Providing Education and Training

Education and training is provided by an array of local workforce system organizations, including public community and technical colleges, for-profit technical schools, and community-based organizations. Education and training providers prepare workers for jobs by helping them gain skills and credentials through any of the following strategies:

• Accelerated learning approaches, such as integrated instruction and prior-learning assessments, allow students to complete education and training programs more quickly than in traditional postsecondary programs
• Adult education teaches adult learners the foundational skills—like basic math or English—needed to succeed in the workforce 
• Apprenticeship combines paid on-the-job training with classroom-based technical instruction, typically resulting in a credential or certification
• Career academies are small learning communities within high schools that offer students occupational training in addition to their regular academic instruction
• Career pathways programs involve a mapping of education, training steps, and support toward industry-aligned skills and credentials and career advancement
• Industry-recognized training is classroom or on-the-job training that aligns with employer hiring requirements or decisions, often culminating in credentials
• Online learning ranges from small modules used to supplement classroom learning to entire courses and programs resulting in credits, certificates, and degrees
• Work-based learning involves the application of academic, technical, and employability skills in a work setting