Co-operative Education – The Community is Your Classroom

High School Co-operative Education helps students plan their education and get hands-on experience in potential careers while they are still in school. Students who participate in co-op will have the opportunity to understand the workplace and gain the knowledge, skills and attitudes they need to succeed. Students must be 16 years old to take this course.

For more information on the Co-op Education Program at Island View High School,  please contact Peter Dulhanty, Co-op Education Advisor: Email:

Academic / Graduation / Open
Prerequisite:  Application form, student interview and parent/guardian meeting

Cooperative Education is a credit course designed to meet the needs of the students in this ever-changing world.  The two central purposes of Cooperative Education is to assist students bound for post secondary education and / or the workplace to make informed decisions and to acquire relevant knowledge and skills.  In this way, transitions from school to work and / or further education are made more successfully.

Cooperative Education is a method of learning which involves the school, the student and a community placement supervisor in a relationship where each shares responsibility for the student’s learning experience.  Students earn a high school credit by combining an in school academic component and a 100 hour community placement.  Cooperative Education consists of three components:

•     Pre-placement and orientation (25 hours – 1st full month of the semester)
•     Community placement (100 hours throughout the semester)
•     Reflective learning experience (one class weekly throughout the semester)

The student indicates an occupational interest and the community is then carefully designed for that student through cooperation between the student, school, parent / guardian and placement supervisor.  The placements include but are not limited to banks, tourism industry, physio clinics, trades, Armed Forces, theatre, hospitals and veterinarian clinics.  Placements occur at various times throughout the year.  The community placement is monitored on a regular basis and carefully evaluated making use of the student’s education training plan.  Reflective sessions are held on a regular basis providing the students an opportunity to make specific connections between their community placement and their school courses.  Students are required to complete a journal / log book, career project, reflective assignment and a portfolio.  Each student and his or her parent / guardian must sign a training agreement before the placement begins.

Units of work include: community connections / learning through work experience; planning your future career; your career skills; quality of work life and the community placement.  Students will be given a detailed course of outline, which outlines the specific learning outcomes, units of study, assessment and evaluation, the school expectations and the structure of the program.  Parents are to sign this.

Students register for the course on the course selection form.  The students then complete an application form that can be found on the main school website and return to the school.  Upon receipt of the application, an interview is conducted with the student. This process must be followed for a student to be accepted into the program.  Those students not accepted into the course will be notified.  Students may obtain more than one credit in Co-operative Education.  Co-operative Education is open to all students whether they are proceeding to University, Community College or work.  Students who have a specific occupational interest and who are considering Community College for post secondary education will benefit greatly from the experience.  By combining Co-operative Education with occupational related courses, the student can better prepare for work and / or enrollment in Community College or Apprenticeship Training. Co-op Education hours in a specific trade can be credited towards Youth Apprenticeship hours once a student is registered as a Youth Apprenticeship in that trade.  Go to www.workitns.ca for more information.