Category: FEATURES

All tests contain error variance, which means that inaccuracies will exist based on multiple factors, some of which are controllable while others are not. But there are several strategies available to increase the efficacy of a test. In this article we seek to provide some tips and techniques to help improve your assessments.

Teachers of high-quality CTE programs recognize the value of analyzing student progress to adjust and improve instruction.

Regardless of the types of testing used, assessment in CTE is based on standards and competencies identified as needed within a specific industry. The most important part of any test (as well as instruction) is to be sure that you are teaching and measuring current concepts and skills. Tests must align closely with what is being taught, and what is being taught should align closely with what students will be expected to know and do in their chosen fields.

1. Determine the scope of the test.

What should be tested or measured? The assessment’s scope will be different based on the purpose of the test and the material taught. Is it a pop quiz, a hands-on exercise, an end-of-unit assessment, an end-of-course assessment? For MC tests, the scope also depends on factors such as preferred length. Most tests in a classroom environment need to be short enough to be administered within one classroom period.

2. Write a test that is fair.

CTE student populations are usually from diverse ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds, and these characteristics should be accounted for in the test design. Consider disability or language access, for example. Figure 1 offers some suggestions for writing better test questions.

[pdf-embedder url=”https://www.acteonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Better-Test_-handout_-Techniques.pdf” title=”Better Test_ handout_ Techniques”]

---

Rigor is an important aspect in test development.

Include various levels of item difficulty. Some require a student to identify or recall knowledge, while others test their understanding of the process or application, and others ask them to apply knowledge. Here are examples of three levels of rigor pertaining to voltmeters:

1. “From the four meters shown, identify the voltmeter…”
2. “The proper way to attach the voltmeter to the battery is…”
3. “If a voltmeter reads 13.2 volts, this means that the battery is…”

---

Mix modalities whenever possible.

Multiple choice (MC) questions are the most common test item type, often used to assess a learner’s knowledge of factual information. And they are relatively easy to grade, making them useful for a teacher’s busy schedule. But CTE educators and students often prefer performance-based assessments. There are a few ways you can combine both performance and MC when it comes to testing. For example, teachers can create performance-based MC items on technical content by creating graphics with basic editing tools.

Evaluate the effectiveness.

Analyzing assessment data is a critical part of teaching and learning in any classroom. Data delivers a snapshot of what students know, what students should know, and what students do not know yet. But that
data must be based on strong and accurate measurements. Consider the following when seeking to make
improvements.

• Percent correct: This refers to the number of students who chose the correct answer. If a number is very low, it may be a legitimately difficult item or test. But it’s also possible that something needs to be changed. Is the correct answer actually correct? Are any of the wrong answers also correct? Is the question written in a confusing way?
• Wrong answers: Attractive distractors (or wrong options) can also be an issue. If a lot of students are picking the same wrong answer for an item, it’s important to consider why. Was the wrong answer partially correct? Was it a good distractor for a legitimate reason?

---

By implementing even just a few of these strategies, test design, delivery and analysis can be improved. Ultimately, these strategies inform teaching and can improve content delivery in the long term.

John Foster, Ph.D., is the retired president and CEO of NOCTI and Nocti Business Solutions.

Patricia Kelley, Ph.D., is an industrial organizational psychologist at NOCTI.

Tina Koepf, Ph.D., is a psychometrician for Nocti Business Solutions.

---

Read more in Techniques: A How-to Guide.

Maslow before Bloom, we’ve all heard this phrase. To me, it’s always meant that the core needs of students — physiological requirements, safety, love/belonging, and esteem — must be met before they can learn to their fullest potential. It also means that teachers must have their own core needs met before they can properly educate their students. Family members must have their needs met before they can support their children’s educational endeavors. And stakeholders must have their needs met to fully support a school system.

In theory, this makes sense. But what does it take to put it into practice in the context of our schools? After careful analysis, studying multiple frameworks of change, I believe the answer is this: We must create a holistic, equitable approach to education in our schools that implements the essence of Maslow before Bloom and inspires radical hope for all stakeholders.

“Trust is the foundation of everything of value,” wrote David Horsager in The Trust Edge.

Radical hope is a term used to describe the act of imagining and implementing an alternative reality for schooling — cultivating authentic relationships and believing in students’ and teachers’ capacity for excellence (Rivera-McCutcheon). All stakeholders, regardless of race, culture, language and lived experiences, should receive equitable chances to share their expertise. Bring everyone to the table to help shape the educational agenda.

Build trust and relationships to inspire radical hope.

Building trusting and equitable relationships between administrators, teachers, staff, students, families, and the community is the first step in any successful plan to enact real change, bringing everyone together around common goals. But in order to build trust, we must establish certain restorative practices between administrators, teachers and staff.

Restorative practices involve activities that build community and promote relationships. And in order to reach our students and families with these practices, we must first practice them ourselves. Set a good example.

---

Restorative practices among faculty and staff

• Protected time for professional learning community, grade-level and/or department meetings
• Access to continuous, relevant professional development
• Community-building exercises at staff meetings
• Opportunities for peer observations and mentoring
• Inclusive discussions about the needs of the school
• Emphasis on antiracism in the school and community

---

Restorative practices for students, families and the community

• Community-building exercises in the classroom
• Inclusive discussions about the needs of the school
• Faculty and staff engagement in the neighborhood
• Programming to meet community needs

---

Leaders who cultivate authentic relationships and practice radical care model the kinds of connections teachers should develop with their students. They help teachers and staff feel trusted and supported enough to innovate and refine practices. And they create an environment among students and families that evenly distributes power and allows students to learn and grow from mistakes or perceived failures (Rivera-McCutcheon).Only with authentic trust, and a continuous effort at building and maintaining that trust, will we be able to make meaningful change.

Ask community members what they need.

How do we know what the perceived needs of the community are? Ask them! Surveys and needs assessments allow us to gauge how a school is viewed by its stakeholders and what changes need to be made.

The more data that is gathered, the bigger the picture! So it is important to reach out to everyone (e.g., teachers/staff, board members, families, students, community leaders) and ask them to respond to the needs assessments. Encouraging participation is much easier to do once authentic trust is established, especially in terms of family involvement. Because we, as school personnel, must demonstrate to families that we are working hard to provide a quality education for their children (Young et al.), which demonstrates the long-standing idea that you must earn respect. It is not simply given.

Recognize that change isn’t easy.

Change is especially difficult when it means confronting long-held beliefs. A lack of buy-in from stakeholders who are averse to change can be a significant barrier. It’s also true that, sometimes, we as educators only think to look at students’ academic potential instead of seeing the whole student and their inherent knowledge and promise (Rivera-McCutcheon). But this can be overcome through open and honest communication to create a shared vision for the future of the school (Méndez-Morse). And patience. Take the changes one step at a time and trust the process.

Ashley Thompson is a graduate research assistant and a student in agriculture and consumer resources at Tarleton State University in Stephenville, Texas. She graduated with a Bachelor of Science in agricultural education from Oklahoma State University and a Master of Education in education administration, curriculum and supervision from the University of Oklahoma. After six years of teaching secondary agricultural education, she is working to pursue a doctoral degree and a career at the university level. She is active in ACTE and NAAE and was a 2022 ACTE fellow in the New Professionals cohort.

---

Read more in Techniques: VISION in the Spotlight.

Sustainability, electric vehicles, solar, wind, charging stations, renewable energy, technology, innovation, and investment: All of these words represent a shifting landscape. The way of the world is changing, with a new emphasis on cleaner, more efficient living. Since President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, and as we witness a rapid push toward sustainable trades and equipment, an exciting new industrial revolution is upon us.

Saint Paul College is kick-starting a hybrid and electric vehicle (EV) program, which will launch in 2025.

I started as the dean in July 2022 and was welcomed with open arms by a very excited and passionate automotive faculty team. Two faculty in particular were well on their way to starting this program! My love for sustainability combined with their passion for and knowledge of the auto industry made the complex work to start a program fun and rewarding. As of 2023, our college is planning the remodel of a current lab space and will begin teaching an introductory course with a newly purchased Toyota Prius and a Chevy Volt.

The Saint Paul College auto team is thoughtful and creative in their approach to partnership development, creating surveys and taking advantage of Perkins dollars for training. There were times we talked about the challenges of hybrids/EVs and shared articles and research, and we haven’t always agreed. But each and every stakeholder has remained engaged and thoughtful, and we have learned many new things about how these cars are perceived and how they perform in different climates.

Find a spark.

The momentum around hybrids and EVs started long before I arrived at Saint Paul College. They had already made a financial investment in the program. And senior leadership felt strongly this was the right direction for new programming (credit and non-credit based). EV and hybrid technology has been growing, with EV sales climbing more than 40% since 2016 (McKinsey >amp; Company, 2022). Further, this growth in sales is closely tied to population density and prevalence of a large metro area, which makes Saint Paul College the perfect fit!

My tasks were to figure out what funds were available and how we could best spend the money to ensure a safe environment, training, and teaching resources for students and faculty. The college had already added $30,000 to the current Perkins plan. And we put that money to work, getting two used hybrid vehicles and advanced training for faculty. The auto team met with companies like Caliber Collision and Xcel Energy to learn about industry needs. And these meetings magnified the need and the rapid pace of job growth to expect.

Leverage partnerships and committees.

Collaboration was critical in helping us determine local needs and concerns about implementation. Saint Paul College is located in an urban area close to a number of dealerships that are making changes to their fleets. So, together with the Minnesota State Transportation Center of Excellence, the auto team developed a survey to ask industry experts about what they needed. Their responses encompassed a demand for skilled technicians. And as a result, faculty received additional, specialized training in summer 2023.

Auto faculty also have taken special care to determine what is needed for an EV/hybrid lab. There are fire safety protocols, insurance implications, and special shelves and gloves required to handle the equipment. Our facilities team worked closely with the faculty and a third-party contractor on how to best create the lab space. And it can’t go without saying that the college’s curriculum and assessment coordinator was a critical part of this process!

Become comfortable with not knowing.

Many car manufacturers are conducting in-house training and making bold commitments to sustainability. Such rapid growth will affect industries outside automotive as well. In fact, Edison Electric Institute has estimated a need for 12.9 million EV charging ports by 2030.

The electrifying world of cars is disrupting education. What equipment and training do learners need? How do we sell, order parts and conduct maintenance on these vehicles? There are still a lot of unknowns. This industry is undergoing a change and we are still trying to figure out the best pathways forward.

Commit to sustainability.

This is an amazing time to work in career and technical education! There are so many opportunities for funding and collaborations. But also, it can be overwhelming to pick a direction. My best advice is to build a committee of supporters from K–12 and postsecondary education, industry, and nonprofits. Empower team members to become strong advocates for technology and innovation in teaching and learning. And do a lot of research on other programs; ask questions about enrollment, industry demand, staffing and lessons learned. No matter your role in CTE, now is a great time to start building and expanding sustainable programs.

V.A. Hayman Barber (she/her/hers) is the dean of trade and tech education at Saint Paul College, a technical and community college in Saint Paul, Minnesota.

Lew Olivier and Jake Yernberg also contributed to this article. Lew and Jake are full-time automotive instructors at Saint Paul College and the heart and soul behind developing these EV/hybrid programs.

---

Read more in Techniques: VISION in the Spotlight.

As Techniques looks forward to the school year with our VISION in the Spotlight issue coming soon, we’re also looking back. Our 2022–23 Year in Review features some of the most engaging content we’ve published in print and online since the fall of 2022. Each year, in Techniques, we celebrate the strength and successes of high-quality CTE, and we’ll continue to discuss the common challenges educators face.

Read Techniques: Year in Review, 2022–23

>nbsp;

Make beats, learn to code

Your Voice is Power (YVIP) illustrates how music, computer science, and entrepreneurship can inspire social change. The YVIP educational collaboration expands computer science education to a more diverse group of students — those from underserved communities and populations currently underrepresented in technology careers. It builds confidence and helps students feel more empowered in their work. “I was able to bridge my love for coding with my interest in music,” said a 2021 YVIP student participant. READ MORE

---

Agriculture, aerospace >amp; data science

Today’s agriculture students are the industry leaders of tomorrow. And they must begin to learn new and innovative production methods now. Digital agriculture involves the interdisciplinary development of technology to collect, integrate and transmit data into decision-making tools. Ultimately, the adoption of digital agriculture practices will improve food and fiber production by allowing farmers to make better and more precise management decisions. The result will be an ability to produce more food on less land. READ MORE

---

Educator externships connect the classroom >amp; the workplace

Educators in Virginia have access to an innovative work-based learning (WBL) program known as EXCITE. That stands for Exploring Careers through Industry Teacher Externships. Teachers and counselors refine old skills, gain new ones, learn about changing industry standards and skills needed for local jobs, and make connections for students. Together, they gain an increased ability to explain the value of what students are learning, which often leads to cooperative learning and higher levels of collaboration. READ MORE

---

Spark a revolution in manufacturing

Students, educators and the workforce benefit from a digital apprenticeship in computer numerical control (CNC) manufacturing technology. Backed by industry partners, and used in thousands of educational institutions, digital apprenticeships can offer significant benefits. Spaces wherein curriculum is readily available, anytime, anywhere, grant flexibility and freedom for students to learn on their terms. They allow students to acquire knowledge in accordance with their learning preference when time allows. READ MORE

---

A juggling act in the classroom

The teacher shortage has compelled secondary school administrators to seek alternative ways of staffing CTE classrooms. school districts may hire a teacher with a bachelor’s degree through provisional licensing. In other cases, teacher preparation programs regularly get calls to hire candidates before they have completed student teaching. These unique situations provide rich opportunities for research. So, three university faculty began a yearlong study to learn about supports that may be useful for new teacher success. READ MORE

---

Fighting burnout in agricultural education

After my daughter was born, I began to notice that things like time and attention became much more uncomfortable to balance. I started to feel guilty because I couldn’t devote the same amount of time to my students and my school. At the same time, I felt as though I was sometimes putting my job ahead of my new baby. I was only one person, but I felt like I had to be a dynamic teacher, a superstar FFA advisor, a doting and attentive mother, and a loving wife. Something had to give. So, in early 2020, I decided that the following school year would be my last in the classroom. READ MORE

---

Support English learners in CTE programs

For English learners (ELs), access to CTE can be limited due to a variety of factors. These include language proficiency restrictions, limited translation services and lack of family outreach. Educators must act with urgency to support representation and engagement. For example, there may be limited outreach conducted in EL families’ home languages about the CTE programs available to students. To address this challenge, set up outreach structures. Because when ELs are intentionally included, they may succeed in whichever path they choose. READ MORE

---

Engaging students through global competence

Educators who understand the international connections within their career fields can help students begin to develop global competence. Integrating global competence throughout CTE programs of study can have a widespread cultural impact. It fosters a culture of learning and respect, wherein all stakeholders learn to think critically about the world, challenge their perspectives, communicate with diverse others, and take action when necessary. Becoming globally competent first means understanding what global competence means. READ MORE

>nbsp;

---

Lia Milgram is senior managing editor for ACTE.

Look out for the September 2023 issue of Techniques in mailboxes and online soon.

All learners make assumptions. But we can challenge them to investigate their perceptions. And this work presents an opportunity to acknowledge the perspectives of others. Educators who understand the international connections within their career fields can help students begin to develop global competence.

Engage in globally significant conversations, and watch as students’ interests in the world around them grow.

Integrating global competence throughout career and technical education (CTE) programs of study can have a widespread cultural impact. It fosters a culture of learning and respect, wherein all stakeholders learn to think critically about the world, challenge their perspectives, communicate with diverse others, and take action when necessary. Becoming globally competent first means understanding what global competence means.

What does it mean to be globally competent?

Possession of the knowledge, skills, and dispositions to understand and act creatively on issues of global significance (Boix Mansilla, V. >amp; Jackson, A. (2011). Educating for global competence: Preparing our youth to engage the world. Asia Society >amp; Council of Chief State School Officers.)

Investigate the world.

Globally competent CTE students are engaged and curious. And they want to learn about how things work in the world and within their career fields. They ask and explore critical questions and research solutions for complex problems. Their questions are globally significant. In other words, they consider important phenomena and events happening in their own communities and in communities across the globe. Students work on identifying, collecting and analyzing credible information from a variety of local, national and international sources, including those in multiple languages.

Recognize others’ perspectives.

Globally competent students recognize that they have a particular perspective that others may or may not share. They articulate a diverse set of viewpoints and discuss how differential access to knowledge, technology and resources can shape people’s views. Further, they should be able to weigh all sides of an argument. And from that skill, they learn to incorporate different perspectives within their own points of view.

Communicate ideas.

Globally competent students understand that audiences differ on the basis of culture, geography, faith, ideology, wealth, and other factors and that they may perceive different meanings from the same information. Effective communication — verbal and nonverbal, and across a range of media — with diverse audiences is key. Because the process of communicating ideas occurs in culturally diverse settings, and especially within collaborative teams.

Take action.

Globally competent students see themselves as team players, not bystanders. They tune in to the world, and they recognize opportunities for growth and change. These students are ethical and creative, and they weigh options to act based on evidence and insight. They can assess the potential impact of choices they make, taking into account varied perspectives and potential consequences. And they show courage to act and reflect on their actions.

Get to know your students.

Getting to know students is an important classroom management strategy. Your students backgrounds, cultural experiences, hopes and values can provide strong context for learning about the world. Further, investing time in your students as individuals will help them to feel like valued members of the learning community.

Educators work hard to determine where students need to be at the end of a course or program, and to design curricula to get them to that point. Time spent discovering where the students are now and what they bring to the educational experience is equally important. Thus, when students are helped to achieve program goals as well as personal goals, they feel heard and become more invested in the learning experience.

Emphasize employability skills.

Students are preparing to work in a globally connected world, which means they will be called on frequently to communicate across cultural boundaries. So educators must consider how career readiness and global competence fit together. Can your CTE students communicate clearly, effectively and with reason?

It’s important to remember that you don’t need to know everything about the world to teach through a global lens. But rather you should be open-minded to learning new things. Start small with one or two ideas. Then simply talk to your students. Ask them what they think and how they feel about the world. No matter how large or small your steps are, this work will foster more meaningful relationships with students, more equitable learning environments, and ultimately, a stronger workforce.

by Michelle Conrad and Larae Watkins

---

Read more in Techniques: Global Education.

Learning about food, fiber and natural resources can help students build global connections. Agriculture is a worldwide industry that is deeply personal. Even those who are generations removed from farming are still connected to the agriculture system. And that makes it an effective context for teaching global skills.

Education in agriculture provides opportunities for students to learn about diverse perspectives and practices from across the world. Agriculture is a critical sector for addressing global sustainability challenges. According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, 5 billion hectares — approximately 38% of land in the world — is dedicated to agriculture. And while agriculture can be viewed as a contributor to environmental degradation, it can be part of the solution as well. Engaging students in sustainable agriculture is an avenue to building global perspective.

Agriculture is constantly evolving, using new technologies that improve efficiency, productivity and sustainability. And while learning about agricultural innovation, students can develop creativity and problem-solving skills. So, who should teach about agriculture? Perhaps everyone.

Not just for agricultural educators

Teaching about global agriculture issues calls for truly a collaborative effort. There is strength in cross-disciplinary collaboration to make learning come to life for students. For example, the World Food Prize Foundation Global Guides Program brings together educators from many different pathways. They work to increase their capacity to teach on global agriculture and food security. The first four cohorts have included more than 100 educators, representing more than 25 disciplines, from 29 U.S. states and nine countries.

Together they learn to become catalysts of change in improving our world. But this interdisciplinary sharing does not need to be limited to structured programs like Global Guides. When we place passionate people in proximity of each other to focus on a shared cause, then we can advance the way that we engage learners in global issues.

Context for success

A shared language to organize global concepts is vital to accelerating the sharing of praxis and advancing collaboration between educators. The United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) provide a framework for educators to use when teaching on a broad range of topics, from poverty eradication to environmental sustainability to social justice. They are a valuable tool for promoting interdisciplinary learning and critical thinking.

By incorporating SDGs, we can help students understand how the world is interconnected. And why collaborative action is essential to achieve a sustainable future. Moreover, by aligning our teaching with the SDGs, we can empower students to become active global citizens who contribute to positive change in their communities. The UN SDGs can be our shared language.

Zero Hunger (UN SDG No. 2)

Food security is an issue that is closely associated with agriculture. Food security, as defined at the World Food Summit in 1996, “exists when all people, at all times, have physical and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life.” Hunger is a global issue and a local one. Many students feel passionately about the injustice of not having access to sufficient and nutritious food, which they recognize as a basic need for all humans on the planet.

Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure (UN SDG No. 9)

Sustainability in agriculture can contribute to the development of infrastructure and industries, which can lead to economic growth. Jon Davis, a biotechnology instructor at the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics in Durham, North Carolina, engages his students with developing prototype smart devices that include sensors and pumps to automate plant growth. And students use these tools to collect data. Additionally, they are working to minimize costs of the smart devices so that a more diverse group of agriculturalists may gain access to cutting-edge technologies.

Climate Action (UN SDG No. 13)

Agriculture contributes to climate change. And the issue of food waste often captivates students. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations (2019), about 14% of the world’s food is lost after it is harvested and before it reaches retail outlets. And the United Nations Environment Programme (2021) reported that an additional 17% is wasted in retail and by consumers. Food loss and waste accounts for 8%–10% of global greenhouse gas emissions, which contribute directly to climate change. In turn, an unstable climate and extreme weather events have a negative impact on food production.

As the city of Houston, Texas, continues to grow, water and land space will become increasingly limited. So, led by Surendra Surujdeo-Maharaj, Ph.D., students are learning to implement recommendations from the UN and the city’s climate action plan. Students learn how to produce, package, market and distribute nutrient and calorie dense foods (e.g., microgreens, vegetables, mushrooms and wheat) in lab spaces that have become controlled environment agriculture classrooms.

Together, we can do more!

This approach to agriculture in K–12 schools can inspire learners to seek out solutions for global sustainability challenges. Students in Houston built a 300-square-foot butterfly garden to provide a habitat for endangered monarch butterflies, and they installed a rain garden to slow the rate of runoff during heavy rainfalls that flood their streets so often. Further, their peers carried out cafeteria audits. And they found that 40% of cafeteria food was being wasted! Students then used their data to compile graphs and write a book about how food waste drives climate change.

Agriculture provides context for students to connect with the issues that they care about. In sum, teaching through the lens of agriculture can help learners develop skills such as cultural competence, sustainability, literacy and innovation. These all are increasingly essential to thrive in a globalized world.

Daniel D. Foster, Ph.D., is an associate professor, agriculture teacher educator and co-founder of the Global Teach Ag Network at Penn State.

Melanie Miller Foster, Ph.D., is an associate teaching professor and co-founder of the Global Teach Ag Network at Penn State.

---

Read more in Techniques: Global Education.

“Skills have become a global currency,” said Jason Scales, director of global education at Lincoln Electric. “As a global manufacturer, we have to support our industrial customers and engage with educators to provide insight on market trends and technology advancements. It is critical for education and industry to collaborate on many levels.”

Across the United States, economic and education organizations are sounding the alarm! Employers need employees with the skills of global competence: defined as the ability to investigate the world, recognize perspectives, communicate ideas and take action. A recent report from Google for Education (2022) highlighted the need for a global worldview that enables us to connect and collaborate with our neighbors at home and abroad. We must seek to solve complex problems with global implications.

Cultural awareness is an employability skill people need.

This article offers support for educators who want to build stronger, globally connected partnerships. And who seek to integrate global skills in their curricula. Industry partners can help educators identify the most relevant global employability skills and provide examples of how those skills are being applied locally.

With the support of community partners, educators can emphasize and reinforce the skills that learners need most, like teamwork, leadership and communication. For example, at Tulsa Community College in Oklahoma, students involved with Phi Beta Lambda gain international perspectives. Local business representatives are invited on campus to present and answer questions. Then students visit the businesses to connect with the world of work. Accounting students even got to participate in a virtual meeting with a client in Denmark!

Start small.

Provide opportunities that are not too costly or time-intensive for businesses. Activities such as mock interviews or attending an event may be more manageable when starting to develop a relationship with an employer. Bring in virtual guest speakers. In fact, hybrid work environments have made it easier than ever to host guest speakers. Other ideas include asking students to review annual business reports for international components or attend cultural events in the community, which may be supported by local businesses.

Get involved.

Join relevant local, state and international associations. Then attend meetings or volunteer. In some instances, like at events hosted by ACTE, you may be able to bring students and their families along.

Look for global competence in action.

Find out how employers advertise their job openings. Then ask your students to analyze job descriptions for relevant global skills. These might include speaking another language, creativity, critical thinking and teamwork. Students also might research local companies implementing inclusion, access, equity and diversity to benefit society and the workforce.

“Global awareness and teamwork skills are huge,” said Mike Smith, director of education and global community development at the Ford Motor Company. “You have to be open to learning new things. And you have to value diverse people and diverse ideas. That’s becoming more and more important.”

Reinforce skills development.

Business and community partners can help students connect global competence to employability. For example, working on a Habitat for Humanity project can help students in the skilled trades explore global issues such as sustainable building materials and international supply chains while also engaging in community service.

Employers can advertise global competence as a skill they are hiring for. But to be successful in getting those jobs, students must be able to communicate their global career readiness. Partners can also assist in conducting mock interviews and in helping students recognize and articulate their strengths and abilities to future employers.

Conclusion

Collaborating with business and community partners to help students gain the skills of global competence will lead all stakeholders toward success. These graduates — students today, industry leaders soon — will build a toolbox of skills. They will adapt to changing workforce needs, support society and the economy, and solve problems of global significance. Ultimately, global education and CTE programs seek to meet the same objective: to prepare students for success in the global workforce.

Heather Singmaster is director of CTE at Digital Promise Global.

---

Read more in Techniques: Global Education.

In an effort to deliver more engaging professional development, Northwest Education Services Career Tech began using the practice of instructional rounds (City et al., 2009). We gave teachers the opportunity to watch one another teach and engage in intentional reflection. And they have become the voice of their own professional learning.

Design engaging professional development.

We began our journey in instructional rounds by speaking with administrators who were also using rounds in their buildings and districts. They were able to give us insight into the benefits and challenges of using rounds at the building level instead of at the district level. While instructional rounds began as a way for a group of instructional leaders to observe classrooms across multiple buildings, we have shifted our gaze to allow for 36 teachers to visit three classrooms each month; we then use the evidence collected by the teachers to debrief and determine the scope of future professional development offerings.

Note: Central to the success of instructional rounds is the idea that they are non-evaluative.

Observers enter classrooms to note what they see and hear, not what is missing. We like to tell our visitors that they are the learners, not the experts. This mindset shift allows participants to look down, not up. We want classroom visitors to watch what the students are doing and being asked to do rather than what the teacher is or is not doing. This guidance reinforces the non-evaluative nature of rounds and makes it possible for administrators to gain a clearer, more holistic view of areas for improvement — which is what the researchers and creators of rounds call our “problem of practice.”

Consider the logistics of instructional rounds.

Teachers improve when they watch others teach. We knew the theory was great. But the logistics were the first real challenge. We needed to get 36 teachers into three classrooms each without causing substantial disruptions to students’ learning. We knew that we had one major advantage that would help us implement rounds: Nearly all of our courses are led by a teacher er and a paraprofessional who is also certified as a substitute teacher. This meant that most teachers could leave their classrooms for three 20-minute peer observations while the paraprofessional continued to support instruction. This allowed us to schedule all classroom visits on the same day, scheduled in two one-hour blocks.

Round, debrief, then round again.

We focus our efforts on teachers using competency-based grading to inform their instruction. Thus, we drafted our first problem of practice based on the associated challenges.

• How do students know the quality of their work?
• How do students know how to improve their work?
• And how do teachers use competency-based grading to guide their instruction?

Teachers focused on collecting evidence related to our problem of practice. Then, during morning PD sessions, administrators led teachers through a debriefing protocol that used aspects from City et al.’s work as well as modifications to fit the unique needs of our work in a CTE setting. Specifically, debriefing peer observations could take hours. But we had 60 minutes. So, we asked each teacher to spotlight six pieces of evidence from their classroom visits and use that evidence in small groups.

Teachers took note of patterns, made predictions about professional learning that would impact instruction positively, and then determined what they needed from instructional leadership to achieve their next level of work. They needed specific examples of how to group students using data. And about how to develop processes that students could use to revise their knowledge. From this came the topic for our next session of professional learning.

Here, we see that the practice of instructional rounds never ends. Instead, one enactment of rounds leads to new work, which leads to a new problem of practice.

What are the processes that students use to collect feedback?

What do students do to improve their work after receiving feedback?

Data needs to be collected and used to group students based on their needs.

The first two questions in our original problem of practice didn’t quite hit the underlying idea of competency-based grading. Students need to collect various forms of feedback in order to understand where they are, where they are going and how to get there. In the multiple PD sessions that followed, teachers engaged in rich practice and discussion.

How’s it working? What’s next?

The organization of instructional rounds is, of course, unique to each building. We took the original research from City et al., kept what worked for our building and eliminated things that didn’t fit our culture. We don’t claim to be the paragon of instructional rounds, nor do we think we have perfected it even for ourselves. Constantly, we are tweaking our processes and making deliberate changes to meet the changing needs of our teachers.

No matter what it may look like in your school, the point remains. When teachers gain opportunities to watch other teachers, ideas will be shared. We have seen three positive effects of instructional rounds at our school.

1. Increased collaboration
2. Increased peer support
3. Higher levels of engagement

---

But this is only the start of our work. Today, we have completed four iterations of building-wide rounds. And our current problem of practice asks, What processes are in place that allow students to revise their knowledge? What kind of data is collected, and how is it used to group and regroup students? What does it look like when a student is engaged and challenged on a daily basis? As we plan, we reflect and ask ourselves challenging questions that foster growth.

---

Matt Griesinger is an assistant principal at Northwest Education Services Career Tech in Traverse City, Michigan. He holds a bachelor’s degree in integrated language arts education, a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction, and an Ed.S. in educational leadership. Prior to his current role, he was a high school English teacher and a middle school assistant principal.

Read more in Techniques in April 2023: CTE for English Learners.

For English learners (ELs), their access to career and technical education (CTE) can be limited due to a variety of factors. These include language proficiency restrictions, limited translation services and lack of family outreach. Educators must act with urgency to support representation and engagement. Because when ELs are intentionally included, they may succeed in whichever path they choose.

Review data on EL enrollment to assess representation and identify any barriers that exist. For example, there may be limited outreach conducted in EL families’ home languages about the CTE programs available to students. To address this challenge, set up outreach structures. This outreach can come in many different forms such as field trips, flyers, and application support services. Then the focus can shift to effective instructional practices.

In this article I will outline how scaffolding instruction can support ELs in CTE programs. And how educators can implement five strategies to support ELs in CTE.

1. Incorporate explicit vocabulary development into instruction.
2. Provide writing support based on strengths and needs.
3. Embed peer learning opportunities into instruction.
4. Include mini lessons on academic language as appropriate.
5. Prepare for certification exams using multiple modalities.

---

How can scaffolding support ELs in CTE programs?

CTE takes a hands-on approach to learning. Instruction tends to be concrete and provides immediate relevance for all students. CTE programs provide regular opportunities for productive talk in which students work together to solve a problem or create something, making it an ideal place to learn and practice language. CTE can have a positive impact on ELs’ language acquisition. By adding scaffolds to instruction, teachers can help ELs in CTE programs reach their full potential. Scaffolds can help make CTE accessible to ELs at all stages of English language proficiency. And they should be provided based on individual students’ strengths and needs.

Incorporate explicit vocabulary development into instruction.

CTE classrooms are full of technical terms. And we know that vocabulary development is an important part of effective education for ELs in all content areas. Begin by introducing new terminology.

There are many ways to introduce new words, and it is best to use multiple strategies to ensure strong understanding. Use visuals to bring words to life. For example, in a culinary class, the teacher can use items available in the kitchen to model the term mise en place (to have all your ingredients and equipment prepared before you start cooking).

Provide writing support based on strengths and needs.

To support ELs in becoming successful writers, CTE teachers can incorporate explicit writing lessons with appropriate scaffolds that align with individual students’ strengths and needs. For instance, students at the beginning level of English language proficiency may benefit from the use of a model essay or a word bank when writing.

Embed peer learning opportunities into instruction.

Consider how ELs may lack experience in using the English language as a function: to make requests, provide explanations, and discuss problems. Role plays and simulation activities can be valuable tools for language practice. They help students prepare for the situations they will find at work.

Include mini lessons on academic language as appropriate.

Language mini lessons provide an opportunity to teach new language structures as needed throughout a unit. These brief lessons can take place with the whole class or as a small group and connect the language taught to the course content. In other words, the students should use the language in context.

Prepare for certification exams using multiple modalities.

Certification requirements vary by industry and state. No matter, it is important to support ELs in preparing for these exams. Provide students the time to practice and engage with the language and exam structures they will experience. Review exam materials to analyze the language demands of the test. What terms do they need to know? Also, how will the questions be written? Then conduct practice exercises. For instance, multiple-choice exam questions with negative construction (e.g., “All of the following statements are true except one.”) can be challenging to understand without explicit instruction.

Final thoughts

As you consider how best to support ELs in CTE programs, think about the types of supports that individual students need.  Secondary CTE programs offer pathways for diverse students across the country. And it is exciting to see educators advocating for ELs’ engagement within these programs.

---

Meghan Gregoire-Smith, M.A., is a multilingual learner coach for SupportEd.

---

Learn more about SupportEd

SupportEd is a woman-owned small business with a vision to reimagine the landscape of education for English learners. They provide support to empower students and their educators. Over the past few years, SupportEd has collaborated with educators at Southern Westchester BOCES Center for Career Services, a secondary CTE school in Valhalla, New York, to embed supports for ELs into CTE curricula and instructional practices. This article emerged from lessons we learned through this ongoing collaborative partnership.

Read more in Techniques in April 2023: CTE for English Learners.