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Friday, April 15, 2005
Not Everybody Goes To College
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Yesterday’s post mentioned a new middle school program in DeKalb County called SpringBoard, created by the College Board, overseer of the SAT.
DeKalb dad Ernest Brown said it got him thinking about kids not going to college. What programs are available for such students? What was once called vo-tech is now called career technology, but it’s basically the same thing: skills that are needed in the workplace and do not require a four-year college degree.
School districts have career tech programs, and some are better than others. But enrollment is spotty, and even successful programs get little public attention. I visited what appeared to be an excellent program in Gwinnett a few years ago, Maxwell School of Technology, but some classes such as welding didn’t have enough students. And that’s a skill that pays! I wouldn’t be surprised if some students don’t know these vocational courses exist.
Another issue is that teachers and counselors seem to feel obligated to nudge most students toward college, because if they didn’t it would signal that they have “low expectations” of that student.
How should school districts handle vocational education?
