Blogs on Career and Technical Education

Today, there is a grassroots movement for teaching programming languages to kids.

Some of the factors driving this movement include new devices like the Raspberry Pi¹, initiatives like Khan Academy², and a greater global emphasis on math and science education. For policy makers, the stakes are high because computing skills are now seen as an indicator for a nation's economic competitiveness.

Some years ago I was hired by Norway's Ministry of Education to train vocational education teachers. Having myself attended a comprehensive high school where vocational students were those who couldn't make it academically, and having taught in a suburban high school where there was zero vocational education, it was eye-opening to be in a country where vocational education had high prestige, was well-funded, and included students who could have gone to medical school if that had been their preference.

As I've been reading about and following conversations during this year's Women's History Month, I wanted to reflect on women in the IT and edtech world.

As an elementary educator, I have found that women are often the majority in elementary schools and at education conferences. However, when attending tech conferences or when looking at tech departments in schools and districts, it becomes harder to find female representation.

Career and technical education (CTE), formerly known as "shop class," is not limited to sawdust and greasy wrenches. It can be those things, but it can also be Biomedical Engineering, Food Science Theory and Application, Digital Media and Carpentry; all noble callings that are ripe with the potential of fruitful careers in the job market.