Tech Thursday: Career Tech Education (Federal Style) Update

Tech Thursdays

If I were to say “federal Career Tech Education”, would you believe it? What if I could show you Career Tech Education is the Adult Common Core? If you’ve followed my blog for long, you know I’ve pointed the connections out between K-12 Common Core and post-secondary Common Core (aka ‘Career Clusters’, ‘Career Pathways’, ‘American Apprenticeships Initiative’, ‘Career and Technical Education’, ‘STEM’, “Career and College Promise”, and other assorted names).

While we know the CCSS Machine is churning away at revamping ALL educational levels, we are learning more and more each day of HOW the U.S. federal government is also revamping ALL educational levels.

Coincidence? HARDLY! Join me as we see what’s new with the NCICTE!

You, too, can visit the federal funded CTE center: http://ctecenter.ed.gov/
You, too, can visit the federal funded CTE center: http://ctecenter.ed.gov/

A Brief Introduction (for the newest readers of my blog):

In the screen shot above, I’ve pointed out 3 key things for you. A) The federally funded website is featuring a study of how each of the 50 States is using their Career Tech Education funding (*Note: see the second referenced article below); B) that Aspen Institute, a big wheel in the CCSS Machine, is a group the federally funded group chose to use to relay ‘facts’; and C) that the Perkins Funding (used by higher education students and named for Carl Perkins) has been worked over by the CCSS Machine to embed MORE CCSS!
(for proof, see: https://www.commoncorediva.com/2014/11/16/rmt-vp-unions-career-tech-and-common-core/ {be sure to access the paragraph about how Perkins money is used to promote CCSS/CTE};
and this one where I first told you about the federally funded CTE website, https://www.commoncorediva.com/2014/11/20/tech-thursday-perkins-gets-the-common-core-squeeze/)

NCICTE, or the “National Center for Innovation in Career and Technical Education”: 

The original article revealing to you the NCICTE (11/20/14’s from above) gives you all the information on the 50 state study. So, not to repeat that information, let’s see what’s new, shall we?

1) That Aspen Institute study I mentioned above? It’s new, the back cover gives a copyright date of 2015. In it you’ll find how key the Gates Foundation has been to the study; how that ‘skills gap’ problem still is vexing America unless we reform, reform, and align education; how more higher education degrees, certificates, credentials mean a better economic pattern for all of America (in fact, this point is the main focus of the report); and lastly, how the data mining will be handled. An ‘added bonus’ is:
You’ll see how they’ve sliced and diced information to come to the same worn out CCSS Machine conclusion: we’re all on the fast-track to ruin UNLESS we step up our CTE students/teachers ‘game’! To get the Aspen Institute’s Report, http://www.aspeninstitute.org/sites/default/files/content/docs/pubs/LaborMarketReturns_0.pdf

2) You’ll learn (when you visit the NCICTE website) that they conduct scientific research to enhance CTE. You’ll also get to see what other partners they choose to use to make CTE the best it can be:

CCSS/CTE: where P3s are in a state of bliss.
CCSS/CTE: where P3s are in a state of bliss.

3) The CTE Consortia is another recent feature you’ll want to investigate further. Why this is worthy? Because each state receives an allocated amount of Perkins funding for use within the higher education system. The formula used is key to state legislation. So, you can find where the money is, where it’s going, and how it is to be used. Talk about a great way to hold legislators accountable AND voice how you want your tax money (yes, federal funds are our tax dollars) used to NOT promote the CCSS Machine! ( see: http://ctecenter.ed.gov/training_center/single_training/consortia-formation )

4) You’ll also find the ‘high quality bridge framework’ for better ‘Career Pathways’ and ‘Clusters’. (see the screen shot below):

ccssctealignframe

To access the entire framework (published in 2012): RevED_CACRF paper_final txt_v4

Closing:

How can we feel that anything aligned to CCSS and/or CTE is ‘high quality’ when we’ve seen so much proof about how ‘less than’ the foundation is?! Please, folks: look into how your state has sold itself down the river by continuing to support Common Core…in ANY of its forms! Career and Technical Education has one goal..that’s been repeated by so many.. a workforce population, not a thriving nation.

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