Not sure, but shop classes, carpentry, electrical/plumbing, mechanic, and those such classes were being cut when I was in highschool back in the mid 2000s. I think classes like that are usually what would open kids up to seeing that they may enjoy those trades.
I went to HS early/mid 00s, and for my school district of 5 highschools, there was one career center. That’s where they put shop and cosmetology and graphic design (and ASL for some reason?) I dropped band in my senior year. I wasn’t that great, hated the marching part especially. I wanted to do graphic design (not that great at it either, come to find out!). A band director literally pulled me aside one day, urging me to rethink my choice. That career center was ‘for kids who weren’t college bound.’ I guess it couldn’t help me as much as he thought band could have? 🤦♀️
Our school cut our web-design and a couple programing courses in 2007 (java included) but kept Radio Broadcasting. Fucking joke of a decision. (Not just one course either, like they wanted to be a “magnet” school for radio broadcasting… so multiple)
Sidenote to bitch: they decided to keep visual basic as a course when chopping java. Not a C class prior or after, just said fuck it to programing 🤷
I’ll have to take a look, but I’m sure I have it somewhere, I wrote webpage syllabus for the school back in 2006 or so… So if I have it somewhere it would likely show what classes were left. I got so fed up with flipping around the text based syllabus I created one that was all CSS/JavaScript drop downs and links to the other classes so it would jump back up to them if you needed to figure out prerequisites and actually plan your classes out. I gave it to the school so they could post it on their website and keep it updated. Remember doing it all in school colors, using their backdrop logos for the site and even included a macromedia flash animation that was on a offshoot menu page (because I didn’t want it on the main syllabus so it wouldn’t create slow loading times)
Figure it would help parents/students be able to plan their future courses easier… I’m sure it disappeared soon after I left in 2008
I remember having all that in elementary school when I lived in New Jersey. Moved down to Texas and people looked at me like I was crazy when I explained we were using power tools and kilns and computers in 3rd grade.
Oh no! You don’t get to go anything like that until high school! And this was in one of the wealthier suburbs.
Parents and school boards simply did not want to spend anything close to that kind of money to educate their kids.
We had a little of it in 5th/6th grade in Texas when I was in school, however absolutely nothing in High School, I did have a game dev class hosted by a coach who barely knew how to work a computer. Definitely didn’t just play games during that whole class or anything.
Are tech schools still a thing?
The tech schools from my area offered trade focused education paths like plumbing, drafting, auto, hairdressing, and few others.
So you could basically go to them, skip college, and go right into a trade.
I know quite a few people who did that and they seem to be doing okay now.
There’s one around me that still is. Ironically, if I had gone to that one, I’d probably have had a better chance at college.
Not sure, but shop classes, carpentry, electrical/plumbing, mechanic, and those such classes were being cut when I was in highschool back in the mid 2000s. I think classes like that are usually what would open kids up to seeing that they may enjoy those trades.
I went to HS early/mid 00s, and for my school district of 5 highschools, there was one career center. That’s where they put shop and cosmetology and graphic design (and ASL for some reason?) I dropped band in my senior year. I wasn’t that great, hated the marching part especially. I wanted to do graphic design (not that great at it either, come to find out!). A band director literally pulled me aside one day, urging me to rethink my choice. That career center was ‘for kids who weren’t college bound.’ I guess it couldn’t help me as much as he thought band could have? 🤦♀️
Our school cut our web-design and a couple programing courses in 2007 (java included) but kept Radio Broadcasting. Fucking joke of a decision. (Not just one course either, like they wanted to be a “magnet” school for radio broadcasting… so multiple)
Sidenote to bitch: they decided to keep visual basic as a course when chopping java. Not a C class prior or after, just said fuck it to programing 🤷
All arguments about the college situation should start with this info. As a non-american, this sounds so out of fiction that I don’t believe it.
Where and why did they do that? Is there any data showing that they cut trade?
I’ll have to take a look, but I’m sure I have it somewhere, I wrote webpage syllabus for the school back in 2006 or so… So if I have it somewhere it would likely show what classes were left. I got so fed up with flipping around the text based syllabus I created one that was all CSS/JavaScript drop downs and links to the other classes so it would jump back up to them if you needed to figure out prerequisites and actually plan your classes out. I gave it to the school so they could post it on their website and keep it updated. Remember doing it all in school colors, using their backdrop logos for the site and even included a macromedia flash animation that was on a offshoot menu page (because I didn’t want it on the main syllabus so it wouldn’t create slow loading times)
Figure it would help parents/students be able to plan their future courses easier… I’m sure it disappeared soon after I left in 2008
I remember having all that in elementary school when I lived in New Jersey. Moved down to Texas and people looked at me like I was crazy when I explained we were using power tools and kilns and computers in 3rd grade.
Oh no! You don’t get to go anything like that until high school! And this was in one of the wealthier suburbs.
Parents and school boards simply did not want to spend anything close to that kind of money to educate their kids.
We had a little of it in 5th/6th grade in Texas when I was in school, however absolutely nothing in High School, I did have a game dev class hosted by a coach who barely knew how to work a computer. Definitely didn’t just play games during that whole class or anything.