Consider all paths

“All students should go to college. It is the only way my child/my students will succeed.”

How often is this fallacy repeated every month, week and day of the school year by countless adults? This has been something I have discussed with my colleagues in my profession as a teacher and with friends and acquaintances at social occasions, and I’m sure we will continue to do so.

This is only one of many topics I confront almost on a daily basis as I talk with principals, counselors, teachers, parents and, most importantly, my students. Yes, most importantly my students, because you see, my students are my clients whom I am providing a valuable service to each and every day. And being a business and information technology instructor, part of my product — my curriculum — that I present to my students is job awareness and career preparation. There are so many professions available to our students in the future work force that stretch in many directions other than college.

Just this week, a study released by Harvard titled “Pathways to Prosperity” (February 2011) finds that our students need to begin their career exploration in middle school and that one option to pursue may be vocational training, which can start in high school. What was surprising to many, but not to me, is the projection that the 14 million jobs needing to be filled in the future will be filled by what are termed “middle-skill” occupations. These are professions such as electricians, police officers, IT professionals and others that can attain career achievement and middle-class success with none, little or some post-secondary education less than a bachelor’s degree.

The danger is that those of us with receding hairlines and graying temples may recall the days of “tracking” when we were in high school; we were forced by education standards of the day to assess whether we were “smart” and needed to head to college, or wouldn’t amount to much and needed to take the “vocational” track. Thank goodness those days of tracking are past and we are realizing that we should not classify students like this.

But we are still stuck in the mould of thinking that a college degree is still a necessity for lifelong success and earning potential. This is not true. By producing well-rounded students, apprenticeship opportunities are available in electrical and plumbing occupations. Earning and learning while preparing to receive a license sounds pretty good to me, as are beginning median wages of around $47,000. Other students are on track to enter post-secondary programs leading toward two-year degrees in paralegal professions earning similar wages (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2010). We also have students in the Mat-Su Borough School District at this moment who will graduate with computer certifications and land jobs making more than $70,000 — and they will have no college debt!

Am I biased? Yes, I will admit I am because of the discipline I teach. But I am only biased in that I want every student to find and strive for the job potential that will satisfy them mentally and financially for their working lives. We still need our molecular biologists, our journalists, anthropologists and actuaries, so in no way do I, or will I, think any less of my colleagues in other disciplines. But I need and want exceptional mechanics, dental hygienists, plumbers and chefs. I want a student who will research for a cure for cancer, but I also want a student who will fix my car. Both are important to me and I value all students and the careers they will choose.

So, during February, which is Career and Technical Education Month, think about the ever-widening range of careers that our children and students can and will be striving toward that may not require a college degree but will lead to success. I see a bright future of clean teeth and a newly installed back-up generator. Do you?

Steven Cook teaches business and information technology at Palmer High School.