Workplace education curriculum models may be based on the functional context, ethnographic/student-centered, or participatory approach. Curricula based on the functional context approach focus on the abilities (functions) needed by workers at a specific worksite, and workers are unlikely to have much input in deciding what or how they will study. The ethnographic (student-centered) model rejects the use of prescriptive, predetermined, skills-based goals to shape the curriculum; instead, it draws upon workers' thoughts and voices as a starting point for all other learning. The participatory approach is similar to the functional context approach in that it focuses on student/worker experience and thought, and it is similar to the student-centered approach in terms of negotiating course content with students and focusing on their own purposes for learning. Unlike the contextual and ethnographic approaches, the participatory approach prompts students to examine the meaning of their collective experiences as a whole, asks students to question assumptions about work and the world, and involves students in setting course goals and themes and in creating materials and evaluating progress. Each approach reflects a different educational framework that in turn shapes teachers', students', and funders' roles, as well as course content and the learning process. (MN)