Tennessee has made significant investments in preparing all students for postsecondary education and a career. Research suggests that work-based learning (WBL) is one opportunity that can provide students with the confidence, skills, and social capital to succeed in college and the workplace. However, for these positive impacts to be realized, work-based learning must be high quality, providing students with valuable learning that sets them up for later career success. To gain a better understanding of the current state of work-based learning in Tennessee, the SCORE team analyzed data from several sources and produced this series of memos.

This series is designed to equip leaders with the information we need — and highlight the information we don’t have — in order to make work-based learning the impactful tool it can be to help propel students toward a high-demand, high-wage career and a life of economic independence.

These memos explore the current state of work-based learning in Tennessee high schools and discuss setting a new vision for the next generation of work-based learning. They are broken down into three key areas of consideration:

Work-Based Learning Participation and Success focuses on what we currently know about student participation and success in work-based learning.
Barriers to Implementing Work-Based Learning explores the barriers that make implementing work-based learning challenging.
Setting a Vision for the Next Generation of Work-Based Learning highlights the importance of setting a new vision for work-based learning that aligns to the state’s current efforts to strengthen education-to-work pathways for all students.