U.S. Department of Education Office of the Under Secretary 2004
In 1998, Congress instructed the Education Department to conduct an independent national assessment of vocational education in time for the next reauthorization cycle of the Perkins Act. If Congress were on schedule, this report would be late, but since it seems Perkins will be back on the table in January 2005, the report is timely. Though various contractors helped with the project and an "Independent Advisory Panel" watched over it, the final report to Congress (310 pages) and executive summary (a more manageable 24 pages) were written by a staff team in the Undersecretary's office. One might, therefore, expect a tepid, bureaucratic approach. Yet while the phrasing is mild and cautious, in fact the findings and recommendations contained herein are blockbusters, at least in context of the staid world of voc ed. Eighty-five years since the Smith-Hughes Act was passed, America and its education system have changed far more than voc ed has changed, and the resulting friction begs for reform. Here are some key findings:
- "The vocational courses most high school students take improve their later earnings but have no effect on other outcomes that have become central to the mission of secondary education-such as improving academic achievement or college transitions."
- "Occupational concentrators [i.e. high-school students in the voc ed track] are far less likely than non-concentrators to be proficient in reading or math."
- "On average, vocational courses and programs do not themselves 'add value' to academic achievement. . . . Moreover, although there is mixed evidence that vocational education reduces dropping out of school, the more rigorous studies suggest there is no effect."
- "Vocational courses neither hurt nor help most students' chances of going on to college but are associated with a shift from earning a bachelor's degree to earning an associate's degree or certificate."
- "The Perkins quality improvement strategies may be too vague to drive change."
- "Tech-Prep was a catalyst for certain vocational reform activities but . . . 12 years later, few schools implement Tech-Prep as a structured program."
- "Fewer than half of postsecondary vocational participants seeking a degree or certificate take enough courses to earn a credential."
- "Flexibility provisions [in the Perkins Act] are popular but may be weakening the targeting of funds to high-poverty communities."
The authors go on to offer several reform strategies, predictably consistent with Bush administration proposals, starting with sharpening and narrowing the Perkins Act's goals and strategies; separating the secondary and postsecondary programs; eliminating Tech-Prep as a discrete program; and streamlining accountability requirements. Depending, of course, on your level of interest in voc ed, this one may be worth your while-at least the short version. You can obtain additional information and download both long and short versions here.
