Federal support of vocational education in public schools began in 1917. Programs were intended to train students for entry-level jobs. But good Vo-Tech curricula cost money. Students and parent's perceptions today are that traditional vocational education doesn't prepare students for good jobs, although that's where the demand really is (see Work & Leisure in this series). Students expect to go to college. Their course selections show this. Enrollment in Vo-Tech courses has declined. In 1982, 34% of high school graduates were following a vocational curriculum; by 1998, the number had fallen to 25%.
As the graphic shows, "trade and industry" and "business" have long been the most popular areas of Vo-Tech concentration. The percentage of graduates choosing those areas declined between 1982 and 1998; "trade and industry" took an upswing thereafter. The decline in this category accounts for the overall decline in Vo-Tech participation.
Most other vocational areas did not experience a significant decline. "Health care" and "technology and communications" have seen increases in recent years.4
Labor market trends might influence students' choice — the general talk on the media. The service-providing sectors have grown; manufacturing jobs are eroding away. Possibly reflecting this shift, students have been concentrating in the areas of health care, technology/communications, and food service/hospitality. Participation in "marketing and distribution" has not risen although the specialty is also growing, perhaps because students see that area as needing college preparation.
Students have chosen academic curricula since 1982, as shown in the table below. The shift is at least in part due to a 1983 proposal by the National Commission on Excellence in Education urging students to complete a New Basics curriculum. This curriculum includes more coursework in academic subjects — mathematics, science, English, and social studies. Students today are earning more credits across the board than did their peers in 1982.
Average Number of Credits Accumulated by Public High School Graduates, By Type of Coursework, 1982 and 1998
| 1982 | 1998 | |
| Total | 21.6 | 25.1 |
| Academic | 14.3 | 18.3 |
| Vocational | 4.7 | 4.0 |
| Enrichment/other | 2.6 | 2.9 |
Students graduated from high school in 1982 with an average of 21.6 total credits, 14.3 in academic subjects, 4.7 in vocational education. By 1998 students were earning an average of 25.1 total credits — 18.3 in academic and 4.0 in vocational subjects. Overall credits rose about 20%. The number of academic credits rose 28%; Vo-Tec credits declined 15%. The share of vocational education credits was 22% in 1982, 16% by 1998.
In the next panel we look at the students who elect a concentration in vocational education.
Source: Chart: National Center for Education Statistics. High School and Beyond Sophomore Cohort 1982 High School Transcript Study and 1990 and 1994 National Assessment of Educational Progress High School Transcript Studies, and Lisa Hudson et al., "Changes in High School Vocational Coursetaking in a Larger Perspective." Education Statistics Quarterly. Online. Available: http://nces.ed.gov/pubs. February 21, 2002. Table: National Center for Education Statistics. High School and Beyond Longitudinal Study of 1980 Sophomores (HS&B-So:1980/1982), "High School Transcript Study" and 1998 High School Transcript Study (HSTS).
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