Vocational Education in High Schools

If you haven’t noticed, I like to get as much info as possible to be able to discuss a subject or ask questions about a subject with some understanding. Sometimes (like this time) I think I understand a subject but am quickly told that I don’t see the big picture.

If you have been reading the comments section of my last post, you’ll see some good points made about the lack of Vocational Education available to Burke County students.

This weekend I had the opportunity to discuss the problem with a long- time vocational teacher in the public schools. He agreed that Burke County could use several upgrades to its vocational program, and cited the stumbling blocks along the path to changing the system. One is that students still have to meet the NC Core Requirements for graduation and the other is funding. He agreed that it seems that one has to be labeled an “EC” student to be able to enroll in those courses.

We discussed the possibility of “getting around” those graduation requirements – if that was possible. He mentioned some counties that had “Technical Centers,” and thought I should look into that.

So, I went to the Lincoln County Technical School website: http://qp.lincoln.k12.nc.us/QuickPlace/lcst/Main.nsf/h_Toc/3d3d8e4179f5ed5c85256ee9002318a1/?OpenDocument

And looked at the courses there versus the courses offered in the Burke County High School Course Offerings here:

http://www.burke.k12.nc.us/Curriculum/HS%20Course%20Offerings%20Booklet%202009-2010-BCPS.pdf

So, in the near future I plan on getting in touch with the folks in charge of curriculum in Lincoln County or any of the other counties that offer separate “Technical Centers.” I hope to discuss this with some high school principals as well.

And, here is where you might be able to help me:
If you have any experience or knowledge about how North Carolina counties (or “Local Education Agencies”) are handling this, please let me know. Although at some level this might be a “union state/non-union state” issue (maybe schools get funding from unions?), right now I am more interested in personal experiences and actual knowledge about what can be done in NC. Remember, we are limited by the NC Curriculum and by funding issues.

This will be an on-going project, and I am grateful for any information that you can provide.