Using school fixed effects models, this CALDER study examined the extent to which students obtained postsecondary credentials in the CTE fields of focus they chose in high school. Findings indicate that focusing on a particular CTE field in high school is associated with an increased probability of enrolling in and obtaining a postsecondary credential in that field.
This paper focuses on the need to provide systems of support for multilingual students in career and technical education (CTE) programs. It describes an ongoing, equity-focused professional development initiative undertaken by a large regional CTE center to address the needs of emergent bilingual and advance equity in CTE programs. The program foregrounded professional development opportunities for teachers and administrators to ensure that equity is pursued on a systemic level.
This paper from the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) presents the first evidence of how students make career technical education (CTE) course-taking decisions. The authors examine disparities in CTE access and participation by gender, race, and income for Michigan high school students and use a simple discrete choice model to decompose participation gaps between supply (access) and demand (preferences).
This journal article proposes a two-pronged analytical framework to better understand student participation in secondary CTE. This framework can serve as a research tool for a more realistic analysis of CTE participation that recognizes that CTE is not a monolithic model offered equally in all schools across the country.
This working paper seeks to better understand the extent to which CTE is associated with trade-offs within students’ high school curricula, such as electives and Advanced Placement courses. Special attention is paid to how curricular trade-offs may occur differently among different student populations. Overall, the findings counter longstanding narratives that CTE participation limits student access to college preparatory coursework.
This MDRC report highlights new findings from a random assignment evaluation of the first seven P-TECH Grades 9–14 schools in New York City. Conducted by a Network research team at MDRC, the study is the first rigorous evaluation of the P-TECH 9–14 model and provides findings related to impact, implementation, and costs.
This working paper from MDRC and co-authored by CTE Research Network member Rachel Rosen provides current evidence on the effectiveness of CTE at different educational levels and for specific subgroups, including students with disabilities and by gender. This paper identifies areas where there is more CTE evidence as well as areas where gaps still exist.
In recent years, policymakers and researchers have paid renewed attention to career and technical education (CTE), but public attitudes—especially those of parents—toward CTE remain relatively understudied. This paper, featured in the peer-reviewed journal Education Policy Analysis Archives, draws on the history of CTE and more contemporary policy discourse to propose a new organizing framework for conceptualizing how CTE might be discussed in the public sphere. In addition, the article draws on a survey-based experiment to examine how the ways in which policymakers talk about CTE may impact parents’ support for CTE-related policies.