Tech Directions - September 2007 - (Page 6)

bare minimum needed for students to have “a fighting chance” to compete in the workplace, the Education Trust report said: “Yet, current high school accountability policies represent a stunning indifference to whether young people actually earn this critical credential.” The GRADUATE proposal does not tackle the issue of state graduation target standards, but it does address the concern that extending NCLB strictures to high schools would be an unwise move. The Education Trust is an architect of NCLB and has been unswerving about keeping its strong accountability measures in the reauthorization. The Bush Administration also tried to turn the reauthorization of the Perkins Act into a mini-high school reform program patterned after NCLB, but Congress rejected that twice. WIA Potential Another law up for reauthorization, the Workforce Investment Act (WIA), has the potential to address the high school dropout problem as well as any legislation available. Moreover, it specifically can provide the applied learning experiences and community connections that persuade many at-risk youth to persist to a high school diploma. If the No Child Left Behind Act accountability shifts its lens to secondary schools and the dropout crisis, communities will need “to come together around preventive strategies and around connecting high-risk youth to supportive education alternatives that lead to credentials,” according to the Center for Law and Social Policy. One of its seven recommendations calls for using WIA to increase access to paid work experience opportunities, including summer jobs for 14-16-year-old youth and year-round work experience and service programs for out-of-school youth in high-risk categories. The Center points out that in recessions, youth suffer tremendously in the job market. A 2004 study from Northeastern University found that the employment rate for black male teens was the lowest in 50 years—slightly less than 20 per- cent. “Early work experience is critical to the development of work ethic and appropriate workplace skills,” the Center’s report says, “and it correlates with higher earnings in later years.” “It is important to reintroduce actual hands-on work experience as a tool for imparting workplace skills that can’t be taught in a classroom or workshop setting,” the Center says. Therefore, it recommends restoring the summer jobs program that was eliminated when WIA was authorized five years ago. In addition, before the summer jobs program ended, Congress had added certain enrichments, which should be revived, according to the Center. These include: ● Individual assessments for youth, ● Opportunities for contextual learning and career exploration, ● Structural academic support, ● Activities and workshops tied to the development of competencies for workplace success, and ● Mechanisms for documenting that youth are in fact learning and developing skills. 6 techdirections ◆ SEPTEMBER 2007 http://www.testequipmentdepot.com http://www.testequipmentdepot.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Tech Directions - September 2007

Technically Speaking Contents Direct from Washington The News Report Technology’s Past Technology Today Mastering Computers Dome, Sweet Dome—Geodesic Structures Teach Math, Science, and Technology Principles Help Students Become Wise Energy Consumers How Does FERPA Affect You? Camera Operator and Videographer e-gallery Product Central Free for the Asking More than Fun

Tech Directions - September 2007

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