JVER v27n1 - Renaissance in Career and Technical Teacher Education Papers from the 2002 National Career and Technical Teacher Education Institute - Introduction to Special Issue

Renaissance in Career and Technical Teacher Education Papers from the 2002 National Career and Technical Teacher Education Institute

Introduction to Special Issue

N. L. McCaslin
The Ohio State University

The attention being devoted to teacher quality and how to produce quality teachers is probably as high as it has ever been. The debates have been intense and offered new ways of thinking about how teachers are certified, how teachers are prepared, and what new educational policies are needed at the local, state, and national levels. These new policies have ranged from requiring all teachers to have a baccalaureate degree in the subject they plan to rewarding teachers with large increases in salary if they meet the requirements of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. In career and technical teacher preparation, there have always been numerous avenues to certification. However, improving the quality of teachers and teacher preparation is no simple task.

The papers in this issue of JVER were developed for the 2002 National Career and Technical Teacher Education Institute conducted in Scottsdale, Arizona and sponsored by the National Dissemination Center for Career and Technical Education through funding they received from the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Vocational and Adult Education. The theme of the Institute was, A Call for Renaissance in Career and Technical Teacher Education , and was the first time that those interested in career and technical teacher education had been brought together for several years. Individuals from colleges and universities, community colleges, K-12 schools, regional education agencies, state education agencies, national organizations, state teaching certification/licensing agencies, labor groups, business and industry, community organizations, and educational consultants were invited. A total of 154 individuals from 36 states attended.

The National Dissemination Center for Career and Technical Education is a Consortium of five major universities serving as the primary partners: University of Minnesota, The Ohio State University, University of Illinois, Oregon State University, and The Pennsylvania State University. These universities represent some of this nation's premier providers of career and technical instructor, administrator, and counselor education-both initial and continuing preparation. The Consortium also draws upon the experience of a high-profile national Advisory Council of leading experts, a number of leading internationally recognized consultants, and a number of collaborating institutions, agencies, and organizations.

Five commissioned papers were developed to provide the basis for the 2002 National Career and Technical Teacher Education Institute. Each of the five university partners in the National Dissemination Center for Career and Technical Education were asked to identify an individual or individuals to prepare one of these papers for the National Career and Technical Teacher Education Institute. The Pennsylvania State University was asked to develop a paper on a conceptual framework for career and technical education. Jay W. Rojewski from the University of Georgia was selected to prepare the paper. The University of Minnesota identified Arthur M. Harkins to prepare a paper dealing with career and technical education and the future. The Ohio Sate University named N. L. McCaslin and Darrell Parks to prepare a paper that overviewed career and technical teacher education. The preparation and certification of postsecondary career and technical teachers was assigned to the University of Illinois and was developed by James E. Bartlett, II. Finally, Oregon State University was asked to develop a paper on the use of a virtual teacher-training center to prepare career and technical teachers. Sylvia M. Twomey was asked to prepare the paper. An Information Synthesis paper developed for the National Dissemination Center for Career and Technical Education by Ken Gray and Richard A. Walter of The Pennsylvania State University, Reforming Career and Technical Education Teacher Licensure and Preparation: A Public Policy Synthesis , was also used as a basic document for the Institute.

Rojewski's paper, Preparing the Workforce of Tomorrow: A Conceptual Framework for Career and Technical Education , examines issues connected to the development of a conceptual framework for career and technical education in the United States. He begins by clarifying what a conceptual framework is and how it should be developed. Next, he discusses issues and views that have influenced career and technical education throughout its history. The paper also discusses differing philosophic positions, education reform efforts, workforce needs, and external issues facing career and technical education. Rojewski also identifies the components of a conceptual framework-purpose, theories, models, teacher education, curriculum, delivery options, clientele, student assessment, and program evaluation-and ties them to past, current, and future perspectives. The paper concludes with implications for teacher preparation.

Harkins paper, The Future of Career and Technical Education in a Continuous Innovation Society , presents a future for career and technical education that mirrors the last 20 years of software- and technology-driven changes in the workforce. He argues that all levels of American education must undergo a software supported experiential mission shift to prepare, support, and evolve flexible, high-performance knowledge workers for a continuous innovation society. Harkins then compares five learning approaches-earlier industrial training, generalized mass education, information-to-knowledge transition, cybernetic supports, and performance/innovation base learning for continuous innovation society. He also argues that jobs are the logical and appropriate jobs for automation, and thus elimination. Therefore, Harkins concludes that career and technical education is appropriate and preferred for leading an educational mission shift to prepare knowledge workers. The author concludes his paper by discussing the promises and threats of distributed competence, implication of distributed competence for career and technical education, and new directions for career and technical education.

Teacher Education in Career and Technical Education: Background and Recommended Changes for the New Millennium , by McCaslin and Parks begins by stating that little is known about what makes a good career and technical education teacher and how that teacher contributes to academic and technical achievement. They also that indicate that an inadequate knowledge base is available regarding what the career and technical education teacher does in the classroom and what constitutes an effective career and technical education program. Next, they identify forces impacting career and technical education from society and/or the economy and significantly impact the student, the school, and the community: career development, higher academic achievement, assessment and accountability, diverse clientele, and technology. McCaslin and Parks also provide an historical overview of teacher education, career and technical education, and career and technical teacher education. They also indicate that career and technical teacher education is impacted by four major factors-approaches to teaching and learning, infrastructure, teacher licensure and standards, and innovative programs. A conceptual framework for career presented and tied to the major factors previously identified. The paper concludes with policy recommendations that should be considered at the federal, state, and local levels, and by business and industry, to improve the quality of career and technical teacher education.

Bartlett begins his paper, Preparing, Licensing, and Certifying Postsecondary Career and Technical Educators , by providing a definition of words often interchanged in usage on this topic-accreditation, career clusters, certification, licensure, and national board for Professional Teaching Standards. In his synthesis of available literature, Bartlett indicated that licensure and certification procedures differ widely from state to state. He also states that postsecondary career and technical education teachers must be knowledgeable in both their technical area as well as in teaching and learning for both pedagogy and adrogogy. Additionally, the author indicated that postsecondary career and technical education teachers enter their profession from a variety of points and with different education levels. Bartlett also found that the majority of postsecondary career and technical educators do not have certification requirements. The paper presents arguments for and against licensure and certification, multiple paths for preparing licensure and certification, emphasizes the need for continuous learning, and concludes with a call for research to examine postsecondary career and technical education preparation, licensures, and certifications.

Twomey's paper was entitled, The Virtual Teacher Trainer Center: A One-Year Program to Transform Subject-Matter Experts into Licensed Career and Technical Education Teachers . She indicates that there is going to be an impending shortage of career and technical education teachers. Twomey suggests a Virtual Teacher Training Center, such as the one at Oregon State University, based on two major foundations: a flexible, dynamic reconfigurable teacher education program, and use of Internet technology to deliver the program. The courses in the model are designed around students and learning; curriculum, instruction and assessment; school, community and professional cultures; and improving practice. She also presents detailed descriptions and content outlines for the courses in the Virtual Teacher Training Center. The paper's conclusion asks the reader to re-think their beliefs about what it takes to prepare teachers by looking forward, offering continuing professional development, and using technology to broaden access to teacher education.

The Information Synthesis paper by Gray and Walters was entitled, Reforming Career and Technical Education Teacher Licensure and Preparation: A Public Policy Synthesis . Gray and Walters indicate that almost one-fifth of all credits accumulated by public high school students are in career and technical education. They also indicate that there are well over 100,000 career and technical education teachers in our nation's middle and high schools. Gray and Walters also posit that career and technical teacher licensure/preparation reforms are part of and therefore influenced by the national teacher quality movement. They further indicate that although the national teacher quality movement is a powerful influence on career and technical teacher licensure/preparation reform, there are some unique factors internal to career and technical education that are prompting change as well as policy implementation constraints. Gray and Walter recommend that all career and technical education licensure be reduced to two types: Traditional/Tech Prep, and a more general Education through Occupations, Work/Family/Community/ Technology, and Tech Prep. The paper concludes with recommendations for both types of licensure programs, recommendations for the reform of teacher preparation program, and recommendations for implementation recommendations.

I am pleased that the Editorial Board for the Journal of Vocational Education Research has selected these papers for inclusion in this issue. As I indicated earlier, improving the quality of teachers and teacher preparation is no simple task Hopefully, these papers will help to stimulate this important discussion, improve the quality of our teachers and our teacher preparation programs, and result in a renaissance in career and technical teacher education that will result in the preparation of secondary and postsecondary students that have both the academic and technical skills to succeed in the new millennium.

N. L. McCASLIN is Professor Emeritus, Human and Community Resource Development; Site Director of the National Centers for Career and Technical Education; and Director of the Professional Development Academy, National Dissemination Center for Career and Technical Education, The Ohio State University. e-mail: mccaslin@osu.edu