3.3.2. Ashley’s workplace: A salon in the community Ashley was in a co-operative education program in the same district school board. Co-op education consists of “a classroom componentand a placement component” [24]. In the pre-placement orientation of 15 to 20 hours, students prepare for the workplace by learning about topics like safety and job readiness; they also developapersonalizedplacementlearningplan(PPLP) which describes what is expected of the student and is the basis for the evaluation on which credits will be granted. Co-op educationprograms, like Ashley’s, differ from specialized programs, like Tim’s, in several important aspects because co-op programs in Canada usually: (a) provide opportunities for students to learn about occupations through placements in the community that best match the needs and interests of each student; (b) have distinct classroom and workplace environments,with the classroom in a school and the workplace in the community; and (c) involve a teacher and a workplace supervisor from a community business who are responsible for monitoring and guiding each student [24]. Students usually enroll in academic classes for half the school day while participating in co-op education for the other half.