5 Ways Schools Can Use Time to Strengthen High-Quality College and Career Pathways 

In this era of dwindling resources in education, time is one of our most important and precious resources. Each spring, school districts across the country begin the complex work of allocating time by building school schedules for the year ahead. It’s a moment filled with spreadsheets, trade‑offs, and tough decisions — but it’s also one of the most powerful opportunities to design an equitable school experience where all students feel connected, supported, and excited about their futures.

At ConnectED, we see scheduling not just as a technical exercise, but as a human-centered design choice. When schools use time intentionally, students experience learning that’s coherent and meaningful. Teachers have space to collaborate, reflect, and innovate. And entire communities begin to see what’s possible when pathways connect academics, careers, and purpose.

Across our partnerships, we’ve learned that a few scheduling decisions have an outsized impact on both student engagement and pathway quality. Here are the five most effective ways districts can use time to strengthen Linked Learning as they plan for next year.

1. Cohort Students and Teachers to Build Community and Purpose

When the same group of students moves through core and pathway courses together — and when a dedicated team of teachers supports them — the school starts to feel navigable, and students feel known. Cohorting helps create:

  • A sense of identity, community, and belonginess
  • Stronger relationships between students and teachers
  • Aligned expectations and shared projects
  • More consistent academic and social-emotional support

We see again and again that when students feel known, they show up more fully — and when teachers have shared ownership, learning feels more connected.

2. Protect Common Planning Time for Pathway Teams

Teachers create the magic in college and career pathways— not just through big interdisciplinary projects, but through the everyday choices they make about instruction, standards, and how to help students see purpose in their learning. That work requires time; ensuring this time is built into the regular work day sends the strong message that collaboration is fundamental to the success of pathways..

When districts schedule common planning time, they give pathway teams space to design the kind of Tier 1 career‑connected instruction that makes school feel meaningful.

During this time, teachers can:

  • Align standards to real‑world problems and scenarios, ensuring students understand why what they’re learning matters.
  • Learn about and decide together how to make disciplinary thinking visible,helping students reason like engineers, healthcare professionals, designers, or researchers.
  • Design quick performance tasks and routines that mirror authentic workplace practices, even outside of full project cycles.
  • Coordinate supports and expectations across classes, so students experience coherence rather than fragmentation.
  • Integrate employability and social‑emotional skills into daily lessons, not as extras but as essential parts of learning.
  • Share stories, student work, and instructional challenges, strengthening the sense of community that makes pathways thrive.

Common planning time is where teachers connect the dots — between standards and purpose, between instruction and identity, between what students are learning and who they hope to become.

3. Schedule Math Intentionally So It Supports — Not Limits — Student Opportunity

Math scheduling is often one of the toughest parts of pathway design, but it’s also one of the most important. Thoughtful scheduling can help students experience math as relevant and empowering.

This includes:

  • Including math as a cohorted course whenever possible Scheduling math teachers into pathway planning structures
  • Aligning math content with pathway themes
  • Avoiding remediation practices that pull students from pathway or CTE courses
  • Creating “bridge time” for math + CTE collaboration

When students understand how math connects to their goals and interests, they engage more deeply — and feel more confident about their futures.

4. Build Support Blocks That Expand Access to Rigor

Every student deserves the opportunity to succeed in challenging, meaningful coursework. Support blocks create time within the school day for students to catch up, accelerate, or receive targeted help — without sacrificing pathway experiences.

Effective models include:

  • Advisory periods focused on academic and postsecondary support
  • Double‑dose or embedded support for students who are below level in their  core classes
  • Flex blocks for tutoring, small‑group instruction, or project time
  • Enrichment that doesn’t conflict with CTE or pathway requirements

Support time should widen access, not limit it. These structures help students stay on track academically while still participating fully in pathway learning.

5. Dedicate Predictable Time for Work-Based Learning

Work-based learning helps students answer one of the most important questions they’ll ever ask: “Who do I want to become?” But these experiences only happen consistently and equitably when they’re protected in the schedule.

Strong systems create time for all students to:

  • Explore careers and conduct site visits
  • Participate in speaker series and industry panels
  • Prepare of internships ahead of time
  • Reflect on their learning before and after experiences
  • Participate in internships during the school day, without falling behind in core credits
  • Experience well-designed and coordinated learning experiences, designed by teachers and WBL staff who plan and work together 

When work-based learning is a foundational commitment for all, rather than an extra for those who’ve “earned” it, we can ensure all students have a chance to connect learning to purpose — and all educators have a chance to see students’ strengths in new ways.

Scheduling Is an Act of Care

As you work to build your schedule for next year, know that you’re not just assigning students and teachers to class periods. You’re shaping students’ daily experiences, teachers’ collaboration, and the futures young people can imagine for themselves.

At ConnectED, we stay by our partners’ side throughout this process because we know how much thoughtful scheduling matters. When time is organized around relationships, relevance, and opportunity, it becomes a promise to students that their futures are worth planning for.