Public schools in Tennessee have evolved to meet the growing demands and challenges of 21st century learners.
This section will discuss Tennessee’s work surrounding college, career, and technical education and three models for
improving student success with charter schools, the Achievement School District, and iZones.
Career and Technical Education
Success in today’s economy requires more than a high
school diploma. A report from Jobs for the Future suggests
that between 2008 and 2018, some 47 million new jobs
will have been created, two-thirds of which will require
workers to have at least some postsecondary education.
Those with postsecondary degrees or credentials are
shown to have earned more annually and over a lifetime
than those with a high school degree only.47
With these concerns in mind, Governor Haslam launched
the Drive to 55 initiative to get 55 percent of Tennesseans
equipped with a college degree or certificate by 2025.
Over the past several years, Tennessee has invested in
efforts to ensure its students graduate from high school
prepared for college and the workforce.
Career and technical education (CTE) comprises
sequenced courses within programs of study that are
aligned with industry needs, providing students with skills
and knowledge in specific career areas. Tennessee’s
CTE programs are aligned with 16 nationally recognized
career clusters. Students concentrating in CTE programs of
study can earn capstone industry certifications that are
transferable to jobs or to postsecondary course credits.
Defining a College and Career Ready Student
In 2016, Commissioner of Education Candice McQueen
established the Career Forward Task Force to define a
ready student and create recommendations for preparing
more students to meet the Drive to 55 goal. The task force’s
final report proposed a definition of a ready student as:
In Tennessee, career-ready students are those who
graduate K-12 education with the knowledge, abilities,
and habits to enter and complete postsecondary
education without remediation and to seamlessly
move into a career that affords them the opportunity
to live, work, and sustain a living wage.
To achieve these outcomes, students should have a
clear understanding of their learning pathways from
as early as middle school and possess academic
and technical knowledge that can be exhibited
successfully and consistently across settings and
experiences. They must also possess employability
skills exhibited through critical thinking, written and oral
communications, collaboration, problem solving, work
ethic, and persistence. With such knowledge and
skills, students can pursue their career opportunities
with confidence and be engaged citizens, positively
contributing to their communities.
Key initiatives in college and career readiness include:
• Counseling/Advising: Strong counseling encompasses
three areas: socio-emotional well-being, academic
counseling, and career advising. Career counseling
means exposing students to careers in elementary
and middle school, helping students translate strengths
and interests into plans and action, and arranging
work-based learning opportunities.
• Vertical Alignment: Focuses on the alignment from
one grade level or institutional level to the next in
like subjects or curriculum content. Vertical alignment
of career and technical education has brought
stakeholders from K-12, postsecondary, and business
together to create seamless transitions along a
student’s career trajectory.
• Early Post-Secondary Opportunities (EPSO): EPSOs
allow students to take postsecondary level coursework
or exams while in high school with the potential to
earn postsecondary credit. Currently in the state of
Tennessee there are eight EPSO options: advanced
placement, Cambridge international exams, college
level exam program, dual enrollment, international
baccalaureate, local dual credit, statewide dual credit,
and industry certifications.
• Work-Based Learning (WBL): Work-based learning
is the opportunity to gain high school credit and work
exposure/experience by participating in internships,
apprenticeships, and paid work experience.
With the direction and recommendations of the Career
Forward Task Force and work of TDOE’s Division of College,
Career, and Technical Education, Tennessee is working
to create a 21st century workforce that meets employer
demands.
Topic Timeline:
• 2012:
Public
Chapter
967
established
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