Today’s discussion regarding how vocational training is promoting a class division sparked my interest. As Spring stated, vocational guidance was created to aid students in selecting which career path would be best suited for them. Who has the right to tell anyone that he/she is only capable of a specific career? There is a definite line between being told which career path to take and having it as an option.
One of my concerns that I did not mention during class about vocational training, is there is always the possibility of jobs becoming obsolete or being outsourced to another country. Vocational training does not provide critical thinking skills individuals need to cross the employment spectrum. College provides the skill set that will enable any individual to enter any type of field and become successful.
Also, as the last blog post for this class, I must say how much I have enjoyed the discussion throughout the past four weeks. Prior to entering Foundation of Education, I never examined my own educational history in a governmental perspective. The government has shaped my views of education and I was not even aware of it.
One of the great aspects of this class was the opportunity to reflect on the past and look at the challenges in the future in education for ourselves as well as our students. I know I am a better educator as a result of this experience.
Gina, I agree with your assessment of college and I would have to assume most others would also agree that everyone should strive for a college education.
ReplyDeleteHowever, I do think it is important that we provide opportunities to students who aren't capable of succeeding at college at that point in time. The reality is that a large percentage of high schoolers simply aren't ready for college at the age of 18. Maybe they'll be ready later in life, but in the meantime high schools should try to provide them with a knowledge base that they can actually use.
I think you raise an interesting point here, Gina, because I've been an advocate of a liberal arts education from day one. I was unsure about what career path I wanted to take until I graduated college just over a year ago! And I was supposed to make my mind up by the end of my freshman year to ensure that I would be able to complete a degree on time? What a joke! Luckily, I attended a liberal arts college in PA where we were required to take a crazy amount of core classes, but we were also exposed to the 4-1-4 calendar where we took one class during the month of January every year and it was a three week intensive course worth the same amount of credits as a semester long class. It was an excellent way to encourage students to go abroad, to take a class they normally wouldn't (they offered the chemistry of beer and perfume where you could make your own products and get your lab requirement out of the way - while possibly studying in France! Or you could take the psychology of fairy tales or a Shakespeare play.) It was a great opportunity and I think that it's absolutely crucial to expose students to a varied curriculum to allow them to ultimately choose their career path. This, of course, has to be a quick decision, typically by the end of their sophomore year, so they can pick that degree and pursue it to complete the degree in four years. But its nice to have a choice! It always is.
ReplyDeleteGina, I agree that “does not provide critical thinking skills individuals need to cross the employment spectrum.” Critical thinking skills are crucial in order to compete with other countries, such as China and Japan. Colleges and universities definitely give better critical thinking skills and provide versatile multisided learning.
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand, not all students plan to go to college or not all students know what career to choose, thus vocational schools can be a great option for them. Therefore, critical thinking skills must be learned starting from the middle school. It does not matter where the person will go, but those skills are handful anywhere.
I like yout topic. And i agree with you in the sense it is a great way for us to reflect and see where we need to improve on in Education.
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