What is career and technical education (CTE)? CTE has a long and rich history
in the United States. Today’s CTE has evolved from a limited number of
vocational programs available at the turn of the 20th century into a
broad system that encompasses a variety of challenging fields in
diverse subject areas which are constantly evolving due to the changing
global economy.
Today’s CTE provides students:
academic subject matter taught with relevance to the real world
employability skills, from job-related skills to workplace ethics
career pathways that link secondary and postsecondary education
second-chance education and training
education for additional training and degrees, especially related to workplace training, skills upgrades and career advancement
Each state administers CTE in a different manner and ACTE has produced a set of CTE State Profiles to provide clarity and context to these multifaceted and diverse systems. In many cases, state and local CTE programs are “leading the way” with regard to important public policy issues such as high school reform and secondary-postsecondary transition. View ACTE’s collection of Promising Programs and Practices if you are seeking examples of the ways that quality CTE instruction is delivered today.
Also, consider the important work of career and technical student organizations, which are organizations that reinforce CTE instruction through co-curricular activities that prepare young people to become productive citizens and leaders.
ACTE collects data and research that supports better understanding of today’s CTE systems, programs and services, and highlights the potential that CTE provides students related to technical skills, academic achievement and career guidance. View the CTE Research Clearinghouse to identify current research information across a range of topics from journals, studies and articles, or use the CTE Effectiveness Fact Sheet for citations and quotations from sources supporting the value of CTE.
ACTE is the dissemination arm of the National Research Center for CTE and will continue to update information and promote the best practices that CTE as it continues to evolve.
For additional information, view ACTE’s links to additional CTE-related information from other organizations and Web sites.