DCHP-3

co-op

DCHP-2 (Nov 2012)

Spelling variants:
coop, co-op program, co-operative education

n. — abbreviation for co-operative education, Education

an educational program combining classroom sessions with practical work experience; a work-study program.

Type: 5. Frequency — Though co-op programs, or co-ops, did not originate in Canada (see the 1960 quotation), they have grown significantly in popularity in Canadian institutions (see Chart 1). The first co-operative education program was established in 1957 at the institution that later became the University of Waterloo (see the 1959 quotation) as a complementary program in the engineering department. By 1979, there were 50 programs in 12 institutions across Canada, with a total of 26,000 students (see CAFCE reference).
See also COD-2, s.v. "co-op" (3), which is marked "esp. Cdn", Gage-5, s.v. "co-operative" (3).

Quotations

1943
"In nursing we have the basis for co-operative education, but there must be a better balance between work periods (service to patients) and the academic side," she maintained.
1959
Bills establishing a new Ontario university -- the University of Waterloo -- were given Royal assent at Queen's Park yesterday. [...] The plan is to establish a university in the midst of 250,000 inhabitants (for a radius of 20 miles) and enlarge the co-operative engineering training program, Canada's first. In July, 1957, engineering students at what was then called the Associated Faculties at Waterloo College were alternated between classroom and actual work terms, with 118 Canadian companies participating in the scheme. [...] Dr. J. G. Hagey, university president, said the co-op plan has an appeal for industry and students. "It adds a new dimension to engineering education," he said. For three months at a time, they alternate between working in a plant associated with chosen field and attending school. This allows twice as many students to attend the engineering courses.
1960
He also suggested that an extension of "co-operative education" on the high school level might be a valuable alternative in many cases. It happens that co-operative education in New York City high schools has just reached its 45th anniversary. The idea was inveted as far back as 1906, by Dr. Herman Schneider, dean of engineering at the University of Cincinnati, as a method of training engineers. It is interesting to note that only three years ago, a similar program of engineering education was established at the University of Waterloo, the first in Canada. The method of co-operative education, on both university and high school levels, is alternating periods in the classroom and in actual work.
1981
Student Maria McDonald says, "We find so much to talk about [...] everybody gets involved. When there were only younger people in class, [...] we didn't have that much discussion." Jack Ulan, co-op education supervisor for North York, has been working on this type of schooling for years, since he implemented his first work study program at Downsview in 1964. Founder of the Ontario Co-operative Education Association, Mr. Ulan believes in the program with a passion.
1984
Today, the University of Waterloo, which pioneered co-op education in Canada when the faculty of engineering opened in 1957, has the second-largest co-op education program in North America and probably the world. With more than 8,000 full-time co-op students in all faculties, including arts, Waterloo's co-op program is second in size only to the one at Northeastern University in Boston.
1992
Often the route into an apprenticeship program is through the co-op experience.
2001
It details how their experience of co-op shapes students' perceptions of learning and work; and how, through these perceptions, they ultimately make meaning of their undergraduate experience.
2004
If the hands-on experience turns out well, co-op enables them to grab courses to chase the dream.
2014
Participants in the University of Regina's Cooperative Education (Coop) program earned $9.7 million in wages this year. [...] "My academic experience hasn't been trumped by my Co-op experience, but rather, enhanced; the skills and values I could have only gained from the classroom are put to use in my work placements, and then further adapted into specific tasks and projects," says Gossard.

References

Images

Chart 1: Internet Domain Search, 5 Feb. 2014

Chart 1: Internet Domain Search, 5 Feb. 2014