1. Introduction to the Massachusetts Work-Based Learning Plan
This e-learning module provides an introduction to the Work-Based Learning Plan.

2. Workshop Goals
Learn about the Massachusetts Work-Based Learning Plan (WBLP) and become familiar with the online screens.
Through discussion of the WBLP, explore and exchange ideas about creating high-quality, successful and productive work experiences.
Through this e-learning series, you will become familiar with the purpose of the Work-Based Learning Plan and with the online screens. And also, through this discussion, you will get insight into how to create high quality work experiences for participants in summer jobs, internships, or other youth employment programs.

3. Benefits The WBLP is an easy-to-use tool that opens up conversations:
Between intern and supervisor
Among program staff
What opportunities are we offering to our interns?
What skills can interns practice and develop through this experience?
What are our expectations for interns?
How can we strengthen opportunities for learning and productivity?
The Work-Based Learning Plan is a very easy-to-use tool that helps to open up conversations between interns and their supervisors and among program staff working in youth employment programs. It raises awareness about how participants can gain skills through their work experiences; about workplace expectations; and about how youth can be successful in their first work experiences.
Continued on next page…

4. Benefits - Statewide Connections
Using the WBLP connects programs to a statewide network:
The WBLP is a tool that is shared among a statewide professional development network that supports quality internship programs.
The online system provides a statewide “bank” of job descriptions and skills/tasks and provides data on skills used and skill gains.
The WBLP is based on input from many stakeholders statewide.
Using the Work-Based Learning Plan connects youth employment programs to a statewide network of other programs in three specific ways:
First, the WBLP is is a tool that is shared among a statewide professional development network that supports quality internship programs. Second, the online WBL database system provides a statewide bank of job descriptions and skills/tasks and provides data on skills used and skill gains. Third, the WBLP is based on input from many stakeholders statewide, and there is always ongoing work to add features, develop training resources and other initiatives that brings people together statewide.

5. What is the Massachusetts Work-Based Learning Plan?
The Massachusetts Work-Based Learning Plan is a tool designed to drive learning and productivity in jobs, internships and other work-based learning experiences.
The Massachusetts Work-Based Learning Plan is a tool designed to drive learning and productivity in jobs, internships and other work-based learning experiences.

6. Three-fold purpose
Identifies ability level within skill areas (diagnostic)
Drives quality of student learning and productivity (goal-setting)
Assesses student progress (assessment)
It has a three-fold purpose: diagnostic, goal setting, and assessment. Through a performance review early in the work experience, it helps to identiy ability levels within the various skill areas. Through the skills, tasks, and goals it drives quality of student learning and productivity. And through the performance reviews, the WBLP helps to assess student progress.

7. Where it is used How it is used
In a variety of work experience programs:
Summer jobs programs
Cooperative education programs for vocational schools
Internship programs for high school and college students
Workforce development programs for young adults.
How it is used
Online WBLP Database
As MS Word document
As paper and pencil document
The WBLP is used a variety of work experience programs, including Summer jobs programs; Cooperative education programs for vocational schools; Internship programs for high school and college students; and Workforce development programs for young adults. Formats for using the Work-Based Learning Plan include the Online WBLP Database, an MS Word version, and a paper and pencil version. The focus of this program is on the online version.

8. Background / History
1999: Original Massachusetts Work-Based Learning Plan developed by a group of school-based staff, employers, and workforce development partners. The Work-Based Learning Plan has been used statewide since 1999.
May 2001: Skill Gain Study: First statewide study analyzing job descriptions, skills/task descriptions and skill gain.
June December 2005: Design phase for “New” streamlined Work-Based Learning Plan (WBLP).
February April 2006: Employer Pilot of “New” WBLP.
Here is some background about the Work-Based Learning Plan. It was developed by a statewide network of school-based staff, employers, and workforce development partners, and has been in use since In 2006, the current version was introduced.

9. Background / History
May 2006: New Massachusetts Work-Based Learning Plan launched.
May 2007: Skill Gain Study: Statewide analysis of skill gain using the new version of the WBLP.
May 2008: Pilot online version of WBLP launched. WBLP formats now include Word document, PC database screens and web-based online screens.
June 2009: Design and development of online WBLP scoring rubric.
July - August 2009: Pilot online WBLP scoring rubric.
July 2010: This is the beginning of the third year of using the online version of the WBLP .
The online version is now in it’s third year.

10. Sections of the plan WBLP Heading (Placement Info) Job Description
Section 1: Foundation Skills
Work Ethic and Professionalism
Communication and Interpersonal Skills
Section 2: Specific Workplace and Career Skills
Section 3: Evaluation of Performance and Progress
The Work-Based Learning Plan is four pages long in the paper version, and has four screens in the online version. This outline shows the sections of the plan.

11. WBLP Heading (Placement Information)
Name of participant, supervisor, staff, teacher
Name of company or worksite
Start and end dates
Review dates
Other program information as needed
The WBLP Heading contains basic information about the work experience placement, including names, dates, etc.

12. Job Description
Brief job description – provides background about the position and the organization and provides an overview of projects, responsibilities, etc.
Journalism Intern will be responsible for occasional interviews and story with direction from editor; photography related to stories; typing police logs; assisting with editing calendar selections; occasional filing; and observing the final editing process. In addition, Intern will also work on a special project at the office one day per week.
The job description section provides space to write a brief description of the job.

13. Section 1: Foundation Skills
The “Foundation Skills” section of the WBLP lists basic skills required in every job or internship.
This section provides background for orientation and for informal conversations about workplace skills.
The “Foundation Skills” section of the WBLP lists basic skills required in every job or internship. This section provides background for orientation and for informal conversations about workplace skills.

14. Section 1: Foundation Skills
Work Ethic and Professionalism:
Attendance and Punctuality
Workplace Appearance
Accepting Direction and Constructive Criticism
Motivation and Taking Initiative
Understanding Workplace Culture, Policy and Safety
Communication and Interpersonal Skills:
Speaking
Listening
Interacting with Co-Workers
This is a list of the foundation skills.

15. Section 2: Career and Workplace Specific Skills
This section of the WBLP provides a template for describing specific skills and tasks relevant to the placement.
WBLPs can list up to seven skills in this section. For each skill there is a description of related tasks and performance goals.
Section 2 of the Work-Based Learning Plan focuses on Career and Workplace Specific Skills. This section provides a template for describing skills and tasks relevant to the placement. Work-Based Learning Plans can list up to seven skills in this section. Skills can be taken from the list of suggested skills shown on the form, or you can write your own list, based on the specific work experience placement. Like the job description, the list can be written by the supervisor, program staff, intern, or through collaboration among these people. For each skill, the WBLP also provides a brief description of related tasks and performance goals.

16. Career and Workplace Specific Skills with “Tasks and Performance Goals”
The description of tasks can be brief, but detailed enough to include information about who, what, when, why, where… to provide the participant with a flavor of the job.
-Help teacher with various art projects using a multi-sensory approach with an emphasis on visual aides. -Assist teacher with calendar activities such as days of the week, months of the year, letters, colors, and shapes.
Project Management
This slide shows an example of three Career and Workplace Specific Skills. The description of tasks can be brief, but should be detailed enough to include information about who, what, when, why, where… to provide the participant with a flavor of the job.
-Interact with children during center time as well as circle time. -Assist with transition between indoor and outdoor activities, while monitoring children‘s safety on playground and indoors. -Accompany and supervise children during field trips.
Interacting with Children
-Intern will utilize time in a productive manner by helping to prepare lessons and activities for the teacher (cutting, tracing, and coloring). -Help with setup, preparation, and cleanup of lunch.
Time Management

17. What Career and Workplace Specific skills are selected most?
Time Management
Project Management
Collecting and Organizing Information
Interacting with Customers or Clients
Equipment Operation
Teaching and Instructing
Computer Technology
Leadership
Problem Solving
Understanding All Aspects of the Industry
Research and Analysis
Interacting with Children
Most common skills from WBLPs, July 1, 2009 through June 30, 2010.
Project Management
This is a list of skills that commonly chosen. This list is based on the twelve most commonly-chosen skills in the most recent program year.
Collecting and Organizing Information
Teaching and Instructing

18. Career and Workplace Specific Skills – More Examples
Web Design Principles
Gardening Techniques
Human Rights and Dignity
Hand Tool Nomenclature
Animal Care Skills
Project Evaluation
Installing Computer Software
Writing
Color Choice
Community Interaction
Additional examples from WBLPs, July 1, 2009 through June 30, 2010.
This list shows additional examples, showing the wide variety of skills that can be highlighted in the Work-Based Learning Plan.

19. Section 3: Evaluation of Performance
Evaluation is based on the foundation skills and the career and workplace specific skills.
A scoring rubric is provided as a guide to evaluation.
Evaluation is based on the foundation skills and the career and workplace specific skills. A scoring rubric is provided as a guide to evaluation.

20. Comments from Employers
“I was impressed with how easy this plan was to use with my student intern. She is working out fine and this helped me to prove it to her.”
- Employer, Dairy Farm
“The program is wonderful and the evaluation is a great way for both the students and employers to get feedback.”
- Employer, Law Office
The contents of the Work-Based Learning Plan were designed with employer input, and were piloted with a variety of employers to make sure that the format and list of skills were consistent with the needs of employers.

21. Evidence that it works… The “Skill Gain” study
Analysis of a sample of Work-Based Learning Plans demonstrates that:
Participants gain skills during their work experiences, as measured by a comparison of the average ratings on first and second reviews.
Supervisors are able to use the WBLP to provide feedback that is useful, realistic and concrete.
Measured skill gain varies with the amount of attention that goes into the Work-Based Learning Plan, as measured by the amount written in the job description, skills/tasks, goals and comments sections.
Measured skill gain also varies by type of job and length of placement, and, of course, from one individual WBLP to another.
This variation is “good news” because it shows that the WBLP is an effective tool and that the skill gain data is a real outcome of the learning experience.
Analysis of examples of Work-Based Learning Plans shows that the plan is effective in helping youth to gain skills and helping supervisors to provide useful feedback.

22. Job and Internship Skill Gain Foundation Skills
Skill Gain data can be generated easily from the reports menu of the online WBLP database.
This graph shows average ratings in the first review and second review for a sample of Work-Based Learning Plans for the Foundation Skills. The online version allows database users to generate graphs like this for Work-Based Learning Plans from their own youth employment programs.

23. Job and Internship Skill Gain Career and Workplace Specific Skills
This is a similar graph, based on the Career and Workplace Specific skills. The graph also shows the number of Work-Based Learning Plans with this skill. As you go through the training or e-learning program, you’ll see how to generate this graph for your own placements from the online database.

24. For more information: Web Links: Online WBLP: https://masswbl.org
Keith Westrich Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
Web Links:
Online WBLP:
Instructions: