Lincoln County Schools observed Career Technical Education month during February. CTE teachers at each high school encouraged their students to participate in job shadowing. Students were to choose a business and job of interest to them, to contact leadership or human resources with their request, and to shadow workers during the workday. CTE teacher Camille Sain says “CTE courses are important because of the hands-on, real-world experiences they provide.” Job shadowing allows students firsthand opportunities to see what the day in the life of a job looks like, to learn about the job and business, and to create opportunities to meet professionals and enlarge their career network.
Another valuable benefit of career technical education classes while in high school are internships. Like shadowing, these internships give you firsthand experience. In some cases, if you already have a part time job, you may be able to use that as your internship. CTE teachers or the Career development Coordinator often have contacts in local businesses who value the help of high school interns. Some internships provide pay for your work. Addison, shared “What I find most valuable about taking CTE classes is that they allow us to explore different careers we might be interested in. We not only learn the skills needed for these jobs but also get to practice them. The opportunities that come with CTE classes and getting to learn skills I can use now and later in life are what I enjoy most about my Business Ethics and Law I Honors class.”
