Introducing Opportunity with CTE in Middle School

As many college-age students will explain, when they reach their later years of high school, teachers, advisors, and counselors begin introducing them to possible career paths. This type of preparation serves as an introduction to the typical four-year college experience, which seems to be the mainstream expectation for planning after high school. The issue with this limited approach to career prep is that it gives students a narrow view of the opportunities that lie ahead of them, which is an injustice to students, as well as a variety of industries. All students deserve to be exposed to possible careers at a young age. If they are only given that guidance just before graduating high school, their understanding of their own potential stays far below what they deserve. That is why my mission is to introduce Career and Technical Education to middle school students, while they still have years to discover their interests and skills. CTE opens up pathways that standard college and career preparation do not. As many experts in the trades will explain, if students are not introduced to CTE curriculum until they are preparing for college, it might already be too late for them to legitimately consider all the career paths available to them. Middle school, which already marks a turning point in the educational experience of students, proves to be the optimal moment for CTE to be integrated into schools’ academic offerings.... Click here to continue reading. About today's guest:  Mike Schloff founded Maplewoodshop in 2016 to help all children develop life skills through woodworking with hand tools. Mike has been woodworking since 2004 when he moved into his first home and needed to tackle repairs. He invented the workstation that Maplewoodshop uses after building several generations of woodworking tables and fixtures for teaching children and adults. He is a lifelong tinkerer and still teaches locally to try out new lesson plans. Prior to Maplewoodshop, Mike was a pioneer in the Internet space, helping people and companies take advantage of this new medium since 1995. In his spare time, Mike likes to work with local wind fall trees making tables, benches, and all sorts of creations that let the natural grain and forms determine the design of the finished project. Contact Information: Instagram @Maplewoodshop Facebook @MaplewoodshopNJ Twitter @MaplewoodshopNJ Linkedin @MaplewoodshopNJ Email [email protected]