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How Software Helps Scale Work-Based Learning Programs

As part of AASA’s Redefining Ready! movement, it has become crystal clear that work-based learning experiences are critical to drive the economic engine for our youth, especially at-risk students. Data shows that when we provide work-based learning opportunities for our students while they’re with us in the K-12 setting, they are much better equipped to determine what they do want to do with the rest of their lives, and more importantly, what they don’t want to do.

And here’s our reality: If our students can’t see it, they can’t dream it. And if they can’t dream it, they can’t be it. But when students can dream it, they start to understand their passion and purpose. The benefits are clear:

  • Work-based learning provides better employment outcomes that will result in higher lifetime wages for those students that participate in apprenticeships
  • There is critical research that identifies that students who participate in workplace learning experiences have higher postsecondary GPAs
  • Finally, work-based learning also provides a personalized, professional evolution with the real-world application of skills learned in the classroom that students can apply in their work experiences. Work-based learning connects the classroom to the world

Creating a successful work-based learning program is not easy. It’s incredibly complex with a great deal of moving parts.

  • From a student perspective, we need them to take ownership of their progress and to be able to communicate with employers and with their school advisors
  • Business partners need to create attractive opportunities for students
  • Administrators need to make it easy for students and business partners to participate
  • The student needs it to be valuable to their goals, and at the same time sponsors need the student to provide a value-add for them and their company as well
  • At scale, intermediaries need to be able to manage those experiences across the district
  • Program administrators and superintendents need high-level reporting and great stories that can be shared

Scaling a work-based learning program doesn’t happen overnight. Success takes time, effort and intentionality to manage multiple stakeholders and multiple processes.  For many schools and districts it can seem overwhelming. And when we did research, we learned that 93 percent of workplace learning experiences and community service programs were being tracked using paper or through some sort of spreadsheet online.  Scaling a jobs program is hard and is not practical using paper.

We started Transeo because we were frustrated about the amount of time spent on paper and pencil in today’s high school settings.

Why We Founded Transeo

Co-Founder and superintendent, Dr. Dave Schuler, discusses why we founded Transeo

Automating Your Process and Removing the Barriers of Paper

In order to scale a work-based learning program you need software to help you do things more effectively, including:

  • Collect data more accurately and efficiently
  • Track progress accurately and in real time
  • Gain access to real time reporting

And most importantly you can do this at every stage of your jobs program.

Why Software is Better Than Paper At Every Stage of Your Work-Based Learning Program

9 Ways Software Helps Scale Work Based Learning

  • Students can find opportunities that match their interests easily on their mobile device or on the web. And then they can register for these opportunities.
  • Students can manage their own logging and verification online. This reporting and verification process is super intuitive and easy for students and counselors. No more lost papers, friction between students and administrators or frustrating phone calls from students or their parents and guardians.
  • All business partner recruiting and recruiting communication is tracked online.
  • Background checks are part of Transeo Jobs’ system, helping to ensure the safety of your student.
  • Software allows the counselor and student to set specific goals. Software then provides dashboards and creates customized reports to provide counselors and students clear visibility on how a student is performing against their goals.
  • With the help of the software, school administrators and students can produce customized reports. This will help the counselor (help the student) in finding post-secondary educational options and opportunities and/or help the student start their career when they are ready.
  • All of these dashboards and reports create transparency so everyone can see where you are and what you need to do to achieve those goals. This will help the school district make better and more strategic decisions on how to support programs in real-time and inform strategic decisions on how to improve different programs in the future. It also allows business partners and counselors to guide and mentor students more impactfully.
  • Transeo also helps with compliance issues and automates the compliance process with seamless SIS (student information system) integration. This makes customized state and federal reporting easy
  • All stakeholders are held mutually accountable with the ability to access real-time data. This makes it easier to get in front of issues and challenges in real time before they turn into larger issues.

Summary

A work-based learning software allows students to connect their education in the classroom to the possibilities for their future. It reduces the time spent onboarding students and business partners. A software makes it easier for your business providers to become partners and to provide opportunities as well as make it easier for you students to find the right opportunities. At the same time, it also dramatically decreases the time spent calculating data to produce customized reports for all your stakeholders including state compliance. And most importantly, it allows your staff, business partners, and administration to focus on delivering quality experiences for students.

About Transeo and Transeo Jobs

Transeo Jobs Explainer Video

Quick Overview of our Workplace Learning Software – Transeo Jobs

Transeo is a suite of cloud-based educational solutions that helps students and staff connect to each other in a more effective way. We make community service tracking and internship reporting easy. We help schools and districts move away from paper-based processes so counselors, advisors, and administrators can invest more quality time with the people who matter the most: students.

Transeo Jobs helps students focus on becoming career ready by putting opportunities, classes, and experiences in one dashboard. We help schools keep track of complex information and complicated interactions in our user-friendly platform that manages key contacts and service providers.

To learn more about How Software Helps Scale Work-Based Learning please check out the additional educational resources below.