Academic & career pathways for students: instructional practices such as small learning communities, career pathways and integration of academics into all subjects have a positive impact on student learning and retention.

For decades, educational practitioners and policy makers have debated questions regarding what is "academically best" for students in America's classrooms. As a result of the standards set by our colleges and universities, most school districts have structured their systems to meet or exceed the minimum requirements for entry into college.

But because the workforce is highly differentiated, with workers in different sectors requiring different knowledge and skills, high schools have developed a correspondingly differentiated curriculum. Academic courses aim at preparing students for occupations that require college degrees; more rudimentary classes and vocational programs ready students for careers immediately following high school graduation or for postsecondary technical training.

Today, however, many policymakers are challenging the traditional split between the academic and vocational sides of the curriculum. This challenge stems from the growing perception that, with the profound economic and social shifts currently facing the nation, a curriculum divided into distinct academic and vocational groups is no longer either useful or fair.

Employers disenchanted 

On the economic side, employers have become increasingly disenchanted with the extent to which high schools prepare students for work. With rapidly changing work technology and the high cost of keeping equipment up to date, high schools have lost their ability to prepare students for the technical aspects of many jobs.

And, as employers anticipate that more jobs in the future will require sophistication in literacy, numeracy and problem solving (as opposed to simply knowing how to perform a few procedures accurately and efficiently), high schools have come under fire for not providing entry-level workers with sufficient intellectual competence.

For these reasons--many of them beyond the control of schools--the nation's long-held confidence that most students will leave high school ready to work has been shattered.

Moreover, the nation is losing faith in the fairness of the idea that schools should place students with different learning preferences or intellectual capacities into different programs that will lead them to quite different opportunities after high school.

Some recent evidence suggests that the differences in schools' vocational offerings may relate less to local labor market needs than to the social and economic characteristics of students and their neighborhoods. For example, schools with large concentrations of disadvantaged students often offer the greatest number of vocational classes. However, these classes are less likely to be part of intensive, well-articulated programs than the classes offered at schools with more advantaged students.

In 1989, the National Assessment of Vocational Education found that only 45 percent of disadvantaged schools had access to area vocational centers, compared with 65 percent of schools with more advantaged students. Additionally, these disadvantaged schools tended to have a restricted range of program offerings (an average of 29 distinct credits offered) and fewer advanced courses (an average of 8 credits) (Goodwin, 1989).

In contrast, schools serving the most advantaged students have far richer vocational programs (e.g., course offerings, on average, of 46 distinct credits, with 15 of those credits in advanced courses). Yet students at those schools, on average, take only half the number of vocational courses as their peers at the most disadvantaged schools.

Over the last decade, NAVE has been reporting that secondary students who participate in vocational programs have increased their academic course-taking and achievement, making them better prepared for both college and careers than their peers. In fact, students who take both a strong academic curriculum and a vocational program of study may have better outcomes that those who pursue one or the other. Seven years after graduation, for example, students earned almost 2 percent more for each extra high school occupational course they took (Goodwin, 2004).

Nationally, the move toward higher college entry standards and increased high school exit requirements has resulted in a slow erosion of career and technical education programs and an increase in core academic courses. In many cases, the addition of required graduation credits has reduced the number of credits available for elective courses. So much have these increases infringed upon elective courses nationwide that in many high schools, students who fail only one course are off track for their scheduled graduation. Administrators statewide have reported the result of this has been a loss of elective hours and a reduction of career and technical preparation opportunities for students. For many students, these programs are the only reason to stay in school.

Clearly, academic standards are essential to a sound educational system, and under the best of conditions, standardized testing provides an indication of academic success within the system. However, far too often there is failure within academia and the legislature to acknowledge one of the most fundamental aspects of public education, which is to prepare youth for employment.

Collaborating with industry

One can hardly complete the mission of preparing the American workforce without first understanding and adopting the standards of business and industry. If the appropriate stakeholder groups fail to interact and work collaboratively to this end, any expectations that America will maintain its economic status globally, and that our students will be better prepared to face the challenges of tomorrow, are unlikely.

While one could argue that increased rigor in certain content areas might improve a student's potential for post-secondary educational opportunities, there is no research or evidence to suggest that by merely increasing high school exit requirements (or university entrance requirements) we will solve our international deficits or improve the competitiveness of our workforce.

When it comes to applied academics, concepts should cross all curriculum boundaries. They should be embedded in all sections of course documents and be included in all classroom practice. They should enable teachers to approach the curriculum in a way that complements and enriches the various learning preferences.

Studies have shown (Jacobs 1989; Shoemaker 1989: Bonds, Cox and Gantt Bonds, 1993) that integrated curriculum, interdisciplinary teaching, thematic teaching or synergistic teaching (regardless of what you call it), engages students in learning to a greater extent. In fact, most learners, when measured for academic retention, excel when information is delivered and connected contextually to something "real."

In an effort to improve student performance, many school districts have begun to explore the "best practices" of other states and international education systems. They are collaborating with employers, creating partnerships with the intent of aligning academic and industry standards.

The community classroom

Business and industry have embraced this move toward career education and the strengthening of the "community classroom" because they see it as a solution to their demand for the highly-skilled workforce they need. In addition, employers tell us that career education is a successful way to provide our students with communication tools and the "soft skills" necessary to be successful in the workplace. This includes everything from technical, critical thinking and problem-solving skills to the importance of punctuality, attitudes and work ethics.

The California Department of Education, in its landmark study, "Second to None: A Vision of the New California High School," pinpoints critical areas that must be addressed if California schools are to equip students for the 21st century workforce. Specifically, the study says that "we have to provide each student with a focused course of study and eliminate weak, general education or 'shopping mall' curriculum."

We need to engage our students in a strengthened curriculum, and prepare more students for college and technical preparation programs and jobs. By creating both academic and career pathways for students, we will improve our ability to serve all students.

In an effort to meet today's educational challenges, some school districts have moved toward the formation of smaller schools and professional learning communities that create career pathways for students. They are using project-based learning strategies developed to provide essential skills and knowledge within a student's area of interest. These project-based learning programs take a comprehensive approach to instruction, where students participate in projects and practice an interdisciplinary array of skills from math, language arts, fine arts, geography, science and technology.

These schools have shifted away from the classroom practices of short, isolated, teacher-centered lessons and instead emphasize learning activities that are long-term, interdisciplinary, student-centered and integrated with real-world issues and practices.

Connecting concepts to application

Dan Hull, chief executive officer of the Center for Occupational Research and Development, stresses that the majority of students in our schools are unable to make connections between what they are learning and how that knowledge will be used, thus confirming what industry has been warning us about for years (Hull, 2004).

Some students have a difficult time understanding academic concepts (such as math) as they are commonly taught, that is, using an abstract, lecture method. Nonetheless, students need to understand such concepts, as they relate to the workplace and to the larger society in which they will live and work. In a traditional classroom, students are left to make these connections on their own.

The failure to connect concepts with application is due to the way many students process information. The data and our business community are consistently telling us that a single approach to education produces limited outcomes. The educational shift toward smaller schools and project-based learning has come about because the data tells us that these approaches can be more effective in engaging and retaining students and student retention of information, in improving standardized test scores and in producing a more productive workforce than traditional methods.

Students have multiple preferred learning modalities and every student's educational goals are different. Not all students are going to college!

The time has come for educational and policy leaders to acknowledge that:

* Corporate America does not use standardized test scores to determine the effectiveness of our schools (even though within academia it seems to be the only instrument currently used to determine success), and that it perceives the role of our schools differently than do educational leaders;

* American schools are getting beat in the international education arena; meanwhile, American economics are steadily weakening;

* We should be careful not to make policy decisions and fund programs based on our current understanding of empirical data alone, but also look to the best practices of successful education models;

* We must work creatively to close the achievement gap by engaging all learners in education and develop their interest in academics through career education and pathways; and

* We must acknowledge that the demands of today's workforce are very different from those of many of America's classrooms.

If we are going to maximize the academic--as well as the career and technical--potential of our youth, we must modify our instructional practices and the school structure to reflect that goal.

While the idea that by increasing academic requirements, schools will be providing greater educational opportunities for all students has proved futile, there is plenty of data to support the positive impact that career pathways, small learning communities and integration of academics into all subjects has on student learning and retention.

Breaking away from tradition

It is possible to achieve high academic standards while also meeting the increasing technical and essential abilities demanded by our global economy. If increased academic standards are intended to benefit all students, they should be frameworked in a manner that all students can grasp and apply differentially.

America cannot afford to gamble its future on unsound education practices, nor can it drag its feet when it comes to the preparation of a competitive workforce. While political, corporate and educational leaders debate issues such as the cost of education and what will or will not be accepted by our universities and business community, millions of young Americans are being deprived of the world-class education we currently have the knowledge and ability to provide.

Educational leaders and policymakers must be willing to break away from traditional classroom paradigms and adopt contemporary methods of instruction. They must ensure that as standards evolve, successful models of implementation, supported by data, are provided to practitioners. Simply reinventing traditional standards is not enough. Practitioners must be trained in these techniques and school districts must redesign their programs and curricula to incorporate core subjects into some of their career and technical programs, while maintaining the integrity of an academic tract for college-bound students.

Most importantly, when decisions are made regarding what is best for America's future, we must consider the other successful global models and seek to develop policy that is based on a solid, systematic restructuring plan.

References

Bonds, C., Cox. C., and Gantt-Bonds, L. (1993). Curriculum wholeness through synergistic teaching. The Clearing House, 66/4, p. 252-254.

California Department of Education (1994). Second to None: A vision of the new California high school. Sacramento: California Department of Education.

Goodwin, D. (1989, 2004). National Assessment of vocational education. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Education.

Hull, D. M. (October 2004). "Career pathways: The next generation for tech prep." Connections. Waco, TX: Center for Occupational Research and Development.

Jacobs, H. H. (1989). Interdisciplinary curriculum: Design and Implementation. Alexandria, VA.: Association for Curriculum Development.

Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. (2004). "U.S. Needs to Step up on Educating its Youth" (editorial). Amherst, MA: Massachusetts Daily Collegian.

Shoemaker, B. (1989). Integrative Education: A curriculum for the twenty-first century. Oregon School Study Council.

Kirk H. Williams is principal of the Charles A. Jones Skills and Business Education Center, an adult school within the Sacramento City Unified School District. The Skills Center has been designated as a Program of Excellence in Vocational Education by the California Department of Education. He is also the 2004 ACSA Administrator of the Year for Career and Technical Preparation.