National Assessment of Vocational Education. Final Report to Congress, 2004

摘要

Eighty-five years ago the federal government first committed to vocational education as a national priority. Since then, the enterprise has grown to encompass a wide variety of activities, participants, and purposes. Currently, nearly half of all high school students and about one-third of college students are involved in vocational programs as a major part of their studies. Perhaps as many as 40 million adults - one in four - engage in short-term, post-secondary occupational training. These individuals come to vocational education for different reasons, participate in different ways, and take different paths afterwards. In an era in which strong skills and lifelong learning are rewarded, the nature and impact of student experiences in vocational education could have important implications for the nations workforce and Americas place in the global economy. Federal efforts to improve the quality and availability of vocational programs are articulated, most recently, in the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Technical Education Act (Perkins III). Passed in October 1998, this act reflects both continuity with previous vocational legislation and some substantive departures, specifically in funding and accountability. As policymakers begin to consider further changes in law in anticipation of reauthorization scheduled for 2004, they will be examining vocational education as a field in transition, prompted by sweeping changes in federal, state, and local education and training priorities. This final report of the congressionally-mandated National Assessment of Vocational Education (NAVE) provides information to enable new policy to be responsive to these shifts. The National Assessment of Vocational Education (NAVE) was charged with evaluating the status of vocational education and the impact of Perkins III.