For example, students may open a business on the school grounds and produce goods or services for purchase, or a local food store chain may sponsor an in-school retail grocery store. Through these experiences, students develop skills in marketing, business management, customer relations, budgeting, inventory, and investments. Profits are used to support the operation of the store for the following year. Students are better able to articulate workplace ideas and perform workplace skills within the context where they are used. Through daily observation and practice, students learn to appreciate the nature of the workplace and the challenges faced by workers in specific occupations.
Students experience learning through the work process itself.
Carefully linking school and work-based learning can benefit students by helping them see an immediate connection between schooling and future educational and occupational choices. Focus on a broad occupational theme and contextual learning can motivate students and enrich classroom learning with practical experiences. The use of innovative instruction and integrated teaching methods enable all students to apply skills and knowledge to solve problems typically encountered in the workplace. Within the career pathway organization, students can begin to make informed decisions about their future. These decisions will be grounded in a more realistic understanding of workplace requirements and a greater appreciation for individual abilities, preferences, needs, and interests.