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Call for Presentations NOW OPEN for Achieving Excellence in Career Technical Education: The National Career Clusters Institute

Monday, December 23rd, 2013

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The Call for Presentations is NOW OPEN for Achieving Excellence in Career Technical Education: The National Career Clusters^Â® Institute.

We are looking for sessions that feature high-quality programs of study, with proven track records of success; offer strategies for successful collaboration, implementation and innovation at the classroom, district or system level; and/or provide opportunities for participants to engage in interactive and hands-on learning activities.

MORE DETAILS

Where: Point Hilton Tapatio Cliffs, Phoenix, AZ
When: June 16-18, 2014
Registration is slated to go live mid-February.
Watch for details on our website at www.careertech.org.

Proposal Deadlines

Proposals will be accepted through February 21, 2014. Speakers will be notified of status early March, 2014.

Submit your proposal now!

Ramona Schescke, Member Services Manager

By admin in Career ClustersÂ®, Meetings and Events, News
Tags: Career ClustersÂ®, college and career readiness, common core state standards, federal legislation, postsecondary, Secondary

CTE Research Review

Thursday, December 19th, 2013

Welcome to the final CTE Research Review of 2013! Below are some new and notable reports on issues impacting Career Technical Education.

The Education Commission of States (ECS) launched a 50-state database of dual/concurrent enrollment policies, including state reports, comparable data and links to specific legislation and regulations. The database includes information on access, finance, quality assurance and transferability. With about a third of all dual/concurrent credits earned by high school students in CTE disciplines, this is a key issue for CTE leaders and students.

The Afterschool Alliance released a new brief, “Computing and Engineering in Afterschool,“Â which explores why and how afterschool programs can help equip students with the skills they need to pursue engineering and computer science education and careers – and help fill gaps in traditional K-12 education. For more on STEM and the Afterschool Alliance, check out theirÂ STEM Impact Awards.

The Center for American ProgressÂ (CAP) has released two briefs in the last two months focusing on reforms in the higher education space: “Meeting Students Where They Are: Profiles of Students in Competency-Based Degree Programs” andÂ “A Path Forward:Â Game-Changing Reforms in Higher Education and the Implications for Business and Financing Models.“Â The first report explores various competency-based education models at the postsecondary level. In addition to laying out these models – from direct assessment to hybrid degrees – the brief also captures students’ perspectives and experiences earning degrees at their own pace and leveraging knowledge already gained in school and the workplace. It’s a compelling read and was discussed at a recent CAP event, which can be watched here.

The latter report focuses on some identified “game changers” for postsecondary education, notably stackable credentials, competency-based education and the Guided Pathways to Success model, laying out the benefits and the barriers that need to be removed to ensure more Americans have access to high-quality postsecondary learning, aligned with the demands of industry.

Finally, this week the National Center for Education Statistics released the annual Trial Urban District Assessment results, which was designed to explore how feasible it is to use the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) at the district level. For the 2013 administration, 21 districts participated. While a number of districts posted gains over previous years’ assessments, the results are by and large still very low across these urban districts, particularly for minority students. For a good (and honest) analysis of these results, check out Education Next.

Kate Blosveren, Associate Executive Director

By Kate Blosveren Kreamer in Research, Uncategorized
Tags: competency-based education, postsecondary, STEM

Resource Update: New Toolkits Now Available

Tuesday, November 26th, 2013

This past week, two new toolkits became available to assist in theÂ implementation ofÂ Career Technical Education planning efforts.

1. A new Planning for Studentsâ€™ Successful Transition to Postsecondary Education and Employment Toolkit has been developed by members of the Career Pathways and Technical Education Task Force of the Minnesota Department of Education.

This Â tool contains the following transition elements with accompanying strategies, example resources for implementations, and partnerships.

Provide a comprehensive academic plan for completing a college and career ready curriculum premised on meeting state and local academic standards
Developing 21st century skills such as teamwork, collaboration, and good work habits
Emphasize academic rigor and high expectations
Help students identify personal learning styles that may affect their postsecondary education and employment choices
Help students succeed at gaining/gain access to postsecondary education and career options.
Integrate strong academic content into career focused courses and integrate relevant career focused courses into strong academic content
Help students and families identify and gain access to appropriate counseling and other supports and assistance that enable students to complete required coursework, prepare for postsecondary education and careers, and obtain information about postsecondary education costs and eligibility for financial aid and scholarship
Help students and families identify collaborative partnerships of kindergarten through grade 12 schools, postsecondary institutions, economic development agencies, and employers that support students’ transition to postsecondary education and employment and provide students with experiential learning opportunities

2. The Department of Health & Human Servicesâ€™ (HHS) Office of Family Assistance recently released Career Pathways: Catalog of Toolkits, an online compendium of free resources available for use in planning a Career Pathways initiative. In an effort to better coordinate efforts by the Departments of Education, Labor, and HHS, the catalog seeks to serve as a directory for model Career Pathways programs and details strategies for implementation. Users are able to browse toolkits and filter results based on the indented audience, target population, career pathway element, industry, and publisher.

Ramona Schescke, Member Services Manager

By admin in Resources
Tags: career pathways, college and career readiness, postsecondary

CTE Research Review: OECD Report Examines Postsecondary CTE in the U.S.

Thursday, August 8th, 2013

A new report from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) examines strengths and challenges for postsecondary Career Technical Education (CTE) in the U.S. Â The authors identified positive aspects including strong labor market returns on associate degrees and certificates, and the inclusiveness of U.S. postsecondary CTE. Broad recommendations were provided in three key areas â€“ funding for quality, aligning credentials to industry needs, and strengthening transitions into and within postsecondary education and the labor market â€“ and more specific recommendations included:

Linking Title IV student aid (Higher Education Opportunity Act) with stronger quality assurance
Establishing quality standards for industry certifications
Supporting postsecondary transitions more systematically
Developing better data
Strengthening career counseling
Improving use of work-based learning

The U.S. Department of Education also released a background piece on postsecondary CTE that was used to inform the study.

NASDCTEc and the College Board recently partnered on a webinar and issue brief to show the relevance of Advanced PlacementÂ® (AP) courses and exams to CTE Programs of Study. The issue brief includes information on each Career ClusterÂ® and potential AP courses and exams that could apply to each area. Students, parents, counselors and teachers may find this document especially useful to help CTE students follow programs of study that lead to college and career readiness and success.

Kara Herbertson, Research and Policy Manager

By admin in News, Research, Resources
Tags: postsecondary, programs of study

On Track & Moving Forward: Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium Update

Friday, April 26th, 2013

On April 25, the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (Smarter Balanced) hosted a briefing in Washington, DC, on the progress of the 26-state consortium.

Smarter Balanced is one of the two Race to the Top-funded consortia of states working to develop K-12 assessment systems aligned to the Common Core State Standards. The assessments â€“ in mathematics and English Language Arts/Literacy â€“ will be administered online and will provide students with an early signal of their readiness for college-level credit-bearing courses. The Smarter Balanced assessment system will include required summative assessments, optional interim assessments to be administered locally through each school year, and a series of formative tools and processes to be used at the classroom level.Â The summative assessments will utilize computer-adaptive testing with the goal of providing greater precision and efficiency in measuring studentsâ€™ proficiency on the Common Core State Standards.

Joe Willhoft, Executive Director of Smarter Balanced, provided an overview of the assessment system, including an update on the pilot test occurring right now in over 5,000 schools and reaching about 1 million students. Willhoft also shared newly released cost estimates that peg the cost per student to be approximately $22.50 for just the summative assessment, which is actually less than what about two-thirds of Smarter Balanced states currently spend on assessments. He noted that about 70 percent of the cost will go towards the (human) scoring of the performance-based items included in the assessment used to measure problem solving and deeper analytical skills.

Willhoft also discussed the option states and districts will have to use paper-and-pencil tests for the first three years of administration as a strategy of easing the transition to the computer-based assessments, noting that the results from the paper test will be comparable with the online assessments.

Jacqueline King, Director of Higher Education Collaboration for Smarter Balanced, spoke on the role higher education has been playing throughout the design and development process. Specifically, she pointed to the college content-readiness policy released last month that will facilitate the use of the high school assessments by institutions of higher education. Students who score a three or above on the high school summative assessment will have a portable score that can be used by colleges and universities to exempt them from remedial education and place them into credit-bearing courses. Looking ahead, Smarter Balanced will continue to engage with higher education to build awareness and support for the assessment system.

King also mentioned that Smarter Balanced would be exploring the idea of what the assessments mean insofar as studentsâ€™ academic â€œcareer readinessâ€ in coming months.

Kate Blosveren, Associate Executive Director

By Kate Blosveren Kreamer in Public Policy
Tags: common core state standards, postsecondary, Public Policy

CTE in the News: Georgia Lt. Gov. Urges Business, Industry, Education Leaders to Address Skills Gap

Friday, November 16th, 2012

Education that prepares students to compete for jobs in the global economy must be a top priority for business, industry and education leaders, Georgia Lt. Gov. Casey CagleÂ warned a crowd of nearly 200 at the College and Career Academy Summit this week, according to the Rome News-Tribune.

â€œEach of us has the chance to shape what this economy and what this future for all of us is going to look like,â€ Cagle said Thursday. â€œItâ€™s a huge responsibilityâ€¦ Quite honestly I donâ€™t think there is anything, as a public policy maker, that is more important today than the education system in this state.â€

The three-day event featured the theme “Business and Education Partnerships: Success in Action” and was hosted by Floyd County College and Career Academy and Georgia Northwestern Technical College. Leaders were scheduled to address workforce skills gaps in health care, technology, manufacturing and energy amidst a growing regional interest in the career academy movement.

According to Rome News-Tribune, Cagle said that significant economic opportunities have been rising in the U.S. because of events occurring in Asia and Europe, companies such as the manufacturing giant Caterpillar Inc. and Baxter, a pharmaceutical company, are bringing work opportunities to Georgia.

â€œWhat is interesting about those industries is that they are all located where there was a college and career academy,â€ Cagle said. â€œWeâ€™re leading the nation in workforce development because of â€¦ what weâ€™re doing with our college and career academies.â€

Floyd County Schools College and Career Academy have experienced a â€œpowerful transformationâ€ that has encouraged partnerships between secondary and postsecondary education, and the business community, according to a Floyd County Schools news release. On Friday, discussions were designed to focus on the enhancement and expansion of career academy development.

Erin Uy, Communications and Marketing Manager

By admin in Uncategorized
Tags: business and industry partnerships, Georgia, global economy, postsecondary, Secondary, skills gap

CTE in the News: Successful, local programs highlighted in Nevada, Ohio

Friday, November 2nd, 2012

CTE programs have been a topic of interest among local news sources, which are highlighting innovative programs that have the potential to help area students compete for a job in this challenging economy. The articles illustrate the evolving profile of CTE among the general public, who are looking to CTE as a potential resource in empowering the future U.S. workforce.

In Nevada, industry professionals and organizations collaborated with Great Basin College, which has a reputation for fostering well-skilled students in the state, to create an education and training system that equips students with credentials that are portable nationally, according to Elko Daily Free Press.

Specifically, the college collaborated with the National Center for Construction Education and Research (NCCER), an organization committed to building a safe, productive and sustainable workforce of craft professionals. According to Dean of Applied Sciences Bret Murphy, NCCER sets a curriculum standard that is recognized by industry nationwide, the article said.

Further, NCCER also convenes a Construction Users Round Table (CURT), an organization of construction company owners who help to ensure the curriculum reflects expectations of the industry nationwide.

Another example can be found in Ohio. The Washington High School community recently celebrated a decision by the Massillon City Schools Board of Education to approve an education agreement with Affinity Medical Center that allows CTE students in health-care studies to learn more about their chosen careers from medical experts, according to an IndeOnline article.

Students enrolled in the nursing, pharmacy, medical assistant and exercise science programs at the school will have access to on-site experience through observations and hands-on learning opportunities at Affinity Medical Center, the article noted.

â€œWhen you can take what you have learned and apply it to a real-life setting, it is just as valuable as anything you have learned,â€ Washington High Career and Technical Education Director Dan Murphy said. â€œThe hands-on application is phenomenal.â€

Erin Uy, Communications & Marketing Manager

By admin in Uncategorized
Tags: business and industry partnerships, postsecondary, Secondary

Report: â€œIndispensableâ€ Role of Transfer for Community Colleges

Friday, November 2nd, 2012

Recently, the nationâ€™s education agenda has placed considerable focus on increasing college completion rates. While this worthy goal is critical to the countryâ€™s economic success, a new report implores the education community not to lose sight of other valuable functions of community colleges, namely transfer, as schools work toward graduating all students.

The American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) released this month an issue brief on the â€œindispensableâ€ role of transfer for community colleges and students. More than one-quarter of those who earn a bachelorâ€™s degree began their college experience at a community college and transferred to a four-year institution along the way. Nearly half of bachelorâ€™s degree recipients take at least one course at a community college.

Research shows that transfer from a community college to a four-year institution not only works, but also saves money. The AACC brief states that students who start at a community college and transfer to a four-year university are just as successful as those who begin at a four-year institution. For the nine institutions studied in this case, an estimated $22 billion were saved by students who first attended community college first and then transferred.

Part of what makes transfer work, the AACC brief shows, is that the receiving institution prioritizes the success of transfer students. Eighty-two percent of transfer students earn a bachelorâ€™s degree on time when their receiving institution accepted all of the studentâ€™s community college credits. When colleges accept some community college credits, forty-two percent of transfer students earned a bachelorâ€™s degree on time.

The AACC brief also takes into account questions to consider as post-completion measures and program effectiveness are evaluated, such as â€œShould an institution that provides just the last few credits before earning a degree be considered the institution of record for the studentâ€™s ultimate â€˜successâ€™?â€

Click here to access the full report.

Kara Herbertson, Research and Policy ManagerÂ

By admin in Public Policy, Resources
Tags: community colleges, postsecondary

New NASDCTEc Brief: Promoting Work-Based Learning: Efforts in Connecticut and Kentucky

Wednesday, October 10th, 2012

NASDCTEc has partnered with the Alliance for Excellent Education to co-author Promoting Work-Based Learning: Efforts in Connecticut and Kentucky, which details what work-based learning looks like at different learner levels, and the benefits that students gain from their participation in work-based learning opportunities. The brief also highlights the potential obstacles facing states that can limit both the access to and quality of work-based learning opportunities, and looks at efforts from two states to define work-based learning opportunities for students, educators, and employers, and to create policies that provide greater access to these opportunities.

Nancy Conneely, Director of Public Policy

By admin in Public Policy, Publications
Tags: business and industry, college and career readiness, Issue brief, postsecondary, Public Policy, Secondary

New CRS Report Highlights NASDCTEc Work

Tuesday, October 9th, 2012

The Congressional Research Service (CRS), which provides reports and analyses to Members of Congress on a variety of policy issues, recently released a new report on Career Technical Education. The goal of the report, Career and Technical Education: A Primer, is to â€œsupport congressional discussion of initiatives designed to rationalize the workforce development system.â€

The report provides an overview of CTE, walks through the delivery and structure of CTE at the secondary, postsecondary, and adult learner levels, and raises several issues facing CTE stakeholders. For example, according to the report, there are four concerns that may hinder CTE delivery at the secondary level: (1) what is the goal of CTE â€“ to broaden the studentsâ€™ education and provide early exposure to several career options or to ensure students are prepared to enter the workforce, (2) the expense of maintaining and updating the instructional resources and equipment, (3) whether CTE adds value to a college preparatory high school curriculum, and (4) that the common core standards do not define career-ready and thus may not provide immediate career preparation.

While explaining the National Career Clusters^TM Framework, the report references data from NASDCTEcâ€™s 2011 issue brief, Career Clusters and Programs of Study: State of the States. The data for this issue brief was culled from the 2010 State Profile survey. We administer this survey to our members every other year to collect a wealth of information to be used in updating the State Profiles, and to provide the basis for a number of issue briefs. We are pleased that CRS was able to utilize our data in their report!

In the section â€œCollege- and Career-Ready Standards and CTE Standardsâ€ the report highlights NASDCTEc and NCTEFâ€™s work around theÂ Common Career Technical Core (CCTC) as one of the two set of standards impacting CTE students. As stated in the CRS report, the CCTC was developed by 42 states, the District of Columbia, Palau, business and industry representatives, educators, and other stakeholders, and it provides standards for each of the 16 Career Clusters^TM and their career pathways.