This guide is designed to help develop Workplace Tours that work for youth and young adults, host employers and organizations, and Department of Youth and Community Development (DYCD) program staff. It is part of the DYCD Work-Based Learning Toolkit, which provides proven approaches and strategies to create high-quality, safe and legal Work-Based Learning experiences for youth and young adults from Learn & Earn programs in New York City.
A Workplace Tour is a highly structured Career Awareness activity in which youth and young adults visit a workplace, learn about the business, meet employees, ask questions and observe work in progress. More than a simple field trip or site visit, a Workplace Tour is designed and structured to meet specific learning outcomes, be educationally rich, and build awareness of the business or organization, its industry sector, its role in the economy and the career options it provides. A Workplace Tour is conducted at a workplace for small groups and involves preparation and follow-up in the classroom or in workshops, including research and reflection by youth and young adults.
Workplace Tours are designed to:
All Workplace Tours should include structured activity before, during and after the experience. These activities help ensure that all involved parties have meaningful, productive experiences that result in enriched learning. Proper planning and preparation, attention to legal and safety details, maximization of learning potential, and communication and support for the youth and young adults and industry host will help ensure success. Sustaining and growing Workplace Tours and all other Work-Based Learning types depend upon developing and maintaining positive relationships with the employers and organizations that are providing opportunities to the youth and young adults being served. These employers and organizations should be treated as valued customers and partners with frequent check-ins to address participation needs as they arise.
Tip sheets and checklists for program staff, employer or organization partners, and youth and young adults are provided in the DYCD WBL toolkit to help design, structure and support Workplace Tours to maximize learning. Each tip sheet supplements the Work-Based Learning essential elements described in the toolkit, and provides a set of success factors and lists of activities or tasks to perform before, during and after the experience. A fact sheet for prospective host employers is also provided. Note: These tools and materials are available in Word format to allow for programs to brand appropriately and include contact information.
