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Thank you for this article. I'm a teacher in HISD, and I have voiced this very concern many times to colleagues and administrators. The motto "Creating a College-Bound Culture" is an insult to the vast majority of our students who do not have those aspirations. We wonder why we're losing so many of our students, and this is precisely the reason. We forget that a student's dreams are his or her own, not ours, and if vocational and technical training brings out their unique talents, we should support that.

Comment by Anse — May 14, 2008 @ 09:52AM

Thank you - this was an excellent article. When in high school, I knew that I had no idea what I wanted as a career, so although I went to the University of Illinois, I never graduated. This may have been different if I had some hands on experience prior to attending the University. Surprisingly, after 30 years, without a BA, I have found that career working in higher ed!

Comment by pat — May 14, 2008 @ 03:42PM

Thank you so much for publishing this. HISD's motto, "Creating a College-Bound Culture," is a slap in the face to the majority of our students who have no college aspirations. We have radically distorted the place of public education in society; our job should be to help students realize their dreams, not dictate what those dreams ought to be. I think some of us in our profession (I work in HISD myself) have attempted to right past wrongs by going overboard. Many students lacked opportunities in the old days and were shifted to vocational classes without much consideration for their wishes or natural talents. We're doing the same thing today, under the fallacy that every young person should go to college. Working in the trades is not a sign of failure. For quite a lot of people, including many in my own family, these jobs provide good salaries and personal fulfillment. HISD must address this issue if it really wants to deal with the drop-out rate.

Comment by Anse — May 15, 2008 @ 05:23AM

My youngest who is now 25 yrs., went to a tech. school after getting his G.E.D. He went through San Jacinto College to learn to be a Machinist. The program was suspended the year after he graduated. We still need machinist and tool and die makers for manufacturing! These are highly technical jobs. All products start with manufacturing! No wonder those jobs are going to China. There is no one left here in the U.S. with the skills.
Thanks for listening.

Comment by Sue — May 16, 2008 @ 07:35AM

I went to college (undergrad and grad school) because I loved school and loved learning. My older brother is a college dropout because, as smart as he was, the traditional school setting never held his interest. Now, all these years later, he lives hand-to-mouth while I have a relatively comfortable existence.

People with college degrees don't fare better statistically because that piece of paper is some sort of Willy Wonka magic ticket; we tend to fare better because there's a huge bias in society toward those who went to a "real" college. Just because I had the patience to sit in a classroom for years on end, I am somehow better than my hairdresser, my mechanic, a contractor, EMT or pharmacy tech?

Every day that goes by, we trust those with vocational careers -- to handle our vehicles, our children, our planes, our homes, our medicines. Yet, they're still regarded as second-class and/or blue collar. It's an embarrassment.

I wish these high schools had been around when my brother was going to school... and I hope administrators, legislators and the like will really start to understand that it takes *all* types to make our society safe and viable. As a society, we will never truly advance unless we are all educated, but what matters most isn't a college degree, but critical thinking, analytic skills and the desire to learn.

And really, when is the last time anyone saw those things in your 'typical' college freshman?

Comment by B — May 16, 2008 @ 09:48AM

I think the article could have done without the comments from Stephen Klineberg. I don't think he understands the demands of a vocational career. Constant learning is critical and these are the jobs that are often on the front line of chaning technology. As for being obsolete, I'd like to see him tell his plumber that. I think there would be a lot of laughter.

Comment by Dawn — May 20, 2008 @ 03:09PM

Chris Barbic speaks of tracking students, but YES and similar charter schools do just that. They are not charged with educating all children living within a certain geographical zone. If even Milby, the Johns Hopkins tabbed "dropout factory," was allowed to pre-qualify its student body, all of our schools would achieve like academic success. But, what about the rest of our shared human existence? What happens to them?

Comment by jim — June 4, 2008 @ 11:14AM