Nevada’s commitment to work-based learning is key to remedying gaps in Nevada’s workforce that pose significant problems to sustaining economic growth.
Economic growth cannot be sustained if young adults are not engaged in the labor market and gaining relevant skills and experiences needed to be successful. Further, approximately 47% of Nevada’s in-demand occupations as well as total occupations will require more than a high school diploma but less than a four-year degree; yet, Nevada ranks at or near the bottom of national rankings in the percent of young adults with training beyond high school.
While employers consistently express concerns over young adults’ career preparedness, young adults believe it is due to the lack of opportunities they have to gain meaningful work experience. The Governor’s vision for Nevada will only be sustained by ensuring young adults are prepared to engage in the labor market with the appropriate skills, credentials, dispositions, and experiences to be successful.
Work-based Learning (WBL)
Work-based learning is an educational strategy that
provides students with real-life work experiences where they can apply academic
and technical skills and develop their employability. It is a series of
educational courses which integrate the school or university curriculum with
the workplace to create a different learning paradigm. Work-based learning
deliberately merges theory with practice and acknowledges the intersection of
explicit and tacit forms of knowing.
Recent
research, policy literature, and federal legislation suggest that comprehensive
work-based learning programs contain three key components: the
alignment of classroom and workplace learning; application of academic,
technical, and employability skills in a work setting, and support from classroom
or workplace mentors.