Recognizing Academic Achievement in Career/Technical Education: Conditions for Awarding Academic Credit for Career/Technical Courses

This policy brief advocates for the approval of academic credit based on the completion of career and technical education (CTE) courses. The brief argues that students who receive CTE instruction are more engaged and experience deeper learning of content in ideal conditions. The authors also propose a method for evaluating CTE courses for academic content in order to determine if they would meet the requirements for awarding academic credit. The evidence base for these assertions is reviewed and schools which operate in a similar fashion are used as examples for those interested in implementing policy changes to that effect.