By Frank Burtnett, author of the Bound-for-Career-Guidebook and Bound-for-College Guidebook.
Maybe college…maybe not…maybe a 4 year college or university…maybe a 2 year community or technical college….maybe right after high school…maybe not until later in life. There are a lot of “maybes” that need to be tossed into the “college for all” discussion. President Obama and Secretary of Education Duncan weighed into the discussion a while back by stating that the nation’s ability to compete on a global playing field requires an increase in the awarding of college degrees. The President has set a goal of sixty percent of Americans earning a postsecondary education degree by 2020. Counter arguments, however, are being bantered about saying that college graduates are finding it difficult to find jobs in current economy and students should be more focused on workplace knowledge and skills training that are immediately adaptable and marketable for the current and future crop of jobs. They argue that many of those careers and jobs simply do not require college. What does this conflict in mission mean for American education? Should our schools place greater emphasis on the preparing students to succeed in postsecondary education? Should “college for all” be the mantra of the times? Should career and workplace skills receive greater attention? Can K-12 education do both? The experiences of the economic downturn and recession have added fuel to the incendiary debate as many are saying that the college degree is no longer as attractive as it may have been five or ten years ago. Allow me to argue for education. Regardless of what the high unemployment figures are telling us, the fact remains that college graduates are less likely to be unemployed or underemployed and stand the best chances for achieving their career aspirations when the recession is finally over. They even fare better in other demographics like physical and mental health. Allow me to suggest a middle ground. Schools, in my estimation, should be about the business of helping students achieve their full educational and career potential. No more….no less. Of utmost importance is the need to recognize and facilitate individual differences. College immediately after high school, whether it is the transition to an Ivy League college, a public university or a local community college, is a reasonable step for many who are enrolled in our schools. Others may wish to work and engage in more self-awareness and option exploration before taking that crucial next educational step. Quite possibly a stint in the military can serve to clarify the future and point the graduate in the right direction. There are multiple educational routes to the world of work and K-12 students need to learn about the viability of all of them. In many respects it is about helping young people outline options while getting a better handle on the characteristics and traits that define each individually. When you have a better understanding or who you are and a clearer view of the future and the options it affords you, you’re better equipped to make good educational and career decisions. K-12 education needs to prepare students with a kind of “readiness” for future study and entry into and about the workplace. Make no mistake---education is going to be a part of that future. Knowledge and skill acquisition will be necessary for everyone prior to their entry into any occupation or career in the workplace, and will be just as important for maintenance and growth in one’s work and the mobility to move about their chosen career. Americans cannot escape the inevitable fact that one day, for many---sooner than later, they are going to find themselves in a college classroom. Stopping out of education after high school is the equivalent of career suicide. But let’s consider the outside chance that some of our current K-12 students never find themselves on a college campus. Is being “career and college ready” not a great parenting skill, one that they might utilize with their own children? Essential to being “college or career ready” is a sense of self-awareness and being able to comprehend all of the options that lie before you. Equally important is having a life plan---a set of short and long term goals that will lead step-by-step toward a goal or set of goals out there that will become clearer with each move forward. Teachers, counselors and all educators, along with parents, can play a critical role in helping students set realistic educational and career goals and then take the action steps that are needed to make those aspirations come true. Students need to have experiences in school and in life that will help them structure their exploration and decision-making and more effectively engage them in the transitions that take them from school-to-college and school-to-work. The more students know about the educational and career development process---the more “ready” they will be to control those parts of it that are the most controllable. There are no “one size fits all” solutions or answers. There are just a lot of “maybes” that need to be addressed, today, tomorrow and way off in the future. ____________________
Dr. Frank Burtnett, President and Principal Consultant of Education Now, splits his life between Rockport, Maine and Fairfax County, Virginia. He is the author of the Bound-for-College Guidebook and Bound-for-Career Guidebook (Rowman & Littlefield Education). ____________________ This message appeared originally in the Portland Press Herald on July 3, 2011. It has been modified for presentation here. FB
