Educational Leadership - September 2010

created informal classes called Junior and Senior Seminar. Teachers spend two (mostly preparation-free) periods each week supervising these seminars, helping each student move ahead on internships and other work, such as senior projects and post-graduation planning. Students who are meeting internship milestones may also use the seminar time to do other work.

Internships at Four Rivers take place in March, which allows much of the year for preparation while still leaving two months for wrap-up and final presentations. Classes are suspended during 11th graders’ internship week, so teachers are available for site visits, transportation, and other needs. During the three-week period for 12th grade internships and fieldwork, which overlaps with the 11th grade internship week, teachers offer a flexible curriculum to accommodate students’ varying schedules.

Schools must also decide whether internships are optional or mandatory and what requirements students must fulfill. At the Met, internship work must relate to five broad learning goals that overlap with academic disciplines. At Four Rivers, seniors need to complete projects that address a real-world issue, have an authentic audience, and result in a product that is of use in the world beyond the school. Rich learning opportunities often emerge as an internship unfolds, so strict adherence to a predetermined plan can be counterproductive.

Internships pose an array of challenges, of course. Curriculum, assessment, schedules, staffing, and transportation must be modified; and liability coverage should be confirmed for off-site activities. Inadequate screening can lead to disappointing placements, and internships can fall through at the last minute. Some students will need extra support, and others will fall short of expectations. Students can’t be penalized for problems

Seniors working on
internship projects
have far less reason
to slump in the
final months before
graduation.

that were beyond their control, and students who fall short during scheduled internship times may need to complete one on their own time. Lessons learned from early years of the program reduce but do not eliminate these challenges, so flexibility and good humor—fortified by seeing students have wonderful learning experiences—remain essential.

Getting Started and Scaling Up

Schools throughout the United States are developing internship programs within reasonable time frames and budgets, so enterprising schools should feel confident in their ability to get started. Four Rivers set the basic parameters of its program during summer 2006 and started internships that same school year. The ambitious schedule called for some quick decisions as the year progressed, but the program was a great success and laid the groundwork for improvements each year.

New and existing programs would
benefit from improved access to field-
tested program materials, detailed
implementation guidelines, research
on effective practices, and profes-
sional development opportunities
with internship program veterans. The
Internship Network ( www.Internship
Network.org) supports internship
program development and facilitates
sharing of ideas and resources, and Big
Picture Learning ( www.BigPicture.org)
and the National Academy Foundation
( www.naf.org) make some of their
materials available online.

References

Dewey, J. (1938). Experience and education.

New York: Collier Books.

Expeditionary Learning Schools. (2003).

Core practice benchmarks. Garrison, NY: Author.

Hamilton, M. A., & Hamilton, S. F. (1997). When is work a learning experience? Phi Delta Kappan, 78( 9), 682–689.

Kemple, J. J., Poglinco, S. M., & Snipes, J. C. (1999). Career academies: Building career awareness and work-based learning activities through employer partnerships. New York: Manpower Demonstration Research Corporation.

Levine, E. (2002). One kid at a time: Big lessons from a small school. New York: Teachers College Press.

Littky, D., with Grabelle, S. (2004). The big picture: Education is everyone’s business. Alexandra, VA: ASCD.

National Academy Foundation. (2010). Preparing youth for life: The gold standards for high school internships. New York: Author.

National Association of Secondary School Principals. (2004). Breaking ranks II: Strategies for leading high school reform. Reston, VA: Author.

Washor, E., & Mojkowski, C. (2006/2007). What do you mean by rigor? Educational Leadership, 64( 4), 84–87.

Westrich, K., & Leonard, J. (2008, March). Connecting activities: Making the workplace a learning place (Education Research Brief). Malden: Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. Retrieved from www.doe.mass.edu/ research/reports/0308connectactivities .pdf.

Eliot Levine is a research manager at the University of Massachusetts Donahue Institute and founder of the Internship Network. He was a high school teacher for seven years; elevine@ internshipnetwork.org.