A r c h i v e d  I n f o r m a t i o n

The Emergence of Tech-Prep at the State and Local Levels - 1995

Reported Participation In Tech-Prep Programs

The reported overall number of Tech-Prep students is a composite of participation in programs with very different models and program components. In some consortia, programs "begin" in the 11th grade; some begin in lower grades. Some consortia count students on the basis of participation in a single course, while others count students as participants only if they take a series of courses. The reader should bear in mind that all participation statistics reported here are based on each consortium's own definition.

To document participation, we asked coordinators to record the total number of students counted as "in Tech-Prep" in SY 1993 across member districts, by grade level. We also asked coordinators to estimate the racial/ethnic composition of the participating student population, and the percentage in several special population categories.

More than 172,000 students participated in Tech-Prep programs in 1992-1993

A total of 172,882 students participated in Tech-Prep programs during the 1992-1993 school year. This total was reported by the 250 consortia that were able to identify and count Tech-Prep participants during that year. An average of 692 students participated in each consortium; the reported number of participants ranged from 2 to 16,163.2

These students participated in programs with quite different designs and implementation approaches (Table VI.2). Of the 439 consortia that reported a consortium-wide participation definition, 192 (44%) were able to report counts of Tech-Prep students; more than 15 definitions were used by these 192 consortia.3 One-quarter of the 192 defined participation in a way that closely resembles participation in a program of study--choosing Tech-Prep, completing a student plan, and taking both applied academic and vocational courses. These 49 consortia accounted for 35,655 students, or 21 percent of all Tech-Prep participants reported. On the other hand, nearly 3,000 students in 11 consortia were counted as Tech-Prep participants based solely on their enrollment in one or more applied academic courses.

TABLE VI.2
Reporting Capacity And Counts Of Tech-Prep Students In SY 1992-1993,
By Participation Definition
Definition Criteria
Chooses Tech-Prepa Student Plan Vocational Courses Applied Academics Otherb Number of Consortia Reporting a Participation Definition Percentage that Can Report Participation Number of Students Reported
X



33 42 9,650

 X


18 17 16,760
X

16 56 11,723

X
14 79 2,985
X X


40 23 4,388
X
X

10 40 1,924
X

X
9 44 1,745

 X X

14 57 10,585

 X
X
13 46 7,203
X X
23 48 10,957
X X X

46 46 16,690
X X
X
20 55 3,127
X
X X
25 40 1,539

 X X X
39 41 7,601
X X X X
106 46 35,655


X 13 46 10,145
Consortia with Definition Criteria 439 44 152,587
Consortia with Definitions Established by Individual Districts/Schools 54 56 11,064
Consortia with No Definition 209 13 9,231
All Consortia 702 36 172,882

Note: Definition of participation were reported only by consortia in which all consortium members adopted the definition. These consortia are 76 percent of all consortia that reported participation numbers and accounted of 88 percent of all reported Tech-Prep students in FY 1993.

a IN consortia where participation is defined based only on a student's choice of Tech-Prep, other program components are undoubtedly in place as well, but the consortia simplify the counting of Tech-Prep students by using a single criterion.

b These include consortia that define Tech-Prep students as all students in the consortium schools, all students in the consortium schools who have not chosen a college preparatory pathway, or all students who "meet the criteria defined in the Perkins legislation."

Tech-Prep participants are spread across grade levels

Although the federal legislation focused on promoting Tech-Prep programs that incorporate secondary grades 11 and 12, many students were reported as participating in Tech-Prep in the lower grades of high school (Figure VI.2). Approximately three-fourths of consortia reporting participation, or approximately 25 percent of consortia overall, included student enrollments in grades 9 and 10 in their counts. Of the reported 172,882 students in Tech-Prep in FY 1993, 25 percent were in the 9th grade, and 22 percent were in the 10th grade. The proportions of Tech-Prep participants in each grade were surprisingly similar, given the guidance contained in the federal legislation. 

                                 FIGURE VI.2                   TOTAL REPORTED PARTICPATION IN TECH-PREP,                               BY GRADE LEVEL  GRADE LEVEL          9th ========>(25%)         10th =======>(22%)         11th ==============>54,077(31%)         12th =======>37,029(21%)   All Grades ==========================================>172,882(100%)             +-----------+-----------+-----------+-----------+                         50,000      100,000     150,000     200,000                                TECH-PREP STUDENTS                      (PERCENTAGE OF ALL TECH-PREP STUDENTS)  SOURCE: Inventory of Local Tech-Prep Planning and Implementation, Fall 1993

The distribution of students across grade levels probably reflects practices for enrolling new Tech-Prep students. Most Tech-Prep programs begin to formally identify or "enroll" students when the students enter either 9th grade or 11th grade.4 Each year that a consortium reports participation it will report students in a new cohort (either 9th or 11th grade). However, some attrition between the first and subsequent years of the program (from 9th grade to 10th grade, or from 11th grade to 12th grade) could be expected. Therefore, it is possible that more Tech-Prep students will always be reported in the 9th than in the 10th grade, and in the 11th grade than in the 12th grade.

Tech-Prep students are distributed unevenly across the nation

Consortia in the South and in suburban areas reported large shares of Tech-Prep participants in FY 1993 (Figure VI.3). More than 106,000 students in the South were reported as in Tech-Prep in the 1992-1993 school year. Although this figure represented 62 percent of all reported Tech-Prep students that year, the South accounted for only 46 percent of all consortia and 35 percent of all secondary students in the United States. Slightly more than 12,000 Tech-Prep students (about 7 percent of the total number of Tech-Prep participants) were reported by consortia in the Northeast. The Midwest and West regions each reported approximately 27,000 Tech-Prep students, or 16 percent of the total.

Even more pronounced were differences in the distribution of participants by metropolitan status. Suburban consortia reported enrolling 68 percent of all Tech-Prep students in SY 1992-1993, although they accounted for only 46 percent of all consortia. Urban consortia represent 12 percent of all consortia but reported 7 percent of the total number of participants. Rural consortia accounted for one-fourth of the Tech-Prep students, but 42 percent of all consortia. 

                               FIGURE VI.3              DISTRIBUTION OF REPORTED TECH-PREP STUDENTS,                         BY GEOGRAPHIC LOCATION  BY CENSUS REGION         Northeast ===>7%             South ============================>61%            Midwest ========>16%               West ========>16%                  +-----------+-----------+-----------+----------+                  0           25          50          75         100                                 PERCENT OF STUDENTS  BY METROPOLITAN          STATUS             Urban ===>7%          Suburban ===============================>68%              Rural ============>25%                  +-----------+-----------+-----------+----------+                  0           25          50          75         100                                  PERCENT OF STUDENTS  SOURCE: Inventory of Local Tech-Prep Planning and Implementation, Fall 1993

Tech-Prep students currently are a small proportion of the secondary school population

In FY 1993, when federal support for Tech-Prep was in its second year, reported participation represented a very small fraction of the total secondary student population. In some states where consortia actually reported on Tech-Prep participation, Tech-Prep students accounted for as little as under one percent of all secondary students in their consortium districts, but in other states they accounted for as much as 70 percent (Table VI.3). Across all consortia that reported participation nationwide, Tech-Prep students represented 4.7 percent of all secondary students in their districts.5 This figure could be regarded as an upper bound estimate of the proportion of all secondary students in consortia districts who were involved in Tech-Prep, if we assume that consortia that did not report on participation had students involved in Tech-Prep at comparable rates but were simply unable to collect participation data. A lower bound estimate of participation, alternatively, can be based on the assumption that consortia that did not report on participation had not yet begun to identify and count Tech-Prep students. Under this more plausible assumption, Tech-Prep students would represent somewhat less than two percent of all secondary students in districts that are part of Tech-Prep consortia.

TABLE VI.3
Reported Tech-Prep Participation As A Share
Of All Secondary Students, By State
State Total Number of Tech-Prep Secondary Students Percentage of Consortia Repoting Participation Tech-Prep Students as a Percentage of All Secondary Students in Reporting Consortia
Alabama 6,205 52 9
Alaska 0 0 --
Arizona 3,038 40 6
Arkansas 1,248 62 6
California 260 2 4
Colorado 245 23 1
Connecticut 497 56 1
Delaware 0 0 --
District of Columbia 67 100 0
Florida 7,552 56 4
Georgia 16,514 30 34
Hawaii 0 0 --
Idaho 0 0 --
Illinois 1,513 32 2
Indiana 5,240 62 3
Iowa 747 60 8
Kansas 54 33 1
Kentucky 6,497 34 19
Louisiana 4,395 42 6
Maine 89 17 1
Maryland 6,945 53 6
Massachusetts 3,435 67 8
Michigan 13,532 19 29
Minnesota 601 17 14
Mississippi 82 7 5
Missouri 0 0 --
Montana 24 33 1
Nebraska 388 83 1
Nevada 1,288 100 2
New Hampshire 0 0 --
New Jersey 1,289 53 2
New Mexico 852 60 4
New York 2,351 46 0
North Carolina 17,138 55 21
North Dakota 0 0 --
Ohio 0 0 --
Oklahoma 933 40 4
Oregon 19,433 57 71
Pennsylvania 3,154 28 3
Rhode Island 1,256 100 5
South Carolina 16,320 63 14
South Dakota 0 0 --
Tennessee 4,638 71 2
Texas 17,125 52 3
Utah 760 38 1
Vermont 30 25 0
Virginia 165 10 0
Washington 170 7 4
West Virginia 495 36 4
Wisconsin 5,244 42 6
Wyoming 799 33 21
Puerto Rico 260 100 0
Virgin Islands 0 0 --
Total 172,882 36 4.7
SOURCE: Inventory of Local Tech-Prep Planning and Implementation, fall 1993.

NOTE: Two dashes(--) indicate no Tech-Prep students were reported by consortia in the state; thus a percentage of all students in reporting consortia could not be computed.

Urban areas may be underserved by Tech-Prep. Tech-Prep participants account for a much smaller fraction of all secondary students within central city consortium districts than within districts in suburban or rural consortia (Figure VI.4). In consortia that reported on participation and were located primarily in urban areas, only 1 percent of high school students participated in Tech-Prep, compared with about 6 percent and 11 percent in suburban and rural areas, respectively. 

                              FIGURE VI.4           REPORTED TECH-PREP PARTICIPATION AS A SHARE OF ALL         SECONDARY STUDENTS IN CONSORTIA REPORTING PARTICIPATION  CENSUS REGION      Northeast ==>1.0%        Midwest ==============>6.0%          South ==================>8.7%           West ======================>9.7%               +-----------+----------+----------+----------+               0           5          10         15         20                                  PERCENTAGE   METROPOLITAN        STATUS          Urban ==>1.0%       Suburban =============>5.9%          Rural ===========================>11.9%               +-----------+----------+----------+----------+               0           5          10         15         20                                  PERCENTAGE  SOURCE: Inventory of Local Tech-Prep Planning and Implementation, Fall 1993

Tech-Prep participants do not fully reflect the racial/ethnic composition of the overall student population in their consortium districts

The racial/ethnic composition of the Tech-Prep student population differs somewhat from that of other students in their school districts (Table VI.4). Compared with the general student population, Tech-Prep students are more likely to be white, and less likely to be members of a minority group. To a large extent, this difference is due to the relatively low rate at which students are reported to be participating in Tech-Prep in large urban areas that have large minority student populations.

TABLE VI.4
Racial/Ethnic Distribution Of Tech-Prep And Of All Students
In Reporting Consortium Districts, By Metropolitan Status
(Percent of Students)
Urban Suburban Rural All
Racial/Ethnic Category Tech-Prep Students All Students in Districts Tech-Prep Students All Students in Districts Tech-Prep Students All Students in Districts Tech-Prep Students All Students in Districts
White 33.7 28.8 74.8 69.9 65.5 79.3 69.3 54.6
Black 17.9 35.5 14.2 16.1 28.2 15.4 18.1 23.7
Hispanic 45.9 27.9 8.8 11.2 3.9 2.9 10.4 16.9
Native American 0.6 0.5 0.7 0.4 1.7 1.8 1.0 0.6
Asian/Pacific Islander 1.9 7.3 1.4 2.4 0.7 0.6 1.2 4.2
Percentage of All Tech-Prep Students 7 68 25 100
Percentage of All Students in Consortium Districts 40 49 11 100

Most consortia are taking steps to increase access of special populations to Tech-Prep

Eighty-five percent of consortia reported instituting specific measures to facilitate access to Tech-Prep by members of special population groups--minorities, disadvantaged students, students with handicaps or hearing-impairment, and students with limited English language proficiency. The Perkins legislation mandates that localities ensure these groups' complete access to all programs funded under the act. Therefore, the high proportion of Tech-Prep consortia taking these steps is not surprising.

Consortia used a variety of services or made different accommodations to facilitate access to Tech-Prep (Figure VI.5). The most frequently reported approach (taken by more than 75 percent of consortia) is the inclusion of a special populations coordinator on the Tech-Prep team and/or in curriculum and staff development activities. Almost 60 percent of consortia reported modifying curriculum content or instructional methods to meet the special needs of a particular group, although the nature of these changes cannot be discerned from the survey data. Another 56 percent reported making physical access accommodations. Relatively few consortia reported providing support services directly (for example, transportation, child care, or interpreters). 

                                FIGURE VI.5    CONSORTIA'S USE OF SERVICES OR ACCOMMODATIONS TO FACILITATE SPECIAL                  POPULATIONS' ACCESS TO TECH-PREP          TYPE OF SERVICE      Special Populations ===================================>76%             Coordinator     Modified Curriculum/ ============================>58%             Instruction      Materials/Instruction =====>15%        in Native Language               Interpreters ===========>23%            Physical Access =========================>56%            Accommodations           Special Equipment ==============>33%             Transportation ============>27%                 Child Care ==========>21%      Specialized Promotion =====================>46%                 Materials     Coordination with JPTA ====================>44% Youth or Similar Programs                           +--------+--------+--------+--------+--------+                           0        20       40       60       80       100                                          PERCENT OF CONSORTIA  SOURCE: Inventory of Local Tech-Prep Planning and Implementation, Fall 1993


2 Only 43 of the 250 consortia reporting on participation reported more than 1,000 Tech-Prep students. The high count of 16,163 Tech-Prep students was reported by a very large consortium (23 districts) in which participation is defined by enrollment in an articulated vocational course. The next largest count of Tech-Prep students reported by a consortium was 8,497. The remaining 41 of the 43 consortia reported fewer than 5,000 participants, with most reporting between one and two thousand Tech-Prep students.

3 These 192 consortia accounted for 88 percent of the total number of students reported by the 250 consortia that were able to identify and count Tech-Prep students. In the other 54 consortia that reported student counts, either individual members had different definitions (30 consortia) or the consortia lacked definitions for reporting participants (28 consortia).

4 Sixty percent of the consortia reported including "3 or more years of high school" as part of the program model. We are not able to distinguish between those that formally begin to identify students in 9th grade and in 10th grade. However, anecdotal evidence and discussions with Tech-Prep coordinators suggest that programs are more likely to begin in 9th grade than in 10th grade. Forty percent of consortia coordinators reported that their Tech-Prep programs begin in 11th grade.

5 The estimates of Tech-Prep representation in the secondary student population are approximations because of data constraints. Data on district enrollments were based on the 1991-1992 school year, whereas Tech-Prep participation was reported for the 1992-1993 school year. We compared the number of Tech-Prep students with the number of all students in grades 9 through 12, even though some consortia do not include the early grades of high school in the program model.
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[Capacity To Report Student Participation] [Table of Contents] [VII. The School And Workplace Content Of Tech-Prep Programs]