A new technology-based school, called Pathways in Technology Early College High School (or P-Tech) has been approved for the Albany, New York area. The idea is that when students enter the ninth-grade at this school, they will stay in for the entire six-year program that focuses on technology, science, engineering, and mathematics. When students successfully complete the program, they will have earned both a high school diploma and an associate's degree at no cost to them, giving them the ability to step directly into the workforce. One speaker has explained that this is their "ticket into the middle class" because it gives them a jump start to the head of the line in business, technology, and engineering jobs.
It's an interesting concept, but I'm torn. On the one hand, I think this is going to give a lot of students who normally wouldn't be able to afford to get any degree a chance to get their associate's. It may give kids who could afford college but weren't considering attending a chance to spark the fire in them that will inspire them to go on for a four-year degree or more. It will prepare students for a job after P-Tech, and give them the skills to enter the middle/working class. But at the same time, how far will an associate's degree actually get you? Will you be hired by Microsoft, Apple, or even IBM (a sponsor of P-Tech) with only an associate's degree, or will they overlook you for someone with a bachelor's or master's?
I think it's great that this program has been approved because it's going to give kids the opportunity to obtain a degree that they may normally would not have been able to get, but I have to wonder if it's setting them up with unattainable expectations when you only have an associate's degree...
Want to read more about this? Check out the article I found.
No comments:
Post a Comment