Counselor Education

Establishing an online community of professional learners was one component of a multiyear professional development project with an overall goal of improving the ability of career and technical educators to use and interpret technical assessment data. Educators from five states and nine different schools participated in a research-based workshop and were mentored for several months as they developed a data-driven action plan. Few of the project participants engaged in substantial exchanges using the website that was established to enhance communications among the educators at a distance from each other. The principal investigators discuss and present design elements of online communities used to revise the website and its facilitation.

North Carolina has no specific and justified job description for the Special Populations Coordinators (SPCs) who serve students with special needs enrolled in vocational education. The three purposes for conducting this study were: (a) to identify the level of importance associated with various activities in which vocational special needs educators (VSNEs) engaged; (b) to ascertain the activities in which it was most important for VSNEs to engage; and (c) to gain information that the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction could use to develop a specific and justified job description for SPCs. The theoretical framework for this study was based on the organizational analysis model from the field of training and development. This was a descriptive study in which a questionnaire was completed by experts in VSNE from across the United States and by SPCs from across North Carolina. The data were analyzed to determine the level of importance associated with various activities of VSNEs. The five most important activities of VSNEs were identified as: (a) acting as an advocate for students; (b) communicating with involved parties to ensure coordination of efforts; (c) participating in the development of individualized plans for students; (d) using assessment results to develop individualized plans for students; and (e) providing instruction on employability skills. The researcher concluded that the study findings could be utilized in the development of a specific and justified job description for SPCs. Additional research should be conducted to explore the relationship of the findings to Perkins III programs and funding.

A study was conducted to describe the characteristics of teacher educators in career and technical education (CTE) programs, including the following: demographics; professional development activities; and methods, models, and approaches currently used within teacher preparation programs. Study respondents included 359 teacher educators from institutions of higher education across the U.S. Demographically, CTE teacher educators are similar to other teacher educators. For example, 90 percent were white, 4 percent African American, and 3 percent Hispanic. The average age of a CTE teacher educator was slightly more than 50 years, and more than half were tenured at their institutions. A large percentage of the teacher educators' professional time was spent teaching, with female faculty spending more of their professional time teaching than their male counterparts. Respondents indicated that traditional approaches, such as university course work, coupled with local school-based teaching and learning centers, solution-oriented investigations, and seminars were the most effective approaches toward developing future secondary teachers and therefore, were most used. They had mixed opinions as to the effectiveness of Web-based and other technology-based courses in the preparation of new teachers. Adjunct Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document.

A study determined critical attributes of the nation's exemplary, leading, or innovative (ELI) career-technical education teacher preparation programs. National experts identified 13 critical attributes of an ELI teacher preparation program. Researchers conducted site visits to 5 institutions

A study collected baseline data about the status of teacher preservice Career and Technology Education (CTE) from program chairs at colleges and universities in the United Status. The survey had six sections: pedagogical competencies for CTE teachers, CTE certification process, course delivery, recent program revisions, CTE program demographics, and tracking information. The importance of the following competencies was measured, yielding primarily Likert scale data and categorical data: workplace readiness, student assessment, career decision-making, learning to learn, business skill, managing life roles, social development, collaboration with various segments of the community, and importance of several educational principles. Of the 673 surveys originally sent, approximately 44 percent were returned and 227 were analyzed. Findings indicated the primary model for most CTE certification areas was based on a baccalaureate degree in the given certification area; the highest rated competencies for CTE teacher preparation indicated a clear, strong commitment to meet the needs of student learning; program chairs believed that making their students effective in solving problems was a rewarding and useful purpose for CTE; and the primary method used to teach and deliver the educational program was the traditional lecture and student teaching approach, but newer methods such as the professional development school had started to make an impact on the profession. (Contains 15 references.) (YLB) Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document.

Developers of distance education courses need to determine the best and most efficient delivery systems. Traditional print-based correspondence courses are thought to prevail in the technological age because of inertia of administrators and instructions, but it is important to know the preferences of the adult learners who are the usual nontraditional consumers of such courses. The 26 subjects in this study were students in a for-credit correspondence course that is an upper-level elective for bachelor's degree candidates. They responded to a 7-item Likert scale asking about media preferences for distance education and attitudes toward correspondence courses. There was strong agreement that the print-based course is more convenient than a traditional classroom course or computer-based courses. Preference for print course formats was also obvious compared with computer-network, floppy disk, and videotape formats. Because the subjects were all technical professionals, fear or anxiety about computers was not thought to be a confounding influence. Learner preference and technology gaps will keep the print-medium course in use for some time to come. (Contains 14 references.) (SLD) Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document.

This paper reports on the state of higher education in China, and was written by a U.S. scholar who attended a global population conference at East China Normal University in Shanghai (China). The focus of the meeting was on population and the environment. Although China's compulsory, government-controlled educational system bears similarity to the Russian system, higher education in China is changing in several directions. Distance education alternatives have been growing steadily and new programs are being put into place to increase access to education. As the Chinese government phases out full support of higher education for a majority of students, a new student loan program is seen as a way to reduce per capita government expenditure on higher education. China is slowly entering the technology age, and needs to upgrade its existing systems. Increasing access to both education and technology are key components of producing the workforce required by the modernization process. (Contains 13 references.) (Author/MAS)

ContInuous Improvement ust one of the ways career and technical education (CTE) is revamping its image is through increased attention to data-driven instructional techniques as a means of improving and focusing instruction on what matters most. Accountability and data have increasingly become a core focus of research, news and commentary about education in recent years. Though some of the attention to accountability and data use may be tied to regulatory requirements, there is also recognition among educators that metrics matter.

The interests of two different at-risk populations in Pennsylvania are compared. Both urban minorities and rural youth participated in programs designed to motivate them to continue their education. Participants (52 rural and 30 urban middle school students) completed an interest survey as part of the program orientation. Although the rural youth measured significantly high in many survey areas, the urban minorities measured higher than rural participants for many areas including motivation, science interest, and general interest. Rural youth enter higher education in significantly lower proportions than their urban counterparts. Lower interest scores may reflect the lack of reflective programming for rural youth. With a general lack of programs and funds for at-risk rural youth at the state and federal levels, the rural youth are being overlooked in terms of educational opportunity. Further study is needed to better understand motivation of "at-risk" youth and effectiveness of precollege programs designed to help them. Two tables summarize study findings. (Contains 9 references.) (Author/SLD)

To address the skills gap and reward achievement, technical assessment publisher, NOCTI, began an initiative to define technical excellence in career technical education (CTE) programs and to recognize the nation's top CTE students through a digital Technical Badge of Excellence (TBOE). Analysis of standard setting methods and NOCTI student test data from U.S. high schools determined the excellence criteria. NOCTI has assessments in over 100 different technical areas and, because difficulty varies, normative standard-setting methods were most appropriate, as they account for test difficulty and locate students at a high position relative to the tested group. Additional criteria were implemented to assure the validity of the selection and subsequent awarding of the digital badge. Thus, top CTE students nationally can be located using normative standard setting methods, which will provide a source of skilled workers for global employers and help to close the skills gap.