Career and Technical Education (CTE): Empowering Students for Success
Career and Technical Education (CTE) is an educational approach that equips students with the academic, technical, and real-world knowledge, skills, and experience necessary for a wide array of career options. It provides purpose to learning by emphasizing real-world skills and practical knowledge. CTE programs are designed to contribute to the broad educational achievement of students, including basic skills such as reading, writing, and mathematics, as well as their ability to work independently and as part of a team, think creatively, solve problems, and utilize technology. These tools and experiences make school more relevant, and ensure students are ready for the real world. CTE can be the first step in a pathway toward productive employment and citizenship, whether students plan to further their education in community colleges, technical schools, four-year colleges and universities, receive on-the-job training, or pursue careers in the military.
The Mission of CTE
The mission of CTE is to empower all students to be successful citizens, workers, and leaders in a global economy. CTE gives learning a boost by combining regular academic courses with career-focused courses, skill-building, mentoring, and work opportunities to give students extra preparation for college and careers.
Key Features of CTE
- Skills Development: CTE is focused on developing skills. Practice, hands-on experience, and application tests make up the bulk of CTE.
- Real-World Application: CTE emphasizes real-world skills and practical knowledge, making learning more relevant and engaging for students.
- Personalized Learning: CTE programs are personalized, hands-on, and let students explore different career fields.
- Exposure to Career Options: CTE exposes students to careers across various career clusters, including careers students may not be familiar with or may not have ever considered, as well as the skills required for different careers. CTE programs ensure that all students understand the vast career possibilities available to them by allowing them to explore a range of career options based on what they love to do and do well.
- Preparation for College and Careers: CTE gives students a head start on both college and careers through specialized classes, mentoring, and work experiences in fields where jobs are in demand.
- Postsecondary Options: CTE programs provide information on the various postsecondary options that might be available in their community, region or state, or even across the country. CTE students are exposed to labor market statistics, information on the admissions requirements, costs, financial aid options, and projected benefits of these opportunities.
- Hands-on Training and Mentoring: Students receive hands-on training, mentoring, and internships from employers in their community.
- Career Readiness Skills: They learn how to develop a resume and interview for a job.
- Improved Academic Performance: CTE students do better in class because the hands-on experience makes academic subjects more engaging and more interesting.
- Confidence and Leadership Skills: This experience helps students build confidence and leadership skills to meet their goals in and out of the classroom.
CTE Settings and Levels
CTE is applicable to almost every educational age range. For this reason, you’ll find CTE clusters and pathways offered in middle schools, high schools, and post-secondary institutions.
- Middle School: Middle school CTE classes tend to focus on developing general workplace skills, such as computer applications or career exploration.
- High School: CTE in high school is also taught as an elective, but courses are often offered in greater variety. At the high school level, students typically pursue a pathway of courses within a single cluster like business or STEM. Often, these courses culminate in certifications by the end of a student's senior year.
- Post-Secondary Institutions: The career pathways at post-secondary institutions take students from introduction straight through to employment. Still, taking CTE courses from a postsecondary school is a viable option for pursuing a technical education.
Career Clusters in CTE
CTE exposes students to careers across the 16 Career Clusters, including careers students may not be familiar with or may not have ever considered, as well as the skills required for different careers. CTE programs ensure that all students understand the vast career possibilities available to them by allowing them to explore a range of career options based on what they love to do and do well. CTE gives students opportunities to figure out what they are passionate about and want to do after high school.
Here's an overview of some key CTE clusters:
Read also: Bridging the Gap
- Health Science: Health science is the largest CTE cluster and one of the most popular today. A growing population an increased and consistent demand for health science professionals means that learners in this career cluster have abundant opportunities for engaging careers in a variety of pathways. Many of these certifications are administered by the National Healthcareer Association (NHA), which has become one of a handful of distinguished healthcare certifiers.
- Business Education: Business education courses are among the most common in CTE because of their versatility. Students in this CTE cluster cultivate skills that will help them work in all three of these business areas. Learners in this cluster gain a strong foundation in understanding cash, revenue, expenditures, profit margins, and other principles of money management. Because finance is a highly-competitive field, advanced degrees help students stand out among their peers.
- Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM): Plus, IT graduates walk straight into one of the most lucrative and high-demand job markets in the world. Occupations involving engineering, design, and computer-based machinery often require a background in STEM. Graduates in STEM also have a high earning potential, especially if they pursue a baccalaureate or advanced degree in a field like engineering.
- Manufacturing: Manufacturing has remained a major career cluster in CTE because the processes and products of manufacturing drive industries throughout the global economy.
- Transportation, Distribution, and Logistics: Trucking, shipping, and storage all fall under the umbrella of this CTE specialty. CTE students in transportation, distribution, and logistics develop skills that are difficult to find in today's job market.
- Hospitality and Tourism: Pursuing careers in hospitality and tourism is especially valuable for students who want the versatility to work in a variety of locations or on nontraditional schedules.
- Government and Public Administration: Typically, that means CTE students learn about issues related to local governments, such as taxes, parks and recreation, budgeting, and city councils. While government careers can be lucrative, it's important to remember that even at the local level many public careers involve elected positions.
- Law, Public Safety, Corrections, and Security: This CTE cluster is well-known both for its profitability and ability to consistently provide opportunities to graduates. This cluster is an excellent starting place for anyone looking to get more involved in law, and it pays well enough to keep additional education on the table.
- Agriculture, Food, and Natural Resources (AFNR): This allows graduates to pursue a wide range of careers within the eight different AFNR career pathways. The number of organizations offering certifications is an example of the varied paths students can choose within the AFNR cluster.
- Human Services: Typically, these needs revolve around some element that’s lacking in a person’s life. Social work, social services, and drug rehabilitation all fall under this umbrella. While human services careers frequently pay less than those in other CTE clusters, human services offers rewarding career opportunities that directly affect the lives of individuals and communities.
- Architecture and Construction: Students focusing on architecture can be involved in the process of designing buildings and other structures, and may consider postsecondary instruction leading to a degree in architecture. With experience in this CTE cluster, students will be prepared for these two sides of construction industry.
- Education and Training: Careers in this pathway can include anything from on-the-job training to consulting. As a result, students in this field can take the knowledge they've learned virtually anywhere there is a need for teaching and training and have transferrable skills. By learning training and educational principles, they can become excellent teachers - even if they’re teaching new hires at a company.
- Arts, Audio/Video Technology, and Communications: While this could mean drawing, painting, or composing for some students, this CTE cluster is more concerned with operating the technology that makes those products possible. That’s why so many of these students go on to audio engineering, lighting technology, and similar careers. As technology evolves, these skills remain in demand to ensure that technical aspects of concerts, sports, and other events run smoothly.
CTE in Iowa
Career and Technical Education (CTE) in Iowa includes educational programs offering a sequence of courses that prepare individuals for employment in current or emerging occupations. Programs include competency-based applied learning, which contributes to an individual’s academic knowledge, higher-order reasoning and problem-solving skills, work attitudes, general employability skills, and occupational-specific skills.
At the secondary level, CTE programs are organized within six broad service areas, as defined in Iowa Code section 256.11, subsection 5, paragraph "h." The service areas are:
- Agriculture, food, and natural resources
- Arts, communications, and information systems
- Applied sciences, technology, engineering, and manufacturing, including transportation, distribution, logistics, architecture, and construction
- Health sciences
- Human services
- Business, finance, marketing, and management
Programs within these service areas are further aligned with the National Career Clusters Framework.
Funding for CTE
Funding for CTE in high schools and postsecondary institutions is provided through the Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century Act (P.L. 115-224), otherwise known as Perkins V. This federal law reauthorizes the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act of 2006, which provides federal funds to states and territories, including support for integrated career pathway programs for students. Perkins V aims to improve CTE programs so that students gain the skills needed for in-demand jobs.
Industry-Recognized Credentials (IRCs)
Industry-Recognized Credentials (IRCs) are important milestones for many individual career pathways. Both at the secondary and postsecondary levels, students should have the opportunity to earn education- and work-related credentials that verify skill mastery, educational attainment and the ability to perform a task or operation.
Read also: The Importance of Formal Education
CTE Teaching Credentials and Authorization
Any educator assigned to teach in a CTE course must be authorized for service in a CTE setting. CTE courses should be recorded in CALPADS by using course codes in the 7000-8999 range.
Documents authorizing CTE:
- Designated Subjects Career Technical Education Teaching Credentials
- Local Assignment Options (Adult Education)
- Staff Developer in subject(s) listed on Adult Education CredentialTitle 5 80020.4(c)
- Program Coordinator in subject(s) listed on Adult Education credentialTitle 5 80020.4.1(b)
- Short-Term Staff PermitTitle 5 80021
- Provisional Internship PermitTitle 5 80021.1
- Adult Education Credential holder (no part-time) may serve as a substitute in courses organized primarily for adultsTitle 5 80034.5(b)
- Local Assignment Options (Special Subjects)
- Driver Education (Classroom Instruction) ** May also consider Committee on Assignments or a Variable Term Waiver**Education Code 44263
- Local Assignment Options (Vocational Education/CTE)
- Staff Developer in subject(s) listed on Voc. Ed or CTE CredentialTitle 5 80020.4(d)
- Program Coordinator in subject(s) listed on Voc. Ed. or CTE CredentialTitle 5 80020.4.1(c)
- Voc. Ed substitute teaching for any holder of a document requiring BA and BSRTitle 5 80025.3(a)
- CTE Substitute PermitTitle 5 80025.5
Read also: The IDEA Act Explained
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