This is not your parents’ vocational education. Girls are not limited to making aprons in sewing classes, and boys are not making pig-shaped cutting boards in woodworking shop. The major difference in today’s school-to-career classes is that students are taught core academic skills, such as math, science, and English, at the same time that they’re learning the specific skills needed in their chosen career area.

In the past, vocational education was frequently seen as a placement for the students who could not make the grade in academic courses. However, the laws that created current programs require career and technical education — or CTE — programs to produce students who can compete in higher education settings, who will be ready to meet challenges as competent adults in any occupation they choose, and who will power a workforce that participates in a global economy.

Today’s CTE students are more likely to be in a class that is a student-run business, not just an auto shop. Rather, it’s likely to be an automotive repair business where students learn technical computer skills, how to problem solve, how to estimate time and costs for repairs, and how to repair problems. In some areas of the country, CTE programs at both the secondary and community college levels are being developed to fill the needs of local industries and businesses. For example in the northwest where aeronautics is a major industry one community opened an Aviation High School.

School-to-career courses at the high school level have additional benefits that promote positive outcomes for students who enroll — namely higher attendance rates and achievement. For example, the attendance rate for school-to-career students in one Philadelphia school district was 87.5 percent (10 percent higher that other students) indicating that students are interested in or value these classes enough to be there. Another sign of student interest and engagement is that 30 percent of the Philadelphia CTE students earned a 3.0 or higher grade point average (GPA), while only 19.8 percent of non-CTE students earn a B-average or better. But perhaps the most convincing evidence of student interest, relevance, and staying power of the school-to-career programs is the dropout rate of 3.4%; less than one-third the rate for non-vocational students in the district.

Career, technical, and occupational skills programs have used a variety of names during the last two decades, such as “vocational education,” “vocational-technical education,” “practical arts,” and most recently, “career and technical education or CTE.” Programs are offered across a variety of educational levels and settings including:

  • middle schools
  • high schools
  • two-year community or technical colleges
  • privately owned and operated schools
  • four-year colleges and universities

Although there are many definitions of career and technical education, they all suggest that these types of programs should prepare students for a chosen career by teaching knowledge and skills in a relevant, sequential program that includes:

  • higher order thinking skills,
  • challenging content, and
  • preparation for additional education opportunities

The Perkins Act: provisions for students with disabilities

The primary legislative act that governs all career and technical programs is the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Improvement Act of 2006. This legislation includes the provision of the Tech Prep programs. The primary difference between Tech Prep and other career technical classes is that Tech Prep programs must include the following elements:

  • An articulation agreement between secondary and postsecondary consortium participants
  • A two-plus-two-year program (secondary plus postsecondary) or a two-plus-four-year program
  • A common core of academic study in math, science, communication and technology program
  • Containment within a specifically Tech Prep curriculum
  • Joint in-service training of secondary and postsecondary teachers to effectively implement the program across settings

Students who successfully complete a high school Tech Prep program can move directly from high school to a community college or four-year college to complete their career and technical education.

The provisions of the Perkins Act ensure that your teen with learning disabilities has equal access to any career or technical program he chooses. Information about career and technical programs in your school district is available from school counselors, special education transition specialists, and on school district or state board of education websites.

Other purposes of Tech Prep programs are to provide academic instruction in the classroom with on-the-job learning and training experiences in high-skill, high-wage, or high-demand occupations; for example: health (nursing, dentistry), computing and communications (programmer, personal computer technician), or construction (carpenter, electrician). Finally, the Tech Prep programs should be integrated into career and technical programs when possible.

Implementation of this act is the responsibility of local public school systems with oversight by the state departments of education who report state efforts and results to the U.S. Department of Education. If you are concerned that your local school is not meeting your teen’s needs in regard to offering career and occupational training or Tech Prep programs, contact the local school district office.

Listed below are a number of provisions in the Perkins Act that are important to students with disabilities and apply to high school and community college career and technical programs.

  1. “Special populations” must be included in the students admitted to career and technical programs; special populations are defined to include students with disabilities.
  2. Students and parents must be provided access to career guidance and academic counseling regarding career awareness, planning for occupational and academic future, and information about career options, financial aid, and postsecondary options, including baccalaureate degree programs.
  3. Students should have access to student organizations that engage in career and technical education activities as an integral part of the instructional program.
  4. Schools are required to provide a Tech Prep program that accepts students with disabilities. This provision is made because Tech Prep and career and technical programs are two distinct programs, and not all career and technical classes are part of a Tech Prep program. So this provision assures that students with disabilities will be admitted to all classes in both programs.
  5. Schools are required to hold career and technical programs accountable for student success and progress by establishing performance indicators for programs. All career and technical programs must report on whether students, including students with disabilities, reach yearly goals related to the academic and technical skills. Reporting of this information is required by the Perkins Act. The assessment data flows from the local school, through state departments of education, to the U.S. Department of Education.

Grades in which programs are offered

Typically, career exploratory classes are offered during the middle school years as training experiences designed to assist students in making career decisions. Students sample occupations by rotating though several classes, usually during seventh and/or eight grade, in order to determine their suitability or preference for a particular job. At the end of the exploratory classes, students may elect to take classes at the high school level in one of the seven major occupational areas listed below, defined by the Association of Career and Technical Education (ACTE), a professional organization of teachers in CTE programs.

  • Agriculture (careers related to food and fiber production and agribusiness)
  • Business (accounting, business administration, management, information technology, and entrepreneurship)
  • Family and Consumer Sciences (culinary arts, fashion design, interior design, home maintenance, employment and career development, child care, and other life skills)
  • Health Occupations (nursing, dental, and medical technicians)
  • Marketing (management, entrepreneurship, merchandising, and retail)
  • Technology (production of consumer electronic goods, communication systems, and transportation systems)
  • Trade and Industrial (skilled trades, such as automotive technician, carpenter, computer technician)

When your teen who’s participated in career and occupational programs makes the transition from high school, he has a number of options. He can select to enter the workforce in a variety of entry-level positions, or he may enter a two- or four-year post-secondary technical institution, or a four-year college.

In addition to the classroom experiences offered in these education programs, opportunities for learning and training also can occur in business, industrial, or labor settings. The labor category includes such occupations as retail sales and entry-level factory work, as well as skilled trades, such as carpentry, pipe fitting, and masonry. These experiences are provided by the high school through cooperative education or work experience programs. Most programs offer students both in-school and on-the-job training for high school credits. A high school teacher who is trained to work in these programs selects and develops job sites in the community. Local businesses commit to providing on-the-job training for a student who is ready to go to work in the community while still in high school. This teacher coordinates services between the school and the community, providing site supervision and, when required, job coaching for the student worker.

How high school student organizations extend learning opportunities

Student organizations at the high school level, funded through federal legislation, are an established and integral part of vocational education. The U.S. Department of Education recognizes 10 Career and Technical Student Organizations (CTSOs) that are charged with providing career and leadership development, including motivation and recognition for students enrolled in CTE programs. Each school-based program must have a dedicated instructor who coordinates curriculum-oriented activities to maximize student learning. Generally, participation in a student organization is voluntary and students elect to participate. However, in some instances, teachers may require participation in the student organization as part of class activities.

When your family and/or school are planning transition activities, you should encourage your teen with learning disabilities to participate in the CTSOs. Student organizations can supplement skills learned in the classroom. These CTSOs offer opportunities for your teen to interact with peers and teachers in a less formal and more social atmosphere. Such interactions help him develop important employment skills such as self-confidence, decision making, and problem solving with peers. The clubs offer a less risky environment for trying new challenges and learning generic job-related skills.

During club activities, teachers have additional time and opportunities outside the classroom environment to teach, counsel, guide, and mentor your teen. Support and encouragement from the instructor and peer friends are the key components in building his self-confidence. Finally, CTSOs promote career exploration by allowing your teen to visit and shadow in local business and industry. These opportunities allow him to make more realistic and informed decisions about his career.

Yet another extracurricular club option available to high school students is a job maintenance club that provides ongoing assistance for students who are working but need additional support in order to keep the job. If a high school has career and technical classes, there should be a job maintenance club. These clubs can be seminar-type experiences where students meet to problem-solve and discuss issues that arise during their job experiences (e.g., social skills, co-worker attitudes, accommodations, and employer expectations). Participating in such a club provides opportunities for students who require more support in order to meet workplace demands to work collaboratively with the occupational teacher. All career and technical programs, as well as the student organizations, are required by law to be available to students with disabilities or those who are at risk for school failure. The “at-risk” category is used by schools for students with a variety of risk factors, such as low socioeconomic status (SES), single parent status if combined with low SES, teenage pregnancy, substance abuse, substance abuse of a significant family member, low-achieving students, students enrolled in the lowest level classes, and some English language learners. In some cases, schools will consider “at risk” students within an ethnic or racial minority group.

Services and training programs available after high school

The educational and training options described below are mandated by law, meaning that states must offer educational options for persons ages 14 to 21 who are no longer in a school setting, regardless of whether the student graduated or dropped out. The Workforce Investment Act (WIA: Public Law 105-220) requires that state programs, including employment services, unemployment insurance, vocational rehabilitation, adult education, welfare-to-work, and postsecondary vocational education be coordinated under a one-stop system that provides information about all services at one physical site.

Students with learning disabilities qualify for this program because all youth between the ages of 14 and 21 qualify who are experiencing one or more of the following six barriers to successful workforce entry:

  • is a school dropout
  • has a basic literacy skills deficiency
  • is homeless, runaway, or foster child
  • is pregnant or a parent
  • is a juvenile or adult offender (aged 14-21)
  • is in need of help to complete an educational program or to secure and hold a job.

Finally, if you have concerns about the potential downsides of your child not attending college preparatory classes in high school, please consider what Charles Murray, a scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, said in a Wall Street Journal article. In explaining what he considered the benefits of a career-technical education, he commented on the difficulty most of us experience in trying to find a good plumber or electrician. He also noted that incomes for journeymen (beginning) crafts persons are routinely in the top half of U.S. incomes — and their incomes increase as their skills increase. In fact, their incomes can top six figures. Also extremely important in today’s global economy, a crafts person’s job is far less likely to be outsourced, and job security and satisfaction are based on the individual’s skill and ambition. Perhaps most important is the potential for job satisfaction. Crafts persons and others with career and technical training can find reward in seeing firsthand how valuable their final product is to their customers or the people who hire them. And they can take pride in competently performing work that they enjoy doing. Certainly, this is a goal that all parents hold for their kids.

Reviewed August 2017