Career Work Experience Certification

February 2017

Low Incidence Initiative

Funded by: Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) and State Personnel Development Grant(SPDG) through the

Kentucky Department of Education

University of KentuckyHuman Development Institute

College and Career Readiness (CCR)Measures for Students Participating in the Alternate Assessment
The revisedCCR measures developed for students participating in the alternate assessment now alignmore closely with Kentucky’s current measures for students participating in the general assessment. The assessment instruments were expanded beyond the Transition Attainment Recordby strengthening the assessment measures for Career Ready Academic and Technical.
College and Career Readiness for Students Participating in Alternate Assessment
College Ready:
Must meet TAR benchmarks / Career Ready: Must meet benchmarks in Career Academic area and Career Technical area / Bonus: College AND Career Ready
Must meet benchmarks on the following
College Ready / Career Ready Academic / Career Ready Technical / College Ready Academic / Career Ready Technical
Transition Attainment Record (TAR)
(aligned with ACT) / Employability Skills Attainment Record (ESAR)
(is based on the foundational academic and employability skills identified by business and industry for the Kentucky Occupational Skills StandardsAssessment KOSSA) / Career Work Experience Certification (CWEC)
(is based on the foundational academic and employability skills identified by business and industry for the Kentucky Occupational Skills StandardsAssessment KOSSA) / Transition Attainment Record(TAR) / Employability Skills Attainment Record(ESAR)
Career Work Experience Certification(CWEC)

Rationale for Career Work Experience Certification

For a student to achieve career ready status under the revised measures instructional practices need to change. Changes to instructional practices are supported by the 2012 amendment to 704 KAR 3:305which developed the alternative high school diploma. Beginning with the graduating class of 2013, if the severity of an exceptional student’s disability precludes a course of study that meets the high school graduation requirements leading to receipt of a high school diploma, an alternative course of study shall be offered. This course of study shall be based upon student needs and the provisions specified in 704 KAR 3:303required core academic standards, and shall be reviewed at least annually.

Along with support for the alternative diploma, Kentucky Department of Education staff also recommended that discussions continue around the experiences of students with the most significant cognitive disabilities, and making their readiness to transition to postsecondary life even more meaningful (e.g., flexibility in high school programming to allow students to pursue more career training, while continuing to meet academic standards; a range of curricular options critical to successful transition; etc.). In addition to the revised CCR measures above this will also be addressed by the CCR Transition to Postsecondary (instructional) Model, which isin development. The Transition to Postsecondary Model complements and supports the revised CCR measures, but defines instructional and programming concepts beyond mere accountability.As part of the instructional model a career work experience curriculumframework, which includes a Career Work Experience Certification process, is in development.

Career Work Experience Certification

The Career Work Experience Certification process involves three overarching themes:

  1. Career Exploration
  2. Utilize the Individual Learning Plan (ILP) process.
  3. Conduct interest inventories and explore the student’s strengths, needs and interests.
  4. Investigate businesses within the community that may have jobs matching student strengths, needs, interests
  5. Student Centered Planning
  6. Continue to explore the student’s strengths, needs, and interests for the purpose of identifying possible work/career interests using the student’s Individual Learning Plan (ILP)
  7. Conduct transition planning in accordance with the legal requirements of IDEA and document on the Individual Education Plan (IEP)
  8. Provide person-centered planning to individual students, if needed, by bringing together people identified by the student, family, and school to serve as student’s advisory group
  9. Provide information about community alternativeservices provided through the Kentucky Department for Medicaid Services, as appropriate. These include the Acquired Brain Injury Waiver, the Michelle P. Waiver, and the Supports for Community Living Waiver.
  10. Identify students for Office of Vocational Rehabilitation (OVR)Pre-Employment Transition Services.
  11. Experiences and Practices Related to Postsecondary Outcome
  12. Provide instructionwithin an experiential curriculum that includes coursework with work-based learning experiences.
  13. Develop student demonstration of the skills outlined in the Kentucky Employability and Foundational Academic Standards-Alternate Assessment
  14. Assess using the Employability Skills Attainment Record (ESAR)
  15. Make determination as to immediate post high school employment and/or postsecondary leading to employment
  16. Connect student to adult service providers and resources

Courses of Study Leading to the Career Work Experience Certification

The Kentucky Career Work Experience Certification (CWEC)is awarded to students who successfully complete a course of study which includes work-based learning experiences. Courses leading to the CWEC focus on development and demonstration of the Kentucky Employability and Academic Foundational Standards-Alternate Assessment (EFAS-AA).By participating in the courses students are provided the opportunity to demonstrate and generalize skills within the community and at worksites. Community-based school-business partnerships are utilized for implementation of the courses. Work-based learning programs, i.e., district developed, Community Work Transition Program, or Project Search, are vehicles for providing the work-based learning experiences.

The course of study leading to a CWEC is planned by the Admissions and Release Committee (ARC) within the multi-year course of study and documented over time for each student. ARCs must plan for a minimum of three years for completion of the coursework. Some students may complete the coursework by exit with their same-age peers at grade 12. Other students will need more time to develop skills and may continue in their individualized course of study until age 21.

CWEC Components

For the CWEC process to work successfully statewide there must be fidelity in programming. There must also be flexibility to meet the individual needs of students.

The following components apply to all districts in order to maintain fidelityof implementation statewide:

  • Align work-based learning experiences with KDE-CTE Work-Based Learning Manual
  • Provide work-based learning a minimum of twenty (20) hours per semester or forty (40) hours per year within each course leading to the CWEC.
  • Base placement in work-based learning environments on the Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) for each student
  • Provide instruction in skills in Employability andFoundational Academic Skills-Alternate Assessment during work-based learning to give opportunities for generalization of the skills in community and work environment(s)
  • Provide Specially Designed Instruction (SDI) in accordance with IEP during individualized work-based learning experiences
  • Develop courses to meet the course descriptions within the Course of Study for the Alternative High School Diploma
  • Align district programs with the Kentucky Taxonomy for Transition Programming
  • Utilize evidence-based practices in school, community and work settings, for both instructional and transition practices
  • Incorporate Universal Design for Learning (UDL) practices within instruction
  • Utilize interagency collaboration for work-based learning opportunities
  • Include Person Centered Planning, when needed with district choice of specific planning method(s)
  • Begin ILP at grade 6

The individualization of experiences for students provides the needed flexibility. The options within theKDE-CTE Work-Based Learning Manual include experiences through:

  • cooperative education
  • entrepreneurship
  • internship (paid-unpaid)
  • mentoring
  • school-based enterprise
  • service learning
  • shadowing

Opportunities for paid work experiencesare highly encouraged as options for students as they obtain a CWEC. Community-based vocational evaluation, job training, and especially paid employment opportunities while still in high school are well documented in improving positive post-school outcomes for youth with disabilities, and especially for youth with significant disabilities (Carter, Austin, & Trainor, 2012; Larson, 2011; Test, 2012; Wehman, 2002).

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Career Work Experience Certification

Outline of Process by Grade

Middle School
Grade 6, or sooner
CWEC Preparation Activities / Middle School
Grades 7-8
CWEC Preparation Activities / High School
Grades 9-12
Grade 14
  • Inform parents about community alternative services provided through the Kentucky Department of Medicaid
  • Begin ILP process
  • Conduct interest inventories
  • Begin career exploration
/
  • Continue Interest Inventories
  • Continue Career Exploration
  • Transition Planning begins at age 14 or 8th grade, whichever comes first
  • Develop the initial multi-year course of study in accordance with the Course of Study Leading to an Alternative High School Diploma
/
  • Conduct Student-Focused Planning to include:
•Annual Transition Planning, including development of Multi-Year Course of Study in accordance with the Course of Study Leading to an Alternative High School Diploma
•Multi-Year Course of Study includes courses specific to the CWEC, within an experiential curriculum that includes work-based learning for a minimum of three (3) years.
•Work-based learning is provided in accordance with LRE
•Person Centered Planning at Grade 9, as needed
•Discussion with parents and student about anticipated year of graduation
•Development of the postsecondary goals, in effect by age 16
•Identification of students for Office of Vocational Rehabilitation (OVR) Pre-Employment Transition Services
•Referral to district developed program or Community Work Transition Program (CWTP) in accordance with program guidelines.
•Summary of Performance given to student upon year of exit

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