SENTA! School, Development, Work
Unemployment, a lack of opportunities for vocational training, and the large number of dropouts from schools and training programs represent a threat to the future of our society. Lower secondary schools in particular face the challenge of helping their students make the transition from school to the world of work. Many secondary schools in Baden-Württemberg have made preparing their students for employment a core element of their educational work and achieved excellent results. Many other dedicated schools are following suit, or preparing to do so. But how can this aim really be tackled? How did other schools succeed? Which models work best? Schools often have difficulty finding answers to these and other questions. Good practice examples are insufficiently well known, and there is a lack of specific, practical support.
The SENTA program helps schools in this development process. By learning in school teams, in which experienced mentor schools work together with project schools, secondary schools are offered the time, resources and support they need to make preparing students for the world of work a core element of their teaching. Careers orientation becomes the main focus of the school's activities, and preparation for the world of work an integral part of quality development in schools.
32 schools in Baden-Württemberg participated in the pilot phase of the SENTA program from 2008 to 2010. SENTA has now started with 25 schools in Saxony-Anhalt. For a period of two years, mentor schools which have already developed successful concepts will work together with project schools. On the basis of their application, these schools have been selected by an independent jury. The Robert Bosch Stiftung will provide financial and thematic support for cooperation between the schools. In addition to providing funding, SENTA also offers opportunities to learn and form contacts and provides support from experienced school development consultants. The program also includes a wide range of training options, regular network meetings, and publicity events.
There is more than one promising paradigm for helping students make the transition from school to the world of work. All models, however, share four fundamental characteristics: Preparation for the workplace is incorporated into all activities at the school (continuous transition concept). The school forms reliable partnerships with external institutions (successful cooperation). Everyone in the school pulls together (commitment). The school finds solutions that represent excellent responses to conditions in its region (local orientation).
All schools in the SENTA program also share one common goal: To prepare their students as well as possible for a successful start into their working lives.
