Educators' Perceptions of Career and Technical Education in Mississippi

• In Event: 25.068 - Roundtable Session 8
  In Roundtable Session: 25.068-14 - Career and Technical Education SIG Roundtable Session 1

Abstract

Because career and technical education (CTE) participation supports high school completion and quality career trajectories, informing the public about its benefits is a worthwhile endeavor. Teachers and counselors play an important role in a student’s academic decisions; as such, they can have an influence on public perceptions of academic pathways. Positive knowledge of CTE (and the students who participate in such programs) among educators can increase the likelihood that students enroll in those courses and that parents and other education stakeholders understand CTE’s importance. This study investigated the attitudes of Mississippi’s educators about CTE. It found that most educators hold important misperceptions of career and technical education as a whole, CTE students, and the industries that employ them.

Authors

• Dana Seymour, Mississippi State University

• Supriya Deepak Mishra, Mississippi State University

• Kristen Dechert, Mississippi State University