As any graduate has discovered, there’s a difference between
work and learning about a job in a classroom. The Troup County
School System’s work-based learning program is designed to
bridge that gap by giving students experience in their chosen
field before graduation. Students now choose a pathway in
school, like a major in college, to study in their chosen field.
The work-based learning program allows students to receive class
credit for working at a job. “Some are aligned with their
pathway, some are not,” said Patsy Smith, coordinator for work-
based learning at Troup High School, about jobs students
currently hold. “We’re trying to reconfigure that. We want to
get all the students to where they align with their pathway.”
Students who participate in work-based learning at THS can use
either one or two classroom periods at the end of the day to go
to their job. For those that take one class period, they are
required to have at least five hours per week, or 90 hours at
the end of the semester. For those that