrowth, and more funding. At the 2015 White House summit on next generation high schools,
Linked Learning was featured as one of most promising national models. Since then, we havehundreds’ of schools and pathways that want to get started, they want to know what to do andhow to really impact the lives of young adolescents in our public schools. But that comes withsome challenges. The quality of a pathway is becoming key and the uniqueness of each pathway
means that practices vary from site to site. What works at one site, with a particular theme, might
not work at another site, even one with a similar theme. As a result, researchers have identified
not a list of best practices, but rather the conditions that allow Linked Learning principles toflourish.

Dr. Marisa Saunders ( Saunders, M., Hamilton, E., Fanelli, S., Moya, J., & Cain, E. (2013) from
UCLA’s Institute for Democracy, Education, and Access and her team of researchers highlightthe experiences—both the struggles and successes—of sites that have committed to the hard
work of transforming the high school experience for students using the Linked Learning
approach. Based on a study of 10 high school sites across California, this guidebook provides
educators, policymakers and stakeholders interested in revamping their school communities a15

solid launching point. The guidebook presents the following six conditions that are strongly
associated with successful Linked Learning pathways.
[SLIDE 19 – CONDITIONS FOR SUCCESS]First is a Commitment to Equity
At the core of Linked Learning is the conviction that all students must receive the resources andopportunities they need to be prepared for life after high school.

Linked Learning identifies desired student outcomes and equity concerns that serve as thestarting point for developing all of the school’s activities, from its purpose to its programs andlessons. Such a fundamental shift cannot be achieved without cohesion of purpose, open
commitment of intent, and strong and frequent communication of support.
Condition Two: Connecting Linked Learning Components
Linked Learning attempts to create a more cohesive whole by connecting the various
components of the curriculum. The pathway theme is at the center of a coherent system ofstudent engagement, curriculum, resources, and learning. It makes sense to students and fits withreal-world needs beyond high school graduation.

Condition Three: A Culture of Care and Support
When students talk about Linked Learning, they speak of themselves as members of a caring
community. Students use the expression “Here, teachers and counselors know my name and theycare about me.” A caring culture allows space for effort, trust, risk, and focus, all of which make
Linked Learning work.

Condition Four: Grounding in the Real WorldA fundamental principle of Linked Learning is that education extends beyond the classroom.
Therefore Linked Learning is dependent on intersecting sets of partnerships among a wide rangeof stakeholders including site principals, teachers, parents, business and community leaders andgroups.

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Condition Five: An Environment that Works for Adults
Linked Learning is designed to improve learning opportunities for students, but it must also work
for adults at the school. Linked Learning shares three common strategies to create a supportive,
professional, and creative environment. Distributed leadership, collaboration, and support allow
for the establishment of these professional and creative environments.

Condition Six: Redefining Success
Linked Learning schools use a number of measures including performance-based assessments togauge students’ readiness for graduation, college, career, and life beyond high school. Linked
Learning attempts to create balance between external accountability measures and thedevelopment and use of appropriate assessment tools and structures that undergird the criticalcontent, skills, and abilities valued by the school.

Above all, it takes time to be successful! Linked Learning is a fundamental and farreaching high school reform that requires time to build the necessary human capacity as
well as the relational and organizational structures to support it. Political and educational
leaders alike, must understand the long-term commitment that this requires and theircommitment to “stay the course” is essential. Linked Learning also requires time (1) for teachers
to learn, collaborate, and plan in a cross-disciplinary manner, (3) for counselors to develop theresources necessary to enable students and their families to develop a realistic understanding of
the benefits of a college education and a specific career pathway; (2) for students to engage ininternships, mentorships, and other career-focused activities, in addition to their coursework andany supports necessary to help them meet the demands of a rigorous college preparation
curriculum.
[SLIDE 20 – THE FUTURE OF LL]
The success of this reform effort is fueling interest and adoption of Linked Learning across thenation. There has been exponential growth in the number of Linked Learning pathways that havebeen developed across CA, and other states including Ohio, Illinois, and Texas and I am thrilledthat we are gaining international attention for the work we are doing in transforming highschools. While Linked Learning may not provide Japanese schools with a packaged

17

solution for cross national import, this comprehensive approach to education reform may
offer innovative steps towards advancing your goals.

In the future, this commitment to a vision of 21st century knowledge and skills for all students,
requires transformation at the classroom, school, district and regional levels. At this moment, an
important challenge for the field is to ensure that this massive increase in scale isaccompanied by a commitment to pathway quality since better student outcomes are only
seen in pathways that implement Linked Learning with fidelity to the four corecomponents.
To ensure that every child has access to a great education that prepares them for the 21st century,
leaders within the field have identified 3 key goals to guide the Link Learning movement
over the next few years. First, we must

1. Drive improvement in practice through effective professional development, technicalassistance, and sharing of best practices across regional collaborative, cross-agency
networks. Enlist the help of educator preparation programs in transforming the way
educators are connecting academic learning with technical skills and real-world
applications in the context of students’ career interests. Successful integration of 21st
century knowledge and skills into a program and its curricula. Educator preparation
programs play a key role in helping all educators learn, develop, practice, refine; andassess 21st century curriculum, planning; and instruction.

2. We need to better understand and improve the Linked Learning model throughmeasurement of and research on the connection between specific practices and student
outcomes. – expand the research agenda around Linked Learning and its impact.

3. Lastly, we must establish quality standards and assessment systems to define andmeasure high-quality Linked Learning, and develop data standards that support
measurement of Linked Learning practices and outcomes across multiple systems –regional, state and national education systems.

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[SLIDE 21– CROSS NATIONAL CONNECTIONS]
Today’s Linked Learning High Schools are better engaging students by providing stronger
connections to the educational needs and interests of individual students; opening newopportunities to personalize and tailor academic content and wrap-around student supports;
challenging students with rigorous courses, including in new economy subjects such as computerscience; using innovative approaches and strategies to restructure the scope and time spentlearning; and employing innovative educational technologies, project-based learning, andcompetency-based progressions to engage and empower learners.
Ultimately, the hope is that the strategies reflected in California’s Linked Learning High Schools
will equip today’s youth with the strong content knowledge, collaboration opportunities, andcritical skills needed to meet the demands of an innovation economy, while preparing them toembark upon a lifetime of learning. Because of the global and interconnected nature of oureconomies, I believe the key themes and components of Linked Learning can be implemented inways that will benefit any educational system.
[SLIDE 22 – TO LEARN MORE]
The following regional, cross-agency networks focus on transforming systems and creating
conditions critical for strategic and authentic partnerships that support the Linked Learning
approach. I work with cross-sector partners to strengthen leadership and build systems thatempower more players to lead the development and improvement of pathways, including players
in education, business, and workforce development.
[SLIDE 23 – THANK YOU]I thank you for joining me today and welcome the opportunity to share educational perspectives,approaches, and achievements.

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