The death of voc ed — and the middle class
The death of vocational education is hastening the demise of the middle class, argues Marc Tucker in Ed Week. Years ago, almost all the larger cities had selective vocational high schools whose graduates were virtually assured good jobs, Tucker writes. Employers made sure these schools had “competent instructors and up-to-date equipment,” so graduates would meet job [...]
Some college, no degree
Thirty-seven million Americans have some college credits but no degree, reports Emily Hanford of American RadioWorks. Marilyn Johnson Jackson could only manage the stress of night classes, two jobs and life as a single mom for so long. She gave up on the idea of ever getting her degree — and then discovered a new [...]
11th graders start college in Michigan
Michigan is turning to early college programs to introduce high school students to college challenges, reports the Lansing State Journal. Kaitlin Kennedy, 17, didn’t have “real plans” for college as a student at Lansing’s Eastern High School. “For one thing, I didn’t know exactly what I wanted to do,” Kennedy said. “For another, my family [...]
Minnesota schools can’t meet career-tech demand
Minnesota high schools can’t meet the rising demand for career-tech classes, reports the Star-Tribune. Just in the last three years, career-tech classes have been cut by more than half because of flat state and federal funding and a focus on core reading and math classes to meet No Child Left Behind standards. “It gets rugged [...]
California takes up community college reforms
Next week, California’s community colleges will consider 22 proposals to improve graduation and transfer rates, reports the Contra Costa Times. The Student Success Task Force‘s recommendations include: Design statewide tests to determine each entering student’s competence in math and English. As it stands, each of the state’s 72 college districts is responsible for coming up [...]
Hess: Edu-stories for 2012
President Obama’s re-election campaign will promote Race to the Top and college affordability to woo suburban swing voters, predicts Rick Hess in Ten Edu-Stories We’ll Be Reading in 2012. The Republican nominee will stop attacking the Education Department and talk up education reform to appeal to moderates, he adds. For-profit college entrepreneurs will look to expand [...]
‘Early Start’ is too little, too late, say profs
Overwhelmed with remedial students, California’s second-tier state university system will require a 15-hour “Early Start” summer class for new students who aren’t prepared for college-level classes. California State University professors think it’s too little, too late, reports the San Jose Mercury News. “I’m not at all optimistic that it’s going to help,” said Sally Murphy, a [...]
‘Dual’ students learn IT skills
A Florida magnet school is graduating students with information technology certificates and college credits, reports U.S. News. Crooms Academy of Information Technology offers college-level courses in computer networking, software programming, and web design, earning Crooms the title of Most Connected Classroom in U.S. News‘s inaugural ranking of tech-focused high schools. Crooms offers 16 courses developed at Seminole [...]
2/5 are unprepared for college or careers
Two-fifths of high school graduates are unprepared for college or the workforce, according to a study (pdf) by Johns Hopkins and University of Arizona researchers. One-third of high school students complete a rigorous college-prep track that increasingly includes Advanced Placement courses, the study finds. One-quarter take advantage of career-prep programs. The remaining 40 percent are [...]
Mixed verdict on dual enrollment
When Florida high school students take “dual enrollment” classes at college campuses, they improve their chances of enrolling in college and earning a bachelor’s degree, concludes research by the Community College Research Center at Teachers’ College, Columbia. But students who take college classes taught on high school campuses don’t show gains. It’s believed classes taught [...]
