States are turning their attention to career readiness indicators, but more action is needed to demonstrate that career readiness is a priority and to share the right information with those who need it.
A new publication from Achieve and the National Association of State Directors of Career Technical Education Consortium describes the way states are reporting career readiness indicators in state and district report cards and accountability systems, and proposes an expanded framework for college- and career-ready indicators.
According to the brief, 29 states publicly report a career readiness indicator and 17 states include at least one career readiness indicator in their accountability formulas. These include:
- CTE course participation and/or pathway completion: 14 states
- Dual enrollment: 8 states
- Industry certifications earned: Kentucky and Virginia
- Post-graduation placement: Missouri and South Carolina
- Graduation rate for CTE concentrators: Oregon and Nevada
To better support reporting on career readiness, an expanded framework is proposed that would measure how states are progressing toward, meeting and exceeding college and career readiness goals through indicators about course completion/success, achievement, attainment and experiential learning.
In addition, the publication highlights several states that are leading the charge in this area, including Kentucky, Virginia, Georgia and Missouri, and recommends that states track multiple measures of career readiness; engage meaningfully with education, workforce and economic development leaders; take care when deciding which indicators to publicly report and which to incorporate into accountability systems; and act on the information tracked to improve college and career readiness.
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