Career and technical education must be integrated with academic coursework
Young people growing up in California will face stiff competition for jobs when they enter the workforce. Lasting success in the rapidly changing world of work requires ever increasing levels of proficiency with technical knowledge and skills. And the future prosperity of our state depends on a highly skilled workforce able to compete with the rest of the world.
Fortunately, career and technical education – once called vocational education – is enjoying a resurgence of interest and support in California, with an additional $900 million included in this year’s state budget. Just two weeks ago, the superintendent of public instruction gave school districts until Nov. 30, 2015 to apply for grants to develop and enhance high-quality career technical education programs.
This is good news. But this infusion of funds into CTE also presents us with an important choice. Will we perpetuate old approaches to CTE – programs largely focused on acquiring narrow, entry-level occupational skills isolated from the rest of students’ educational experience? Or will we commit to making CTE integral to the larger secondary and postsecondary education systems in California – connecting CTE courses to core academic courses in math, science, English, social studies, the arts and world languages, and stressing real-world Career and technical education must be integrated with academic coursework | EdSource: