S. F. Hamilton and the author agree on the potential of youth apprenticeship programs for education but disagree on the strength of the problems facing implementation of apprenticeship models. A two-level reform strategy is recommended to develop an institutional and legal structure and to encourage employer participation. (SLD)

Although youth apprenticeship models appear to have great potential, the following problems must be addressed before the strategy can succeed: (1) securing employer involvement; (2) assuring and improving the quality of on-the-job learning; and (3) confronting equity issues in public policy in incorporating work into the core educational system.…

The feasibility of youth apprenticeship in the United States was assessed by examining problems and successes of programs that include components of the apprenticeship model. The approach to analysis of youth apprenticeship was to break down the model into four components: student participation, educational content, location of instruction, and…