An Assessment of Career Education Needs in North Carolina.

Overview & Synopsis

An assessment of the career education needs of exceptional and special needs students was completed by 57 directors of special education and 1,826 teachers in North Carolina, representing 57 of the 140 local education agencies in the state. The survey measured actual and needed career education emphasis within social adjustment training (SAT) and application of career education knowledge (ACEK). Demographic information covered years of teaching, level of teaching, type of setting, sex of teacher, and previous experience for obtaining information about career education. Generally, respondents reported differences and needed content in career education. There were significant differences for SAT and ACEK across actual and needed dimensions for the respondent's position. Teachers, for example, rated their school higher on actual career education emphasis on SAT and ACEK and felt that more instruction was needed than did administrators. Seventy percent could not specify whether their school had an appointed coordinator of special education. Findngs suggested the need to focus on ACEK in the schools as well as in teacher education programs. (CL)