Students need opportunities to link their learning to the workplace. The effectiveness of learning in authentic settings is well documented. This critical component of O₂ will expand opportunities for co-operative placements in workplace and community and provide credits for service learning, volunteering, and community-based programs which focus on leadership. Community learning experiences include paid or unpaid work placements, mentorship, internship, volunteering, and service learning.

Effective career education provides opportunities to integrate related learning experiences in a range of courses and expands access to courses with a career development focus.
Learning opportunities may include:

• the Nova Scotia Student Life/Work Portfolio (integrated with all courses)
   
• Life/Work Transitions 10 (full or half credit)
   
• Career and Life Management 11(integrated delivery)
   
• workplace applications and projects in English language arts and mathematics

Learning experiences in all courses should include attention to the development of employability skills and work readiness.
Learning experiences are supported by:

• the Nova Scotia Student Life/Work Portfolio (integrated with all courses)
• course-specific resources and strategies to support employability skills development
• an emphasis on workplace readiness in community-based learning experiences

O₂ programs in schools should be characterized by integrated courses, a school-within-a-school model, course clustering, and flexible scheduling. Features of an effective Trades and Technology Academy or other school-within-a-school model include the following:

• an industry (trades) focus




• integrated delivery of curriculum, life skills, and employability skills




• a flexible student-centred instructional model




• performance related to industry standards




• preparation of students for designated post-secondary destinations

Career Academies are high school based "schools-within-schools." They incorporate a number of innovative features, including:

• a close family-like atmosphere
• integration of academic and career-related curriculum
• involvement of employers in a number of roles Career Academies have been evaluated and shown to have positive impacts on school performance, including attendance, credits, grades, and graduation rates. Academies generally operate in grades 10-12; a few operate in grades 9-12 or 11-12.

• Students should plan course selections to include recently developed career-related courses such as LifeWork Transitions 10, Tourism 11, Design 11, Electrotechnologies 11 Agriculture/Agrifood 11, Business Management 12, Film and Video Production 12, Food Science 12.
• Courses to be implemented in 2006-07 include Tourism 12, Health/Human Services 12, Food Services 12, Multimedia 12, and Geomatics 12.
• Courses in development include Food Services 12, Textile Technology 12 and Food Studies/Hospitality 12.