Secondary and postsecondary vocational education in Mississippi: an evaluation: final report prepared for the Mississippi Commission on Work Force Excellence

The Commission undertook an evaluation of Mississippi's secondary and postsecondary vocational education system. The study found that although vocational education in Mississippi is a diverse enterprise, and not one of the findings applies to all programs or schools, nevertheless some generalisations can be made. These include: the basic conceptual structure for organising and delivering vocational education in Mississippi seems sound; stereotyping by gender and race pervades many of the vocational education offerings; there are both positive and negative outcomes for participants in vocational education; the quality of vocational education was quite mixed; efforts to articulate vocational education through 2+2 or tech prep programs are the exception rather than the rule; there was little evidence that state-generated labor market data significantly influenced program planning; systems of accountability need attention; the governance structure needs serious reconsideration. Show less