EI 120.1 CREATING A COMPREHENSIVE SCHOOL-TO-CAREER SYSTEM

WHEREAS, our American system of secondary education has offered an inadequate number of high-standards options to those young people who are preparing not only for four-year colleges, but also for other forms of postsecondary education, further technical skills training or direct entry into the world of work; and

WHEREAS, this decade has seen dramatic changes in an economy that is now:

• driven by productivity demands, rigorous global competition, the extensive outsourcing of labor to foreign economies, downsizing and the growth of labor-efficient technologies; and

• requiring workers to function effectively in flexible and challenging work environments and to possess a combination of high academic abilities, employability skills and general occupational knowledge; and

WHEREAS, given the new labor force demands of our changing economy, it is in the national interest to raise academic standards for all secondary school students, whether they are preparing for college, further vocational training or immediate employment; and

WHEREAS, new federal legislation such as Goals 2000, the School-to-Work Opportunities Act and the Improving America's School Act are important vehicles for ensuring that students achieve high standards and are effectively prepared for life-long learning, work, family and citizenship because they:

• stress strong academic education and call for its integration with a command of employability and occupational knowledge and skills at high levels; and

• create a framework and opportunity for each state to build a reform plan based on rigorous academic standards; the alignment of curriculum, assessment, textbooks and teacher education; and clear incentives for students to work hard; and

• promote the creation of state assessment systems to determine whether students are meeting high academic standards; and

WHEREAS, the reauthorization of the Vocational Education Act, with its potential for contributing $1.1 billion into the reform of our system is now upon us; and

WHEREAS, the creation of a vocational education system based on high standards, new assessments and sound pedagogical strategies requires that teachers and others responsible for implementing the system be provided with quality professional development; and

WHEREAS, postsecondary education and formal training programs such as apprenticeships are a natural extension of good vocational education and are well suited to serve out-of-work adults or incumbent workers seeking to expand their knowledge and upgrade their skills; and

WHEREAS, discrete federal programs, designed to serve the needs of distinct populations (school dropouts, dislocated workers, welfare recipients, the poor, people with disabilities, etc.), have often had disappointing results, while our major industrial competitors have provided high-quality education and training systems to all, frequently with more impressive results:

RESOLVED, the AFT urges that any new workforce preparation and vocational education legislation, together with complementary state-and district-level resources, support quality school-to-career systems that include the following criteria:

• world-class standards for math, science, English, and social studies and an accompanying core curriculum that is as demanding as those used by our competitor nations;

• a high-stakes requirement that all youth master these standards at performance levels that will prepare them to succeed in postsecondary education, technical training and the world of work;

• comprehensive career counseling programs that ensure that all students have adequate information to make decisions regarding entry into the labor market, further technical training, and two and four-year college options;

• integration of academic and vocational curricula so that students see the relevance of the academic content they are required to master;

• use of new teaching strategies that ask children to apply what they learn in real-life situations, using work-related problems and tasks to help students master a demanding common core curriculum;

• integration of employability skills (communication, team work, problem-solving, etc.) into core academic subjects, without jeopardizing or diminishing the quality of the academic program;

• work-based learning experiences that are part of an academic program and can demonstrate measurable student achievement;

• comprehensive professional development for all staff(academic and vocational teachers, guidance counselors, paraprofessionals, administrators and workplace mentors(to ensure solid understanding of the core curriculum and appropriate methods for integrating its mastery with worksite learning;

• report cards, diplomas and credentials that communicate to parents, students and employers what occupational skills and academic content a student has mastered;

• replicability beyond initial pilot programs; and

• the collection of student data over time making possible longitudinal analyses of student outcomes, both in terms of academic mastery and job success; and

RESOLVED, that the AFT will:

• assist affiliates and work with other international unions to develop and implement Goals 2000, the School-to-Work Opportunities Act and other related federal legislation, as well as high-quality state and local vocational education initiatives; and

• encourage and support educators who are developing and implementing a pedagogy of helping students use knowledge and skills in real-world situations, including work; and

• work with state and local affiliates to secure school-to-work grants and design effective programs.

(Executive Council 1996)