One of my biggest takeaways is having equipment and facilities that function is not the same thing as having a high-quality learning environment. It is important for us to determine if our spaces truly support the curriculum, reflect current industry practices, and provide students with real and meaningful hands-on learning experiences. 

In my role supporting multiple CTE pathways across my district, I want to be more intentional about how we assess these environments. Ideally, using existing lab walkthroughs, teacher feedback, and industry partnerships to identify gaps and inform decisions about equipment, facilities, and instructional needs, and do so in both… >>>

Having data to reflect upon and refer to over years from multiple grades will improve programming. That it will be good to have a more centralized database of WBL

To develop a sustainable program, we need continued buy-in from administration, staff, teachers, and the community. We will need to continue to grow with the needs of students, families, and businesses.  Students now are eager to dive into practical learning, and we should make space for them. 

It is important to be sure we continually align our protocols with updated state and federal regulations, especially when it comes to age and safety of students. 

I enjoyed the abundance of resources available.  I will review our agreements and guides to ensure they continue to be relevant and robust. 

It is important to continually focus on relationships and connections with businesses as the nature of local business changes. 

I gained a better understanding of what I need to do to begin to design programs to bridge the gap between academic requirements and practical learning.  I thought about all the opportunities we have to educate students in all grades. 

I think that the ideas we have been establishing and the strategies we are working on are moving in the right direction. Certainly, addressing strategic gaps in the education of our younger students will be important. 

I have learned that work-based learning functions as a developmental continuum that evolves alongside a student's growth. I learned that introducing career awareness in elementary school through activities like career days and field trips supports future aspirations at an early age. As students transition into middle school, I learned it is important to expose them to career exploration, utilizing strategies like job shadowing and research to deepen their understanding of different industries. Finally, I learned that as educators, we can guide and support high schoolers in career preparation by providing direct, hands-on, real-world experiences through immersive internships and apprenticeships

We already utilize many of these experiences and supports for our students. One thing that I picked out from this though was focusing on an industry issue through a partnership with a business. By doing this, it presents a unique challenge for students to work through. This creates a more realistic experience as well and helps the student to problem solve alongside the industry partner.