Victor M. Hernandez-Gantes’s research while affiliated with University of South Florida and other places

In its evolution from vocational education to career and technical education (CTE), the field has been revisited at some critical crossroads. In recent years, the growing political and social turmoil is poised to change public education and may present another important crossroad for CTE. Although the passing of Perkins V received wide bipartisan political support for CTE, the legislative mandate to ensure the success of all students including historically underserved youth should be tested in the context of greater state and local control for implementation. Thus, the purpose of this article is to highlight the potential impact of social and political trends on the role and direction of CTE as a viable option for all students to become college and career ready in the new economy. The underlying analysis and perspectives are based on the role of legislation mandates, relevant literature, social and political trends and issues, and implications for CTE amid the growing sociopolitical polarization in the country.

The International Journal for Research in Vocational Education and Training (IJRVET) is a double blind peer-reviewed journal for VET-related research. All articles published in 2021 are included in this book. IJRVET is the official journal of VETNET (founded in 1996), the European Research Network in Vocational Education and Training (umbrella organisation: EERA European Educational Research Association), supported by CINTERFOR (founded in 1963), the Centro Interamericano para el Desarrollo del Conocimiento en la Formación Profesional / Inter-American Centre for Knowledge Development in Vocational Training (a technical service of OIT Organización International del Trabajo / ILO International Labour Organization).

The purpose of this study was to examine internal and external supports of an information technology themed (whole school) urban magnet high school located in a low-income urban community within the Southeastern region of the United States. We found the academy to be an exemplary case study for how schools can build a high profile reputation with investment from key stakeholders within the district and school as well as with the community, business/industry, and postsecondary partners. The internal investment of the school was spearheaded by not only the principal, but also district leaders (e.g., superintendent) as well. The career specialist opened the doors to external investment (e.g., business/industry, community members, postsecondary partners). Characteristics that contributed to the academy’s success included effective school leadership, effective communication, and ongoing collaboration.

A challenge in engineering education is the dominance of passive instructional methods such as lectures and memorization of facts. Constructivist teaching strategies, in contrast, increase students’ engagement, link what students learn to meaningful contexts, and potentially help students to better organize and transfer knowledge. In this paper, we present 12 exercises developed to aid in the incorporation of constructivist instructional approaches into an introductory probability and statistics engineering course. The objective of this paper is to disseminate the exercises for broader use and report on the experiences of using these exercises for the past 10 years.

The purpose of this study was to compare the levels of student engagement of career academy students to those at a traditional comprehensive high school using propensity score matching and structural equation modeling. We found that academy students had significantly higher levels of emotional engagement and significantly lower levels of behavioral engagement than those at comprehensive schools. We also found no statistically significant differences in the levels of cognitive engagement of academy students compared to comprehensive school students. We believe the academy model has the promise of transforming the high school experience for students as it relates to their attachment to the school, their relationships with peers and teachers, and their sense of belonging and safety. However, academies need to work with students to create and develop co-curricular and extracurricular activities of interest to engage students in their schools at a higher level.

In this study, we explored how an urban high school with a STEAM (Science, Technology, Arts, and Mathematics) theme approached racialized student experiences as learning opportunities. We were interested in documenting curricular and pedagogical practices, and the mission of the STEAM Academy, which was aimed at exposing African American/Black students to possibilities beyond the school including university settings and workplace environments (through job shadowing and internships). Based on the perspectives of school personnel and community partners, we found the school administrators and teachers enacted social justice–centered curricular strategies to elicit emancipatory and participatory actions for administrators, teachers, and students. This type of curriculum for students helped them cope with the stressors of encountering racialized experiences and microaggressions in the school and beyond; thereby, enabling them to be resilient in the face of a discriminatory and oppressive society.

The purpose of this study was to explore the perspectives and strategies internal and external stakeholders used to support students in a career academy serving a predominately Latinx community. Within this case study, the principal of the school was Latinx, grew up within the same community as the school, and therefore shared the same culture as his students. Thus, we wondered how effective the principal would be in overcoming the cultural, political, and social barriers of students in the predominately Latinx school. We found the school leaders had a heightened awareness of organizational, cultural, and political complexities because of their own personal investment as well as their lived experiences of living and growing up in the community. The identities of the school leaders, then, led to a collective sense of agency and transformational leadership practices that facilitated a change in the grim situations and prospects of their students, and motivated them to become role models and community leaders providing resources and supports to ensure the high academic performance of students in the academy. However, we also realized that cultural understanding may sometimes lead to parochial views on what is best for students, leading to practices that prevent the exploration of student options beyond high school.