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Q: Is Career Education intended for the person who does not intend to go to a four-year university? A: Career Education courses are designed to support all academic levels. It supports the student who intends to go to work upon graduation from high school; the student who intends to get an associates or technical degree or certificate; and, the student who intends to continue their education for a baccalaureate degree or higher. Q: My child may not be ready to make career decisions. Will career oriented courses box my kids into a career track instead of the college track? A: Career/Tech Ed courses do not box anyone into anything. Career/Tech Ed courses may actually encourage students to take more rigorous academic courses. Career/Tech Ed courses teach students to use applied strategies that are effective with a variety of learning styles. We encourage a thought process that will help prepare students for whatever they decide to do in the future. A poll of eighth graders showed that 71% of them had either already decided on a career or had narrowed the choice between 2 or 3 careers. Q: Will my child be locked into a career pathway that he or she can’t change? A: Again, Career/Tech Ed doesn’t lock anyone into anything. It simply lays out a plan for each child that can be changed at any point. Most programs offer multiple entry/exit points. Q: Why push Career/Tech Ed when we have grown up thinking that the only sure road to success is a four-year college degree? A: Today, 80 percent of the good jobs available to graduates are more likely to require two years – not four years – of college. A four-year degree no longer guarantees success in professional life. Even so, Career/Tech Ed still prepares one for continuation on toward a four-year or higher degree. Q: I have a high school diploma. Why isn’t that good enough for my kid? A: The workplace has changed. One can seldom find a job that will support a family with only a high school education. Only 10% of the jobs in 2007 were for unskilled labor. Q: Isn’t Career/Tech Ed just warmed over vocational education with a fancy new name? A: If you look at the Career/Tech Ed curriculum lined up against the "college prep" curriculum you will see that there is little difference. In reality, they are both “future” prep. Career/Tech Ed can help prepare a student to reach whatever educational level he or she chooses. Lay the Career/Tech Ed curriculum and the college prep curriculum side-by-side and you will quickly see they are at least equal, and in some cases, the Career/Tech Ed curriculum may be more difficult. Q: Who says there will be jobs for my kid when he or she finishes the Career/Tech Ed program? A: The United States Department of Labor, for one. Labor Department data shows that there will be jobs for Career/Tech Ed graduates. As mentioned earlier, in 2007, 70% of all jobs required more than a high school diploma but less than a four year degree. Only 20% of all new jobs are expected to require four or more years of college. That leaves just 10% of all ‘new’ jobs for those with a high school diploma or less. Q: How does one "sign up" for Career/Tech Ed courses? A: There is no special application to enroll in Career/Tech Ed classes. Students may register for technical courses that give articulated credit through the regular scheduling process at their school. Some courses or programs may require teacher or counselor approval. The postsecondary school will handle the credit award. |
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