Board Policies & Administrative Procedures

Administrative Procedure 216: OFF-CAMPUS EDUCATION

Background

The Division supports the provision of off-campus education opportunities through school/ community partnerships to help students acquire knowledge, skills and attitudes, and gain practical experience related to life skills and career opportunities.

Educational experiences are not limited to the confines of a school building. Off-campus education programs such as work-study, work experience and apprenticeship programs offer students unique opportunities to become familiar with the requirements of the work world. Alberta Education is expecting increased emphasis on these kinds of opportunities for students.

Some examples of off-campus education would be Career Internship10, Registered Apprenticeship Program (RAP), Work Experience, Work Study, Green Certificate, Knowledge and Employability Workplace Readiness. For more information on these programs refer to Alberta Education’s Off-Campus Education Handbook.

Procedures

1. Principals will annually provide a written report to the Superintendent by June 30, which shall include:
   1. Enrollment figures for off-campus education including work experience courses, work-study programs, green certificates and registered apprenticeship programs.
   2. Problems encountered and methods used to deal with them.
   3. Innovations to the program.
   4. Feedback received from the business.
      
      
2. Off-campus education shall include an in-school job orientation and debriefing component to facilitate the development of knowledge, skills and attitudes that students must acquire in order to enter, adjust and advance in a career.
   1. Selected Career Transition courses from the Career and Technology Studies (CTS) program are components of off-campus education as follows:
      1. HCS3000 Workplace Safety Systems – prerequisite course for the first off-campus learning experience.
      2. HCS3010 Workplace Safety Practices – recommended prerequisite course for students enrolling in the Registered Apprenticeship Program (RAP).
      3. AGR3000 Agriculture Safety – prerequisite course for students enrolling in the Green Certificate Program.
   2. Principals are to report the marks and credits for the above CTS courses separately from the work experience courses.
      
      
3. Work-study is non-credit with flexibility in the number of hours and in the number of times a student may register in the program.
    
4. Students shall comply with the age requirements under the Employment Standards Code, R.S.A. 2000, Chapter E-9 in order to participate in work experience education.
    
5. Off-campus education shall be carried out under the supervision and guidance of a certified staff member approved by the Superintendent.
    
6. Off-campus education shall be evaluated by the supervising teacher-coordinator. The means of evaluation shall be conveyed to the student and the employer, as approved by the Principal.
    
7. The off-campus teacher-coordinator shall specify learner expectations for each student in consultation with the student and the employer.
   
   
8. The off-campus education teacher-coordinator shall determine that a worksite/station is acceptable. An approved workstation must meet the criteria outlined in Alberta Education’s Off-Campus Education Handbook.
   
   
9. The Work Site Inspection Form (Form 216-2) and a list of work sites shall be completed annually by the teacher coordinator, preferably in the spring for the following school year. This form shall also be approved and signed by the Principal. Protection under the Workers' Compensation Act and the Board's liability is not in effect, nor are employers exempt from paying the minimum wage, until the Work Site Inspection Form is approved.
   
   
10. The Work Agreement Form (Form 216-1) shall be signed by the employer, the student worker (if under eighteen (18) years of age), the parent and the teacher-coordinator and kept on file at the school.
     
11. A list of all students participating in the program and their program placements shall be on file at the school.
     
12. In the case of a student working after 6:00 p.m. and/or on weekends, the teacher-coordinator shall make available to students and employers a telephone number where someone responsible for the program can be reached.
     
13. Junior or senior high school students may participate in a Work-Study Program which may include:
    1. Job shadow, job investigation or research, workplace observation, worksite investigation or a mentorship arrangement or project that is an integral part of the curriculum of a provincially approved school course; e.g., Science 9, Biology 30,
    2. Career and Technology Studies (CTS) courses that are under the cooperative supervision of an off-campus coordinator and the employer’s onsite representative
       1. That is to be a short-term and part-time experience
       2. Where no additional credit is given beyond that awarded for the course(s) of which the work-study is an integral part.
          
          
14. The working hours and minimum wage exemptions for senior high school work experience students should follow directions given in Alberta Education’s Off-Campus Education Handbook.
    
    
15. It is recommended that off-campus coordinators attempt to establish a monitoring ratio of one (1) visit or contact with the student and the employer for every twenty-five (25) hours that a student is at an off-campus location.
    1. This equates to one (1) visit for every credit being earned.
    2. Based on the student’s needs, visits could be substituted with videoconferences, e-mails, telephone calls, faxes or school meetings.
    3. Placements can be supported by e-mail and phone contact with dated formative and summative assessment reports.
    4. The Principal and the off-campus coordinator shall ensure that adequate supervision is provided for students in work-study sites/stations.
        
16. In the case of a Workers' Compensation Board (WCB) claim, the off-campus education teacher-coordinator shall submit the necessary forms to the Superintendent.
    1. Additionally, all accident/incident details shall be reported to the Division’s Occupational Health and Safety Coordinator for appropriate follow-up.
    2. The Superintendent will insert the Alberta Education Account Code, 345912/6, then submit the forms to WCB with the forms plus a copy of the approved Work Site Inspection form (Form 216-2) to Policy Unit, Curriculum Standards Branch, Alberta Education for processing and filing with the Workers' Compensation Board.
    3. In the event of a WCB reportable accident/incident, the Division reserves the right to conduct an incident investigation in conjunction with any other agency.
    4. The scope of the investigation may include but not be limited to including the Superintendent, the off-campus education teacher-coordinator; or the Division’s Occupational Health and Safety Coordinator to review existing documentation or visit the worksite.
        

Forms

Work Agreement Form (Form 216-1)

Work Site Inspection Form (Form 216-2)

Reference

Section 22, 20, 39, 54, 60, 61, 113 Education Act
Apprenticeship and Industry Training Act
Section 75 Employment Standards Code
Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act
Labour Relations Act
Occupational Health and Safety Act
Worker’s Compensation Act
Student Record Regulation 225/2006
Guide to Education ECS: to Grade 12
Off-Campus Education Handbook 2019 

Approved: June 10, 2004

Amended: August 21, 2018

Updated: June 24, 2020

Last Updated: July 29, 2021