Career and Tech Ed Play Key Role in Worker Retraining

As unemployment rises and labor demands change, adults increasingly want — and need — to learn marketable skills. 

That's where career and technical education (CTE) comes in. The Association for Career and Technical Education published an issue brief Tuesday on the pivotal role that CTE plays in worker retraining.

The brief highlights four major characteristics of new or newly redesigned programs that meet these workers' needs.

1. Short-term and accelerated programs

“We’re seeing a lot more short-term and accelerated programs that help individuals, in particular who are out of work, gain marketable skills in a compressed period of time," said Alisha Hyslop, the association's assistant director of public policy, in a teleconference Tuesday.

Instead of taking two years to earn an associate degree, students in some programs attend class 40 hours a week for one semester. Once they earn their credentials, they can re-enter the work force.

At Gateway Technical College in Wisconsin, students enroll in boot camps that run between 14 and 19 weeks. These boot camps include computer numerical control, machine repair and welding — three areas that the local community needs more skilled workers in. 

In the first two boot camps, students invest 40 hours a week, while in the welding boot camp, they invest 20 hours per week. By the time they finish, they'll earn certifications and college credit toward a degree.
 

2. Flexible learning approaches

Evening and weekend classes appeal to low-wage workers who want to upgrade their skills, Hyslop said. And online learning provides alternatives that meet the needs of busy adults.
 

3. Specific support services

Some programs offer child care and help organize carpools for students, including the Lorain County JVS Adult Career Center.
 

4. Focus on high demand careers

By working with local businesses, community colleges and career centers design programs in career areas that need the most workers.

For example, Gateway Technical College worked with the local community to find out what career areas they needed workers in the most. Based on those conversations with key stakeholders, the college designed accelerated boot camp programs in computer numerical control, machine repair and welding.
 

Videoconferencing brings hospital into the classroom

At the Lorain County JVS Adult Career Center, students in the medical assisting lab regularly take virtual field trips to the Cleveland Clinic, said Chris Fletcher, the center's director.

Many of the students don't have reliable cars or can't afford the gas to go to the clinic, which is on the east side of Cleveland — about 40 to 45 miles from the career center in Oberlin, Ohio. But through videoconferencing in the center's lab, they watch live heart surgeries and other medical procedures.

By watching the surgery, they see what the medical assistants and doctors do and what the surgery involves.

"It really gives them a good in-depth look of the procedures and some of the policies that are followed throughout the hospital,” Fletcher said.

The videoconferencing enriches their curriculum, and as they go into the field, it enhances their intern and externships.
 

Online classes meet students where they are

At Francis Tuttle Technology Center in Oklahoma City, the business and information technology program looked for ways to better serve students who needed to update their skills, retrain or earn certification, said Linda Lindsey, the center's instructional director of information technology. As a result, the center moved its database technology program online.

The program's teacher videotapes her instruction, records demonstrations and uploads them to her website. And she's also available by e-mail and cell phone when her students have questions.

“Most of the students are already working in IT," Lindsey said, "so being online allows them to work at their own time when it’s convenient for them.”

Resources:
CTE's Role in Worker Retraining