Toolkit of Promising Practices

NEW BRUNSWICK

Essential skills program

Inspire NB

Labour Market Information for K-12 Schools

Graduate Database for the Northwest

Research Assistantship Initiative

Essential Skills Program

PURPOSE: To offer an alternative curriculum for a specific clientele of students which gives access to postsecondary programs.

MINISTRY

Department of Education and Early Childhood Development (Francophone sector), Government of New Brunswick

DESCRIPTION

A proportion of high school students who begin their educational career without displaying any special challenges experience some difficulties over the years either at school or at home, which affects their learning. In high school they find themselves more than four years behind in math and literacy. Since the regular high school schedule does not provide much opportunity to catch up academically, it is important to offer these students an alternative that will help provide access to postsecondary education.

The Essential Skills Program has the following objectives:

• Establish a career development plan:

– Students have the opportunity to develop the skills needed to develop a meaningful career development plan; and,

– Students have the support they need to develop their career development plan, such as discovering their strengths and interests, work placements, writing a résumé, job interviews, etc.

• Offer a training program to achieve their career development plan:

– Through individualized school programming, offer the guidance and support needed to help students acquire the essential skills that will grant access to postsecondary training at community college and other institutions that recognize the diploma;

– Offer youth the opportunity to participate in work placements in settings of interest to them that will enable them to put their skills to work; and,

– Recognize this training by issuing them an essential skills high school diploma.

The Essential Skills Program in New Brunswick high schools was inspired by the Employment and Social Development Canada (formerly Human Resources and Skills Development Canada) essential skills model and postsecondary education programs offered at the community colleges and private schools in the province of New Brunswick.

Students in this program receive a high school diploma when the expected level is attained in each skill. The transcript of marks differs from traditional transcripts in that there are no courses on the schedule. There is a list of competency blocks that the student has completed with the mark obtained.

A second essential skills-based program is being developed for students who do not have the ability to undertake postsecondary studies. These students will complete a career development plan to enter the labour market directly in employment that is consistent with their interests and strengths.

RESULTS

Graduates of the Essential Skills Program – 264

June 2015 graduates of the Essential Skills Program – 112

Postsecondary graduates – 92

Postsecondary institutions that accept program graduates: