Despite the proven record of cooperative education (CE) in high school vocational programs and professional college-level programs, several barriers must be overcome before CE can be spread in its current form or used as a model for enlarged school-to-work transition efforts. Among the barriers identified are the following: the diminished status of high school CE because of its links to vocational education, which is perceived as a dumping ground for low-achieving students; the high cost of CE because of the large amounts of time teacher/coordinators must spend marketing cooperative programs and screening, placing, and monitoring students; the gradual disappearance of preservice courses to train CE teacher/coordinators; and difficulties in gaining employer support for either CE or apprenticeship programs. Cooperative education has been demonstrated to produce measurable benefits in the following areas: social development, school persistence, and economic outcomes. The insights of several studies suggest features of successful CE programs: high quality placements, teacher/coordinators with appropriate occupational experience, close supervision at the worksite, strong links between job training and related instruction, frequent and specific informal and formal evaluations of students' progress, parent/guardian involvement, and strong administrative support. (Contains 23 references.) (MN)